38 to 42
 

it seems the 42 is so much more popular than the 38 whats the deal
Price?
Better hull design?
The cockpit is the same size isnt it?
Will a guy take a beating on a 38 when he sells ?

it may be that the guy buying a 42 with 525/ bravo set up would pay the minor difference when considering he is spending more than a couple hundred thou.
looking at it from a true performance stand point i would say to purcgase a 700 nxt package in a 38 before a bravo 42. but ultimately for the enthusiast a 700 42.
now your talking about alot of cash in either of the las t 2 scenarios.
i dont think a 38 would take any more of a abeating than anything else. if you buy a boat and trade it a year later, regardless, the loss is more than not whether a 38 or 42.

good luck.

what about cockpit size if the 42 is no bigger i think i will look for a 38
are the bottoms same
some say to say away from staggered 42s side by side have better cg.

I have owned several 38' and 42' Fountains. The cockpit is the same in both boats. The sunpad is a little longer on the 42. The 38 runs 88MPH-90MPH with 525 EFI's, and the 42 runs 84MPH-86MPH. I personally like the ride of the 38 better than the 42. If you buy a 38' make sure it is a 2003 or newer.

Who have you been talking to?? The stagger 42 is probably the ultimate Fountain. The cockpit sizes are the same. Go with the 42 if you can swing it.

i do most of my boating @loto and miss. river i thing the 42 is a little big and hard to find slips to rent for 42s

is that when they changed bottom
I don't know if i can get use to throttles on left side

Yes, they changed the bottom and staggered the engines in late 02/early 03. I would go with a 2004 or newer because of the 525 and XR's. The 38' is the way to go if you are going to be boating at LOTO and MS River. You will get use to the left hand throttles.

what type of speeds with that package

The 38' is a good all around boat - ride, size, and layout. I've been in a few 38's and 42's and didn't particularly like the ride of the 42. Re-sale is no different on the 38 than the 42 and the extra speed of the 38' is nice. You can probably get a better deal on a 38' over a 42' if you hunt around. If I was looking for a Fountain I'd pick up a 38' over a 42' but that's just me.

A buddy was telling me about a really clean 38 Lightning at LOTO, I can't remember exactly what year but I think it's a 04 or 05 w/525's. Sounded like a nice boat, don't know if it sold or not.