FeverMike

Gator, a good self bailing boat will not draw water into it plus it will have channels in the deck so that water runs in those channels and the deck stays dry.

RLW, I did not have any problems with the plastic zip ties or wire /clamps mounts with my Concept. Concept does an awesome wiring job but it would be a nice touch if they did use stainless wire clamps. I actually liked my Concept but hated the local dealer more than you could ever believe.

The only problems (not dealer created) I had after owning the boat for a while was the powder coating on the arch and rails starting to bubble upvery bad , I started to get lots of creaks and rattles, the paint on the hull sides was chipping off in round circles about the size of a dime or less especially after a hard run in big water (possibly due to flex and bad paint prep?) and since the boat is narrow in beam (8') it was a very very wet boat in big seas. It also rocked back and forth a lot due to the narrow beam and top heavy arch while sitting still and fishing. Also I keep my boat outside on a lift behind my house and since the Concept is NOT self bailing...every time it rained the bilge pump would run and run. I went through a lot of battery's and bildge pumps! Big open boats should be self bailing!

Concept builds a great boat though and I still recomend them as no boat is perfect. I never had one stress crack! If you are looking for a sharp boat that rides in the chop of a bay well or lake then you should look at the Concept.

BigMike

I can echo FeverMikes comments on the back seat of the Concept being the wettest seat in the house (I am pretty sure this is the case with most narrow beam center consoles without any bow flare). Everytime we went out in the rough, I came home soaked head to toe. The 38TE Fountain is a different story. The only time I have ever gotten wet in it was when we came down wrong off of about an 8' surprise roller coming back in from a bad day fishing. The wind was blowing about 40 MPH and everybody got the opportunity to experience a wall of salt water. This was in February and the water was about 60 degrees. Made for a long, cold trip home.

Also, Concept does not provide a tie-off cleat in the anchor locker. This is a ridiculous oversight and cost us $150 in ground tackle.

Mike

FeverMike

Oh yeah, I forgot about the tie off cleat in the anchor locker! That was a bad day huh? What a true pisser! I forgot to tell Big Mike that the anchor line was not fixed to the boat and this was around the 1st time we were out in the Concept, so BigMike was letting out line and...zip...the end of the line went right through his hands. Everything was lost! So, we went out and bought a new anchor , chain and line and some marine hardware and fixed the end of the line to the inside cleat. We actually tried to troll for the line and anchor hoping to snag it! The other fishing boats out there were looking at us like we were nuts!

To be fair though the 36 Concept and the 38 Fountain and for that matter other 36-38's like Contender, SeVee, Jupiter, Venture, Yellowfin and so forth can not be compared directly. These boats are much bigger and stout and almost a totally different boat. The Concept is very narrow and extremely light in weight compared other other 33-38' foot CC boats.

crb76

I don’t get water in the Glasstream unless I stop super fast. Then it will come in a bit. No more than a little. Then it will go back out and it stays dry. I also have plugs to put in the holes in case I want no water transfer at all. Self bailing hulls are the only way to go. I will promise you that. I can hose it out all day long and it keeps clean, not to mention how it performs in a rain storm  Check out Glasstream when you evaluate, they are up and comming. At the Hot Boat rally during the Miami Boat show, the editor told me and the owner of Glasstream that the boat was the best "performance" center console pound for pound, dollar for dollar, power for power the had ever tested.

FeverMike

Hey Big Mike, care to elaborate on why your Lisa likes a self bailing hull?

Poorsche

Check out the Maralogo--well done/great price...http://www.marlagousa.com/

FeverMike

I looked at Marlago's one time and they were very nicely finished. They are an excellent size boat too. I did not get to ride in one but on other websites that are moreinto CC and fish type of boats I have never read anything negitive.
Keep us posted on what boats you like, ride on and ultimatly purchase...have fun!

RLW

Are there any forums geared for the CC style boats?

FeverMike

RLW, check out thehulltruth.com also the Florida Sportsman's Boating site and of course anglersonly.com.

33ApacheCC

Yes, the Marlago's look very nice, but their max hull rating is only 500hp, which seems low to me for such a large boat. They're basically saying it's a twin engine boat, period. But for a boat that big, triples may be necessary or desired by some.

Midnight Express says their max hull rating is 900hp but often exceed it when they put quad 250's or 300's on the back as I've seen them do before. Anyone know what the formula is for obtaining a hull's hp rating, or know what issues would arise (insurance or otherwise) if you surpass a manufacturers advertised max hull rating? 900hp seems to be the max any of the builders are posting for their hulls at this time.

thanks...great thread by the way....let's keep it active. CC owners are a growing group....