Good small beginner boat?
 

Starting to seriously think about what I want in a boat. Mostly would be used in NJ, ICW side, occasional trips outside in very good weather. Looking for single engine, trailerable, 19-23'; small cuddy room for 4-6 people. Performance of mid 30's cruise to 45-50 top end. Doesn't need to be the meanest boat on the water, but something with a little grunt to it would be nice.

Something in need of work I am OK with; don't want to rebuild a boat from scratch though. Don't really want to go older than mid 1980's....less than 10k money wise. What is a good beginner boat in this sector? Most of the use would be to get to an anchorage or beach and hang out all day; dinner cruising, etc.....

You will not find a 4-6 person cuddy in that size. I would look for an older wellcraft nova, or baja force if I were you

Not going to have much cuddy room but it's hard to beat a nice 24x7 boat for cruising around in that size range. Should be able to find a few 24 Superboats up there. A nice 22 Donzi classic would do the trick too.

Correct the cuddy in My 2750 (28ft) is cramped with 4, but can be done for a limited time-

You could theoretically shelter 6 from a hailstorm for 20 minutes, but in no way would you ever want to hang out with 6 people "down there".

Maybe that isnt what you meant though...please describe what you mean by - "room for 4-6 people" in the cuddy or in the seats.

UD

Room for 4-6 people to take a 2-4 hour dinner cruise. Cuddy only has to have a porta-potti and enough room for 1 or 2 people for those days anchored out when you need to get out of the sun.

Kicking around the pro's and cons of a small cuddy (with a Bimni top) with an I/O vs a small walkaround fishboat (with a hardtop/Bimini) with an outboard. I like big open deck space vs built in seating (lots of cushions and vinyl to replace). I have considered the Nova; others are good suggestions as well.

23' Wellcraft Eclipse, IMO, is probably about the best boat for the size you're looking at...

also 22-23 chris craft concept with 460 cobra nice boat huge wrap around seating in rear that has a center cushion that turn into a bed.

What about some of the older fishing boats based on performance hulls? The more and more 15-25 year old sport boats I look at I see a bit too much soft goods going bad and lack of deck space.

Pick up a Velocity 22 O/B and call it a day.............

Garage-kept 1990 Velocity 22 OB. The boat was originally put into service in 1992 with a 2.5 EFI 260, but re-rigged with a new 3.0 L 250 EFI in 2004. Trailer is a tandem steel drive-on with spare and brakes.

The boat is flawless with original gelcoat graphics and original interior - white with teal and silver. Cuddy cabin has only been used for light storage.

Full gauges, Land and Sea hydraulic jackplate, Hotfoot, trim and jack buttons on the wheel, 24 and 26 Trophy props, new Topgun cockpit cover, new Topgun trailering cover to waterline, Torquemaster lower unit with low water pick-ups (factory), relieved exhaust (factory also), swim platform with telescoping ladder, 3 gallon oil reservoir, 50 gallon aluminum tank, misc. accessories.

I get low 60's with four to five people on board and the 24 Trophy, and 68.4 GPS has been the best with one person and the 26 Trophy. The motor has about 140 hours on the meter and has spent most of it's life at 3800 - 4000 rpm. The rev limiter on the EFI is set at 5800. I've done no mods.

This is an amazing rough water boat and a beautiful rig. I've enjoyed and cared for it since 2003. It will make anyone a proud owner.

$19,900.00 Calll Tim Murphy at 864-723-3458 or email [email protected] for more pictures. PM's are fine, but I'm not on-line that much so the phone and email are best. I'm located at Lake Keowee in Seneca, SC.

a mid 90's 22' scarab would do the trick...350/alpha goes high 50's, seats 5, low/low maintenance...some came with a thin pad in the v...now-a-days, $10ish, on a trailer....and they sound cool....V8 sounds...

That Velocity sounds nice; but is at double my spending limit. I grew up around boats but haven't owned one myself. I'd like to keep it low budget for the first one.

Something like that 22 Scarab sounds about right though. I did find a 23' Wellcraft Eclipse locally for about 6k but looked a little rough in the pics. Not sure I'm going to be ready to jump this year; just doing all my homework; hopefully can find something by end of the season or next winter

Any particular boats/brands that should just flat be avoided? Notorious for quality issues, hard to re-sell, etc...?

22' SCARAB (FAST) - $14,995 (FRESNO)

Date: 2010-02-28, 8:31PM PST

------------------------------------------------------------------------I HAVE A '96 WELLCRAFT SCARAB 22' IN EXCELLENT CONDITION. IT IS POWERED BY A 340 HP MERCRUISER 350EFI THAT WAS PURCHASED FOR $12,000 . THE MOTOR HAS 43 HOURS AND OUT DRIVE WAS REBUILT A YEAR AGO FOR $600. THE TRAILERCENTERLINE WHEELS AND NEW TIRES . THE TRAILER HAS BEEN PAINTED RECENTLY, AND THE BOAT HAS NEW GRAPHICS THAT WERE INSTALLED A MONTH AGO. ALL THE INTERIOR IS NEW AS OF A YEAR AGO. THE MOTOR IS EQUIPED WITH A SILENT SELECT EXHAUST SYSTEM THAT LETS YOU RUN OPEN HEADERS(LOUD). THE FRONT SEATS ARE CAPTAIN SELECT SEATS FOR MORE COMFORT, BRAND NEW DEEP CYCLE BATTERIES, AND A KILLER SOUND SYSTEM. THE ONLY ISSUE WITH THE BOAT IS A SMALL CRACK IN THE WINDSHIELD THAT CAN BE REPAIRED BY PERCISION PLASTICS, I JUST NEVER GOT AROUND TO IT. ........ $14,995 OBO
.....................559-213-9451...............................

Or even better find a rare Scarab 21 O/B

1987 21'WELLCRAFT SCARAB 225HP Johnson O/B W/Tower - $7000 (POOLER,GA)

Date: 2010-03-04, 1:31PM EST

1987 WELLCRAFT SCARAB 21' long 8'beam with cubby cabin all fiberglass hull, single outboard 1988 vro 225 johnson power tt, stainles 4 blade prop, hydrolic steering(juast changed fluid) hydrolic jackplate,power trim and tilt, starboard swim step, A folding MONSTER wakeboard tower(still new $1200),large sundeck, alot of storage areas, cabin sleeps 2 w/sliding plexi cabin door, cabin hatches, cabin lighting, has a pioneer cd pl that doesnt work but the alpine speakers do, nav lighting, paddle, anchor w/line, fiberglass decking (nonskid) snap in/out carpet, swivel helm chairs, rear bench seat w/storage, transom was reinforced with alluminum plate for strengh, the oil injection has been removed as most motors of this age should be. I mix oil with gas, I always mix extra oil(just to be safe)id rather it smoke a bit than burn up a cylinder.
The boat runs great and the steering hydrolics were just refilled so it drives like a dream, it looks awesome for its age since the interior was totally redone a few years ago with all new upholstery as you can see. Its like a sports car in the water, we always get compliments.the trailer is included in sale has new straps and new tires.All rollers and a arms were replaced a year ago. deck is solid, transom is solid, a few rubs and nicks from loading. black sticker that runs down the middle on top has also started to come off about a foot at the front. also the fuel gage isnt working.
The only reason we are selling is we have a river home that we use where the river is too small for a boat like this so if you like the ocean or riding down the river wakeboarding,kneeboardin or skiing with the family or friends , this is a gerat boat for you.
call 912-210-2030 to come look at boat, ask for shane. serious inquirers only. boat and trailer are registered in my name. Boat can be delivered to sav,pooler ect. or picked up between richmond hill and hinesville. all serious offers will be considered, So first come with money in hand is going home with a new toy. bill of sale and registration will be avalaible with all past paperwork.

Better grab that O/B Scarab quick as they are few and far between I believe. They also had a small pad if I remember correctly. Good luck :D

look around for a redone nova 250, most likely twins..though you wanted a single, they would be 302's or 350's and run forever with decent milage. That hull will make you happy i it gets ugly out. It will run 50. The nova 23's may catch your eye, but its not a 24 degree bottom and will ride rougher.

There is a 250 Nova in Monmouth Beach; boat has been listed for 6 years....twins; one motor replaced 2003(ish). Motors not fully installed yet. No trailer. Boat may be a bit of a mess...if I could steal something like that and tinker all year I'd consider it....but it also could eat me alive. Part of me says just go get a 5 year old Bayliner with a 4.3 and make sure I enjoy being on the water as much as I did when I was a kid. Modern, easy to resell....just kind of ugly, not really a performance boat, lots of vinyl crap, etc...

Spend a little more upfront, and keep it for a while. If you get something too small/old, you will get tired of it, and spend twice as much upgrading later. I agree that a 24x7(pantera, superboat etc.) will fill al of your needs and more(dont have to wait for that super nice day to hit the outside):drink:

I am going to offend a bunch of people on this thread, but late 80's and early 90's wellcraft will equal ROT, I had a 1990's 23 Wellcraft Eclipse, and a 1990's 23 Wellcraft Concept, both decent boats, but the rigging wasnt sealed up properly, both boats ended up with rotton stringers.

Ditto this. I had a 1989 22' Scarab Excel that was perfect for my needs. Easily seats 5 adults. We had 6 in there a few times. Room for 4-5 to hide in the cuddy during a storm or something, but no more than 2-3 in there for any length of time.

Speed was great - 55-60 mph all day long. Sounded awesome with the open pipes. Very easy boat to own, handle on my own as my 1st performance boat.
Sold it last year for $9,000...and it was in excellent condition (just sun-faded paint/gel coat).

how about a blue stingray?

Consider what your are going to tow with as well. You can't just hook a 7x24 to any old tow mule, but that Velocity 22 would get you a long term value that you could tow with just about any car. True, it is a few more bucks, but like rchevelle71 said, you always spend more in the long run fiddling around with the wrong boats. Velocity holds the value nicely IMO and seem to be sought after year after year.

The Scarab 22 was a great boat also 1997 and up Donzi 22ZX has a good cuddy and an Older in the 80s Donzi Black Widow. Or a 22 Donzi Z great cuddy boat.

99 23' Stingray with a 502 low 70's trailer , it's been a great boat only a few thousand over your budget.

Here ya go......http://www.offshoreonly.com/classifi...o33210-en.html .....buy a new long block and be done with it. I'm sure if you head down with cash you could even get a better deal.