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Old 03-27-2019 | 02:33 PM
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Yup that is the one. Think it was a '98 with stock 502's. Original owner boat I believe. It was nice.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 02:45 PM
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Originally Posted by hogie roll


I didn’t need a survey to finance my boat through my credit union or to insure it through statefarm.
age of the AT and if he holds an agreed value of over 50k and it has 500s and also wants at least 500k in liability will require a survey
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Old 03-27-2019 | 03:11 PM
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Originally Posted by Knot 4 Me
Yup that is the one. Think it was a '98 with stock 502's. Original owner boat I believe. It was nice.
It was 454's. My buddy was looking at it and it sold.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 03:30 PM
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Originally Posted by BBYSTWY
Being you've owned both...what are your thoughts of the AT compared to others in its size range? Goal would be a 38 gun but I just don't think I'm there money wise yet.
...
My first boat was a 26' Sonic, and I skipped the 31/32 state by holding the 26' for a season or so longer, and bought the 37' AT. My 26' Sonic sold sight unseen to a guy in Montana, who sent a check and a shipper. Several years later, he ended up saving his neighbor's son's life who became stranded on their lake due to an abnormal windstorm, that contributed to his PWC becoming disabled. The Sonic was the only boat that could go out on the rough water; and he still owns the boat today, some 15 years later.

I was rolling down the Potomac River in my 26' Sonic one day when a buddy was across the river just eating up the water in his 37' AT. THAT moment is when I knew I'd have a 37' AT one day. I loved my 37' AT and kept it for 13 seasons; and the new owners are still ecstatic with it.

Both the Sonic and AT are great rough water boats, but given size for size category in those two brands, I'd pick the AT each time.
The Sonic will always have more of a production feel since they were a production boat until the bottom fell out of the market. AT has always been a custom boat, where each boat started with a blank sheet a paper. You will see more custom inputs, touches, and themes on most of the Active Thunders vs. the Sonics.

I like 36/38/39/42 Cigarettes too, but the BUYER for an AT and a Cigarette are different. Often, one is looking for value and/or versatility, and the other is looking for a toy and/or a certain caliber for display. You can get the versatility of a full cabin, full of amenities in a Top Gun, but it will be an older one with a straight bottom.

Lots more info on this posted in the past, but the original owner of Sonic, Jay Ross was great friends with Pat Haughey, the original and current owner of Active Thunder. (Notice, I said ACTIVE Thunder. Pat bought "Thunder Boats" and molds from a guy named Bob in Illinois way back the the day.) Why did Pat buy Thunder Boats and create "Active Thunder"? Because Pat had a 31' Sonic at the time, and saw a 32' Thunder eating up Lake Michigan and had to have one. So he bought the company. After Jay sold Sonic, he actually worked for Pat at Active for a while, but that partnership did not work out, and Jay moved on.

Back to comparing the ATs to others:
I've seen 32' ATs outrun other 35-38 foot boats in the FPC Key West Poker Run in the snotty stuff not due to HP, but due to ride. The 32' AT is an amazing hull. And where does the 32' AT hull have trace roots back to? The 35' Cigarette Mistress.

And when it comes to the 37' AT, I'd take that boat over anything else in the market in the 37-39' range in full cabin stand up boats in rough water. You have to know HOW to set the boat up to get it to perform. You don't trim it to the moon, point and shoot (any boat). But it is far and away the best riding most predictable hull out there in that size range.

Last edited by Sydwayz; 03-27-2019 at 07:13 PM.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 04:23 PM
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Well Brian, now you have pissed off the Fountain, Cig and Baja guys.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 05:08 PM
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Hahahaha drock....That was very informative and helpful sydwayz thanks you!! You do have me wondering however if I should hold out for a 37 instead of "settling" for the 32....no doubt the 32 will probably handle anything I will throw at it with ease but anyone who's been on Lake Michigan knows it can totally flip and be ROUGH in a matter of hours if not minutes...I don't ever want to be stranded somewhere like south haven, Chicago, wherever and not be able to go home because of the water which is what I have now in my heat....it sucks this thing doesn't ride better as it has been my dream boat since I was 16 years old but is what it is...would be great if all I ran was rivers and small lakes but I LOVE being out on the "big lake" and letting her eat heading to another port for supper or whatever....can't get enough of it!! Unless there's anything bigger than a 2 then I'm out hahaha
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Old 03-27-2019 | 05:29 PM
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I'm sure the 32 will out perform your 35. However, a 37 is a beast for its size. Very predictable, well balanced, great handling boat. I'd own another in a heartbeat.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 05:34 PM
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I have a 28...wish it was a 35 and we may not be having this conversation hahaha
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Old 03-27-2019 | 05:49 PM
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Oops. Lol.
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Old 03-27-2019 | 07:20 PM
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Originally Posted by BBYSTWY
Hahahaha drock....That was very informative and helpful sydwayz thanks you!! You do have me wondering however if I should hold out for a 37 instead of "settling" for the 32....no doubt the 32 will probably handle anything I will throw at it with ease but anyone who's been on Lake Michigan knows it can totally flip and be ROUGH in a matter of hours if not minutes...I don't ever want to be stranded somewhere like south haven, Chicago, wherever and not be able to go home because of the water which is what I have now in my heat....it sucks this thing doesn't ride better as it has been my dream boat since I was 16 years old but is what it is...would be great if all I ran was rivers and small lakes but I LOVE being out on the "big lake" and letting her eat heading to another port for supper or whatever....can't get enough of it!! Unless there's anything bigger than a 2 then I'm out hahaha
You could very simply buy Fast Forward now, and work you way up to bigger power. You can always bolt in new motors. You can't stretch a boat. Buy and run it for this season, and plan your build to stick in bigger power come winter. That was EXACTLY my plan when I bought Monsoon, which also has 496HOs. Monsoon was built in late 2002; displayed in the 2003 Miami Boat Show, has 600+ hours on it now, and the motors have never been out of the boat. I found that 496HOs were PERFECT for the boating I wanted to do, as I like going boating, not wrenching. I'm into car racing now, and heck I don't even like changing brake pads at the track.
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