First Boat Opinions
 

Looking for some options and opinions on a first boat.

As a guy that is fresh out of college here are some things about me to help:

• Would be boating on the Mississippi near Dubuque Ia.
• Most of the use would be on the weekends.
• Would like to be able to pull with my current truck can tow up to 6500lbs.
• Would like to spend less than 40k.
• Not really sure what my main use for the boat would be, definitely do not need to go 80+ mph, but want to go more than 50.
• Would to fit 5 people comfortably.

I have looked at 20 - 26 Baja Outlaws, 21 - 26' Baja Islanders, Crownline open bows, Sea Doo, Scarab and Yamaha jet boats as well.

I am partial to the Bajas because my parents had 3 of them and really liked their 33 Outlaw. Also like the old styling and colors.

Anyways enough of my rambling.

Would prefer under 26' as I would think something longer may be overwhelming. Also something shorter than 20' may not meet my requirements.

I would be doing mainly day trips, but not sure if I would only be doing day trips.

25 Outlaw
26-28 Powerquest
26 Sonic
288 Sunsation

we went with powerquest over baja because it has more cockpit room. more space between back seat and front seats. all in whats important to youl

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.off...c319f2844e.jpg
I live in North Liberty where you do and have a 288 Sunsation that will be up for sale soon. It will be a bit higher priced than your budget, but let me know if its something you would ever want to take a look at!

I agree with the above comment about sticking with stock power. BUT with 2 496 boats I’ve been around, they had a lot of electronic issues and to diagnose, they needed a mercury scan tool that cost several hundred $. Graduated college in 2010 and bought MY first boat, a 21’ Baja Hammer. It was a good first boat but it’s not for big water IMO. Small fresh water lakes it’s perfect. Never boated on the river so I cannot comment there. Since then, I’ve had a 19’ jet boat, 27, 29, and now a 32 Fountain.
A 27’ Fountain may be a good fit for you. On an aluminum trailer, it might be within your trucks towing capacity. I believe the dry weight is 4700 lbs. I’m partial to Fountains but early to mid 90s and up, they all have hydraulic steering and K plans. Not a standard feature on a lot of Bajas. I like the 502 mag the best so far. They are fuel injected so they start a lot easier than carb motors. 27 with a 502 would probably hit high 60s mph. Have decent stock reliable power. If this is a hobby you feel you will continue, don’t start off too small, you will alway want to go bigger. After a couple years the 27 will feel small. There are a lot of other nice boats out there like Nordic, Checkmate, Sunsation, Formula, and etc. but I cannot comment on them.

What exactly is your tow vehicle? I think that may be your limiting factor. Remember, that Towing Capacity number is with NOTHING else in the vehicle, just the driver. Passengers, cargo, coolers, etc. etc. all subtract from your GCWR.

I had a 26' Sonic with a 500EFI on a cheap aluminum trailer for my first boat. It was 7280 lbs. total. My Tahoe was BARELY enough truck with a 7500 lbs. rating.
https://scontent.fslc2-1.fna.fbcdn.n...b0&oe=5DBF2A42

What is your annual boat ownership cost budget?

Many good suggestions and I'll add Velocity and Checkmate. Keep it simple with stock power. Trim tabs and external steering would be a plus. Good luck.

The idea of more cockpit room sounds nice if I want a cuddy.

I would like to buy an unmodified and never really had my eye on anything modified as it just doesn't make sense right now.

A single is the only thing I need (the reason for staying under 26') and would prefer not to pay for maintenance and fuel for two engines and drives.

I was thinking an islander just because of the added room to bring friends, but prefer the looks of the outlaws.

An open bow is going to give you more space and room for friends and coolers. You may want to look into a Cobalt open bow. They hold their value and are well built. Usually they came with the bigger motor as well. It may be a good way to get a boat that is into the 60mph range and not lose to much money if you decide you would prefer a cuddy and performance boat. Also with a being your first boat the open bow is easier to dock and grab lines with the open front.

That is a good looking boat, might be interested in a year when I have more income to make it "seem reasonable".

I feel pretty confident in my mechanical skills with 8 years of experience working on snowmobiles. I have good relationship with people who had 496s in the past and know one of the guys who own Hawkeye now.

I would probably stay away from a hammer or a boat with a shallow deadrise because the Mississippi can get pretty rough on the weekends. A fountain 27 sounds pretty nice with trim tabs and hydraulic steering.

Good point thanks for pointing that out, got a 17' GMC Canyon crew cab short bed. Website says 6000lbs so I was off a bit, would probably check the owner's manual to be sure.

Yes, but thinking more about it it may be out of the question to tow it with my current truck.

I will have to keep my eye out for it, thanks.

Great question I am not quite sure, will have to look more into my spread sheet to find some numbers and do some calculations.

Thanks, just some of these boats are harder to find within a reasonable distance.

An open bow is starting to seem like a better choice because of the flexibility and I really dont know if I will be doing overnights until I use a boat.

I have seen some cobalts advertised in a few different places, don't know much about them, but seem to command a good resale value.

You are kidding yourself if you think you are going to tow a 26' big block boat with a Canyon. if keeping the truck is a must, you need to be looking at boats in the 21'-23' range with a small block.

Sorry, haven't deeply looked into the weights of these +25' boats. I would prefer to not have to change trucks soon. Thanks for the input.

My 242 on the trailer full of fuel weighs just over 6K.