Shane

All the above posts have merit. Many have an obvious bias. The importantt hing is stay withe Skater, Spectre or AMT. They are all high quality products. Each has its high points and each has its drawbacks. Try each one in the same conditions, both calm and rough. And then choose the one that will suit your application the best.

Good luck.

T2x

No slams taken or given..... but the 28 Skater has more forward entry lift and as much constant section as the 30 Spectre (cut down 32 Skater). Peter changed his designs after the 24's and the old 32 and brought more bottom.....further forward. The bows on the old Skater 21's 24's and 32's were extended...The bows on the 40's, 46's, 36's, new 32's ......and 28's...... are not. Since greater forward entry area reduces the possibility of stuffing, I will take the new Skater design....over the old ......in big water for safety reasons. Basically, you have as much bottom on the water in a 28 Skater as in a 30 Spectre.....so the rough water capability should be very close..... But the edges on the strakes steps , chines, and transoms of the Skater are much sharper and more detailed than the Spectre/Motions (much more labor and sophistication in the Skater layup.....hence the price difference) giving better speed in all conditions.

I have run against some similarly powered Spectres and they are pretty stout....... but IMHO the driver means a lot in these mid sized outboard cat comparisons and a better driver will beat a less accomplished driver in either of these boats.

T2x

T2x

Hi Sonny:

In rough water you can't compare an inboard anything to an out board boat of equal length.

True apples to apples comparisons require identical power plants. and The 28 Skater is definitely not an Inboard design.

T2x

Sonny Spectre 30

Agreed.

Still think the Spectre is the best looking, best buy for the buck.
Who goes WFO all the time anyway? Skater's are awesome boats.

Sonny

NASTY HABIT

I do

Miller

I'm no expert, but I ran with Shane in his 24 Skater in some snotty water and it ran well. In fact, we ran with some 30 Spectres, Motions and Eliminators. I've also been in a couple of older 28 Skaters that ran well in all kinds of water, but I think that may have been a result of riding with some very skilled drivers and throttlemen (including T2x). So, I think the 28 Skater will keep up with anything else in its class in any water, assuming the driver has the skills.

As for the Spectres and Motions, they seem well built and nicely rigged. I've not run a 30 so I can't comment. But, the boats are large for their length and are very nice designs. I don't think that you can go wrong with any of the above boats.

Brad

Martin Marine has a 2003 28 Skater for $129,900. I looked at the boat last week and it is beautiful. The boat has carbon fiber Gauge's and console. I would think this price is real close to the price of a new Specter or AMT!



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Spectre Man

I have had a 1992 32' Skater with triple 2.5s and a 2000 28' Skater with Pro Max 300s. The 28' ran 115mph on the GPS on salt water and ran 112mph on fresh water. I flipped the boat when going over a wake on my lake a few years back and sold the boat. Like always, the factory didn't give a s*** that I got hurt and flipped the boat. The dealer wanted to fix the glass repairs and take me to the cleaners (which he did as usual). I have been racing tunnels since 1978, and I can tell you that a 28' Skater with 300s or the new style 2.5(s) is an unstable boat, because of the geometry. It is stern heavy and the lateral CG is too high. The 30' Spectre, although much slower (100mph on this lake) carries the engines reaonably well. If you can get a hold of the older style 2.5s with the bass mid-section (weight saving), the boat should run and become more stable.