New boat
 

I want to by a bowrider for my wife and 16 yr old
son,we need something for water skiing & putting
around on. Any suggetions ? Cant spend a ton of
money. Cobalts are out of the question. I saw a
new 210 Four Winns that looked nice,tons of features.
I know the are built by Genmar. What do you think ?
Decent or are they junk. I know Genmers stuff used to be crap.

I know I'll probably get shot for saying this, but I would seriously look at Bayliners. And Four Winns and anything Genmar for that matter. You seem to be looking for a no-frills, decent and sound product which will be reliable and above all excellent value for money. And economic theory says that if that's the case, you're looking for a mass-produced item. And a prime example of a mass boat producer is Genmar. Whenever my family needed a no BS product for water skiing and just hanging out, it was a Bayliner. I can't tell you it filled me with pride at any given point but we did waterski a lot and it never let me down either... which is what you're looking for.

Four Winns is a good boat in their market. BUT, they don't use merc drive packages. Volvo Penta on the newer ones ... the older ones have *gasp* OMC drive packages. They are build in Michigan by the way, Cadilac to be exact. Been by the plant many times, never been inside.

Yes,the one I was looking at has a Volvo,305 Chev
package,but you can get them with mercs. Whats
your take on the Volvo ? I have to admit, I had a
1985 bayliner with A 305 Volvo. Although the boat
fell apart, the power package was excellent.

No problem with Volvos. Service coverage not as good as Merc which is why people are reluctant but otherwise, the product is just as good...

... or bad, depending on how you look at it :D

I must say,it has been a long time since I've had
anything to do with one of these style boats. Boy,
they have come along way, really nice features,walk
thru to the swim platform,u-seating,little flip ups
on the front seats so you can see over the windshield
tons of stowage, rear seats fold out to swim deck,
folding ladder out of the anchor locker on the bow,
am-fm cd,satilitte radio,pop out cleats. I was really
impressed. They also said 4-winns uses plates behind
all the bolt ins,no screws rammed thru glass. ( I dont
know how true that is). I was going to go used,but
there is nothing but old junk on the market, and they
all want 15-20k for them anyway.

I'm not saying anything bad about Volvo. Good drives. Not sure why they don't publish their prop specs though.... they just give them designations.

I have never heard anything bad about fourwinns. From all the magazines they seem to be the perfect family boat :) I do see alot of them out on the water..
:)

If I was in the market for a bowrider it would be a Regal. They are very well made and they go really well too. A buddy of mine is a dealer and I had the chance to play with a new one last summer, I was very impressed.

Kurt.

The Regal's have steps though, right?? There is one in this months Boating magazine.... 20 footer.... full step boat. Fast for it's hp rating. BUT, do you want your 16 year old son running a stepped boat?? The article even mentions that you must not trim down when turning. Just thinking out loud here.

Four Winns are very good boats; I loved the old Liberator we used to own.
Definitely take a look at Larsons. They have a very nice lineup, and the quality is high.
We have an old Stingray ('85) up in Canada- a 19' bowrider that is built like a brick shi t house. The new ones have been lightened WAY up, but are getting very impressive speed numbers. You can hit 60 with a v-6 equipped boat.
Celebrity and Crownline are all over the place in this area and all the owners speak highly of them. I have driven a newer Ebbtide that seemed well built too.
Way too many choices in this market.... I have new power in the old Stingray, so we're keeping it!:)

We know people that own Fourwinns and Crownlines. They are pretty nice boats and the owners all seem to be happy with them.

Good luck and have fun shopping.

Thanks for all the input guys, any idea what speed
the four winns would run with the 305 ?
As far as the regal goes,they have some huge steps,
I hear they will run almost 60 with a 4.3, holy CHIT!
My wife and kid are going to drive it,so I want something
they don't have to work at to drive.

epeek, I have a 1997 Larson open bow with a trailer 19' with volvo power fresh motor due to froze broke that I can let go. I f interested pm me and will send pics for ya.

Thanks,but looking to go a little bigger.

I have this 94 with a single 502 that run 7mph all day long.that is for sale If she insists on a bowrider, I do own a sawzall and will build to suite

No prob on going bigger!!

Rode on a '98 22 stingray with a 350 mag....fun to blast around in and ran in the mid 60's. Go for the bayliner ....a great offshore boat:D Check this 18 footer hangin' it out on the chesapeake:p

I could cut a hole in it!

Nice looking ride there Randy

I have had good luck with Seadoo jet boats. They are not inexpensive, but quilty built, easy to service. 37k msrp, cost was 30623k on a double axle trailer. We currently have an 03 Islandia, which is there deck boat version. Many ammeneties, like built in head, sink, coolers, foglights, headlights, Bimini top, seats 10 comfortably, 12 max, and goes about 38mph with them all on it. With 4-5 people top end is 40-42 on speedo. What I like on this boat is its 22' long, non skid easy clean up, ski locker, ski every weekend, and cruise up the rivers and beach it. Stereo/cd is great, and a good overall boat that will travel in 13"-14" of water, no drive to get hung up, makes great for exploring the bayou's over here. The only thing this boat is not suited for is 4'-5', which we have encountered going to the islands. You will get wet. handled it, but not a boat that I would want to do this on a daily basis. I added trim tabs, which helps alot. Check them out, they come with a Mercury Jet pump, 240hp, just add oil in oil res. every other time, boating couldn't be easier or as much fun. Im looking for a center console boat, so this one will be for sale soon. Good luck, Jeff Jassby 228-216-0900

How about a Chapparal?

I really like Crownline,, they build one hell of a boat for the money,, VERY well laid out and great use of space.. Their 21 footer feels like a 26...

I'm with Shane on this one. When it comes to the best bow rider for the money, you cannot beat a chapparal. Their quality and performance is top notch for this type of boat. The newer one's [at least last 5 years] have NO wood in them at all so there is no worries of rot. I think they are MUCH nicer than Sea Rays and for some reason cheaper.

Youve gotten some really good suggestions so far. Crownlines, Fourwinns, Chapparals, etc... are all good boats to look at. You could also take a look at the Islander line of Baja boats. They are a open bow style boat and make models in the size range you want. Also, not sure on the prices, but Chris Chraft is making some very nice boats. I have been really impressed with the look of their new stuff.

Larson
 

Epeek, have a '98 Larson SS226 Supersport for sale. 22', 7.4 L MPI, Bravo 1, Captains Call, many other features, includes tandem trailer in great shape. PM me for details if you're interested

How about the Caravelle Interceptor Bowrider?

Rinker ?
http://www.rinkerboats.com/runabout-212.shtml

Take a good look at the 24' Yamaha line. I don't think you'll find a better value on the market. Not only can the boat handle some med. size water, it can still be tossed around like a giant jet-ski. You're son will love you, and it will meet all of your criteria. The jet drives offer incredible performance, safety, reliability, and have a very low draft.

Took a look at their website,pretty impressive.
What do they go for ?

I've never looked at them myself, but from what I understand I think they go in the $25K-$28K range out the door. I've been in two of them, like I said, there's no way you can beat it for the money.

Here is a good forum, they should be able to answer your questions about them...
http://yamahajetboaters.com/forum/index.php

Also, here's one of their 23's on Boat Test. I think there's a video included in the test.
http://www.boattest.com/general-info...e=&from_gi=Yes

:cool:

Thanks guys, I'm still lookin!

LMAO :D:D





Come on Rick your honey and the kid would look good in this. I think Mr. Barbarino will get rid of it when the Skater 46 comes in.

Something tells me skiing will not be a problem beind this! Then again what do I know?

Powerboat magazine, several months ago tested a 22 Ebbtide bowrider.They mentioned that many mfg's make a full featured boat or a performance boat but none made both. They claimed Ebbtide did. Gave it a great wright up for features, performance & safety.

The hell with the wife & kid. I 'd look good in that.
But, my lad, I have to stick with my Edsel.
.

I have a '96 21' Ebbtide I bought off C_Spray last year and I love it. It can plane at low speeds for the beginners and rolls out @ 58 WOT. Check them out... A lot of power options and most impressive to me is my boat is still being produced today (8 years later). Who else can make that claim in this category?

another view...

Looks nice. I have to say that I really like how
some of the new ones have walk thrus to the
over size rear platforms. I also like the u- seating
some have in the back.