So I'm trying to decide which boat to buy.

1999 Black and pink 35ft Lighting with fresh carbed 500s boat has in one of the pictures you can see there was water in cabin i asked about it the guy is not sure how it got there the boat has been in storage for the last 7 years. No reason to not believe him he seems like a stand up guy. But wanted to divulge the information. 65k


2001 Black and tan 35ft executioner 500 efi boat has been in salt water the 4 years of its life in NY owner says freshwater flushed after each use and kept in dry stack when not in use. Motors and drives refreshed 70hrs a go all supporting paper work in line. 67k


2004 Baja 342 with 496 hos with 569hrs drives refreshed 50hrs a go.


We will use the boat on small power plant lake most of the time with 3 trips to LOTO a year memorial day weekend random week in july and the shoot out in august. Typically will have 2-5 people on the boat. Im looking for reliability with boat that's not underpowered my pockets are not deep enough to worry about speed. Would like a boat that rides good and cruises around 50 and top speed of 80-85 thinking th efountains should achieve this maybe I'm wrong would be great I'm sure the 342 wont hit that top speed thing low to middle 70s on that boat i could be wrong.


Thanks for your time.

Water in the cabin for no reason? Needs investigating.

Fountains obviously faster, later model Lightning with the twin step hull is faster again.

I love Fountains but the size of the Baja, in every respect, and the simplicity of stock, black motors would win me over. Not sure how fast she’d be, I’d guess an honest 70 but if it’s a well looked after boat, sound hull and maintained engines, you could have a lot of trouble free fun. The only thing the Fountains offer is more speed.

My 2 cents….

RR

Another vote for the 496 Baja boat. I'd rank the Fountains higher for speed and style points, but their motors will require a bit more love than a typical 496 will if currently in good running condition.

All depends on your priorities.

I would stay away from the 99, sitting for that long can cause all sorts of gremlins to show up.

Its all about cockpit space if you are not overnighting on it so the Baja wins

35 Lightning w/ carbed HP 500s! Get it surveyed to ease your water in the cabin concerns. Get a sea trial on one of the Fountains and Baja before you decide. Both are great boats IMHO but provide a much different experience.

I’d have to agree with all the above posts. If you want less engine maintenance, go with the Baja. The 496’s are great all around motors. Plus the Baja is a little newer. It won’t be as fast as the Fountains. I would stay away from any boat with water damage. Of course, I’m partial to Baja’s, on my third one. What’s the price for the Baja ?

Try to put those coolers in the fountains, big difference in cockpit room if you had all three side by side you would see a big difference just in size alone, more free board on the Baja and I think it would handle LOTO better than the other 2 but thats just my opinion, plus I think the Baja looks better with the matching trailer.

If either Fountain has tail pipes that come through the transom with plastic beauty rings, they need a transom and maybe stringers. No ifs, ands or buts.
Thats also not to say the Baja doesn't deserve a survey, but fountains with that exhaust are guaranteed at this point.
I also noticed the MidCoast Marine sticker on the fountain, Eric and crew are great people.

Baja for room, 5 in the fountain will not be fun. Myself i don't want 5 ever! LOL. BUT I think people may have missed that the 500EFI motors have been rebuilt. That is a big plus since the 496's already have over 500 hours. Speaking from having 500 efi's once the top ends are done right those things are great motors. I now have mid 700 hours on mine and still going strong.

As for rot, they pulled the motors on the fountain you would think they checked the wood but you should on all anyway. I have seen rot in just about every boat brand that has wood. Ride, I told you what I thought about that before.