Boat Buying Season?

[Mule Kick]

Well I suddenly find myself a boat owner as well! While nowhere near as fancy as some of yours, I couldn’t say no for $3k. ‘16 Lowe flat bottom with a 40 Horse Yamaha jet. Great trolling motor, batteries, new transom, new carpet etc. and everything works!
It’s not really a big water boat but should be great for rivers and calm days on the lake- and nights for shooting carp!

 

[Art Vandeley]

Well I suddenly find myself a boat owner as well! While nowhere near as fancy as some of yours, I couldn’t say no for $3k. ‘16 Lowe flat bottom with a 40 Horse Yamaha jet. Great trolling motor, batteries, new transom, new carpet etc. and everything works!
It’s not really a big water boat but should be great for rivers and calm days on the lake- and nights for shooting carp!

That’s a heck of a deal. If you ever want to sell it hit me with a message, I’ll take it

 

[Nick87]

Got it home saturday night. May god have mercy on my bank account for the foreseeable future.

 

[David58]

I shopped hard for a reasonably priced Lund, but every one I found was more boat than my garage would allow. Finally landed on a 16.5' Starweld, which turns out to be just about the right boat for the missus and me and the lakes here in north Idaho and western Montana. Hoping it turns out to be a walleye getter, but we pretty much eat anything that swims in the waters up here.

David
ID

 

[colinstewart]

Something to get our minds off politics, policy, and other new headlines, I thought I'd make this post and invite others to post their boat season thoughts, purchases, or sales.

I need a new boat like I need a new gun - Nice to have and if the right deal comes along, my "want" becomes a "need."

Thanks to some nudging from @stillkickin and @mn taxidermist, along with @schmalts doing an A++ inspection of a boat that is 1,250 miles from me, I decided my "want" was now a need."

Given Mrs. Fin demands that we fish 20-40 days per summer, all for walleyes, she questioned my tightwad nature and asked, "Why aren't you buying that boat?"

Ok, twist my arm.

I've never owned anything other than a Lund. I had one Mercury motor on my first Lund It was a continual hassle and concern once we got out of site of the boat ramp. Mrs. Fin sold the boat the next year. Since then, every boat I've owned has had a Yamaha. I have since owned eight Yamahas and not a single problem. Thus, Mrs. Fin has a requirement that any boat with her name on it will have a Yamaha.

I've been told that Mercury has made some huge changes in the last twenty years, so Mrs. Fin's threats of divorce if I bought a boat powered with a Mercury might not be as valid. Still, a threat is a threat, and having just passed my 37th anniversary, I'm not risking my 38th celebration on the reliability of a Mercury outboard.

So, I've been casually looking for a fiberglass walleye boat over the last few years. The hard part is that the only fiberglass boats that come with a Yamaha are Skeeter (owned by Yamaha), Yar-Craft, and Vexus. All the others I'm aware of require a Mercury. Paying extra for a motor upgrade is not even a possibility.

Hearing mixed results on Skeeter durability (not sure what the wiring issues are, but I'm not an electronic tech). Hard to find many Yar-Crafts with Yamahas. Vexus is newer, a company of former Ranger employees, but finding those rigged with Yamahas is challenging and is usually reflected in a premium price.

The last year Ranger allowed a Yamaha custom order was 2021, with a few 2022 models that were on order when the decree came from White River Marine Group (Johnny Morris's group that is the new owner of Ranger) that Yamahas were not even allowed as a custom order. Not sure what part of Brunswick/Mercury he owns, but all of his boat brands must come powered with Mercury.

Around Christmas I was surfing some of the boat ads. Listed as a 2022 Ranger 620FS Pro, powered with a Yamaha. Wow, one of the unicorns. I reached out to the guy with a ton of questions. He sent pics. After buying him breakfast at SHOT Show, Schmalts offered to drive over and inspect the boat. If you ever saw the level of inspection Schmalts does on a boat, you'd encourage him to start a service doing such when he retires from Harley. His report, "As close to showroom condition as a used boat can get." His 16 videos and album of photos seem to confirm.

So, I am now the owner of a 2022 Ranger, meeting Mrs. Fin's requirement to be powered by Yamaha. To hedge her bet she warned me, "We better catch more fish out of that boat than we catch from our 2003 Lund." Damn, talk about setting the bar.

Now, I am touching up my old boat, getting it detailed, and questioning why I upgraded to the finest electronics you could buy, just last summer. The answer to that "Why did I do that" rests in Mrs. Fin finding out that you could have front/back side imaging that syncs with a Minnkota trolling motor. I'm gonna take a beating on that investment, only having fished about ten days with that new package.

Gonna miss the old 2003 Lund. It has helped us catch a ton of fish. It still runs like a champ, reflecting Mrs. Fin's detail to care and maintenance. It will likely be listed here for sale before I consign it with a dealer.

View attachment 403032

View attachment 403033

Anyone else get the fishing bug this winter and pass the time looking at boat ads? If so, what are you looking to get?

Thanks for the motivation Big Fish. My wife has also been nudging me lately to buy a new boat. This is just extra motivation!

 

[Moserkr]

Question for the group- the Smoker Craft I bought 5-6 weeks ago is doing well but the ass end has quite (design style) a bit more squat to it than previous boats I’ve owned. (Sounds like an Ex I had…) Was wondering if anyone here had had much success with Stingray type hydrofoils or maybe smart tabs (Trim tabs) to give the stern some lift and support and get on plane quicker. Like to get the bow down more esp under lower speeds. Thanks!!

Yes, a hydrofoil will help. But if you want more stern lift to get on plane quicker, a 4-blade prop is the only choice. Can do both too. I went from the same pitch 3-blade to a 4-blade quicksilver nemesis and I gained everything. Hole shot, top speed actually went up, control, stern lift, lower cruising rpm, faster on plane - all went up with no loss of RPMs at WOT. The prop changed my boat from good to amazing. If your current prop pitch is good and your WOT is in the sweet spot of your RPM range, get the same exact pitch with the nemesis. That specific prop has the right diameter, cupping, and rake to make gains on the same pitch while adding a blade, where other 4-blade props do not. Theres also a stainless version Id love to try but have not yet. The prop rabbit hole is deep and Ive been down it, happy to say I came back out with the perfect prop for my boat.

 

[MarvB]

Yes, a hydrofoil will help. But if you want more stern lift to get on plane quicker, a 4-blade prop is the only choice. Can do both too. I went from the same pitch 3-blade to a 4-blade quicksilver nemesis and I gained everything. Hole shot, top speed actually went up, control, stern lift, lower cruising rpm, faster on plane - all went up with no loss of RPMs at WOT. The prop changed my boat from good to amazing. If your current prop pitch is good and your WOT is in the sweet spot of your RPM range, get the same exact pitch with the nemesis. That specific prop has the right diameter, cupping, and rake to make gains on the same pitch while adding a blade, where other 4-blade props do not. Theres also a stainless version Id love to try but have not yet. The prop rabbit hole is deep and Ive been down it, happy to say I came back out with the perfect prop for my boat.

What boat and motor are you running this particular prop on? Probably a Merc? I’m looking at something similar but don’t see an application for my F90 Yamaha. You’re right, the step up to stainless is nice but $$$ I could also spend toward electronics. Thanks @Moserkr

 

[BrentD]

Yes, a hydrofoil will help. But if you want more stern lift to get on plane quicker, a 4-blade prop is the only choice. Can do both too. I went from the same pitch 3-blade to a 4-blade quicksilver nemesis and I gained everything. Hole shot, top speed actually went up, control, stern lift, lower cruising rpm, faster on plane - all went up with no loss of RPMs at WOT. The prop changed my boat from good to amazing. If your current prop pitch is good and your WOT is in the sweet spot of your RPM range, get the same exact pitch with the nemesis. That specific prop has the right diameter, cupping, and rake to make gains on the same pitch while adding a blade, where other 4-blade props do not. Theres also a stainless version Id love to try but have not yet. The prop rabbit hole is deep and Ive been down it, happy to say I came back out with the perfect prop for my boat.

How do you determine if your current prop pitch is good?

And what do you get for stainless, besides less corrosion and maybe a little more durability?

I always thought the purpose of a stainless prop was to look good while going down the highway.

 

[warmer]

Stainless prop doesn't flex near as much as aluminum. I switched to stainless several years ago and it made my boat feel like a completely different boat. Better hole shot, a little faster top end speed and seems to handle better in rough water. YMMV

 

[CRJR45]

The right prop is crucial to your boats performance and a good prop shop is hard to find but tuning your prop makes a huge difference .
They make holes in the hub in front of the fins to let exhaust gas out so your prop can "slip" on the hole shot but don't affect your top end . You tune it by the size on the holes .
Be careful , it's a rabbit hole ....

 

[F250]

Stainless steel props are unforgiving and expensive. A solid hit on a rock or ledge with an aluminum prop will usually result in one or more sheared blades. Often the prop can be repaired at a welding shop. A solid hit on a rock or ledge with a stainless props will often severely damage the prop and take out the drive shaft. I always ran aluminum props on government boats.

 

[CRJR45]

Stainless steel props are unforgiving and expensive. A solid hit on a rock or ledge with an aluminum prop will usually result in one or more sheared blades. Often the prop can be repaired at a welding shop. A solid hit on a rock or ledge with a stainless props will often severely damage the prop and take out the drive shaft. I always ran aluminum props on government boats.

I did that very thing , hit a stump and bent the prop shaft , 2008 Yamaha 250 HPDI , that motor had a flawed design, two piece shaft welded together.
The advantage of running a SS prop far outweigh the disadvantages in boats like bass boats , but yes , in certain circumstances, like a rocky river a cheap prop is the way to go .
Pick your poison?

 

[MarvB]

I always thought the purpose of a stainless prop was to look good while going down the highway.

I thought that’s what those dangling rubber balls we’re for

 

[BrentD]

I thought that’s what those dangling rubber balls we’re for

You're exactly right, but they can't be seen when there's a boat trailer attached to the bumper. The stainless prop makes up for that.

I am running a rather underpowered boat, so I sometimes think about a four bladed prop, or some such thing, but the reality is, I am in no real hurry.

 

[Moserkr]

What boat and motor are you running this particular prop on? Probably a Merc? I’m looking at something similar but don’t see an application for my F90 Yamaha. You’re right, the step up to stainless is nice but $$$ I could also spend toward electronics. Thanks @Moserkr

I went back and saw your boat in a previous post, thats nice! Mine is similar - 16' Starcraft open bow but with a 75hp merc which weighs as much as the 90 (75 is a tuned down 90, boats not rated for 90).

So for your boat, first take your current prop into account. What are your rpms at WOT? Top speed? Loaded or unloaded? Whats the motor's rpm operating range? You want as close to the max rpm when unloaded at WOT as possible. From there, whats your current prop pitch, diameter?

The quicksilver nemesis 4-blade (mercury brand) was able to keep the same pitch as my 3-blade because it went down in diameter by 1/2". That kept my rpms from dropping when adding that extra blade. If they don't make one for your yama, find another brand with aggressive rake and cupping that is slightly smaller than your current props diameter. If you want more or less rpms, then pick a different pitch as well.

The step up to stainless is not necessary. The aluminum props work great. Stainless can work a little better (less flex so less prop slip) and look pretty haha. But as others stated, they can cost you a lower if you hit anything.

If you want help pm those parameters above and Ill use ai to scour the interwebs for your best bet. Or ask ai yourself and it would probably be able to get you on point.

How do you determine if your current prop pitch is good?

And what do you get for stainless, besides less corrosion and maybe a little more durability?

I always thought the purpose of a stainless prop was to look good while going down the highway.

Answered that above for marv but again, find your max RPM at WOT with a light (unloaded) boat. Then compare that to your motor's max RPM range. You want to be as close to possible to your max RPM range. Going to a lower pitch raises RPMs, higher pitch lowers RPMs, roughly 2-300 RPMs. 4-blade usually lowers RPMs, ~200rpms. Switching from AL to SS can lower RPMs ~2-400 due to weight. It all depends on many different factors. Cupping, rake, diameter, cavitation holes, slip, horsepower, elevation, boat weight.... like I said the rabbit hole is deep!!!

Best advice is try to find a place that loans props or allows returns, there are some but not many. Or B.O.A.T. cause props are $$$!!!! Especially stainless... Neither stainless or aluminum should corrode easily though. SS is more durable but will break your motor on an impact where an AL prop will break itself, maybe not the motor.

If your boat is under powered then a 4-blade is definitely going to help you. Think of it like a truck - the 4-blade gives you lower gearing for better torque, where the 3-blade is better for top end speed. I was surprised when I switched and gained both!

It should be obvious by now that Im a big fan of 4-blades.