Tahoe 195? First boat with small children!!

[Sjmaloney]

Help! We are seriously considering buying a new Tahoe 195. Any experience out there with this boat and small children? We have a 10 month old and a 3 year old. I like the deck boat because of its versatility and want something that can grow with us as the boys get older. Thanks in advance!

 

[Bonus Check]

I have a 2006 Tahoe Q6. Its not a deck boat but is very well built to me. A lot on here would disagree with me as they would say it is an entry level boat. Entry level or not it holds up very well for me and the fit and finish are good for me. I've been on a lot of so called top tier boat and haven't seen anything that I would trade my Q6 for as they still owe too much and mine is paid for. Not everyone drives a Mercedes. I still drive a Ford truck and it fits my needs better than a Mercedes. With that, if it fits your needs then buy it but keep it maintained. Even a Mercedes un-cared for will not last long.

 

[tpenfield]

Tahoe is an entry level brand, they are well liked for their layout. Some folks have experienced quality problems with them, as documented on the web.

Your biggest factor will be child & boating safety, having little to do with the brand of boat. Both parents should have taken a boating safety course . . . are you experienced boaters ??? If not, then your challenge will be learning 'the ropes' while you practice parenting on the water, which is no easy task.

My kids were 4 & 5 when we started boating (sailboat) . . . good swimmers at that age, kids & parents always had PFD's on, etc. I had lots of previous boating experience, but the 'Admiral' had little boating experience.

 

[Chris1956]

I like open bow boats for children. The kids like to get bounced around (not too hard for the small ones), and I as the driver see them at all times. I had my 4 YO son fall asleep in mid bounce one time. At the dock I carried him off to his nap.

 

[jkust]

Sure, Tahoe is in the lower echelon of boats but not everyone values the same exact things in a boat like cars. I actually like the looks of them and they are the only brand with a fishing heritage/fishing centric not just a bowrider with a ski and fish package for the brands around me at least. My only rub is that buying slightly used (a year or two old with maybe 20 hours on it) buys you a lot more boat for the money or the same boat but a lot cheaper. In my state there is no sales tax on used boats from private parties which is a lot of money in a high sales tax state thus I will never buy a brand new boat when so many buy new only to realize they don't use it when life gets in the way and sell it within a year or two. Buying even a slightly used boat is an exercise in patience however and of course the season is in full swing now. That's a great boat to have with little kids and such an improvement over the junk my folks had over 40 years ago when I started boating at 3 months old.

 

[gddavid]

Make sure their life jackets fit them well and are as comfortable as possible so they aren't miserable or trying to take them off (your 3 year old that is, I don't see your 10 month old taking it off). In my experience the toughest part is launching and retrieving the boat with little ones, what works best for me is to load my wife and girls (now 3 and 5) into the boat in the parking lot after prepping the boat for launch and backing the boat into the water with everyone already on board. Everything is a little more enjoyable if you can head out mid week and for your first few times out, an extra adult on boardto lend a hand may go a long way towards your wife's enjoyment.

 

[hostage]

Hear say:
These and Bayliners seem to have more complaints than other boats . I can't speak from experience, though as they are cheaper boats, people will tend to buy them for a first boat. As they are geared for a first time boater, many of them won't know how to take care of them properly, I see more complaints about second hand than I do from new boat owners.

My experience:
I bought a second hand boat that was middle tier and have been very happy with the power, features, and price of the boat. You not only get more for your money on a used boat, but face less depreciation after the initial buy. I did upgrade and fix some small things on the boat and the wife and I love the boat. When I upgrade I will also buy used. Nothing worst than putting that first scratch in a shiny new boat.

In any case you are doing the right thing coming to this forum. Take it from lesson's learned from this forum to help you buy the boat that bests suits you.

If you are looking new for $33k, I would look else where, you can buy a boat that has a better name for less than that, I think even regal has a 19ft boat in that range.

 

[southkogs]

I think boating with kids comes down to a few simple things: 1) training the children to know when it's time to obey and sit still and when it's time to let loose and have some fun, 2) Having good safety equipment and procedures, and 3) having enough gunwale/rail to keep munchkins from bouncing overboard if things get rough.

After that, find a boat that suits what you wanna' do, is in good shape and you're willing to take care of ... and go build some memories.

Like tpenfield said: Tahoe is an entry level boat. If you keep that in mind, and take care of it, there's no reason it can't be a nice boat for you.

 

[theBrownskull]

I have a Tahoe 216WT, similar layout to the 195, and it works great for the family. You will like the front platform the best especially when getting in and off of the boat at the dock.

 

[keith2k455]

You'll do fine with little kids. My wife can't back a trailer or loaf the boat on it, so I do both. I launch with kids in the truck, wife pulls away and parks the trailer. I leave the boat at the dock and meet her to load everyone on the boat. Upon retrieval, I dock, she takes kids to a picnic area for a juice while I retrieve the trailer and boat.

Keep kids in lif jackets ALWAYS. My only advice is for you to decide where you are going to boat. I saw Tahoe boats and liked a lot about them. I mainly boat on the IL river though and was concerned about their abilities to handle the chop. I ended up buying my Crown line for that specific reason. If you are boating anywhere that the water is more calm, the Tahoe Should do fine given you like the layout and looks.