Buying another boat - what type? Runabout vs ski type boat

[H20Rat]

One additional thing to consider that people forget with a ski boat (aka, inboard). Where do you boat? Do you frequently need to beach the boat, or do you have submerged sandbars/rocks/shallows? Inboards are not happy ever touching the bottom. They often have tracking fins and obviously a fixed drive system. If you beach your current outboard, you may end up anchoring the inboard offshore and swimming to it every time you want to use it.

(your mileage will vary of course, some lakes might have a steep enough dropoff to allow it. My current lake is less than a foot deep 10 feet from the waters edge. Very inboard unfriendly!)

 

[oldjeep]

One additional thing to consider that people forget with a ski boat (aka, inboard). Where do you boat? Do you frequently need to beach the boat, or do you have submerged sandbars/rocks/shallows? Inboards are not happy ever touching the bottom. They often have tracking fins and obviously a fixed drive system. If you beach your current outboard, you may end up anchoring the inboard offshore and swimming to it every time you want to use it.

(your mileage will vary of course, some lakes might have a steep enough dropoff to allow it. My current lake is less than a foot deep 10 feet from the waters edge. Very inboard unfriendly!)

Good point about not wanting to beach an inboard/v-drive, although we keep a couple inflatable paddleboards in the boat so we don't have to swim the dog to shore for bathroom breaks.

 

[jhnmdahl]

We ended up with a sterndrive (Cobalt 210) with a wakeboard arch and a few other bells and whistles after looking at many of the same options, figuring it would be relatively easy to ski or tube behind, but a dedicated watersport boat isn't so much fun recreational boating on choppy days or bigger lakes.

 

[fishin98]

Have your ever heard of the BOC(Baylinerownersclub)....Unless your current Bayliner is a complete POS, why not just update...What kind of Bayliner do you currently own??? There are people on that site that know everything there is to know about them. I know because I've been a member for the last 7 years. Want a family boat..check out the Element....and the new for 2016 Element F18....As hard as BOATING BUCKS are to come by these days...Updating might make more sense that getting a completely different boat.

 

[SkiDad]

They don't get much easier to fix than the force you have but I know some folks have bad ones. I personally like outboards best, then v-drives then direct drive and lastly I/O. But if I were looking at I/O I would look at stingray brand. They have a little less deadrise and faster hulls. A good compromise for skiing. I personally have my eye on outboard ski centurion but it's not open bow and I don't think the wife will be happy without an open bow.

 

[UtahBoating]

SkiDad....I agree the Force engine is very easy to work on. I know you saw my threads a couple months back when I was trying to get it to run exactly as I want. I have a learned a ton on this engine and I really like the engine. I just want something a little nicer and with a bit more power. As you recall we boat at high elevation here in Utah, the lake we go to most is at 6200 ft and the little 85hp is just not quite enough for my liking. We actually looked at a ski centurion yesterday and that is pristine condition (1986) but it is a closed bow. We also looked at a couple of Gecko's - didn't really care for either one. Looked at a newer i/o Bayliner and lastly a Reinell powered by a 5.7 mercruiser. The wife said if I really wanted it I could go with the Centurion, but everyone in the fam liked the Reinell. We are going to continue looking to make sure we get a boat we are all happy with for at least the next few years to come. More than likely we will get an i/o Mercruiser open bow type boat at least 19ft long. The thing we have going with us is time. Boating season is winding down here in Utah and the boats are not selling for what they were 3 months ago thus creating a buyers market. Our plan is to find one before Christmas, hopefully sooner to make sure I can do an on water test. Heck there is a good chance we will be going back to buy that Reinell depending on what pops up in the next couple of weeks.

 

[Slip Away]

If you want to ski and wakeboard, buy a 2016 WakeTractor. 18ft. Inboard powered.

 

[Slip Away]

2016 Wake Tractor ( Bryant Boats)

 

[oldjeep]

If you want to ski and wakeboard, buy a 2016 WakeTractor. 18ft. Inboard powered.

Has someone claimed that you can actually ski behind that monstrosity?

 

[Rick Stephens]

Has someone claimed that you can actually ski behind that monstrosity?

LOL

 

[Slip Away]

Ski ?? Maybe in a pinch. More for Wakeskating and Wakeboarding. Do people still ski ??

 

[oldjeep]

Ski ?? Maybe in a pinch. More for Wakeskating and Wakeboarding. Do people still ski ??

Do people still ski? Yup, couple times a week at least and there is always a line of boats at the course.

 

[UtahBoating]

Ski ?? Maybe in a pinch. More for Wakeskating and Wakeboarding. Do people still ski ??

You sure don't see nearly as many people slaloming as you once did, it seems everyone is surfing these days. But the wife and I still have a huge interest in skiing. It will take some work but I plan on getting up on a slalom again in the future!