Best and worse manufacturers???

[mickjetblue]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Too many unknown factors in this merry-go-round of relativity.

I have had a few, and each one was the "best one" for me when I had it,
and I was enjoying it. Each had a unique purpose.

Only boat I can say was the "worst one" was a tri-hull that belonged to
a buddy. When I was in the bow seat, it beat me up on the water.

The one you have and enjoy is the "best one", for you.

 

[ReelPlumber]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Manufacture's that are rated by JDPowers have to pay for that rating. To many manufactures out there that do not participate in JDPowers and that why you do not see alot of them in there.

As some one mentioned above, decide what type of boat you want and that will narrow down the manufacture. Then go and look at the different brands and find several that you like, then do some research on each of them. Regardless of the brand you choose you need to make sure it fits your boating needs and comfort.

I wanted an offshore fishing boat and looked at several, I narrowed my search down to three boats, Grady, Whaler and Robalo. I thought all were very nice boats but the Robalo fit what I was looking for in comfort and fishing ability. Alot of people say that Contender would have been the way to go, but to me Contender is a hard core fishing machine and lacked the style and comfort I wanted.

So it all boils down to what you like and what you can afford.

Just my 2cents!

 

[jaxnjil]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Only those who have not cut their hands on exposed screws . . . Where the Chap fails is where you can't see and I even like them.

I agree this is somewhat silly without discussing the application. For the boating my family prefers the preference is Hallett, and I don't want a Cheetah (bleccchh) . . .

agree about the hallet
saw some wicked nice ones on mead last winter.


this is as good as example as i have seen running wiring form the factory. interesting to note an owner ran the black and red wires to a lake water pump. you have to stand on your head to see this detail on this boat. the manufacture easily could have thrown it in as many do

 

[htv]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Manufacture's that are rated by JDPowers have to pay for that rating. To many manufactures out there that do not participate in JDPowers and that why you do not see alot of them in there.

Maybe some manufacturers don't "pay to play" knowing where they stack up with others and don't want to risk negative results.
I don't think a "pay to win" strategy would pass muster with the general public either. Only as an example if Tahoe were to "contribute"more to JD Power than Cobalt hence getting an equal to or better rating would contradict other reviews from boating magazines, etc. and public opinions hence eroding their credibility.

 

[superpop]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

OK, I will bite, what is the purpose of the rigid conduit system on the picture above. It is pretty much full of wire so it would be really hard to pull more in, I guess I just don't see the benefit here over a loom system that allows you to get to wires if you need to replace one or trace something out for whatever reason. It does look pretty cool though.

 

[garymbra]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Best = Boston Whaler, Viking
Worst = bayliner

 

[ReelPlumber]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Maybe some manufacturers don't "pay to play" knowing where they stack up with others and don't want to risk negative results.
I don't think a "pay to win" strategy would pass muster with the general public either. Only as an example if Tahoe were to "contribute"more to JD Power than Cobalt hence getting an equal to or better rating would contradict other reviews from boating magazines, etc. and public opinions hence eroding their credibility.

I'm sorry if I miss lead you to what I was saying. I did not mean one had to pay for a higher rating. All I was saying is that there are alot of good boat manufactures out there that do not participate in the JDPowers rating process. I think JDPowers provides a good rating service but it is very limited compared to the amount of manufactures out there or used to be out there before this tragic ecomony hit.

For some reason Bayliner boats seems to be one of the boats that gets the worst public rating for being cheap. Now I have never owned a Bayliner so I can only go by what I hear or read. Brunswick owns and builds Bayliner boats, they also own and build Whaler Boats and Mercury Marine. So why the big difference? My guess is that they are making boats for everyones budget.

My experience is with coastal/offshore boats. There a alot of great boats built that are not part of the rating service, Edgewater boats, Everglade Boats, Dusky Boats, Robalo, Jupiter, SeaVee, Contender, etc. So to me relying on a rating service is a very limited resource.

 

[Subliminal]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Good point about form over function. Boats, like any consumer good, are designed with one of two purposes, which can conflict: to be sold, or to be used. Remember how drink holders shaped like juice boxes sold more minivans than their engines and transmissions? Those buyers don't think abuot a car's realfunction. Think about a boat made and sold without a bilge pump--clearly for the chumps, and not for the boaters.
Boats with all that pretty stuff are made to be sold. After that, the manufacturer doesn't care. Boats that don't turn the head of a non-boater are made to be used. The manufacturer can create a customer for life.

So a lot of crap boats are just that b/c the manufacturer wanted something that would move to the newbie market, and who cares about function or quality. Like a boat without a bilge pump, or with moving parts and electronics that fail after two years around salt water.

When I bought my boat recently, and asked what kind of trailer I'd end up getting, he told me a loadrite galvenized trailer. I asked about the painted trailers and the guy pretty much said the same thing you said above. Manuf. put boats on painted trailers because they look so pretty AND are less expensive to manufacture.

Then he took me outside and showed me the rusted from the inside out painted trailer he had replaced for a customer recently...that made a believer out of me.

PS - Monterey FTW! WOOT!

 

[204Angler]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

I don't know too much about fish n ski boats but I do know that you can get a loaded Tahoe for a lot cheaper than a loaded top of the line boat. It depends on how long you intend on having the boat, how often you intend to use it etc... Also, remember that all boats need to comply with certain standards so that means that even the cheap ones will work just fine for a few years. Your main concern is probably with the power that is on the boat. I know that Tahoe comes with Mercruiser or Mercury motors and at least the Mercury outboards great.
Also, just like in auto manufacturing, there are many cars that have components made in the same factory with the same quality as a competing auto manufacturer. Just like Trophy boats. I am an offshore fisherman and own an Angler center console but one of my good friends has a Trophy. I have been on and have operated many different makes of boat and Trophy did that same thing that the rest of them did. Trophy is also not made in the same factory as Bayliner boats. Brunswick is a conglomerate and owns what seems like half of the marine industry. Bayliner has a bad rep but they have also been around for much longer than some of the top of the line companies. Just some food for thought

 

[wingmastr23]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Brunswick is a conglomerate and owns what seems like half of the marine industry. Bayliner has a bad rep but they have also been around for much longer than some of the top of the line companies. Just some food for thought

Good Point.......Also, Bayliner is economical - therefore they attract a buyer that truly shouldn't be even purchasing a boat. They skimp on maintenance - they skip on caretaking....and what happens? The boat turns to crap.

Give those same owners a Cobalt - and I'll bet the boat STILL turns to crap.

Bayliner runs Mercrusier I/O's.....and their hulls are fine. Just not as fancy.

So....what is truly "the best and worst"? Way to vague - There are too many variables that go into deciding what boat is the best.....what is best for you, could be the worst for me.

Best New Boat - One that meets your needs.

Best Used Boat - One that meets your needs AND has been taken care of.

 

[gobbler boat]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Where are the Ebbtides? Looking at 2440 open bow. If you go to ebbtideboats website and listen to "Words from the President" it is pretty convincing. I have also heard others compare them to Cobalts and Sea Rays.
What do the my fellow foot soldiers think or know about these?

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

I've heard nothing but good about Ebbtides

 

[rbh]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

We compared the new sea rays against the late 70s, early/mid 80s and I by far like the older models better.
they're construction and lay out was far suppierer in my books.
rob

 

[mike343]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

JD Power results are fascinating. Sea ray gets 5 stars for engines and Bayliner 2. Do you suppose the corporate strategy at Brunswick is to send all the bad Merc's to Bayliner and the good ones to Sea ray. Of course not, but the marketeers are more likely to put a too small engine in the bayliner. The buyer won't pay for a big enough engine and then complains in the survey.

 

[QC]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Excellent observation ^^^^^

 

[winner228]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

i just got a seaswirl cordova 230 and love the boat varry solid. replaced a threw hull fitting today on the side and hull was 1/2'' thick.

 

[cr2k]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

How far did you throw it? Oh through hull fitting. I get it.

 

[capt sam]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

That guy at Yacht Survey likes only a few boats. One tough guy to please, but makes many valid points.

He tends to focus on:

> Integrity at the junction of hull/deck (he does not like screws or anyone that uses them here). So many do.

> Transom design and ability to keep out the water hitting and sloshing at the transom.

> Accessibility to the bilge. He does not like boxed off areas and areas that can't be repaired/inspected.

> Function over form: He prefers areas that have more utility than style, and tends to loathe curved surfaces that prevent add-ons, like GPS, from being installed conveniently.

> Non-draining lockers and storage: He does not like these at all

> Center consoles that have the console simply screwed into the deck.

> He goes on and on about how boats will survive his (possibly drunken) night-fishing adventures off the FLA keys where rogue waves hit the transom.

He makes MANY good points. He ticks off a number of people who love Sea Rays and Boston Whalers. He thinks Whalers need all that foam because they have bad designs that take on water.

He nearly married and had some half boat, half human children with a Contender Center Console Boat that he loved.

http://www.contenderfishingboats.com/

.

while I'm a big Contender fan they are not without their issues, there's currently a big lawsuit going on over some poor contruction on their new 31' T models.

Some of the boats you guys listed are not very common here so they probably would not make a local list, Yellowfin, Intrepid, Contender would be on our lists.

 

[GXL205 Deke]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Well, in this market, one of the most important things to know is how solvent the company is.

Stay away from Genmar Marine, a collection of numerous boat makers. They are so far in debt, many companies are going down the tubes forever. Big names... like Wellcraft, Seaswirl, Four Winns, Hydra Sports, Glastron, Triumph and many more.

Genmar is so bad, and debt is so high, bankruptcy might not help.


Here are some of the brands: http://www.genmar.com/brands.cfm

Genmar was bought. those lines continue. If you are buying used that is no reason.
My Glastron's quality hasn't changed and is fully warranty supported. And is a fine boat despite any financial woes Genmar endured.
So lets no over react to a crap economy.

 

[Damien.]

Re: Best and worse manufacturers???

Personally I love Ebbtides and it isnt because were one of the main UK importers for them either !