Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

[catfighter]

There is a glastron bowrider near me for sale. it's a 17' model (I think it's a 77) that is in good enough shape to use.

I guess it can hold 7 people or whatever, but I was interested in learning from owners of these bowriders how many people it can seat comfortably, like all day.

I'm looking for a boat that will seat 4-5 people comfortably but that can also be towed and put in the water with relative ease, which is why I was thinking of a 17 or 18' bowrider.

A pontoon boat isn't out of the question I suppose, but I was looking for something that is slightly smaller but will hold several people.

Thanks for the help!

 

[oops!]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

a 77 17 is going to have issues.....like a rotted floor........which will have your passengers falling thru the deck......in which case.....it wont be comfortable !

a standard bow rider i/o will seat 4 with b2b's, 2 aft in the jumpers...and 2 on each side up front.... but in a 17 there is no room to move if your fishing with that many people.
the jumpers are also windy......so the people will want to trade places........generaly the driver and passenger are the only truly comfortable ones in a 15-22 foot bow rider. (behind the wind screen)

because you are looking at a 77 17 ft.......im guessing your budget is under 2k....
for 2k you can find a 90 ish 19 bayliner that will do exactally what you want........just read the restoration forum lots so you know what to look for and what to run from.
at 2k you are looking for a garage kept boat......not one in a farmers feild with critters in it !

post pics of your possibilitys here and you will get a ton of ideas from people that have been there done that !

 

[jkust]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

If two of the four people are under say 10, I don't think you'll have any issues. Those old boats have narrow beams and are just generally smaller in stature than today's 17 or 18 footers. I grew up in a 1984 Bayliner 16 foot, open bow we bought new (and still have). The beam is narrow but we never really needed any more space for the four of us. Several people will be an issue if you plan to have any comfort, get up on plane and not overload it. I won't address the possible issues with a 34 year old, entry level boat.

 

[Shabah 182]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

I have an 18 foot Mariah bowrider that is rated for 9 passengers or 1300lbs. There is no way I would ever put 9 people in my boat. My boat has 2 captain chairs in it rather than back to back seats. We are comfortable with 4 passengers and most typically spend full days with 4 people on board. This leaves room for a cooler and bag of snacks and towels, etc. and still leaves room to maneuver around. We have had 5 and it is okay. I never plan for the bow as anything other than a sun area when at low speed or anchored.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

Thanks for the insight. If I can get some pics I'll post them.

I'm just glad I'm not in a hurry to buy a boat in the middle of winter!

And yeah, I'm thinking of something around $2k,$4k max. . . .

 

[Gromulin]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

I used to own an '85 Glaston 177 Bowrider, and it was OK for two adults and 2-3 kids max. Any more than that and you are tripping over each other all day. But...it depends on the use also. With the fold-down B2B seats 4 adults and a couple kids can lounge fairly comfortably, but like someone said upthread, once you get underway the 2 in the bow and the 2 in the back are in for a lot of wind. And I don't know about 77's, but my '85 was ***-heavy...I always hated having adults in the back seats...took forever to get on plane with the bow pointed towards the sky.

 

[bow wow rider]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

i have a 2004 four winns horizon 170. it's a bowrider with a listed 7 person capacity.

the most i've ever had on it was 6 thin adults and 2 golden retrievers. no one could move.

7 thin adults and no dogs... yeah, you could do it. it would be quite crowded and planing would be a bit laborious, but it'd be all right.

just think things through before you invite them, who the people are, how big they are, how smelly they are...

 

[oops!]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

bud.....can i venture a suggestion?.......

at 4k.......can you afford payments on a new 19 bayliner....they are only 10k and no worries..... this is an excellent starter boat. !

yes my friends... oops is recommending a bayliner.......bayliner bashing stick put away for ever !

 

[DaNinja]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

We've had full boats with 8 on the SeaRay and 13 on the Starcraft. It's not really a good formula for speed or water sports, but it is workable.

I have had to adjust the seating chart before in the Starcraft when I could not get on plane. I was nice about it, but some realized that I was repositioning the girth around the boat.

 

[catfighter]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

A 19 Bayliner seems like a heck of a lot of boat for that kind of money.

Am I missing something? Why are they so [relatively] inexpensive?

I'm showing my ignorance when it comes to boats; as you can see, I have a 14' MFG with a 15hp outboard as my first and only boat.

 

[DaNinja]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

A 19 Bayliner seems like a heck of a lot of boat for that kind of money.

Am I missing something? Why are they so [relatively] inexpensive?

I'm showing my ignorance when it comes to boats; as you can see, I have a 14' MFG with a 15hp outboard as my first and only boat.

Because they don't have a SeaRay logo on the side. lol

 

[veritas honus]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

Because they don't have a SeaRay logo on the side. lol

That must be the nicest thing I've ever heard anybody who doesn't own a Bayliner, say about a Bayliner

In the '80's, Bayliner earned a really bad reputation by putting out a lot of very poorly constructed boats. I've heard they've come a long way since then. They power their boats with some of the same motors and drives as some of the top boat manufacturers. It's very difficult to overcome a well earned reputation, though; especially a bad one. Even more so, when it comes to boats. There are some on this forum who swear by them. If you're interested, go to the Bayliner forum on iboats and see what owners have to say...

 

[oops!]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

i am responding to this to bump another off the front page ........AND....

i have worked on several bayliners....from late 80's to an 05.

the 05 really impressed me.
you gotta know....when i mean work on a boat..... i dont mean motor/drive i mean ripping the thing apart to the hull foam stringers...transom......and repair hurriucane damaged boats.
there is NOTHING WRONG with the new bayliners.
in my professional opinion, this is a perfect entry level boat.

for 9999. they are giving a ton of people who would not get into boating, a boat that will do all they want for under 10k......that is payments of 250 a month or less !
i dont want to sound pro bayliner here.......but that is a serious bang for the buck !

 

[nlain]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

I have a 2004 SeaRay 185Sport, the arrangement of this boat is a sunpad over the engine area, a bench seat all the way across in front of the engine, two swivel seats and then bow seating. We take the grandkids, 2 boys 9 & 11 and sometimes their mother, that is 5 in the boat and still room to move around with cooler and fishing gear in the boat. Anymore than that and you could not move without tripping over somebody. Now if just making a run out to the sound to the beach we could take a couple more since the boat would be just to ride in. Decide how you are going to use the boat, then you can take the advice here and decide how big it needs to be for your use or how you will plan your trips to keep everybody happy, it can be done.

I think the recommendation of the Bayliner is a good one. Both Bayliner and SeaRay are owned by Brunswick, they are both fiberglass hulls, they both run Mercruiser engines and drives on I/O and if they still make an OB version you would have Mercury OB. About the only difference is the fit and finish, or one has the SeaRay emblem and the other does not. They are both good boats and will give years of great pleasure if you take care of them. The Bayliner is great entry level boat and even with the bad reputation of years ago just check the signature lines and you will find a lot of the old ones still in use today, that is because the owners took good care of them.

My first boat that I bought was a 1987 SeaRay that I kept for 17 years, it had carpet and a lot of wood in it and even though I tried to take care of it when I traded it on my current boat there were a couple of soft places in the floor. I would not have another boat with carpet, it gets wet and stays wet, if on wood then wood is wet and that starts rot. The boats of today don't use a lot of wood anymore, they use fiberglass.

 

[LippCJ7]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

BEAM baby beam!! once you have a boat with a wide beam taking many passengers is no longer an issue!!

 

[paultjohnson]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

My 18 ft gets small in a hurry with even 4 adults. Yeah it say it seats 8. MAYBE if you were going to deadhead to a beach, 6 - 8 would be tolarable. But if you want to ENJOY a full day on the water, with 4-5 psgrs [ BTW kids need just as much room cuz they dont wanna sit still] You need an 18-20 ft min IMHO!!! Throw in a few beach bags with towels, a cooler maybe a small portable grill and a few compact lawn chairs. Its quickly to the point where someone of something is in your way when you [4 people]try to move around. Also the performance really suffers with a full load. You might not ever get it on plane !

 

[Yacht Dr.]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

There is a glastron bowrider near me for sale. it's a 17' model (I think it's a 77) that is in good enough shape to use.

I guess it can hold 7 people or whatever, but I was interested in learning from owners of these bowriders how many people it can seat comfortably, like all day.

I'm looking for a boat that will seat 4-5 people comfortably but that can also be towed and put in the water with relative ease, which is why I was thinking of a 17 or 18' bowrider.

A pontoon boat isn't out of the question I suppose, but I was looking for something that is slightly smaller but will hold several people.

Thanks for the help!

Do you want a go fast with wake boards on it ? or are you a pleasure cruiser ?

If you ask me ( I have 2 kids .. and loads of family from my wifey side ) Im looking into a pontoon boat ( small lake funship kinda thing ).

Yes you heard it right..YD is gunning for a Toon .

But..for shade and family.. I can be on the open water or on a fun ride ( albeit slow fine with me ) will pick a Fun boat for All. This is for me and my family.

Id rather spend the bucks on a Toon then a 12k 180 wakeboard/surfship .. I can fish .. I can relax.. Im old though .

YD.

PS. Even if I won the lotto..I would not get a 50' Viking to go hunt/fish marlin...I like bass/crappie and.. ( Ill stop here because it was nice to fish for grouper or snapper back in the days ) .

 

[wbc1957]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

When the kids are grown and the desire is still there for boating, a smaller bowrider that seats 7 is not a bad move. Granted, I have a heavier Cobalt CS7, which has a rumble seat, so it can be considered either closed bow or open bow, but the point still remains. A smaller boat is easier to store, less to maintain, and even when having another couple as guests, it is plenty of boat. We find it being enjoyed more often than if we had the bigger boat to prepare for. Instead of just weekends, we now enjoy it on weeknights after work. There are boats for different uses and different lifestyles. This size has its purpose.

 

[dorelse]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

A 17' bowrider can do 4-5 people just fine...but that's gonna depend I guess on the size of those 4-5 people. If you're a family of 2 adults & 2-4 kids, it'll be just fine.

I'll qualify that with its going to depend on your usage. On our bowriders (I have a 18' & 19'), we typically don't spend all day on the boat...we leave the dock, tube, kneeboard & anchor & float in the lake for a few hours, then return to our dock whenever we want. We don't need pack up & plan for a 12 hour trip on the boat. We throw a couple water bottles & sunscreen in the boat, and we're off. So, it really depends on what your plans are.

My Glastrons are 1978 & 1979, and you will absolutely want to check everything for rot...they were/are good boats, but nothing back then was built to modern standards...and regardless of manufacturer, any boat that old potentially has issues.

Bayliners from the 80's weren't the best built...however, they generally were treated extremely poorly and left outside to rot in the weather. They didn't hold up well, no boat would.

If you can find an extremely nice example of one, you'll be happy with it...but they are hard to find in pristine condition.

There are a lot of Classic Glaston fans out there...probably a few in your area that wouldn't mind helping you look over the one you have in mind.

I think your usage will really determine how crowded a small bowrider will feel. If your goal is to spend the entire day on the boat...its gonna feel crowded. If you're loading up, heading to a beach or cove to anchor & do some tubing/watersports, it'll be just fine.

 

[jkust]

Re: Bowrider comfort: how many people can enjoy a bowrider that seats 7?

A Bayliners from the 80's weren't the best built...however, they generally were treated extremely poorly and left outside to rot in the weather. They didn't hold up well, no boat would.

If you can find an extremely nice example of one, you'll be happy with it...but they are hard to find in pristine condition.

.

Further to dorelse and my comment above. I have one of those old Bayliners. It's a 1984 Capri 16 foot open bow. We bought it new at the boat show in 1984 and have kept it all these years in original condition. I was a young boy when my folks got it. It is 85% as nice as my 2003 Chaparral on the inside and my Chap is like new still. The 15% difference is because the carpet is starting to show some wear. I will say that yes they are built a little iffy here and there and the hulls are light as a feather but through many years of heavy use it only took very few precautions to keep even the least quality parts of it nice. No shoes, keep it covered always when not in use to stop the sun and that's about it. The vinyl is paper thin, the floors are carpeted with pretty cheepo carpet, the gelcoat and fiberglass isn't up to modern standards. the stearing wheel is a nice Dino the controls are similar to today's but all in all not too bad a boat. The 85 hp engine and the 1000lb total dry weight will allow it to beat a modern 3.0 bowrider for a good distance and then start to trail on long runs. The floors are the culprit on these boats but we haven't had any issues yet and it has been stored outside, covered in Minnesotat for all but 3 or so years of its life. It finally got a garage built for it a couple years back. My point is there is nothing inherintly wrong with any boat but finding a really old one like a mid 80's in good shape is a challenge. They have probably had many owners and at least one of them probably neglected it and didn't store it correctly. I still see a lot of these old Bayliners on the water but usually in decrepid condition or reupholstered with mismatched vinyl with plastic Cabelas seats.