Larson quality?

[boatman37]

Sold our Sea Ray 250 last week to move to something newer and bigger. Looking for Four Winns 288 or Rinker 270 but also found a couple of Larsons locally. The first is a 2001 270 Cabrio. Not quite sold on it. It is clean but don't care much for the layout. The other is a 2006 274 Cabrio with about 75 hours on it. Very clean and has a Larson trailer. The only thing it doesn't have is the radar arch. The price seems a little high at $47,000. The 2001 comes with a 2013 LoadMaster trailer. It has everything but the arch and windlass but the shop said for $1500 they can install that.
So on that note dug a little deeper and found a couple of Larsons that are more in my price range and have more of the options I'm looking for.

In researching I have found articles stating that Larsons are a lower quality entry level boat? The 2001 says the dry weight is 6000lbs which seems pretty light compared to other similar sized boats. Read where the hull is pretty thin on these?

Also, the 2001 said it had a 9' beam but it seemed smaller than ours with an 8' beam? The 2001 was very hard to open the engine hatch as it filled almost the whole rear floor and there was nowhere to stand to lift it. I can see myself pulling my back lifting that. The struts for the hatch were broken off...meaning the fiberglass on the underside of the hatch was ripped out of the bottom of the hatch and the broken fiberglass was still attached to the ends of the struts.

Thoughts or opinions on Larson boats?

 

[tpenfield]

Opinion:

Larsons are probably in the same realm as Rinker . . . Four Winns may not be all that better. Get what you like.

 

[Lowlysubaruguy]

A friend of mine owned a 26 foot Larson while I cant really tell you much about the quality he had that boat from 92 till last fall. With few real boat issues. What i can tell you is that boat had a stellar ride in rough water we spent a fair amount of time diving in it and had more than a few rough returns and it has a very smooth ride. My new boat which is a little heavier same length but wider isn't near as smooth in rough water.

 

[Leardriver]

Nothing wrong with a Larson. You can get a ton of reliable fun boating out of it.
I have a slightly different take on Four Winns than Ted. I think of them as a high quality boat, the sleeper deal out there. A notch above the middle of the pack stuff.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Congrats on the sale and shopping for a bigger, newer barge. I can't help you with your search because all I know about cruisers are is I would love to have one. If you are anything like the folks that I know that have them I don't think they care much about how they handle out on the seas because they don't leave their slips, ever,,,,,,,, except to launch and retrieve them in Fall. I hope you aren't one of those guys.

 

[boatman37]

lol. no. we run ours about every weekend and will the next one too. Not far but we head out and drop anchor and hang out for the day.

still on the hunt. think the Larson is out of the question. there isn't much to choose from around here. Went to Port Clinton (3 hours away) the other day and i was amazed at how many boats are for sale there. within a 2 hour radius of us we have only found about 3 boats matching our wants.

 

[jimmbo]

I think Sea-Ray makes a better boat than any of the Genmar boats of the early 2000s

 

[jforrest1]

I guess I'm a little late to this party...But I've owed an 89 Sea Ray 25 DA and currently own a 2002 Larson Cabrio 31. IMO both boats are quality built. The Sea Ray was a single and the Larson has twin screws so little different to try to compare handling. The Larson is heavier (length and beam) and does ride well through the waves. In the smaller chop (1-2') it just goes through them and does not rise and slam the waves. The fit and finish seemed comparable on both boats and I am and was happy with each boat. We sold the Sea Ray due to relocating. Of course love the added room in the bigger boat and the comforts of the twins, generator and air conditioning/heat.