The Honda Civic of ski boats?

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

again, not looking to buy right now...just showing ideas for the type of boat I am thinking of in my price range.

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Honda Civic ? Your looking at the 4-6-8 Caddilac of some boats for that money in CA.

 

[seabob4]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Ski Nautique with gunwale mount rod holders and flat line clips...yea, we could do that...

 

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

4-6-8?

honda civic ? Your looking at the 4-6-8 caddilac of some boats for that money in ca.

 

[windsors03cobra]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Sorry just funning with you, good luck in your search. Its a tough choice out there.

 

[CV16]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

An outboard will serve to have the lack of power of a civic, but it won't serve well for skiing.

I disagree. The local ski team here uses outboards only. yes, an inboard ski boat would be best for strictly skiing, but that's not what he's looking for. I have a 150 hp Merc from 1973 on my boat. I can pull a 250lb skier no problem, with 3 adults in the boat. My motor has only needed spark plugs, gear lube and an impeller every other year. Don't knock on outboards just because you don't own one. Sharp Shooter must think that outboards only come in 25hp models. My boat has no lack of power.

 

[spudshaft]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

People have been skiing behing o/b's forever. If I were starting out, I'd consider an "entry level" new boat maybe, or buy the newest boat I could get. That being said, I have an 11 year old boat and a 28 year old boat.

 

[H20Rat]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

A nice simple outboard motor seems like it would be lower cost and easier to maintain, but maybe not powerful enough to do a lot of skiing??

Don't let anyone tell you an outboard isn't powerful enough, its all about matching the right engine/prop/hull combination. There are plenty of I/O's that are extremely underpowered also. (grew up barefooting behind a black max equipped glastron... plenty of power!)

But yes, you are correct, outboards are going to be cheaper and easier to maintain.

 

[marcortez]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

again, not looking to buy right now...just showing ideas for the type of boat I am thinking of in my price range.

Get a used bass boat with a 4 stroke outboard.
Many models have forward lounge seating and tons of storage.
On SoCal lakes, you and your son will fit right in.

Ranger, Skeeter, Champion or Procraft.
All are solidly built with top of the line fittings and accessories.

 

[sickwilly]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

60 40 to the fishing side, aren't you going to want something with a trolling motor?

I think you want something like this: http://cosprings.craigslist.org/boa/1816495883.html

 

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

60 40 to the fishing side, aren't you going to want something with a trolling motor?

I think you want something like this: http://cosprings.craigslist.org/boa/1816495883.html

YES! That's would do nicely!

 

[jkust]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

I think the biggest hurdle is finding a boat that can realistically handle 8 people while pulling. To me that is a 20plus footer. My Chaparral I believe says 8 people on the plate but more than 4 is pretty crowded and not very enjoyable not to mention the poor hole shot. As for the I/O versus the outboard...I have a bowrider with each and hands down, no competition the outboard requires 1/100 the maintenance as the I/O. The OB bowrider is a 1984 with zero required maintenance ever since it was new beyond fogging and gear lube for winter and even the impeller is original. I once put a set of plugs in it maybe 10 years back just to see what would happen and there was no change. I could have almost welded the cover on it and it is a dreaded Force engine to boot. The I/O has only required annual winterization (in MN)/oil/fluid/filter change to date since new and it is a 2003 but is much more involved than outboards. As for pulling, the outboard requires a lot less hp to perform as well as my v6 mercruiser. The boats are an apple and an orange weight wise but my point is you can attain a fun boat with not a ton of HP which is mutually exclusive however with an 8 person load.

 

[geeco1]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Living in the mid-west, perhaps used prices are cheaper than in SoCal.... however perhaps your best option would be this....

It sounds like you don't "really" know exactly what you want..take, maybe,$2500 of your $10k budget and buy a good used boat. Yes, you may have to do some minor maint, and it may not be the fastest and prettiest, but you should be able to find something usable that would last you a couple of years. During that time... do two things. 1.) Have fun using the boat. Fish out of it....ski behind it.... etc. 2.) Always evaluate what you would like to change.... More power... more room...more freeboard... casting seats...etc.

After a season or two, you can sell the boat for most of what you bought it for, and THEN you will have an idea of the type of boat that you need.

My last boat, I bought for $1300 (from a dealer) I used it for approx 6 years and sold it to an individual for $1400. We mainly fished out of it but also pulled a tube. It had a 50hp outboard and my kids were smaller.

My current boat was purchased for $1500. We also use it to fish and we ski and pull tubes. I recently spent ~ $600 to redo the interior and it serves me fine. If we "serious" skiers, then this boat would not work... If we were "serious" fisherpeople, then this boat would not work.

Boats seem to depreciate in value, but only down to a point. A $10k used boat today, may only be worth $5k in 2 or 3 years. But a $2000 boat will probably not go too much lower in value, unless it's totally trashed. If you spend your 10k budget on something that you don't really like, you will probably not get your money out of it, then you will have to come-up with more money to buy what you want in a few years.

HTH

 

[Andy'sDelight]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

seems like it and I don't even know anything about boats. maybe its stolen or perhaps run into the rocks or something? I wasn't planning on buying it, not ready to buy anything just yet. I figure a couple more months of research before I feel comfortable enough to bite the bullet. I was just using it as an example of the type of boat I pictured in my head.

I guess I have been thinking of an inboard or I/O motor without knowing it as they just seem like an easier boat to operate and more fun to take skiing. But from what I am reading here, they are also higher maintenance and higher cost. A nice simple outboard motor seems like it would be lower cost and easier to maintain, but maybe not powerful enough to do a lot of skiing??

how about something like this....

http://losangeles.craigslist.org/sfv/boa/1809794266.html

I know you're not looking to buy now, just some advice for when you are:

I put 150 hours on my boat in a season, and I'm not a diehard everyday boater. A 1989 does not have only 150 hours on it. Period. And frankly when a seller tries to tell me something like that I immediately assume they're lying to cover something up. If it has only 150 hours then it avg's 7 hours of use a year. Do you really think the guy put a $2500 ski tower to use it for 7 hours a year? Me neither.

 

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

I know you're not looking to buy now, just some advice for when you are:

I put 150 hours on my boat in a season, and I'm not a diehard everyday boater. A 1989 does not have only 150 hours on it. Period. And frankly when a seller tries to tell me something like that I immediately assume they're lying to cover something up. If it has only 150 hours then it avg's 7 hours of use a year. Do you really think the guy put a $2500 ski tower to use it for 7 hours a year? Me neither.

good point! Just like a 20 year old car with 10,000 miles...its a bit odd for sure. Maybe it was stored for a number of years or something...who knows.

 

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Living in the mid-west, perhaps used prices are cheaper than in SoCal.... however perhaps your best option would be this....

It sounds like you don't "really" know exactly what you want..take, maybe,$2500 of your $10k budget and buy a good used boat. Yes, you may have to do some minor maint, and it may not be the fastest and prettiest, but you should be able to find something usable that would last you a couple of years. During that time... do two things. 1.) Have fun using the boat. Fish out of it....ski behind it.... etc. 2.) Always evaluate what you would like to change.... More power... more room...more freeboard... casting seats...etc.

After a season or two, you can sell the boat for most of what you bought it for, and THEN you will have an idea of the type of boat that you need.

My last boat, I bought for $1300 (from a dealer) I used it for approx 6 years and sold it to an individual for $1400. We mainly fished out of it but also pulled a tube. It had a 50hp outboard and my kids were smaller.

My current boat was purchased for $1500. We also use it to fish and we ski and pull tubes. I recently spent ~ $600 to redo the interior and it serves me fine. If we "serious" skiers, then this boat would not work... If we were "serious" fisherpeople, then this boat would not work.

Boats seem to depreciate in value, but only down to a point. A $10k used boat today, may only be worth $5k in 2 or 3 years. But a $2000 boat will probably not go too much lower in value, unless it's totally trashed. If you spend your 10k budget on something that you don't really like, you will probably not get your money out of it, then you will have to come-up with more money to buy what you want in a few years.

HTH

Not a bad idea!

 

[geeco1]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Living in the mid-west, perhaps used prices are cheaper than in SoCal.... however perhaps your best option would be this....

It sounds like you don't "really" know exactly what you want..take, maybe,$2500 of your $10k budget and buy a good used boat. Yes, you may have to do some minor maint, and it may not be the fastest and prettiest, but you should be able to find something usable that would last you a couple of years. During that time... do two things. 1.) Have fun using the boat. Fish out of it....ski behind it.... etc. 2.) Always evaluate what you would like to change.... More power... more room...more freeboard... casting seats...etc.

After a season or two, you can sell the boat for most of what you bought it for, and THEN you will have an idea of the type of boat that you need.

My last boat, I bought for $1300 (from a dealer) I used it for approx 6 years and sold it to an individual for $1400. We mainly fished out of it but also pulled a tube. It had a 50hp outboard and my kids were smaller.

My current boat was purchased for $1500. We also use it to fish and we ski and pull tubes. I recently spent ~ $600 to redo the interior and it serves me fine. If we "serious" skiers, then this boat would not work... If we were "serious" fisherpeople, then this boat would not work.

Boats seem to depreciate in value, but only down to a point. A $10k used boat today, may only be worth $5k in 2 or 3 years. But a $2000 boat will probably not go too much lower in value, unless it's totally trashed. If you spend your 10k budget on something that you don't really like, you will probably not get your money out of it, then you will have to come-up with more money to buy what you want in a few years.

HTH

 

[NedM]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

maybe something like this is a better "starter" boat just for a few seasons?

http://ventura.craigslist.org/boa/1799359717.html

Less money means its easier to get my wife to agree. She already has, but gets a bit quiet when we talk about the price tag.

 

[sickwilly]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Your are not getting more than about 4 people comfortably in that boat. If you plan to fish a lot, you have not trolling motor, no live well, etc.

Go to the Bayliner sight and look at their brand new small outboards. Also, look at their fish and ski models.

Then go to the Glasstron site. Look at their brand new smaller outboard models and fish and skis.

Stingray and four wins have nice fish and skis.

Then go to the Hurricane Boats web site and look at their smallest fun fun deck.

Lots of good options that will both fish and ski.

 

[maharg]

Re: The Honda Civic of ski boats?

Not bad looking, However a trihull is a different ride from a v bottom. I agree that buying a cheaper boat to start is a good thing, it will let you distinguish what you need from what you think you need. I know what I need for my next boat purchase. I will probably only use my current boat for the remainder of this season and next season, after that I will be buying new.