In The Market For A Boat

[mwfischer]

Hey everybody,

I am beginning to think about taking the plunge and buying my first real boat. Right now I have a full setup, small 14ft Richline that is roughly a 1968 model with a mid 80's 20hp Merc, but I want something bigger and obviously with more amenities.

I have been looking at BPS at the Tracker Line, and don't really know anybody that owns a Tracker that I can bounce some thoughts off so I thought I'd post. I have read some older posts about the aluminum lines out there, but if any Tracker owners are out there, let me know what you think of your boat, and if I should wait a little longer and hope prices drop further.

FYI I'm looking at the 175 probably w/ 60HP.. Maybe 75 if I could get a good deal.

Thanks!

Mike

St Louis, MO

[RSBreth]

I've been in plenty of Trackers, a couple of G3s', a few Lunds, and one Xpress. I wound up getting a Lowe, imagine that. It was a great deal and way better than the Trackers. Higher horsepower rating for the size of boat, too. Most 17-foot boats aluminums are only rated for a 75-hp, but my Lowe is rated for a 115, although it only has a 90 right now.

[James01]

Hi,

Very good discussion going on.

Rah

[Kutter]

I have owned 8 boats in my lifetime, yes, including Tracker, all used. In 2000, I was in a position to buy my first new one, and price wasn't the main factor. Before, I had no internet to guide me, just the word of other boat owners I knew. After 4 months of reading up on the net, and going out to look at each boat considered, I chose a G3 1860 DLX center console. Without knowing where you plan to fish and what type of fishing you do, it's impossible to recommend any boat to you. My boat, designed for catfishing the Mississippi River in both high & low water conditions, is perfect for me, but may not be for you. With a bad back, I am unable to endure the pain of sitting down, while running across the water. The center console allows me to stand, with knees unlocked and hardly even notice major wakes & waves.

The internet is a great place to get all kinds of reviews. As usual, go in a bit suspicious and watch out for the far ends of the opinions.

[buckdandy]

I, too, have been looking to upgrade into a newer boat. I have looked at Trackers, G3, Fisher, and Lowe's, and for the type of fishing I do, mainly bass, crappie, walleye, catfish, in smaller lakes and rivers, I like the Tracker PT 175's, or 190's. I haven't ruled out anything though, I'm looking for the best deal I can find. I am looking for aluminum due to the fact that I fish a lot of tree filled lakes and shallow rivers where the aluminum will work best. If I was fishing big water I'd be more inclined to go with a fiberglass boat. So basically for my two cents worth, I say it depends on where you fish, what you fish for, and how deep in debt you want to go.

[DerekB]

Hi all,

Last Summer I fished small lakes with a 14-foot 1981 Duracraft jon boat, no outboard, just a trolling motor. It had a nice set up for a jon boat (livewell, bilge pump, etc.). Wanting to get into larger lakes with the least amount of money, I just purchased a pre-owned 2000 Nitro NX882SC with a 175HP Mercury EFI last week for $10,000. The boat is immaculate and the motor has a little over 50 hours on it.

I originally had planned to look for an 18-foot aluminum bass boat with a smaller outboard, but for the money, I was able to purchase my first fiberglass boat. I feel like I got a lot of boat for the money.

Keep looking, there are some great deals out there.

[walleyerich]

I owned a 2002 Tracker Targa and the problems I had with it are too long to list here. I would not buy another one, nor would I recommend. It seemed like a good purchase at the time because it had a low $ entry point, but I had to fix things on it constantly. I have a friend that owns an Alumacraft and I think the quality is similar to a Lund, but at a lower price. Just my opinion.

[fish_in_a_lund]

I'm going to throw my .02 in here. In my opinion the only reason that trackers sell is people are ate up with Bass Pro Shop. Thats why the resale is where it is. I was there years and years ago. Thought I just had to have a tracker boat. Then, I grew a brain. Look at the quality of the boat (if you can find any). When a company sets a brand new boat on their showroom floor and its dented where ever there's a rivet, somethings wrong with QC. Look at the carpet, hinges, and as was said the cheap electronics. I'd be embarrassed to sell such a piece of junk. But, on the other hand, if you need to run a boat because BPS sells it go for it. I hope you get one that was built in the middle of the week.

[loo10]

Several years ago I decided I was going to buy a different boat.

What I knew was....that whenever I was fishing and saw a Lund go by...I stopped and watched it.

So I decided, based on that and good reviews, to buy a Lund.

I went to several (many) boat shows and became acquainted with some salesmen.

I knew specifically what I wanted and communicated that to them.

Length, width, steering choice (I chose a tiller), color, motor brand & size.

I told them I couldn't afford a new one but would buy a well taken care of used one

rigged like I had described.

It took me a couple years but I finally found the one I wanted...right here in Missouri.

Several points -

1.) I've never regretted the purchase.

2.) It has never given me a problem.

3.) I still like looking at it.

4.) I wouldn't trade it for any brand new Tracker!

There you have it from a Lund owner.

Highly recommended!