Advice on first large boat... Stryker, Talon, Predator, Sportsman, ect......?

[hiway_99]

If we new your budget we could give you better advice on boats that you can afford.  There's a big difference between a alumaweld talon or Stryker verse a north river seahawk as far as power goes.  I've owned a alumaweld Stryker and I wouldn't own another for my fishing needs.  Talons and strikers are more of an entry level light weight boat.  There not going to require as much hp on the back to move them across the water.  There also a flatter vee and will ride rougher than a heavier deeper vee boat.

[Stein]

There is also really no difference in launching a 17 or 21' aluminum boat from a boat ramp with a dock.  Even off the each, the aluminum boats with the walk-through windshield are quite easy to deal with.  Of course storage and hauling might be more of an issue, but a half ton pickup can easily handle a 21' aluminum boat.

On a windy day, I would totally disagree with this, my 21' was a beast to launch by myself.  Also, at 21' I had to watch the tides as there were many places that got sketchy at low water.

The 21' also destroyed my tow vehicle, a 1/2 ton can pull it but you will probably take 50% off the life of the transmission if you pull it with any frequency.

[lokidog]

There is also really no difference in launching a 17 or 21' aluminum boat from a boat ramp with a dock.  Even off the each, the aluminum boats with the walk-through windshield are quite easy to deal with.  Of course storage and hauling might be more of an issue, but a half ton pickup can easily handle a 21' aluminum boat.

On a windy day, I would totally disagree with this, my 21' was a beast to launch by myself.  Also, at 21' I had to watch the tides as there were many places that got sketchy at low water.

The 21' also destroyed my tow vehicle, a 1/2 ton can pull it but you will probably take 50% off the life of the transmission if you pull it with any frequency.

I'm sorry, but if it is that windy that it is hard with a 21' you probably shouldn't be on the water. I launch my boat all the time by myself with no dock, and yes, sometimes in 20+ mph crosswinds. And, as far as sketchy ramps, three foot of  boat length probably won't make them more, or less, sketchy.  You just have to be familiar with the ramp and when you can or can't launch.  I know I can launch at ours at a -0.5 but this is tough to land as the trailer has to be pulled up over the end of the ramp.

As far as power goes, no boat dealer will put a sub standard engine on their boat as stock because it would make their boats look bad.  The may go bare minimum. like a 60 on a 17' Stryker IMO, but it will still function within parameters if the boat is not overloaded.  BTW, four 200 pound guys in a 17' Stryker, is overloaded, technically so for my 19' as well with a max payload of 750lbs.  Having said that, I have had 2100 pounds in my boat (me + chicken food, gas cans, bags of redimix, etc) and was still able to get it up on plane with the stock 90hp engine.  It took a lot of cajoling and finesse, but it made it.  I would not however recommend this activity to anyone.  So, my suggestion would be when you are testing boats out, bring your max passenger load with you plus one and make sure to take into consideration whether or not the fuel tank is full, 30g of fuel adds about 210 pounds to the mix (this amount will not be part of the max load rating as I think it is considered part of the boat in their ratings). And, boats all have a max HP rating as well as a maximum weight for the engine.  Unfortunately, four strokes tend to weigh a crapload more than two strokes and that extra 20 hp might add a huge amount of extra weight, depending of course on the block size, etc. of the engines you are looking at.  And, if it is an aftermarket, or even upgraded engine that is larger than stock it will add $$ to the cost as Hp=$$.

So, take these observations or not, just some things I have noticed while putting 2500-3500 miles a year on my boat out on Puget Sound.   

[mmullins]

My budget was initially $20,000. After doing my research it appears the I might have to spend a touch more to get what I want. May just give it one more year and save up a little more. I really don't every see me going off shore. I know if I have patents I will be able to find the right boat for me in the price range I have.

[lokidog]

Unfortunately, used aluminum boats tend to still be really expensive.  When we bought ours, it was a few years old but had low hours and little use. It cost us $16000.  It turns out we got a steal, we had it insured for that and when it rolled over at the dock, the insurance company totaled it.  We looked and looked for something a little bigger, but couldn't even find a 19'er for less than about $26000, so we bought the hull back and put a new outboard on it.  It does seem that the saying of $100/hp is about right.

If you can swing new, consider going to OR to buy as most dealers will sell you the trailer and motor on a separate ticket and you will save the sales tax when registering it in WA.

[Crunchy]

I own a Sportsman 180 with a 90 Honda on the back.  It is perfect for fishing the sound, but if you are gona be in ruff water ie Bouy 10 I would look at a deeper V model.  The Sportsman is fairly flat bottom and will handle ruff water but you will take a bit of a beating.  Also on an 18-19 footer I firmly believe a 90hp will do the trick just fine.  Mine will cruz at 35mph which is plenty fast for me.

[cavemann]

I have 3 kids and ran a 19' Stryker with inboard 175 sport jet..  I fished buoy 10, riffe, washington, mayfield and chelan.  I also fished the green, cowlitz, nisqually, skykomish and shallow rivers.  With the kids in boat, long runs are rough and not pleasant in a Stryker.  Pumps are made for shallow rivers and you'll find out the hard way on bigger water.  I had plenty of power and did a ton of tubing and trout fishing with the kids when they were younger, but the boat just wasn't good for 1,2 and 3 mile runs on the columbia, chelan and riffe.  I had my fair share of miserable runs back in on windy days.  Hit some light chop trying to go 1/2 throttle on the way in and you'll swear you broke the thing in half!!  LOL.

Long story short, jet and shallow V is not what you want.  I will be buying an outboard next time, the jets are notorious maintenance pigs.  I've been across the bar in jets and will never do it again.  It is possible, but doesn't mean it is enjoyable.  You'll be happier with a deeper V and heavier hull prop.  It will get you everywhere but up shallow rivers, which i didn't see you mention.

[mmullins]

Ok, here's where I am at now. I have bank preaproved and have been looking at boats. There are two that I am having a hard time making a decision. Both have their pros and cons. Hoping to get some advice from you guys.

Boat 1:
2008 Hewescraft 180 Sportsman 18': powered by an low hour Honda 75 hp outboard and a 8 hp Honda kicker. Boat is very very clean. Has a new top in it but other than that no real other bells and whistles.

Boat 2:
2008 Alumaweld Stkyker 20': powered by a brand new Mercury 115 outboard and a band new 8 hp Mercury kicker. Boat has top, ski/fishing tower, canvas top, anchor system, lowrance hds 5 fish Finder. This boat is in used shape. Not bad but has seen some dock rash. Some paint peels here and there. No real noticeable signs of sitting in the salt. All in all a solid boat, it's just defiantly seen more use.

So I understand that the hewes tend to be a better build and it's also about $2000 cheaper than the alumaweld. The alumaweld is coming from a dealer and the motors have 3 year warrants on them.
I am leaning towards the hewes as it looks like it's never seen water and I think with it being a little smaller it might be a little easier to operate. My biggest concern about the hewes is will the 75hp be enough to do what I want to do.

[fishngamereaper]

Buy the Hewes, take the extra 2k you save and the 75hp Honda in and trade up for a 90 Yamaha. Hondas tend to weigh more and its a little more difficult to find a shop that does Honda Maint.

Other than that as far as the boat goes, your better off with the Hewes. A little better built than the Alumaweld as far as fit and finish. And if you can see use/abuse on the Alumaweld than who knows what you cant see.

Check the welds, pin hole pitting on the hull. The small stuff that can be major stuff down the road.

Best of luck whatever direction you go.

[allen]

By all means keep us informed & with pics.

Good luck!

[C-Money]

I have the Talon. I love it! Great boat. I would fish buoy 10 in it, but would not fish out of Westport or the ocean in general. I fish the Columbia, and most all the basin lakes, and its great. My next boat will be another Alumaweld, or the 18' Thunder Jet. The Thunder Jet is a bit wider, seems to have more room. As of now, the Talon is awesome, and I really have no urge to ever part with it. Good luck on your boat search.

[Mossy]

Ok, here's where I am at now. I have bank preaproved and have been looking at boats. There are two that I am having a hard time making a decision. Both have their pros and cons. Hoping to get some advice from you guys.

Boat 1:
2008 Hewescraft 180 Sportsman 18': powered by an low hour Honda 75 hp outboard and a 8 hp Honda kicker. Boat is very very clean. Has a new top in it but other than that no real other bells and whistles.

Boat 2:
2008 Alumaweld Stkyker 20': powered by a brand new Mercury 115 outboard and a band new 8 hp Mercury kicker. Boat has top, ski/fishing tower, canvas top, anchor system, lowrance hds 5 fish Finder. This boat is in used shape. Not bad but has seen some dock rash. Some paint peels here and there. No real noticeable signs of sitting in the salt. All in all a solid boat, it's just defiantly seen more use.

So I understand that the hewes tend to be a better build and it's also about $2000 cheaper than the alumaweld. The alumaweld is coming from a dealer and the motors have 3 year warrants on them.
I am leaning towards the hewes as it looks like it's never seen water and I think with it being a little smaller it might be a little easier to operate. My biggest concern about the hewes is will the 75hp be enough to do what I want to do.

Had the same exact setup with the hewes, same motors and all. Although it suited my needs for the most part, I wished for the 115(max rating for the 18). The best I did was 34 but that's full open. It was about the perfect size for around here and easy to launch alone. That being said, a 20 footer is much more comfortable with a few people and probably better suited for what you want to do with it.

[lokidog]

I think the 75 will be fine on the Sportsman, it is not as heavy of a boat as some of their other ones. I think it is on par with the Alumaweld Talon.  Is that Sportsman rated for 4 or 5 people? The Stryker should be 5 or maybe even 6.  The only negative I see to the Stryker is that I am not much of a Mercury fan, though many people seem to do fine with them. A little dock rash makes you not feel so bad when you run up on the beach or hit the dock/trailer a little hard.

I think in the end you would be a lot happier with the Stryker.  Don't forget the depth finder is about $500 plus other add-ons when you are comparing prices.

[Crunchy]

The sportsman is rated for 5 people.  I have a 90 Honda on mine and it is perfect.  Heck I am pretty sure a 75 would be just as good.

[C-Money]

The sportsman is rated for 5 people.  I have a 90 Honda on mine and it is perfect.  Heck I am pretty sure a 75 would be just as good.

I too think the 75hp would be just fine. Sounds like a nice find. See if you can find some open water and take a test drive. When I was boat shopping, all my questions about performance were put to rest after a few minutes on the water.