boston whaler knock off

the butcher

the butcher

Well-Known Member
a friend of mine wants to buy a boat that is a boston whaler knock off... It's a 17 foot center console. Does anyone have any experience with a boston whaler knock off? He is getting it at a very good price but I don't know anything about the boat. If it was me, I'd stay away from a "knock off" and wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole but he is excited because it's his first boat and is the only one he has found in his budget at that size. I am hoping to get some feedback to help him make the right decision .
 
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There are many many whaler knock offs and i’ve been on a few. Surf is pretty decent as are the Telosky whalers if you can find them. they ride typical of a whaler but like all things they are not all equal. i don’t think you could ask for a better first boat, than a whaler clone center console. i’d be more concerned about making sure it has decent power and is not waterlogged. most whalers and smaller vessels are trailer queens but they can still hold water if not properly stored etc
 
Coast Ranger was locally made and basically a Whaler copy, as was a Surf.

The original Whaler designer guy (Bob Dougherty) eventually left the company and started his own companies...first was Marlin which made basically an exact Whaler Outrage 17ft copy, and then Bob went on to start Everglades and EdgeWater, but those latter two are more like modern expensive Whalers.

Like anything with an inexpensive used boat the condition of the systems and hull probably matter a lot more than the name on the side.
 
If you could post a picture, someone might be able to tell you what you are looking at. Older Telosky's are more of a work boat finish on the interior At least mine is. Surf and some others are like a two piece fiberglass and joined along the gunnels and look close to factory,. Does it have a motor well? Most of the older clones will have water in the hull, not because of a hole in the hull but because someone has put screws through the floor and water has intruded into the hull. If he gets it at a good price, and is capable of fixing it up great. If it has no serial number or builders plate, he will need to get it surveyed before insuring it. Power can be anywhere from 50-100+ hp, weight of engine may be the mitigating factor.
 
the butcher said:
a friend of mine wants to buy a boat that is a boston whaler knock off... It's a 17 foot center console. Does anyone have any experience with a boston whaler knock off? He is getting it at a very good price but I don't know anything about the boat. If it was me, I'd stay away from a "knock off" and wouldn't touch it with a 10 foot pole but he is excited because it's his first boat and is the only one he has found in his budget at that size. I am hoping to get some feedback to help him make the right decision .
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I have owned a 17 ft island surf before powered with a 60 Johnson. It was a great boat I never had any issues with it. To be fair it was bought brand new so I had no worries of un foreseen damage or water issues. I used to guide out of the the whalers as well Road the same handles the water the same. The only thing I did not like about it was the high rail around the island surf as it was in my direct site line while operating a tiller handle vessel. Not to sure why it bothered me but it did lol. The island surf is heavy then the whalers though.
 
I had a “Whaler Knock-off” at one point in my boat history called a Coho. It was a 17 ft CC with a 50 Hp Tohatsu. I caught alot of fish in that boat.

I noticed that if I’d forgottent to bring my net, all I had to do was lean over a bit on the gunnel and I could swim the fish into the boat (using about 10 gallon of water that came into the boat with the fish)

I finally realized that the injected foam that made it “unsinkable” like a Whaler had soaked up a ton of water——I was basically driving around a soaked sponge with an outboard on it

You gets what you pay for
 
Sharphooks said:
I had a “Whaler Knock-off” at one point in my boat history called a Coho. It was a 17 ft CC with a 50 Hp Tohatsu. I caught alot of fish in that boat.

I noticed that if I’d forgottent to bring my net, all I had to do was lean over a bit on the gunnel and I could swim the fish into the boat (using about 10 gallon of water that came into the boat with the fish)

I finally realized that the injected foam that made it “unsinkable” like a Whaler had soaked up a ton of water——I was basically driving around a soaked sponge with an outboard on it

You gets what you pay for
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I understand even the best name brand glass foam sandwich construction boats can develop the heavy, soggy foam problem, more so when long in the tooth. It makes perfect sense to me that lower quality knock offs will be far more likely to develop the problem, and to do so much earlier in the life of the boat. It seems to me that when this problem develops in glass foam boats, it may actually be worse than what happens to some glass boats with wood components. If the wood in your stringers, deck and transom rots, at least it is possible to remove and replace it, although it is a nasty job and if you cannot do your own sweat equity work, it is often not worth the cost. I have no Idea what you can do with a soggy glass foam construction boat. Perhaps the only options is to pay the increasingly expensive dump disposal fee.
 
Rockfish said:
I understand even the best name brand glass foam sandwich construction boats can develop the heavy, soggy foam problem, more so when long in the tooth. It makes perfect sense to me that lower quality knock offs will be far more likely to develop the problem, and to do so much earlier in the life of the boat. It seems to me that when this problem develops in glass foam boats, it may actually be worse than what happens to some glass boats with wood components. If the wood in your stringers, deck and transom rots, at least it is possible to remove and replace it, although it is a nasty job and if you cannot do your own sweat equity work, it is often not worth the cost. I have no Idea what you can do with a soggy glass foam construction boat. Perhaps the only options is to pay the increasingly expensive dump disposal fee.
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The Wahoo, BW knock off I own is over 25 years old, no soggy foam.
 
Gungho said:
The Wahoo, BW knock off I own is over 25 years old, no soggy foam.
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My Glassply is 38 years old and has no rot in the glass over wood transom and internal deck, the stringers are all glass. That does not mean that it cannot develop wood rot at some point that will need repair, but clearly some boats are more resistant than others. I suspect that is also true of your boat developing soggy foam. There are I suspect, many factors that increase the likelihood of if and when boats develop these kinds of problems. Those of us who have very old boats that are still solid, should consider ourselves fortunate.
 
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Even high-dollar foam filled boats can have issues. I bought a Skagit Orca from a guy who had the boat on a trailer parked for a long period of time on a steeply sloped driveway, bow pointing down hill. It sat under lots of rain storms. When I bought it, the foam in the bow compartment was soaked——you could reach in, grab a fist-full, and fill a glass after squeazing it.

The foam got such a bad reputation that I heard the newer Orca’s are built with little to no foam in them.
 
Sharphooks said:
Even high-dollar foam filled boats can have issues. I bought a Skagit Orca from a guy who had the boat on a trailer parked for a long period of time on a steeply sloped driveway, bow pointing down hill. It sat under lots of rain storms. When I bought it, the foam in the bow compartment was soaked——you could reach in, grab a fist-full, and fill a glass after squeazing it.

The foam got such a bad reputation that I heard the newer Orca’s are built with little to no foam in them.
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Wow! Not such a well designed boat at least they addressed the problem. :p
 
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there were some whaler knock offs built from a whaler mold just before expo 86, fish on charters out of whytcliff in west van used them and when they went belly or basically came over and joined the sewell's charter fleet most of them were sold off, I had 1 for 6 or 7 years and got good use out of it, very low rear transom, had to be careful in a following sea, lol. these were all tillers, mine had a 65 hp commercial johnson on it and it was fine, I took it to thrasher to fish etc. it was a heavy boat for the size lots of glass but also some wet foam, lol.
 
Has anyone ever heard of a Boston Whaler copy called a Linde? I'm trying to track the company down, but having no luck. The model I'm looking for is a 1987 Linde 13 footer. Photo for reference.

Thanks!241750896_4446763802049438_5522790811217365253_n.jpg
 
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