Clint r
Well-Known Member
First trip in our own boat was a 14’ fiberglass out of Port Renfrew. Never forget my wife’s eyes when we came out of the bay into swells as high as a barn. We killed the coho that day.
In Hindsight Advice (seeking not giving)
- Thread starter Jamesonm
- Start date
scott craven
Well-Known Member
Agreed, on a good day you will see all kinds of non suited boats on the ocean.
Those pristeen days are few and far between on the salt.
It depends on the type of usage the owner is looking for.
Max123
Well-Known Member
20" transom with a splashwell is pretty normal. Others may correct, but I don't think a 25" XL outboard would be common on a 16ft boat (lake or ocean).
You just want to avoid a 15" short shaft transom
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Max123
Well-Known Member
It is what it is. Run it on muffs (run it the entire time you are inspecting - like 10-15min to see if it will overheat), crack open the gear oil bleed screw to make sure the oil isn't milky. The two things you really want to avoid are an engine that has been seriously overheated (head damage), or a toasted lower unit (milky gear oil is bad, glittery gear oil is worse).
Personally, any vehicle I buy - I check it over myself when I'm buying to confirm nothing is terminal. After that, I take it home and 'baseline' the maintenance. I don't care what the previous owner tells me, unless it's actually backed up with an invoice proving it happened. On an outboard, at minimum - new engine oil/filter, fresh gear oil (new o-ring on the drain screw), fresh fuel filter (and install external fuel filter/water separator if not already in place). Possibly new impeller, thermostat and battery after assessing (t-stat takes 5 minutes on the 3 cyl Suzuki - its right on top).
Tomfoolery
Member
There is no perfect boat, just the one that is best suited to what you want to do. I started out solo fishing as a young teen fishing off the Oak Bay flats/Discovery/Trial with my buddies in my dads 21 foot sailboat. It took us forever to get out there battling currents and whatnot but we had a blast and caught fish, and only had to be rescued once... those old Ferryman diesel one-bangers tended to shake things apart! Since then I have run an east coast lobster style boat, 14 foot aluminum Lifetimer tiller steering, welded aluminum and fiberglass center consoles, 25' power cat and now a 24 foot aluminum sport fisher.
To be honest, I still think an 18-20 foot west coast CC with a T-Top is my favorite type of boat, especially for calmer/inside waters. Easy to tow with a Taco, seaworthy, easy to maneuver, gives some weather protection (especially if you get side curtains) and the walk-around is so nice for fishing. I also like my new boat with the head and galley and berth, but it is expensive all around (capitol costs, maintenance, insurance etc), has more systems to maintain and isn't as 'fun' as a smaller center consoles. Fuel burn is also 2X what a CC would cost in the 18 foot range. BUT before I built, my wife said it has to have a cabin with heat and a head, so following the "happy wife, happy life" doctrine I built accordingly.
The TomMac Everglide 18' CC welded aluminum has been my favorite boat so far and I took that thing 20 miles offshore to the banks without blinking an eye. Cheap to run, super dry with huge chines, stable with the hollow hull and bombproof construction. The closest to that boat is now the Bridgeview Marine CC series that took over that division of TomMac Shipyards. Nice boats but very pricey to buy new.
To my way of thinking, especially in a smaller boat, the hull design is everything. You wouldn't typically take a lake hull design and shift it over to the ocean directly. Yes, lots of people run lake boats on the ocean, but if you want a versatile boat that can get you through all sorts of conditions, pay attention to the hull design. Deep entry, big chines. Here you go, these are hard to find! A little elbow grease and it would look awesome. https://bridgeviewmarine.com/product/everglide-aluminum-center-console/
To be honest, I still think an 18-20 foot west coast CC with a T-Top is my favorite type of boat, especially for calmer/inside waters. Easy to tow with a Taco, seaworthy, easy to maneuver, gives some weather protection (especially if you get side curtains) and the walk-around is so nice for fishing. I also like my new boat with the head and galley and berth, but it is expensive all around (capitol costs, maintenance, insurance etc), has more systems to maintain and isn't as 'fun' as a smaller center consoles. Fuel burn is also 2X what a CC would cost in the 18 foot range. BUT before I built, my wife said it has to have a cabin with heat and a head, so following the "happy wife, happy life" doctrine I built accordingly.
The TomMac Everglide 18' CC welded aluminum has been my favorite boat so far and I took that thing 20 miles offshore to the banks without blinking an eye. Cheap to run, super dry with huge chines, stable with the hollow hull and bombproof construction. The closest to that boat is now the Bridgeview Marine CC series that took over that division of TomMac Shipyards. Nice boats but very pricey to buy new.
To my way of thinking, especially in a smaller boat, the hull design is everything. You wouldn't typically take a lake hull design and shift it over to the ocean directly. Yes, lots of people run lake boats on the ocean, but if you want a versatile boat that can get you through all sorts of conditions, pay attention to the hull design. Deep entry, big chines. Here you go, these are hard to find! A little elbow grease and it would look awesome. https://bridgeviewmarine.com/product/everglide-aluminum-center-console/
noluck
Well-Known Member
sea trial is a must, you need to see if it is under powered bring your fishing buddy's to simulate a loaded boat.
kaelc
Well-Known Member
I vote for a StarCraft, especially on with the offshore hull design. Keep away from the rounded corner in the transom, those are the lake design ones. We rebuilt ours from the 60’s twice. Easy to work with and nice and light. 16 footer was ours, caught a ton of fish until a tree fell on it, now it’s a river boat as the repair took some of the freeboard away.
