Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 stlouis.craigslist.org/boa/4308596957.html looking for things to get a lot better soon...would be my first boat... Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 i see a few things i want to add....front and rear seats...nice GPS/Fish finder...on board charger a pair of good batterys at the front under the lid storage area..led lighting on the interior... love the large front deck...be great for a little catfishin' on the river..hell you could put a cple of lawn chairs out there... what about the price i think thats a bit steep....buuuut trying to play catch up on what boats go for.. Quote
Super User Darren. Posted February 12, 2014 Super User Posted February 12, 2014 If it gets ya to where the fish are, and doesn't leak, it's good-to-go! Well, the motor's gotta pass the test though. Heh. Take my words for what they're worth, I paddle a kayak, LOL. 1 Quote
gripnrip Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Heck yeah. The only thing I'd be wary of would be how it handles. Give a test drive for sure. Don't forget your life vest. A brand new 17' John boat would run about half that without a motor. A lot of TLC and work put into that one! Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 what are the advantage of the whole ' jet ' drive..? Quote
gripnrip Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 what are the advantage of the whole ' jet ' drive..? Basically no prop. You can get in some "skinny" water. In some tournaments, pros will use jet boat to get into backwater on nav channels and rivers. It kind of works like a jet ski. Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 So thats not a bad price..? I could see someone put a lot of thought into it and a ton of work.. Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted February 12, 2014 Super User Posted February 12, 2014 Jet boats are great for running shallow water but the handling is completely different than a prop boat. You also lose a good bit of horsepower by having an outboard jet. Personally, unless you are looking for a river boat i would keep looking as these crafts are a little more specialized. I would also want to see if it is a tunnel hull or just a raised transom to accommodate the jet and get the shallowest draft. I am not sure on that price though because i have seen nicer boats for a little bit more. it is cool boat though but the jet boat world is a lot different.... Quote
gripnrip Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 So thats not a bad price..? I could see someone put a lot of thought into it and a ton of work.. I believe that is why the price is a little higher. Flyfisher has some excellent advice. I've never owned a jetboat but I've ridden in one. They handle differently for sure. Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 it would spend time on the Meramac and some on the big miss' above st.louis..It looks to be a raised transom set up, the CraigsList link has a bunch of extra pics... im looking...i like that open deck..trying to see whats out there..to be honest more than i want to spend at first but the amount of work done and a fresh motor were what caught my eye Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted February 12, 2014 Super User Posted February 12, 2014 Unless you need a jet boat i would bet you could get more boat for the same money with a conventional prop boat. I do like the deck layout too but you can find that type of layout out there as well. when i am in the market fro a boat i will be considering getting one because i like to hit the rivers and the lakes around her rare grassy and unclogging an outboard jet is easier than an inboard one. Oh and for comparison, my dad bought a mid 90's tracker pro jet which has a 175hp (i think) inboard jet (which only loses about 10% of HP as opposed to around 25-30% for an outboard) with low hours and he got it for a shade under 10k....i will tell you though it is pretty freaking cool to be cruising along at 45mph and only need about 6" of water while on plane and cruising through rapids....he lives within about 15 minutes from a shallow river though so for him it makes total sense to have a jet. Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 I like the 17x52 or 17x48 aluminum jon boats,though the Semi V's are supposed to be better in a little chop.. Quote
jhoffman Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 You run that boat in 1" of water, a good fish finder isnt gonna do anything. Quote
Duckbutter100 Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 Unless you need a jet boat i would bet you could get more boat for the same money with a conventional prop boat. I do like the deck layout too but you can find that type of layout out there as well. when i am in the market fro a boat i will be considering getting one because i like to hit the rivers and the lakes around her rare grassy and unclogging an outboard jet is easier than an inboard one. Oh and for comparison, my dad bought a mid 90's tracker pro jet which has a 175hp (i think) inboard jet (which only loses about 10% of HP as opposed to around 25-30% for an outboard) with low hours and he got it for a shade under 10k....i will tell you though it is pretty freaking cool to be cruising along at 45mph and only need about 6" of water while on plane and cruising through rapids....he lives within about 15 minutes from a shallow river though so for him it makes total sense to have a jet. You get a lot more boat if you do not need a jet drive. I have been looking for a while now and I can get a very nice glass boat for what im looking at spending on an "ok" jet boat. The jets usually have the tunnel hulls to allow the jet to set in water but not even be as low as the bottom of your boat. Ive learned that in most cases(not all) you simply cannot just put a jet on a boat set up for a prop. Usually the engine needs to be mounted higher and the shape of the bottom of the back of the boats affects the depth of the jet. http://www.boatdesign.net/forums/attachments/jet-drives/24518d1219625339-adding-lifting-strakes-help-ss.boat.8.8-043.jpg there's a pic showing what I mean. Some of the boats are tunnels the complete length of the boat some are just towards the back but you can see the intake of the jet doesn't have to be as low on the boat compared to boats without the tunnel. Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 so if i can live with glass i can get a lot more boat for my dollar..? I emailed the guy again for more info.Then i got on CL and hit up a few other citys other than just St.Louis and compared to other boats kinda like his its over priced by about 1K.. Also he didnt seem happy that before i laid down that kind of money i wanted to float it and take it out..which kinda puzzled me. Im a car/truck guy.My Burban' i drive is a complete rebuild..it looks ugly but it pretty where it counts..lol..it would be like me selling my truck and not letting anyone test drive it before they bought it..How can you expect someone to hand you that kind of money and not take the boat out..? Im new to buying a boat,did i ask for something that people buying and selling boats dont do..? Quote
gripnrip Posted February 12, 2014 Posted February 12, 2014 You have the complete right to suggest floating that boat. When he didn't seem happy then there is a reason. The reason IMO probably wouldn't have been good for you. He had something to hide. Maybe the handling wasn't there. Or that if you cut it to hard water came over the side. Quote
Super User flyfisher Posted February 12, 2014 Super User Posted February 12, 2014 Jet boats can be finicky too so without a test drive and a motor check out by a mechanic there is no way i would be plunking down any cash. personally if i was looking at jet boats i would lean towards the inboard side as they are much easier to handle than an outboard when navigating rocky rivers as you are only turning the output not the entire motor which is ok if you are just traveling shallow areas but not so much when more maneuvering is needed when dodging boulders and ledges. Quote
Stlbob Posted February 12, 2014 Author Posted February 12, 2014 thanks guys,i figured as much.When someone gets iffy when all you want is to see how something runs that cant be good no matter it is,wheter it drives OR floats. 1 Quote
Stlbob Posted February 13, 2014 Author Posted February 13, 2014 okay will be moving on he has stopped answering emails.... Quote
Super User WIGuide Posted February 13, 2014 Super User Posted February 13, 2014 Good idea. He put a lot of work into it but honestly I don't think it's worth anything near what he's asking. The fact that he didn't want to let you try it out is very sketchy. Just backing up from that cl post onto the used boats this one caught my eye right away. http://stlouis.craigslist.org/boa/4332099360.html You'd need to see more pictures but from what I can see from the top deck, that looks like it was really taken care of since there's no fading. It's also got a newer trolling motor and big motor. Like I said you'd have to see more pictures and see it in person to be sure but that looks like a really good deal and it'd make for a good starter boat. If you aren't looking for a bass boat and/or would rather have aluminum there are better deals out there. Keep looking and you'll find one! Quote
Stlbob Posted February 13, 2014 Author Posted February 13, 2014 dont like glass,BUT that is a nice set up..some new carpet ...looks comfortable..that seat to the right looks like a small couch..lol Quote
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