What size boat to get (17ft?)

[iSLAYtheWALLIES6]

Hello everyone,

I am looking into buying a bass fishing boat and was wondering if a 16ft or 17ft boat would be sufficient. 

background:

I grew up walleye fishing because I am from ND and there just isn't much for bass around here. I fish nearly every day out of my 19', deep v, walleye boat and am very serious about fishing. However, I am going to college and plan on starting to do more bass fishing, more specifically competitive bass fishing (I am starting a Bass Team at my University). I must leave my walleye boat at home because my dad also enjoys fishing. This means that I must buy a new boat for myself for bass fishing.

Questions

I am on a tight "college kid" budget and looking to save as much money as possible. So, I am looking into a 16ft bass boat. However I have no experience with small, shallow, light boats. what concerns me is how this boat will handle big waves when it is windy. I am not worried about being uncomfortable, fishing is fun no matter what the weather. but what I am worried about is my safety, I don't want to have my boat tip and myself and all my gear goes into the water. Would this be a problem for a  16ft. bass fishing boat? In ND it is almost always windy and I am always fighting big waves, but I feel this may be different in other parts of the country where I will be fishing (ND is very flat and windy). My biggest fear is that I drive hundreds of miles across the country to fish a tournement and I get there and my boat won't handle the waves. 

 

So what do you guys think, is it absolutely necessary that I get a bigger boat? What conditions do you think would be the worse I can handle?

 

thanks for reading and for your time!

[Robeng]

16 foot too small for big waves.  I have 16 foot aluminum Lund with same issues on Great Lakes.  

[SDoolittle]

16' seems pretty small, but ultimately, I think it's going to depend on where you do the majority of your fishing. I had an 2008 Nitro Z6 (17'9") that was perfect for the lakes and rivers I fished in WV and KY, but I had some nervous moments on the big, wind blown lakes of Texas.

You said that you live in ND, but you didn't mention where you're going to college. Any chance you're getting away from the great plains?

[iSLAYtheWALLIES6]

54 minutes ago, S. Doolittle said:

16' seems pretty small, but ultimately, I think it's going to depend on where you do the majority of your fishing. I had an 2008 Nitro Z6 (17'9") that was perfect for the lakes and rivers I fished in WV and KY, but I had some nervous moments on the big, wind blown lakes of Texas.

You said that you live in ND, but you didn't mention where you're going to college. Any chance you're getting away from the great plains?

Thanks for the input.

Going to school in grand forks (border of ND/MN). so regionally it would be okay fishing a lot of smaller lakes in MN.

 

 

 

[SDoolittle]

Well, you picked one of the few places in the country where I haven't spent much time. No matter where you are, I think you would be happier with something in the 18' range. It would be safer and provide you with a more stable platform and more storage space. 

[iSLAYtheWALLIES6]

1 hour ago, S. Doolittle said:

Well, you picked one of the few places in the country where I haven't spent much time. No matter where you are, I think you would be happier with something in the 18' range. It would be safer and provide you with a more stable platform and more storage space. 

okay, I would love to get that big of a boat but the price starts rising and I'm really on a budget.

I have  a 17ft boat that I am looking at, would that be much better than the 16, not sure what kind of difference the 1 foot would make?

What I am really looking for is somebody with experience with 17ft bass boats that could tell me what my limit would be on a larger lake. For example, when winds hit 20mph its time to get off the water...

I will do some research on climate in the areas I will fish in the south/central to see how often I can expect these winds.

 

[gulfcaptain]

My advice, find a used boat in the range of 18ft just simply because you want to start a fishing team you two are going to have to be able to fish WHATEVER waters the tournaments are on.  What's your budget?  Are you trying to buy new?  Team events, a 16ft or 17ft boat can seem really small and if you're looking into national tournaments at college level, well you "little boat" idea may bite you in the backside.  Look for as big as you can get within your budget.

[tander]

A 17 foot isn't going to be a whole lot better. I have a 17 ft. and I really have to be careful and check what the wind is going to do on that day I go fishing. I am not saying you can't fish in a 17ft but if I was regular tournament fishing, I would go with a 20 ft or bigger.

[WIGuide]

As a guy that fishes out of a 17' You can definitely manage with one. You have to be sure to look around and get one with a good layout, since space is a premium. The ride isn't going to be as smooth as a 20' boat, but again if you look around you can find boats that handle well for their size. When it gets windy you won't be able to run wide open at least not comfortably, but the bigger boats aren't able to do that either. The biggest thing is learning how to drive what you have. I used to have a 16' and i got by with that too. It was just a little more cramped with two people, plus it was an older layout which didn't help. I still felt safe in that in anything I put it through (which was quite a bit). 

In your situation, bigger would be better, but I 17 on up should treat you just fine. Every foot you go up in length the ride will get better, but not all hulls are created equal. 

[Further North]

I've settled on 18' as my minimum, 20' as an absolute max...too much water I'd struggle to get into any bigger than that...and I'd really struggle with that upper end on some of those.

17' was just to small for me - short on storage, narrower than I like...the bump up to an 1850 got me tons more storage, and a bot that's about 8 ft. across.

[Junebugman]

I know the area east of you the lakes by park rapids etc would be fine I had a 18 ft starfire 176 bassboat I never had an issue with wind waves etc just use common sense by the way you have to try tulaby little elbow long lost and especially pike lake oh juggler too its smallmouth nirvana!!! You won't have any problems with a 18 ft bass boat or 17.5 for that matter good luck! Junebugman

[livemusic]

Wow, the college man sure picked an expensive sport! I would buy 19', maybe 20' and I would buy used. If it helps any, I think it's totally unnecessary to buy more than 150hp. That will push boats that size near or over 60mph. I used to race motorcycles and fly daredevil helicopters, and 60mph on the water is actually too fast, lol. My point is, if you are thinking larger than 150hp, you can dial that back and spend it on boat length! Longer means better ride, safer and more storage. Also, more front deck space, which is where you will spend most of your time. Also realize that getting a boat means you will spend even more because you will need this and that accessories.

[Brett's_daddy]

I am totally new to boating but what about something with a deep v-hull...wouldn't that be more stable for bigger water? I mean if the OP could only fit a 16ft. into his budget would he be better off getting something like a Tracker Super Guide deep v-hull instead of a traditional bass style boat? I may be totally off on this but I do remember one of the above posters saying not all hulls are created equal and was wondering if this might be what he was alluding too.

[Fish the Mitt]

On 3/29/2016 at 7:31 PM, gulfcaptain said:

My advice, find a used boat in the range of 18ft just simply because you want to start a fishing team you two are going to have to be able to fish WHATEVER waters the tournaments are on.  What's your budget?  Are you trying to buy new?  Team events, a 16ft or 17ft boat can seem really small and if you're looking into national tournaments at college level, well you "little boat" idea may bite you in the backside.  Look for as big as you can get within your budget.

Bingo! Take from my experience. I bought a 16ft bass boat to Tourney fish.... only to be told certain lakes on the circuit I wanted to join required 18ft boats. So, I had to change which tournament series I entered (a much smaller one).

[Skeeter Dan]

My little Skeeter Bass boat is only 15'3" and I run it on Pickwick lake Tn. on the Tn.River  it has all kinds of pleasure yachts and river barges so I just have to slow down and get the nose up. If my boat can handle those waves then you can to . Just take it slow get the nose up and have a good high volume bilge pump plus a good PFD

[wpwarhawk]

There is a reason that the Bass Tracker 175 is the best selling boat in America. 

They work, and they are all you really need. 

[Fisherman765]

After much research, I purchased a 1995 Tracker Deep Pro V17 with a 40 hp Mercury in 1997, which is actually 17.7' I'm Very satisfied. It handles the big lakes in MN and those on  our northern boundary.  Most of the time, I fish by myself so the boat is easy for me to handle alone.  It has plenty of storage and easy to walk around in, which helps being on the lake all day. Sometimes  I wish I had a larger HP motor when I have multiple people in it but we managed. It's great on gas. My garage is large enough so I can store it in front of my cars.  So I would recommend a used 17-18 foot Deep V boat. If you expect to have to pull water skiers, then I would recommend a higher horsepower motor. I've been on windy lakes and it 's handled the high waves very well. I  feel I can take this on Lake Superior for shore fishing but haven't done that yet.  I wouldn't  get too far from shore  with it. Good Luck

Edited April 8, 2016 by Fisherman765
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