Thinking of a new boat

[Zeeter]

I'm looking at a Tracker Pro V-16. Bear in mind that cost is a factor. 

This is not specifically a bass boat as I want to use it on the great lakes and some of the pike lakes in the Adirondacks.

Is there any specific reason why I would NOT want to get this boat? I remember hearing bad things about Tracker about ten or fifteen years ago, but have heard recently that their quality has improved.

[fishnkamp]

Actually that boat would do lots of good things for you. Although the boat is only 16 feet long there is no reason with the deeper that you could not fish in the Gunpowder River,or here by me around Middle River, Hart-Miller Island,Pleasure Island and Back River.  In those areas you will have the opportunity to catch bass, stiper, perch and big catfish.  This is my home stomping grounds so I am sure it will work.  The boat size means you will not be able to go out and just run all over without being aware of weather and tides, but I promise you it will be a fun boat. I would upgrade the power on the trolling motor. The rail system that they run around the gunnel is nice to add drink holders, a tool holder, or rod holders if you decide to catfish and pike fish.

[fishnkamp]

I wish i was recovered and back to work so I can get you out in these waters you and I are surrounded by.  My wife and I have had 11 boats in almost 40 years together. During the last 16 years we have fished Maryland and Pennsylvania waters.  That boat would not have had much trouble in most of the places we went nearby except for the reservoirs, as you know. Our two biggest boats were an 18 and a 20 foot fiberglass bass boat. With those boats I had more freedom to roam around farther and not worry as much with weather and tides but the boat I have fished out of for the last 5 years is a Lowe 17 1/2 foot aluminum bass boat. It has been all over 5 or 6 states to fish in fact I just told my wife I need to replace the tires for once we have worn them out from travelling, not dry rotted from sitting. WOW!  If you would like to stop by i can show you the rig, it may help you to see what you would want in your next boat.  here is a pic of our boat sitting on a Dock in Kentucky (Dale Hollow Lake) Notice what the rental boats next to me look like.

[Zeeter]

I was looking for a way to upgrade the trolling motor but it just doesn't look possible with this one. Maybe when I talk to the dealer. At least a 65, if not a 75.

I had a Ranger bass boat, used, about ten years ago. First boat. The first time out I didn't put the plug in. Didn't know it had a plug. Pretty embarrassed until I talked to some guys who said each one of them did the exact same thing with their first boat.

[Zeeter]

That's a nice boat. I'm looking at Lowe now. My only issue with the ones in my price range are that the rod lockers are too small. I need at least 7'3" and they only go up to 6'6". I can't angle them into that space. It seems like a minor point, but my Colorado can't fit rods in the bed without them sticking out, and keeping them in the cab is pretty uncomfortable.

[fishnkamp]

The Tracker floor plan looks better than Lowe's or Crestliner's (sister boat companies) You were asking if that boat would fit your needs in order to fish around here as well as in lakes like the Adirondacks. Any boat that would work good there would also work fine on places like Dale Hollow which is about 60 miles long and fed by 3 or 4 rivers.  They chose the Crestliners because they are real big out there, but they are the same style boat as the boat you are considering. That Tracker will be a nice multi species boat and the rod lockers are long enough to store 8 foot rods.  Have you ever caught any big catfish? How about stripers?

[Zeeter]

Biggest catfish I ever caught was probably an 18" channel, which is an ok size at best. Caught a small striper once.

I'm going after Pike and Walleye on this trip in a couple of weeks. I won't have the boat by then but the place I'm renting has one with a trolling motor.

[fishnkamp]

Excellent both fight real hard and I know the walleye taste great.  I have never eaten pike. I wonder what they taste like?  Well when you do get your boat we have been getting both channels and big blue cats and in fall there are lots of good stripers around in the creeks.

[Further North]

A 16 footer would feel a little light for me on the Great Lakes...other than that, I'd guess you're good to go.

I've had my Crestliner 1850 out on Lake Michigan...and I could see that I'd be a little light if conditions changed.

[DelcoSol]

If you're looking to go to the great lakes you need bigger. I was out on a 16' tracker on Onieda and it was scary. Actually ended up breaking the welds on the bow and transom totaling the boat.  Even with my 20' BassCat on the same water with high winds it was bad. Onieda is much smaller than Erie or Ontario. The great lakes are a completely different animal. Even besides the wind you need to worry about larger boat wakes. 

That boat will be OK on the Upper Chesapeake and surrounding areas. It's beter to be safe than sorry. 

[slonezp]

On ‎7‎/‎14‎/‎2016 at 3:33 PM, fishnkamp said:

.  here is a pic of our boat sitting on a Dock in Kentucky (Dale Hollow Lake) Notice what the rental boats next to me look like.

If I owned a boat rental business on KY Lake, you'd better believe they would be deep v's. Less liability risk. When that north wind gets howlin' out there it gets nasty.

[slonezp]

53 minutes ago, DelcoSol said:

If you're looking to go to the great lakes you need bigger. I was out on a 16' tracker on Onieda and it was scary. Actually ended up breaking the welds on the bow and transom totaling the boat.  Even with my 20' BassCat on the same water with high winds it was bad. Onieda is much smaller than Erie or Ontario. The great lakes are a completely different animal. Even besides the wind you need to worry about larger boat wakes. 

That boat will be OK on the Upper Chesapeake and surrounding areas. It's beter to be safe than sorry. 

Going out on the great lakes he would need to pick and choose his days and be very conscious of the weather as things can change very fast. I know a guy who trolls for salmon out of Chicago in a 16ft Lund Mr Pike with a 40hp tiller. You'd never get me in that boat.....but he has been doing it for years.

[Zeeter]

While the Great Lakes would be nice, I don't want to get something so big I can't take it out on the smaller lakes. 

[Zeeter]

Bringing this up again because it's decision time. I have until Saturday to pull the plug (pun intended) on the Tracker.

Any reason why I wouldn't get a Tracker boat? I read some reviews of them, however they sell a lot of boats and usually you're only going to hear the negative feedback. Some people are quite happy with them. A minor problem here or there but nothing major.

[BassB8Caster]

A good thing to consider with any brand you buy would be whether you have a quality local dealer. If something goes wrong, are they going to take care of you? 

[fishnkamp]

Zeeter I am curios, could your budget expand from the Pro Guide V16 to the Pro Guide Pro V 175? If so the difference in price is roughly $4525.00, but it means your boat size increases from a 16 foot boat with a 70 inch bottom and a 90 hp max limit to a 16' 11" boat with a 82 inch bottom and a 115 hp limit.  I do not care about the bigger engine or how fast it can go I am thinking of the safety the bigger boat , 1 foot longer and 1 foot wider means stability in BIG water situations.  Otherwise I understand the budget rules.  I am sure that the V16 will work for you fine.  There are a tons of Tracker dealers including our Bass Pro, here in Baltimore, selling them.  Make sure to pick up a few options like the have them move the Hook 3 depth finder to the front deck. Install a trolling motor transducer. Next have them install a Lowrance Elite TI in its place at the console. You will only be doing it the first time you get the boat out trust me. I would order the versa trac fishing rod holder option, great for cat fishing, stripers etcetera. Also get a cover.  Good Luck. We still need to get out whenever I get clearance from the Doctors. 

["hamma"]

I have a 2000 deep v 16 ft tracker with a 40 hp tiller that I take out on the larger lakes up here in New England, except Champlain (just havent done it yet) but id be wary of the weather when i finally do.

 Im sure that the great lakes are to big for my rig when the weather kicks up, but then yet, what size boat is big enough for the weather on the great lakes. If there is a good dealership where you live ,...go for it. Ive had nothing but good times on my boat, recently re-powered (due to health issues) and had some kinks to work out but nothing major. 

 I dont regret my purchase of a tracker one bit

 

[Zeeter]

I'm comparing to Lund boats now, but I don't know of any dealers in the area. The closest one is up by Philadelphia, which is quite a haul for me. Hopefully they at least have places to have it serviced down here.

[Zeeter]

16 hours ago, fishnkamp said:

Zeeter I am curios, could your budget expand from the Pro Guide V16 to the Pro Guide Pro V 175? <snip>

Fishnkamp, I'm now looking at the Lund boats. They do seem to have a better reputation as far as multi-species boats. And I am looking at 17'ers. The price is about $4K more for the Lund vs the Tracker on the 17 footers, but the beam is wider - not by much but it means more square footage. 

I think with Lund I won't get as much for my money. Yet what struck me when I was checking out the Tracker was that I stepped on the rear fishing platform and it almost felt like the storage compartment was going to cave in. The plywood didn't seem strong enough, which seems like an odd area to cut costs. I mean, how much is another few mm of plywood? Obvious resolution is to not step on it that, but then what's the point of having a storage compartment in the floor? 

[A-Jay]

3 hours ago, Zeeter said:

I think with Lund I won't get as much for my money.

As a Lund Boat owner - I Could Not Possibly Disagree more.

A-Jay

[Zeeter]

Just now, A-Jay said:

As a Lund Boat owner - I Could Not Possible Disagree more.

A-Jay

What I mean by that is dollar for dollar, I think you get more with the tracker because it appears that they use cheaper materials. Using comparable boats and disregarding price you're probably right.

[PourMyOwn]

1 hour ago, Zeeter said:

Fishnkamp, I'm now looking at the Lund boats. They do seem to have a better reputation as far as multi-species boats. And I am looking at 17'ers. The price is about $4K more for the Lund vs the Tracker on the 17 footers, but the beam is wider - not by much but it means more square footage. 

I think with Lund I won't get as much for my money. Yet what struck me when I was checking out the Tracker was that I stepped on the rear fishing platform and it almost felt like the storage compartment was going to cave in. The plywood didn't seem strong enough, which seems like an odd area to cut costs. I mean, how much is another few mm of plywood? Obvious resolution is to not step on it that, but then what's the point of having a storage compartment in the floor? 

Lund makes top quality boats, and are easy to resell later. 

 

[A-Jay]

35 minutes ago, Zeeter said:

What I mean by that is dollar for dollar, I think you get more with the tracker because it appears that they use cheaper materials. Using comparable boats and disregarding price you're probably right.

I have never owned any Tracker Boat products so I can not & will not attempt to compare the two. 

Tracker Boats have been around since 1978.  The Lund Heritage started 30 Years before that.

Being The Best Selling may not be the same as being The Best.

If you believe that there could be a Quantity vs a Quality situation existing between any two brands, you'll need to decide what's more important to you.  

That choice is always very easy for me.

Good Luck

A-Jay

[Zeeter]

18 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

I have never owned any Tracker Boat products so I can not & will not attempt to compare the two. 

Tracker Boats have been around since 1978.  The Lund Heritage started 30 Years before that.

Being The Best Selling may not be the same as being The Best.

If you believe that there could be a Quantity vs a Quality situation existing between any two brands, you'll need to decide what's more important to you.  

That choice is always very easy for me.

Good Luck

A-Jay

I think we're on the same page here. Sure, Tracker may be the best selling, but as Chevy beats Mercedes in sales, that doesn't make Chevy a better vehicle. My point was that if comparing a Chevy with a comparable Mercedes, if I spent the same amount of money on the Chevy I could get a lot more features. So more for my money. Doesn't make it a better car; just has more cupholders or...whatever.

[fishnkamp]

Are you looking at a Lund Impact 1775 ss?