Fishing Boat Rentals...or Timeshares

[Choporoz]

I've rented jon boats on small lakes for years.  And, I've seen 'boat clubs' with small cabin cruisers, big center consoles and pontoons.  But, very few fishing boats in between.  Anyone have experience with marinas that rent freshwater fishing boats, or boat clubs that have something between a rowboat and a 22' center console?  Seems that fishing boats with high cost-to-own, and somewhat limited use opportunities, there'd be more rental or even shared owner options out there, despite the risks.  Shoot, you can buy into a club and use 22' ski boat just down the street from here, but if I want to fish from something bigger than my kayak without buying, I would need to buy into membership to fish from a 22' scout.

    Alternatively, has anyone shared boat ownership with anyone else?  I recognize there's a long list of potential problems, but with  agreements in writing and the right 2-4 people, it seems like it could work.

[Logan S]

I know bassboat rentals exist, a buddy of mine rented an equipped Bass Tracker from the BPS Marina on Table Rock I think?  I've heard of it on other destination lakes too.  It's a niche thing though and in the area we are in (DC Metro) bass fishing probably just isn't viable for the marinas to cater too, despite the popularity of the Potomac.  

 

I've known a couple different sets of people that went in together on buying a bassboat...Didn't seem to have major issues, but then again they always pretty much fished together.  If each had different schedules or wanted to do something different I could see friction building.  Like you said, with the right group it might work...But there's a lot of potential friction points out there.  

 

There's another semi-related option out there...Local bass clubs as a non-boater/co-angler.  You won't be in charge of the boat, but you'll at least get out in a bass rig and fish with guys that are experienced.  Would be cheaper than buying into a boat-share or splitting a boat and probably not far off the price of renting boats.

[Further North]

Lots of decent boat rentals on Canadian lakes, way up in the sticks...but a lotta fourteen and sixteen foot tillers with minimal accoutrements too.

 

Do your homework, look around.

 

I'll rent my boat for $1.5 a day, but I go along to monitor...and I drive...

[kjfishman]

A friend of mine co-owns a 21 foot bass boat and seems happy with the arrangement. They both tournament fish.

[TOXIC]

No one has ever been able to tackle the liability issue on renting a bonifide bass boat would be my guess.  In Wisconsin on the chain of lakes I go to every year we rent a pontoon for the week, they have small ski boats with a 90hp outboard, and their fishing boats are 12ft V bottom tin rigs with a 25hp tiller on the back.  Thus the reason I haul my bassboat on a 2 day pull up and a 2 day pull home.  I do have a friend in Texas who bought a boat with 3 other guys and they all shared maintenance and scheduled outings.  As far as I know, it went well but the boat got old and they sold it. Many of the small electric only lakes around me have jon boat rentals with batteries and TM's.  I'm too old and fat for that option anymore.   

[Ratherbfishing]

In resort areas there are a reasonable number of mid-level boats to be rented out to guests but few to just any schmoe off the streets.

 

With the exception of pontoon boats, I can guess that the liability, maintenance, labor, etc involved in keeping a boat makes the prospects of anything renting out anything other than a sturdy, "indestructible" jonboat and smallish motor unprofitable.  And most people who require/demand higher level watercraft probably already own them.   There are exceptions, of course but I think this is the rule.

[Choporoz]

Thanks, guys. 

@Logan S, every year I seriously consider your club and others around here, and ultimately decide that I think I have more fun fishing for fun....or maybe I am just averse to commitment :)

I get the cost and liability challenges faced by rental companies, but I can rent 150HP pontoon and ski boats just down the street.  Just got me thinking...to what end, IDK.   I just see soooo many boats on land or parked in slips day after day every summer and it seems there's got to be some opportunities there.   I'm in a town house with pretty limited storage options, so I've limited myself to kayak and jon rentals for now....but get the itch all too often. 

@TOXIC, two summers ago, our family also rented a big pontoon for a week in northern WI, also.  Not the greatest of bass platforms, but worked surprisingly well. 

 

 

[WRB]

Several SoCal public lakes have marinas with boat rentals that range from 14' runabouts  with 9.5 hp to 22' pontoons and runabouts with 135 hp. I know DVL rents 18' Triton aluminum bass boats and a few other lakes with various bass boat rentals.

Boat owner partnerships are not uncommon, some last more then a few years. I was a partner in a off shore Marlin /Tuna tournament boats for over 30 years, it helps off set the expenses and up keep.

Your best bet is a local bass club. Aviod a Time Share like the plague!

Tom

 

 

[NHBull]

While not with fishing boats, I have been part of club water ski boats and shared use boats

 

The easiest way was to divide the total expenses by the hours of use.  This included all maintenance and depreciation and it was the responsibility of the last user to top off the tank.  The insurance listed the club as owner and it worked great.  There was an upfront cost to carry the financing of the boat for a year,  and it was sold every year.  Since the boat was on a promotional plan the initial deposit was rolled to the next boat.  

 

This works well with closely held clubs and few members. 

[J Francho]

The place at the top of the bay down the street from me has a couple 18' side console deep-Vs and a few pontoons set up for fishing.  There's a similar place two bays east as well that do the same. 

[Troy85]

If your current or ex military(with ID) you can rent boats from MWR at a lot of bases. Usually for a good price too. Military Place I was staying at Toledo bend rented 17’ Trackers, fully equipped for $40 a day. 

[J Francho]

That's a great price!  It's $40/half day for a 12' john and 8hp tin can up here.

[Choporoz]

8 minutes ago, Troy1985s said:

If your current or ex military(with ID) you can rent boats from MWR at a lot of bases. Usually for a good price too. Military Place I was staying at Toledo bend rented 17’ Trackers, fully equipped for $40 a day. 

Nice!

 

MWR on LOZ also rents bass boats, though we haven't been there yet....it's been in back of our minds a couple years, though.....don't think its near that cheap, however.

[Troy85]

47 minutes ago, Choporoz said:

Nice!

 

MWR on LOZ also rents bass boats, though we haven't been there yet....it's been in back of our minds a couple years, though.....don't think its near that cheap, however.

The Navy base near my house rents boats, RVs, tents, sleeping bags, etc.  Everything you could need for just about any trip.  They also do a good job of maintaining everything and keeping it in good shape.

[Steveo-1969]

The Kentucky Lake resort we vacation at each summer has 2 pontoon boats and 2 Tracker bass boats for rent to guests. For the first couple years we rented one of their 14-foot aluminum boats with 15hp outboard because they were only $211 for the week. Then 2 years ago the owner said "why don't you use a Tracker for a couple days free of charge?" Yeah, smart guy. We now rent a Tracker for the week at $975.  

[Deleted account]

On 11/6/2018 at 1:56 PM, J Francho said:

That's a great price!  It's $40/half day for a 12' john and 8hp tin can up here.

MWR (Morale Welfare and Recreation) is geared towards providing military folks with value, they don't have a profit motive, their prices are set to cover maintenance, replacement, and other operating expenses. Most bases and installations have one, and while some have some silly rules, offer a great service. You can rent anything from boats/canoes/kayaks, camping equipment, mountain bikes, bouncy castles and dunk tanks (always raised a lot of $ when I sat in one, must be my pleasant demeanor  ), as well as locally specific equipment.