Re: Boat purchase help
Posted: Fri Jul 31, 2020 10:50 am
My last boat was a Savage Kestrel 4.2m tiller steer with a 25hp Merc and a like new trailer. It was pull start but it had a battery to run electrics, nav lights etc. Other than that it was bare bones when i got it with no floor. But i only paid $5500 or so from JV Marine so you could get something similar for cheaper if you buy privately. I spent another $100 or so and built a basic, removable floor out of ply and pine (i am no builder, but it wasnt too hard and took me a weekend or so). And picked up some big padded swivle seats on sale to make it comfortable to sit in for hours.
Despite its nickname.. the TINtanic, it never leaked a drop. Started first go and ran all day with no problems at all. It was a bloody ripper.
It was great for fishing with 2 people, and you could do 3 if you had to but it would could sometimes struggle to get on plane. I added some rod holders by cable tying them to the ribs.
I did have a slight issue when i first got it where i could not get the boat to plane (which i posted about in here years ago), but it ended up just being a trim issue. My fat arse at the back and no weight forward.
When i sold it i got almost what i paid. I think i lost about $250 of the actual cost (not including what i added after), but i gained a lifetime of memories. Looking back i still cant believe i pickup this boat at that price from a dealer, i was so happy with it. I only sold it because my boss bought a new boat and made me an offer i couldnt refuse on his old boat.
When i was looking around for something i also had $5k to spend and was looking at something in the 395 range. But once i actually went and looked at some boats it was apparent within seconds that nothing under 4.2 was going to cut it for PPB. Once you get to that size things like the beam and the freeboard start to get a lot bigger and in my opinion it starts to become more of a boat, rather that an tinny. I also originally looked at forward controls with a screen, but again i quickly decided it was a waste of space in such a small boat and tiller steer made more sense. Although i was quite wet when punching into the chop on the starboard beam (drivers side), but that was all part of the fun haha.
One thing i like to mention to anyone looking at a boat is to remember you are buying 4 things, and ideally you want all of them to be good or you are just setting yourself up for pain down the track.
1. The actual boat. You want something solid with no damage. Cosmetic damage is up to you.
2. The motor. To me this is more important that everything else, if you dont trust the motor you will never use it.
3. The trailer. Seriously overlooked by a lot of people. You are up for a lot of coin to relace a dodgy trailer and you dont even want to think about what happens if it fails on the way to the ramp. I am in the position right now where i dont trust my trailer because i bought a great boat with a dodgy trailer and now, 3 years down the track, i need to replace it. Which was all looking good until real life got in the way and now i cant afford it.
A distant 4th is anything that comes with the boat that you want. Dont pay extra for a bunch of stuff thats on the boat that you dont want anyway.
