Need some expert advise to buy a boat

[tmich27]

I am looking to purchase a boat very soon and would appreciate any advise i get from boaters; I live in Tucson,Az and would be towing the boat to Apache or Roosevelt Lake approx 4 hrs away -fresh water lakes -Not too big
Here are my needs: I would be towing kids on skis/tubes/toys etc and an occasional adult
Currently, I am looking at two very different boats:
The first is a 1995 19ft Four Winns I/O OMC Cpbra 5.0L V8 (~8K)
The other a 1996 18.5ft Stingray Inboard 3.0L 4cylinder mercruiser (~7K)

Why am I looking at two completely different boats?? Well, I happen to think the 4cylinder is enough boat for me and would save me $$ on gas.....
My brother however thinks I would be dissapointed in the lack of power and says that I wouldn't be saving gas if I have to stomp on all day to pull people around -He admits he doesn't know enough about 4cylinder boats to say for sure so he suggested a boat forum.... So here i am Any input? Thanks Terese

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Keep Looking, the 4 winds, has an OMC drive system, that is no longer supported with parts or maintenance. RUN From it.

the 3.0 in the stingray will be a slug, and you will be wanting more HP.

if you definately want an I/O go Volvo or Mercruiser 4.3 L minimum. also consider adding smart tabs to the boat.

 

[marine4003]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Stick with Mercruiser,as its the easiest to obtain parts for, as for HP, towing skiiers/tubes ect...get a 6 at least, imagine driving a SUV with a 4 cil. motor? also the 18 -20 length boats run best w a 8 cil. less wear on motor,yea its more gas, but hey,your driving 8 hrs a day to go boating,so whats another $100 or so in fuel....lol

 

[tmh]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

whoo.....let's not go overboard on power! That Stingray may not have even come with a bigger engine - certainly not a V-8. A 17-18' boat is usually just fine with the 4.3L. This is especially true if it's fuel injected.

Mercruiser or Volvo/Penta power. Search OMC and you'll see why they sell for a bit less......and cost you more over time!

 

[cbavier]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

tmich27 Welcome Aboard I Boats
You will find lots of help and opinions here. All meant to help you get the most and best out of Boating.
Stay away from OMC and Force Motors. Neither are in production anymore.

Take your time looking and when the right one comes along you will know it. take a Boaters Safety Course right away, even before you get a boat. I would recommend in a 18-20 ft boat around 200 Hp or Higher for what you want to do with a boat. Kids grow and so do adults. It's better to have the extra horses and not need them than to need them and not have them. Remember you do not have to run WOT all the time.

 

[KCook]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

When I lived in Tucson I did most of my boating at Canyon Lake and Patagonia. The Tucson market can be slim pickings, I ended up buying my boat in Phoenix. In any event, shopping for a used boat takes a lot of patience.

Kelly

 

[OhWellcraft]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Tmich27 not to get off topic but how far of a drive is it from where you live to Lake Powell (Wahweap) I live in Utah and usually go to Powell at least two times a year (6+ hour drive for me to bullfrog) but it is the greatest place on earth to spend a week boating with the kids plus its wayy cheaper then taking the tribe to disneyland etc. And the kids 4-7 love it there, can't hardly get them back in the truck when it's time to go home. All of the advice above is very good I would stay away from the OMC stuff not that its a horrible system but as stated if in the future work needs to be done can be VERY difficult to find parts for and someone to install them. Also the 4 cyl. will save a bit of fuel but not enough to want one. As we all know boating is not cheap in any way so you need to make the most of your time when doing it. Go at least a 4.3 FI or a V-8 you will never regret it in the long run. Underpowered boats are like driving an underpowered car yeah it will get you there but you had better stay in the slow lane and know your limitations. Also if you don't mind changing props all the time to accommidate what you will be doing in the boat that particular day. For 7-8 k you should be abel to find something pretty easy just have some patience and keep at it you may even have to travel a bit to get what you want but it will be worth it in the end. Good luck post back with more questions if they come up.

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Keep Looking, the 4 winds, has an OMC drive system, that is no longer supported with parts or maintenance. RUN From it.

the 3.0 in the stingray will be a slug, and you will be wanting more HP.

if you definately want an I/O go Volvo or Mercruiser 4.3 L minimum. also consider adding smart tabs to the boat.

WoW! thanks this is just the kind of information I am looking for! Especially the OMC info (this was supported by other boaters too) -I really am a beginning boater so anything helps -Do you recommend an I/O for my needs ? Thanks again Terese

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Stick with Mercruiser,as its the easiest to obtain parts for, as for HP, towing skiiers/tubes ect...get a 6 at least, imagine driving a SUV with a 4 cil. motor? also the 18 -20 length boats run best w a 8 cil. less wear on motor,yea its more gas, but hey,your driving 8 hrs a day to go boating,so whats another $100 or so in fuel....lol

This is GREAT -I am truly a beginning boater so I need all the info I can get! I will keep looking for just the right boat and hey I usually camp at least three days so it's only 4 hrs each way but that means three days of boating too and that adds up to $$$$ but... I get your point about what's a few more dollars for the performance

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

whoo.....let's not go overboard on power! That Stingray may not have even come with a bigger engine - certainly not a V-8. A 17-18' boat is usually just fine with the 4.3L. This is especially true if it's fuel injected.

Mercruiser or Volvo/Penta power. Search OMC and you'll see why they sell for a bit less......and cost you more over time!

Hey TMH (my initals also) Great info thanks especially about the OMC! -I realize I have of lot of learning to do before I buy so keep the info coming Thanks again Terese

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

tmich27 Welcome Aboard I Boats
You will find lots of help and opinions here. All meant to help you get the most and best out of Boating.
Stay away from OMC and Force Motors. Neither are in production anymore.

Take your time looking and when the right one comes along you will know it. take a Boaters Safety Course right away, even before you get a boat. I would recommend in a 18-20 ft boat around 200 Hp or Higher for what you want to do with a boat. Kids grow and so do adults. It's better to have the extra horses and not need them than to need them and not have them. Remember you do not have to run WOT all the time.

Hey cbavier -I will take all the info I can get ! Already multiple replies have said the same about the OMC on the 4 Winns and most agree a 4cyl is not enough - obviously I had no idea -I thought they looked good that's how much I know -Now I know I need to do my homework -It's just good I realized this B4 ibought the boat -I will take my time -By the way what does WOT mean Thanks again

 

[Pierutrus]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Hey cbavier -I will take all the info I can get ! Already multiple replies have said the same about the OMC on the 4 Winns and most agree a 4cyl is not enough - obviously I had no idea -I thought they looked good that's how much I know -Now I know I need to do my homework -It's just good I realized this B4 ibought the boat -I will take my time -By the way what does WOT mean Thanks again

Wide Open Throttle

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Tmich27 not to get off topic but how far of a drive is it from where you live to Lake Powell (Wahweap) I live in Utah and usually go to Powell at least two times a year (6+ hour drive for me to bullfrog) but it is the greatest place on earth to spend a week boating with the kids plus its wayy cheaper then taking the tribe to disneyland etc. And the kids 4-7 love it there, can't hardly get them back in the truck when it's time to go home. All of the advice above is very good I would stay away from the OMC stuff not that its a horrible system but as stated if in the future work needs to be done can be VERY difficult to find parts for and someone to install them. Also the 4 cyl. will save a bit of fuel but not enough to want one. As we all know boating is not cheap in any way so you need to make the most of your time when doing it. Go at least a 4.3 FI or a V-8 you will never regret it in the long run. Underpowered boats are like driving an underpowered car yeah it will get you there but you had better stay in the slow lane and know your limitations. Also if you don't mind changing props all the time to accommidate what you will be doing in the boat that particular day. For 7-8 k you should be abel to find something pretty easy just have some patience and keep at it you may even have to travel a bit to get what you want but it will be worth it in the end. Good luck post back with more questions if they come up.

I AGREE Powell is stunning and worth the drive but it's "a bit" farther for me I'm an 1 1/2 from the Mexico border at the bottom of the state but I will get there -Anyway -the advise I'm getting is great ! and amazingly consistent -IE stay away from the OMC, get a good sized motor and BE PATIENT -I'm just starting to realize I've got ALOT to learn before I buy Thanks again Terese

 

[tmich27]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

When I lived in Tucson I did most of my boating at Canyon Lake and Patagonia. The Tucson market can be slim pickings, I ended up buying my boat in Phoenix. In any event, shopping for a used boat takes a lot of patience.

Kelly

I LOve Canyon too and plan on going there as well -Patagonia is close for fast trips too -I know now I have a lot to learn so I will have to STUDY ! Since you are familiar with these lakes -do you have an opinion on Inboard vs Outdrive or I/O ?? Thanks for the info

 

[yam350yfm]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

This is similar to a post the other day about a 3.0 versus a 4.3 and the performance. Running a 3.0 in a 1990 18' Mariah and a 4.3 in a 1991 18' Mariah I can tell you that running the same size prop that the 4.3 is about 7 - 8 mph faster and gets on plane faster. Since you will ski and tube you will appreciate the power of the bigger motor.

As for saving $$ on gas, if you ski and tube all day there will be no difference. If you were to only cruise all day and not ski/tube you are looking at a $$ savings of less than $10 for 4 hours of time that the engine is running.

Where I live, in Wisconsin, the Mercruiser has the most marina and dealership support since they are made here. If a Mercruiser lower unit breaks it can be rebuilt for less than $2k, or replaced with a NEW Sterndrive Engineering (SEI) lower unit for under $1500. The Volvo SX drives have full support for parts and service as they are current. OMC is harder to find support and parts for.

You may want to check on what dealerships and marinas can supply parts and service for where you plan to use the boat. It really puts a damper on a vacation when the boat breaks and you can't get parts for 3 days!

 

[KCook]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

I LOve Canyon too and plan on going there as well -Patagonia is close for fast trips too -I know now I have a lot to learn so I will have to STUDY ! Since you are familiar with these lakes -do you have an opinion on Inboard vs Outdrive or I/O ?? Thanks for the info

I've seen both operated on all of these lakes. So it certainly can be done either way.

The nice thing about an inboard ski boat is the lack of an sterndrive to maintain. Very good choice for Patagonia if you want to tow water toys a lot. However, Patagonia is mainly a fishing lake, and a ski boat is a poor choice for fishing. On weekend mid-days and afternoons the Phoenix lakes get too rough for a small ski boat. But a ski boat works fine in the mornings, before traffic stirs the water up. Personally I like ski boats a lot. But there are many boaters would would never even consider one.

Small I/O bowriders like the Four Winns are much more popular than ski boats because they are much lower priced when new. Also slightly easier to launch and trailer. Patagonia is so small that even the smallest bowrider will be fine there. With the rougher Phoenix lakes bigger is better. I had a 19' bowrider and for Lake Pleasant I wished it was bigger. Of course with bigger boats you need to be careful about how much your truck/SUV can really handle. Most beginners WAY overestimate this.

Check around among your friends and family to see if any currently have boats. Tell them you are seriously shopping and I bet they will be happy to give you rides in their boats. This experience will give you a MUCH better idea of the best choice in boats to match your expectations.

Kelly

 

[Nandy]

Re: Need some expert advise to buy a boat

Tmich, you are doing great in coming to this site before buying your boat. The only thing better would be to get a marine surveyor but that will cost you. Im glad you are getting Tashasdady advice. When you see the boat you think is the one come back before anything and check with the board. So many times the new boater misses those small details that will make a deal a no go. You are in good hands...