Sea Ray Laguna or other Center Console ideas?

[atti_mac]

I was straggling the last 2 weeks to find a boat , and was reading lot's of forums, because I was back and forth about the idea to have a small fiberglass flat bottom boat or v hull aluminum. Well I made a decision, and the first decision I had to make where I will use it most. We have a big lake 10 min from my house and Galveston an hour away. So I love the sea more than fresh water , and because of that i might turning my head to get a 16-18' center console boat. Deep see fishing is out of the budget, but bay fishing might not. I ran into a Sea Ray Laguna 17 made in 1989 and really felt in love the boat. The size the shape, and i was reading good feedback about it. Well my budget is a bit lower what they asking for but I can reach out. My question is what other CC boats would be a $4000 range and safe fishing in the bay? I am thinking about max 5-10 miles out. Maybe even less than that. What brand I should look for? Palm Beach? Pro line maybe?
And an other question is any of these 16-17' cc boats fits in a garage? How tall are they? I think my garage is 18' long, so I am considering about the garage door top will clear out or not

 

[atti_mac]

I didn't find to many boats for that price range. I have basically 2 options, so please help me out what is the better deal.
1, 1994 Palm Beach 16' +1994' 90 hp Force $3000
2, 1988 - 18 ft. Well Craft, V-Hull Center Console+ 1994 120hp Johnson $3500

 

[atti_mac]

Actually I left it out the Sea Ray 17 , from the list .

 

[b.gagnon]

I have a 1989 sea ray laguna 17' and love it! It is a very heavy seaworthy boat that was ahead of its time.... It holds 50gal of fuel, has an 8' beam and is close to 20' with the pulpit. It also has tons of storage ( you can fit under the deck in the front right hatch) 5-10 miles out is no problem in this boat. I always get complements where ever I go....... I have a 150 EFI Merc on it and it does Aprox 42mph. I don't know how sea ray ever got away with calling it a 17'.....Compare it to a 19-20' not a 17.. My stickers with the 17 peeled off so it just says Laguna, and everyone always thinks it is a 20'......They came stock with hydraulic steering (not common for a boat of it's size)

 

[atti_mac]

Yes, that exactly is my dream boat for a budget, but some ahole here in Houston who promised will wait for me till i come back from offsore favored the money instead of his words and couldn't just wait 3 more days for me he sold it today for $2500. I even offered more. I think lots of people is a scam on craigslist , and on this site the prices are pretty high.

 

[atti_mac]

I found a 1997' 17' cobia but it has couple small soft spots on the floor. And the owner had the complete bottom end replaced. Should i run away? It is under $3K comes with a 96' yamaha motor

 

[atti_mac]

Actually I just confirmed all the info from the Cobia, everything is clear so i will go for it. I will let you know guys when i got it , will post some photos.