Proline Boat Opinions

skybuster · 08-30-2007, 07:50 PM

The call of the darkside is strong, and I'm not sure how much longer I can resist.

I have found a boat in a price range I could handle, but it wasn't really on my radar screen till now.

The boat is a Proline 251 Walkaround. It has twin 150's for power on a bracket, and a cuddy area to keep the better half happy. The boat looks pretty fishy, and more importantly, it's in my price range.

Does anyone have any experiences with these vessels, positive or negative?

Also, the boat is not in the NW. I have a cousin that lives near it and he can take a look at it for me initially, but I'll either have to drive down to it or have it shipped.

A wet ride in my jet boat from the church hole this afternoon got me thinking I really deserve an upgrade.

Sadie-Lynne · 08-31-2007, 06:11 AM

I owned the Pro-Line 240.. I think that they are great boats and well designed. You will have more usable space than in most boats of the same size. Also when Pro-Line is a walk around it is a true walk around that is deep enough on the sides that it is safe to use even in rough waters..

Nordic Sun · 08-31-2007, 06:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skybuster

The call of the darkside is strong, and I'm not sure how much longer I can resist.

A wet ride in my jet boat from the church hole this afternoon got me thinking I really deserve an upgrade.

Does this mean .............I scratch you off my list.........say it isn't so!

Bob

Chromaflage · 08-31-2007, 07:27 AM

There goes yet another crew member - about to leave the crow's nest...

Jim, I hope you find what you're looking for, but always remember your roots, brother!:frown:

Seriously, though, whatever you find, have a marine survey done before you buy. Keep us posted!

Tuna Dog · 08-31-2007, 07:29 AM

The Proline is a nice boat...

Likewise for anyone interested...I'm selling my 26' Striper this fall and it is maxed out with all the goodies...I'm moving up.

If anyone is interested just PM me.

skybuster · 08-31-2007, 09:33 AM

DON'T CROSS ME OFF ANY LISTS YET!

I'm still just kinda kicking the idea around, and still need to convince myself to spend the money.

The only reason I am even considering it is the price. I'll probably wimp out in the end, but running back to Hammond in the slop yesterday afternoon in my little jet boat didn't help with my 2 footitis.

Odin, I saw you out near 10 yesterday, tried to hail you once on 11 but it sounded like you and Bernie were busy with other folks. Hope you got after the tuna today.

fishbait · 08-31-2007, 09:44 AM

If I remember right, Johnny Boles fishes that Pro Line boat.

He moors in T Bay close to Seelicus at the T Bay boat house.

you might contact him for his 0.02 worth

Chromaflage · 08-31-2007, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by skybuster

DON'T CROSS ME OFF ANY LISTS YET!

No worries there, Jim!!

PaulS · 08-31-2007, 11:14 AM

I have a 2003 22' walk around. For the price it's hard to beat and I've never been dissapointed with my decision. IMO for a boat of this style the only thing that beats it is a Boston Whaler. Not saying it's better than a Grady by any stretch but it can hold its own.

I actually bought it in early 2006 and had it shipped here from Florida. I had a professional survey done and then paid about 2k to have it shipped to Seattle (trailer and all) on the back of a truck. I have family in Florida so they checked it out but I actually bought it without seeing it myself.

I think there's a place in Tacoma that is selling them new now but the prices are considerably higher than in Florida. A few k can be blamed on transporting costs but they are more like 10k more than in Florida. There are just so many more boats in Florida that I suppose it may drive prices down a bit.

Pilar · 08-31-2007, 11:57 AM

The boat 'Bad Fish" was a fishing machine. It was an I/O with Volvo power.

I think 25 foot or so. Ask Bugflicker for details.

Not sure where it is now.

ReadyPro1 · 08-31-2007, 05:17 PM

I have the next model down the 241 and it does fish well the deck is very open with live wells and sinks in the transom The walkaround is nice because you can walkaround it and not feel in danger.
The only thing lacking on the 241 is infloor fish boxes the only ones are under the forward seats but they are insulated and hold ice well.The 251 does have the larger infloor boxes witch is nice.
Do like Kerry suggested and spend the money for a survey its well worth it you dont want any surprises after spending that kind of money.
All in all Proline is a great boat for the money

Good Luck

Fishinnut · 08-31-2007, 06:29 PM

I asked this question back on another website a while back as I was interested in a Proline. I had several owners from the east coast email me and tell me some of things that were the downside, but maybe the owners on this website can clarify. I was rating it against another type of boat. There were several items brought up and not meant to slam any boat. I really liked the looks of the Proline, but no one here seemed to own them, I got all I wantdd to hear from the dealer. But would rather have the info from a real owner. I especially liked the huge fishwells on the older ones.

I was looking for a boat that didn't slam in early ocean spring halibut water.

One item that was brought up was uncomfortable in 2' windchop? This I found hard to believe.

Two was hard pounding in big wind chop. East coast has major chop in shallow water.

Three was no Bow Flare to keep the nose from going under in big water.

Maybe none are true and could be better answered by owners here. Good Luck with your choice.

Grady252 · 08-31-2007, 07:19 PM

I have looked at them and considered them... for the money they are a nice boat.... as for comparing to a Whaler or Grady I don't know? If they were that comparable I would tend to believe as long as they have been around they would be rated up with them and the price would go up accordingly. The prices really attracted me, they are half the cost.

Last year I took fishaddict80 fishing on my Grady and he owns a 23' Proline..... we was really impressed with the Grady and said his boat would have pounded him compared to mine.... Luke said after riding on my boat he would look into Grady when he upgrades. There could be some truth to what other owners reported as stated above???

I have not personally been in one, but had Luke tell me that the Grady handled much better in choppy water??

Pau Hana · 08-31-2007, 10:45 PM

I think just about all the manufacturers of walk-arounds-

Grady
Pro-line
Whaler
Seaswirl
Trophy
Wellcraft
Sport Craft
Albemarle
Pursuit
Shamrock
and others

use a modded Carolina flare on the bow for spray deflection. I don't think there's a W/A that's made with a destroyer-type hull (no bow flare/mostly vertical aspect).

I've owned a Sport Craft, and the Pro Line is a near duplicate- great boat.

PaulS · 09-01-2007, 07:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fishinnut

I was looking for a boat that didn't slam in early ocean spring halibut water.
One item that was brought up was uncomfortable in 2' windchop? This I found hard to believe.
Two was hard pounding in big wind chop. East coast has major chop in shallow water.
Three was no Bow Flare to keep the nose from going under in big water.

I would say the ride is similar to other boats in this class. Slamming and pounding is just a function of how big the boat is, how much it weighs and how fast you push it. I know I tend to push my boat faster than some like - safe speeds but fast enough that you might get at occasional pound. If you don't want any pounding just slow down a few mph.

My Proline is a 22' walk and I have indeed stuck the bow into a wave once or twice. We are talking about 8' seas with major wind chop on top - I think just about any 22' boat is capable of punching through a wave if it's steep enough.. The fact that I felt safe in those conditions speaks for itself.

Grady252 - Grady is a great boat and I would own one in a heartbeat. Comparing the ride of a 23' Proline to a 25' Grady may not be completely fair though. Bigger is generally better.

fish Addict80 · 09-01-2007, 10:10 AM

I agree with what PaulS said also about speed being a major factor on when the boat will pound.

The day I was out with Grady252 he was making almost twice the speed I would have been running at in those conditions. And It was comfortable. The grady has good variable deadrise design and has trim tabs.

My boat is a 1988 230 walkaround. It has a variable deadrise also but not near as steep in the front or in the back as compared to a grady. The trade off is I get better MPG. Everything is a compromise in a boat. I average 2.5 to 3 MPG running in the ocean for tuna. I dont think a grady can do that. But it will be able to run faster in sloppy conditions.

I have had the boat out in very short and tall wind waves. (like 6 to 8 feet wind waves at 6 seconds apart. Thats what the stonewall banks bouy said when I looked at it at home.) And I never once plowed the bow into a wave and I dont have trim tabs. Although I did have to go pretty slow. The boat performed well in those seas.

Also I am pretty sure the hull designs have changed over the years. So it all depends on what year and what model you are looking at. The newer the boat the better of course but I think they also have a steeper variable deadrise now.

But like others have said have a professional survey done before you buy it or you may end up regreting it big time. Lots of boats have problems that are not very easy to determine so let a pro look at it. that is probably the single most important peice of advice here.

Luke

Grady252 · 09-02-2007, 08:31 AM

Grady252 - Grady is a great boat and I would own one in a heartbeat. Comparing the ride of a 23' Proline to a 25' Grady may not be completely fair though. Bigger is generally better.

[/quote]

Yep there is a 2' difference..... so it may not be totally fair, but I also moved down in size since last year, and now I have a 232 Gulfstream, and it is 23' walk around with twin Suzukies. It will get around 2 MPG, so I am doing close to Luke's economy and he has one motor......

The ride between the Grady 252 and the 232 is very minimal.... I didn't go into all of that when giving the comparison, but my 232 will still cruise comfortable in chop.... the entry is not quite as agressive, so it wanders just a little more than the 252, but the ride it is great....I do have trim tabs which make a huge difference....I didn't realize Luke didn't have tabs.... I assumed all boats would have them, so that may also make the comparison unfair....

Yesterday morning (Sat. Sept. 1) I headed to the Banana in Choppy conditions and made it out heading around 22-25 without beating the crap out of everybody.... Nice cruise.

I do not pound my boat, Luke saw how I run, if it pounds I back-off. It's always hard to gauge speed, because some guy launch their boats and pound all the way.... I don't think the boat was made to run that hard.....

Not trying to start a Pro-line/Grady war at all.... I looked at the Prolines and they are a lot of boat for the money, but if they were on par with Grady the price would go up, to say it is on par with Grady and the only boat that would compare is a Whaler might be a stretch...Just an opinion.... I spent fair amount of cash to have my 17 year old Grady. I could have bought 5 year old Proline for what I spent...... That's not a bad deal either way..... Newer Proline... older Grady.... both will get you to the fish...

As for the original post..... I would not take Proline out of your list.... You can get a damb nice used proline for a good price if you look on the East side of the world.....

Zodiac-Fisherman · 09-02-2007, 02:58 PM

Ive fished with guide John Bowles Of Jb and Water many times. He picked up a 25 Proline center console a few years ago. He rarely fishes the ocean. Fishes the jetty and bay primarly. Its a nice CC setup. However the bow is a bit low.

Zodiac-Fisherman · 09-02-2007, 03:02 PM

Grady252

My buddy whos the capt of a 74' Viking, said his favorite all time boat is the bostom whalers. 25-30' class. Feels they are the best handling/running boats of all time. He has been running large 50'+ sportfishers for the last 10 years, tournament fishing the gulf prior to on smaller vessles.

Grady252 · 09-02-2007, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zodiac-Fisherman

Grady252

My buddy whos the capt of a 74' Viking, said his favorite all time boat is the bostom whalers. 25-30' class. Feels they are the best handling/running boats of all time. He has been running large 50'+ sportfishers for the last 10 years, tournament fishing the gulf prior to on smaller vessles.

I am not sure what you are telling me

. Im with your buddy and think Whalers are on the top of the list with a Grady, Parker, and many others....

I was referring to the post above by PaulS that said the only boat that would beat a Proline is a Whaler..... I think that is a stretch in my opinion. I think there are a lot of boats that would "beat" a Proline for ride and quality based upon what I have read and heard... great boat for the $$$ and will definitely get you to the fish! That's the important thing...

I can't speak first hand about a Proline, so don't string me up.....

It's just an opinion, based upon what I have read. When I was boat shopping...... I was real tempted when I was in Houston I saw so many Prolines and the prices are incredible.

I like Whalers for the solid fishing platform, positive flotation, good ride, most have a more open design, so they could be a little wet in Oregon, but I like them.