Does anyone have an opinion about boats?

[apparentgenius]

Currently I have an 18' sled that I love, but I want something a little better suited for ocean fishing. I want to fish the rockpile and experiment with some tuna fishing. I've been looking at quite a few boats and would like some input. In the running:

22' 2003 Arima with 200hp Honda- about $45k good reputation, kind of skimpy on cabin ammenities

22' 2003 Sea-sport 5.0l Volvo- about $45k, nice cabin,galley

23' 2003 custom built Titan-Aluminum, 200hp honda- $50k
built like a tank- a fishing machine. You can check this one out on boattrader.com

23' Edwing-yet to research does anyone have price info?

Any opinions are appreciated

Aluminum is not the best material for a saltwater boat. If ALL of the surfaces are properly painted and the boat is properly zinced most of the problems can be minimized.

Sea Sports are nice but a bit overpriced
Don't know much about Arimas or Titans
From the ones I have seen Ed Wing builds a good boat

[ 11-05-2003, 06:32 AM: Message edited by: Keta ]

[craigc]

I have been fishing on a 21' Arima with 130HP Honda. I like the following about the boat

1. Has a designed capacity load of ~12K pounds, in the water [ test conditions ] and 650 capacity load if hull is drilled with holes. So I'm less worried about sinking, than getting some help and staying warm.

2. The Honda 130HP will give you up to ~35mph on flat waters, 2 people, and a 48 gallons of petrol.[with 17" pitch prop]

3. The cuddy is long enough to sleep 2 people

4. The built-in fish box is below the deck, so it doesn't take up above-deck space.

5. The double walled, foam core, fiberglass stringers means I won't worry about dryrot sometime in the future.

6. The V-hull is steep enough so the boat doesn't 'slap' the water much when you ride against the wind chop.

7. The console is positioned far enough back so a 5'10" person can sleep in cuddy, while maximizing the aft deck space for crab traps and fishing.

8. The two aft storage compartments can be converted into live bait tanks, if you buy the extra gear.

9. The boat is light enough to be trailered by a reasonably size truck. roughly #3300 pounds.

10. There's a 14 gallon water tank in the bow that can be used to wash down your fishing gear at the end of the day, or for emergency use.

11. Other Arima boat owners on msn.com have posted a number of times that the manufacturer provides A++ after-sales customer support; where parts are provided for free to out-of-warranty owners.

12. The hull seams to be structurally sound. My friend rolled his 21' Arima on the bar, and the boat was surveyed to have no structural damage. All the rails and windows were ripped off, but the hull did not buckle or crack.

13. The 5 Year warranty is transferable.

14. The fact that it is hard to find a used 21' or 22' Arima would imply the future resell value should be quite high. I've seen a lot of smaller arimas on the market, but would speculate that many of the owners are upgrading to the 21/22' boats.

Here's what I would change with an Arima;
1. I'd move the instrumention panel from the front console to the side panel. Any water that rolls off the top of the console currently runs right over the instrument panel. A currently poor compromise on locating instrument panel.

2. There are 2 'idiot' lights for the engine. I'd upgrade, if possible, to analog dials so you can monitor your engine, instead of being told your engine is now toast.

I hope this opinion helps. I currently use the 21' Arima exclusively for crabbing and fishing. Craig

[WaterDog]

Dave the rock pile is 17 miles or so west of Newport, Or.

[PeterMac]

"Does anyone have an opinion about a boat"

Holy smokes, that's a loaded question on this board!! :grin:

PeterMac

[id. painter]

I thought it must be a joke or trick question. Does anyone have an opinion about boats on the ifish ,,, naaaa. id.painter

[Fishplay]

I personally feel the Arima has a narrow beam, I also think the C-dory is both narrow beamed and lacking freeboard.

Here are a few I like.

Alluminum:

Maxweld
Boulton
Norvelle
Titan
Edwing (A tank YES and cheaper than those listed above - but you get what you pay for)


Fiberglass:

Sea Sport
Osprey
Skagit Orca
Bounty
Thompson
Thunderbird
Slickcraft
Tollycraft


This is not all inclusive just some of the contenders on my list.

[apparentgenius]

Yea, I was kind of being a wise guy with the title wondering if anyone on this board had opinions about boats. Thanks for the help so far. I'll post a pic when I make up my mind.

Dave, If you do a search for rockpile coordinates, you'll be able to get the north and south tips

glen

[boater]

my next boat, a parker 23 footer.

[Tagster]

Be tough to boondog out of that Boater... :smile:

Parker makes a pretty boat...

Tag

[ 11-05-2003, 08:32 PM: Message edited by: Tagster ]

[Nalu]

My personal choice: A Grady White Sailfish 25 with a gill bracket, brining it closer to 27.

Of course I'm a little biased. :grin:

What, nobody else think my Grady is up to snuff to be mentioned?

Mike

[Rod Holder]

Take a look at the C-Dory, it may not be for you, but, it would behoove you to take a look it before plunking down hard earned boat bucks. Lots of good boats out there, good luck on finding the one that's perfect for your needs.

[Onokai]

If you are serious about chashing TUNA get a heavery boat than say an Arima. My list would be very long but tese are near the top.
Boaton Whaler
Osprey
Skagit Orca
Parker
Grady White

Stick to glass boats for salt water. Metal boats for rivers.I am atticted to tuna fishing and have 7 seasons behind me after tuna only.Mark

ONOKAI

[Dave's not here]

I have a 18 foot Trimuph, I hit a dock once and damaged the dock. It's made of a material that you realy have to work at to damage. I HAVE A VIDEO THAT SHOWS A BOAT BEING DROPPED FROM A HELLICOPTER WITH NO DAMAGE TO THE BOAT. i KEEP HEARING ABOUT THE ROCK PILE , WHERE IS IT? DAVE

[Phil Layer]

Whaler Man,

Do you fish out of Shelter Cove? How far do you have to run to find tuna down there?

[Dave's not here]

If you go to shelter Cove ,the launch fee is a minnium of $25.00. They will allways tell you the fishing is good. I've been there a couple of times and will not go back. The bottom fishing is o.k. if you go down the coast a few miles but the info where to go isn't very good. The road in isn't very good. People I talk to around the Eureka area think the fishing reports are alot of B.S. to draw people in.

[CAPT KUJO]

There is always the Special Action Vessels (SAV) build in Oregon. The Fastest most rugged X-treme fishing machine ever built. If you would like a free video, please don't hesitate to to e-mail me for one usia@aol.com don't forget a mailing address or you view the videos on line at Special Action Vessels

CAPT KUJO

[marv]

If you want a real ocean boat that can handle more water then you would every want to be in buy an H&F Custom from Bandon Oregon. H&F Boats