Time for a new boat ...but which one?

[Captain Seaweed]

Hello Folks,
For those that may know I have sold my old boat the 7.5m Centre Cab Noble to buy something that was a little more leisure but still with the fishing capability. I have been tossing up whether to go a larger boat that lives in the water or to stay with a trailer boat. I enjoy taking my fishing adventures North and South and up to 1770 and therefore I made the decision that a trailer boat it must be. I havnt spent too much time in the larger glass boats and thought I would post this thread to get some opinions. Here are a few questions and requirements...

-Must have decent half cab with potentially 2 sleeping quarters like a 8m Patriot. I have 3 young kids and it would be nice to be able to sleep comfortably overnight.
-Must be able to tow with Landcruiser or similar 3.5T towing capacity assuming the boat is towed with no fuel (this is not critical but preffered)
-Dont know enough about cats but certainly not adverse, I find most of the cats I have looked at lack cabin space.
-Any comments or experience in the Wellcrafts, Grady Whites or Seaswirls???

Cheers
Marty

[littlemac]

hey marty,

i have not seen them in flesh and have only seen and read them in mags and so on, but i like the look of the HOOKER 8M??? foo0d for thought any way

cheers

brett

PS the noble you had was a great boat and glad to see it get some raves about it and the work from VALET was fantastic

[095rat]

it's not Fibreglass but for what it's worth, have a chat to Col at Origin boats,

the 7700 he is going to build for me will sleep 5 in comfort,fridge, sink,cooktop 80% of the deck will be under cover
3200kg approx on alloy trailer,
i currently have have a 680 Patriot & am blown away by the amout of room in the bigger plate cuddy cabs

[Tangles]

Marty,

A boat to throw into the mix, the Carolina 25 (trailerable) ...http://www.carolinaclassicboats.com.au/

mike

[Grand_Marlin]

Try this one Marty

http://www.caribbeanboats.com/24fbsf.html

[rosco1974]

hey marty just about to list the 2400kc if ya interested.lol.$119,900 is the list price..looking at other options now but more than likely another cat maybe a bit bigger the 2700 noosa cat looks the good but it blows my towing of the bt50...also got my eye on a nice little sailfish

[Captain Seaweed]

Thanks guys some good suggestions there. Good luck with your boat sale Ross I hope it moves quickly. Took me 3 months to move mine FYI.

Cheers
Marty

[rosco1974]

no hurry marty will be using it till it gets sold then will start looking fair dinkum..just going to do alot more research this time

[boatboy50]

Hey Marty,

I've recently turned my attention to a similar boat with the same criteria.

It depends on budget, but i've found there is not a lot of fisher friendly rigs, still (almost) trailable, outboard powered and capable of sleeping 4.

I personally like a few Wellcraft models, and the Seaquest 2800.

Worth having a look but depends on budget and age you're happy with.

Darren

[Captain Seaweed]

Hey Marty,

I've recently turned my attention to a similar boat with the same criteria.

It depends on budget, but i've found there is not a lot of fisher friendly rigs, still (almost) trailable, outboard powered and capable of sleeping 4.

I personally like a few Wellcraft models, and the Seaquest 2800.

Worth having a look but depends on budget and age you're happy with.

Darren

Thanks Darren I am looking at Wellcraft boats as well. My budget is up to $110k but preferably below 100K

[Lovey80]

For the price of the Cruiser and the Noble you could import a schmick F150 and a 2680 glacier bay

[hilta1]

Hey Rosco, what dont you like about the Kevlacat?

[Captain Seaweed]

For the price of the Cruiser and the Noble you could import a schmick F150 and a 2680 glacier bay

I m also looking into the importing side of things!!!

[Muddy Toes]

Hey Marty......I've got a mate over here in K town with a Wellcraft 252 Coastal.

I've been out in it a couple of times but all on fair weather days so I can't comment on the ride it would give in the rough stuff but in the little bit of chop we had it out in it handled great.
In saying that, a boat of this size and weight should.
I've also been out in a 23ft Striper and I had no problems with the ride it gave either, once again we're talking about heavy glass boats in the 23ft range so you would expect them to handle reasonably well in most conditions but I haven't been in the 26ft Striper so I can't comment about that size either.
The fit out of the Wellcraft is very nice and it gave a bit more cabin and a bit less cockpit than a dedicated offshore fishing boat.
Good luck in your search mate....let me know when we're going to Florida.....I've got a few things to get myself over there.

[Lovey80]

I m also looking into the importing side of things!!!

Or you could just import a sweet 2680 like this one

http://au.boats.com/boat-details/Gla...nner/132812241

Get a cheap 4 door light truck to use as a tractor for towing and then get a more economical car for doing the running around.