Alumacraft Classic vs Competitor Build

Hey everyone – Its been a long hiatus but I’m glad to be back perusing the IDO boards and happy that James is healthy and back.

I have a question, I’ve been told that the Classics are made like the Trophy/Comp/Voygeur series and the Escapes are taking the place of the Fisherman, as a result the Classics are made to the standard of the higher end models.

My previous fisherman listed due to a small beam, but it seemed to handle big waves better than my brother in laws wider Lunker.

Does anyone have opinions? This may be a moot point as I’m not sure I can get a wider boat like the Comp where I need it on my Canada trips, and a Classic can, but man a Comp would be nice for the family and fishing.

Thanks for any info!

Nice to see you back.

Take the large majority of fishing that you will be doing and go with the rig that will suit that. Right now and with my family I chose the not so ideal fishing boat. Absolutely nothing I regret about it.

Hard for me to justify choosing a boat to satisfy one trip per year.

I pulled the trigger on a classic, should take delivery in the next 2 weeks. I did a lot of research on the model and decided to go with it for several reasons.
1. The discounts on the classic were the largest

2. The aluminum is the same thickness as the 165 competitor

3. Internal gas tank. Lower models don’t have one. A 40-50 hp will go through 6 gal of gas in no time.

4. Classics come with a free dowco cover.

Hope this helps with whatever decision you make, we all have different needs. Good luck

Thanks guys – Nick – I totally hear you, the Comp would suit the family far better but then I have no rig for Canada. I really need to see if I can somehow get it where I need it.

1 week a year isn’t worth sacrificing in my opinion but thats 15 hours of fishing a day for a week vs a few a week at home or locally.

Walleye – I appreciate the context

I’ve had this competitor for two yrs. My two neighbors have 2013 & 2014 comps, my brother takes delivery of his competitor today. I say go with what you feel fits your needs but the Competitor is a fantastic boat! I can’t think of a single complaint among the folks I know with them. I probably should have max’d out the motor but I went with the Yami 70 for the weight reduction. I’ve no complaint about the motor either. I get 32 mp loaded with 2-3 people and gear. I like to do my own service so this works for me.

Ive owned both the comp and the classic. both are good boats. I currently own a 2016 Competitor Sport 175 with a 140HP zuke and a 9.9 kicker. The classic was a good boat that got destroyed in a drunk boating accident (I was sober as a judge). The classic was a 165 CS and was a little small for family activities. You didn’t mention if you would be going for a wheel boat or a tiller but the side console was a bit of a wet ride. Any fishing partners with me got soaked and the shield, while helpful, still let water get to me while driving. When I initially bought the classic it took on water straight from the factory. Ive discussed this issue at length on here before so I wont go into it full detail but the dealership had to take in back twice to fix it eventually calling the manufacturer for advice. They stated the jump seats were the culprit and the additional weight in the back was an addition that was not typical on a classic. When I switched to a different dealer they told me that year classic used a plastic transom and there were lots of reported problems with it. IDK which is true but the dealer eventually got the boat working as it should. I would look into that transom story when doing a comp if I were you.

I have a big family (wife and 3 boys) and I enjoy bringing others out boating in the summer so the competitor was good choice for me. Truth be told I spend more time boating with the family then I do fishing so its worked out well for that.

crappie55369 wrote:

classic used a plastic transom and there were lots of reported problems with it.

I can confirm plastic transoms were never used. Either all weld, or prior was marine grade.

Either boat will work great. If you haven’t compared/looked at the Voyageur Series, its worth checking out. It falls in-between a Classic and Competitor. It has a narrower beam & chine width than a Competitor, but larger than a Classic. However, is only offered in a 175 length

Mr Big Eves wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>crappie55369 wrote:</div>
classic used a plastic transom and there were lots of reported problems with it.

I can confirm plastic transoms were never used. Either all weld, or prior was marine grade.

Either boat will work great. If you haven’t compared/looked at the Voyageur Series, its worth checking out. It falls in-between a Classic and Competitor. It has a narrower beam & chine width than a Competitor, but larger than a Classic. However, is only offered in a 175 length

yeah plastic may not have been correct. perhaps they told me aluminum I don’t remember. in any case they said alumacraft changed the transom material in that years model and people were saying it had caused issues

Well plans change! I’m picking up a New 2018 165 Escape CS tomorrow with a 50hp Yamaha. It isn’t the layout I want for the family for now, but the price was insane and it weighs so much less Canada works guaranteed.

Now to spend that extra cash on a Terrova and Panoptix…

That’s a great boat. Family will love it, congrats.

Post some pics when ya pick er up.