Hi, looking at picking up a 16-17 foot boat, Lund rebel, alumacraft classic, crest liner fish hawk 1650. Haven’t boat in some time, previous Lund was 1982 and was a tank. All the research I find on web suggests the quality is poor on new boats. Being in Colorado I won’t have access prior for the most part. Any experience with the newer boats or suggestions of best quality theses day? Appreciate it.
Add Starcraft to your research.
FWIW…I bought an Alumacraft Escape 165 tiller a few years back. I put a 50HP Honda on it. I wanted a very basic, lighter boat for small inland lakes in NE Minnesota with questionable access quality. I wanted it light and with a removable fuel tank in case I needed to lighten it up further. The Classic is a nicer boat but has more livewell and built in fuel tanks. I won’t trash any other boats…we all have our sweet spot but in the price range, I felt the Lund Fury was not as nice a boat…again, my opinion. I think in 2019 I paid like $15K with a nice roller trailer. Of course after delivery, electronics, trolling motor, batteries etc hit the pocketbook for “round 2”!
Those aren’t on my list.
Alumaweld, duckworth, North river, kingfisher, silver streak runabout, northwest, action
I agree with FBRM . Next boat I get I want zero wood or plastic that’ll break or rot and absolutely not a wooden transom .I’ll Die with that sucker and outlast the next person as well .
Next boat I get I want zero wood or plastic that’ll break or rot and absolutely not a wooden transom
Are they still making boats with wood in them?! Lund, Crestliner, Alumcraft, still have wood?
No.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>isu22andy wrote:</div>
Next boat I get I want zero wood or plastic that’ll break or rot and absolutely not a wooden transomAre they still making boats with wood in them?! Lund, Crestliner, Alumcraft, still have wood?
Pretty sure they’ve all gone away from wood in transom, but still use wood in the deck.
Are they still making boats with wood in them?! Lund, Crestliner, Alumcraft, still have wood?
Lund and Crestliner are all composite.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>gimruis wrote:</div>
Are they still making boats with wood in them?! Lund, Crestliner, Alumcraft, still have wood?Lund and Crestliner are all composite.
Floor too ? What year did they go composite transom 08 ? I don’t understand why it would take them that long in the first place .
Full disclosure i own a 03 crestliner just waiting on that ticking time bomb of a transom replacement lol
In seeing multiple 2 to 10 year old trades from multiple brands, there really doesnt seem to be a huge seperation of percieved quality of build. What is very apparant though, is the qualty of maintence and pride of ownership.
I’ll ask since I’m here right now in st Peter
20230317_085700-scaled.jpg
I own a 2002 Crestliner 1850 Fishhawk. I have nothing bad to say about it. I have several fishing buddies who also own Crestliners and are happy with them as well. Lund makes a good boat, but I just feel that they are overpriced for what you get. I’m also not a big fan of a riveted hull. They must be one of the last boat manufactures to still use rivets. Of the brands you mentioned alumacraft would be at the bottom of my list. Just never been a fan of them. Owned one once and it had lots of problems. Have ridden in a few in the last few years and the ride in them seem really rough.
Those aren’t on my list.
Alumaweld, duckworth, North river, kingfisher, silver streak runabout, northwest, action
But what will you do without pretty plush carpet and candy fiberglass sparkles?
Willie Boats are worth a look as well.
I saw boats with wood floors and hatch covers all over last year at the shows so unless every Midwest manufacturer eliminated wood in every boat after year, it’s still out there in some models.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>FishBlood&RiverMud wrote:</div>
Those aren’t on my list.Alumaweld, duckworth, North river, kingfisher, silver streak runabout, northwest, action
But what will you do without pretty plush carpet and candy fiberglass sparkles?
Willie Boats are worth a look as well.
I saw boats with wood floors and hatch covers all over last year at the shows so unless every Midwest manufacturer eliminated wood in every boat after year, it’s still out there in some models.
Was recommended to look at stabicraft, seems they have smaller boats that handle water and options like removable casting deck to cover most needs.
I own a 2002 Crestliner 1850 Fishhawk. I have nothing bad to say about it.
My Father has a 2001 Crestliner 1750 Fish Hawk (tiller). I used this boat growing up a lot. He still has it but it rarely gets used now that my parents have a Warrior 2090.
In the last 4-5 years, some cosmetic problems have begun to surface. The original carpet has worn out and ripped in several locations. This has exposed the wood and that has begun to visibly rot. Part of this problem is obviously his negligence in replacing the carpet, but the bigger problem now is the rotten wood. There’s absolutely no reason for a boat manufacturer in this day and age to be using wood anymore. Its a cheap component and any boat still using it would be off my list. It sounds like most common manufacturers have done away with it, which is good. And there seems to be less carpet too.
According to crestliners website – they use treated panel flooring . Not a material expert but I’d think could find something better .
I have a 2012 Alumacraft fisherman tiller with a newer yamaha 25. It tows very easy, planes out nice 20+ mph even with 2-3 guys, works great on the smaller lakes i fish in western MN. The key is finding one that was stored inside or under a canopy, or buying new..
In the last 4-5 years, some cosmetic problems have begun to surface. The original carpet has worn out and ripped in several locations.
Yep. Mine has some carpet issues in a few places as well. I’m not sure if their new ones have wood floors or not. My guess is not. I feel like for a 21 year old boat mine is in fairly decent shape. I tend to be a little harder on my equipment than I should be. I hope to get a new or at least a newer boats within the next year or so. Maybe I will do a better job of keeping up on the cleaning and care for the next one. When my fishing buddy traded in his older crestliner for the new one, They asked him what the slick looking spot was on the carpet on the floor in the back. He told them that was from a BIG catfish that his buddy ( Me ) wrestled with on the floor trying to get his .50 jig out of. The guy asked how long ago that was, he said ” Oh not long ago, probably only 2-3 years ago ” No kidding. That slime / slick spot was there for several years. I keep thinking that one of the heavy rains would wash it away – But no. Now my buddy, he’s really hard on equipment. His last Boat was only 5 or so years old and looked way worse than my 20+ year old boat. He tells people all the time. A boat is a tool, not a show piece. as someone who fishes in it often, I really should do a full detailing on his newer one this spring. It really needs it already !!!
When my fishing buddy traded in his older crestliner for the new one, They asked him what the slick looking spot was on the carpet on the floor in the back. He told them that was from a BIG catfish that his buddy ( Me ) wrestled with on the floor trying to get his .50 jig out of. The guy asked how long ago that was, he said ” Oh not long ago, probably only 2-3 years ago ” No kidding. That slime / slick spot was there for several years. I keep thinking that one of the heavy rains would wash it away – But no.
Haha. We’ve seen that photo more than once here before. The “annual overweight catfish” photo.
According to crestliners website – they use treated panel flooring . Not a material expert but I’d think could find something better .
I agree. There’s better, more durable component material out there now. If they’re still using it, they’re doing it to cut corners and save on mfg costs.
Brunswick and BRP are profit driven, not a knock, just good luck seeing them use something cheaper than treated wood.
Fiberglass is far superior, not phased by moisture and stronger, but also requires more up front quality control to ensure those things. Amazes me to see carpet still going in boats.
AquaTraction was a brilliant idea although hard to justify the cost installing in a $20,000 boat. Companies like Aft-Tek in Clearwater are ripping out all wood and carpet in boats and installing custom fiberglass lids plus AQT.
Id like to see a fiberglass company take advantage of the 16-17’ tiller market. Could build a very high quality boat for $25,000 with a 70HP. Tough to get the big fiberglass brands to remove a V238/R622 from production to make room for a 17’ boat.
I have a 2012 Alumacraft fisherman tiller with a newer yamaha 25. It tows very easy, planes out nice 20+ mph even with 2-3 guys, works great on the smaller lakes i fish in western MN. The key is finding one that was stored inside or under a canopy, or buying new..
Have the same boat but a 2008. It’s perfect for my needs which is basically the river and trips to remote shield lakes with unimproved accesses.
What Dean said about pride of ownership rings true. My boat may not be fancy but it’s mine and I love it. I don’t lose sleep about my wood transom and floors because I know how to take care of it to prevent issues.
You can maintain crappy plywood once the garbage carpet is gone.My last boat i bedlined and painted floor.Other than it could get a bit hot it was pretty easy to spray it down and it would dry in no time.Even after a drive home in pouring rain I could put it in the garage and it would be 100% dry the next day.Do that with a carpet boat and wait days for it to dry,if ever.The carpet just accelerates the rotting of wood decks-none to very little drainage along the edges coupled with carpet that stays wet most of the time (especially along edges and corners) and that wood wont last long.Junk way to do it but apparantly no consumers really care as they keep spending big money on boats with wood.Friend works at a Lund dealer and think he said you can get a Lund Alaskan with a composite floor now.
FWIW…I bought an Alumacraft Escape 165 tiller a few years back. I put a 50HP Honda on it. I wanted a very basic, lighter boat for small inland lakes in NE Minnesota with questionable access quality. I wanted it light and with a removable fuel tank in case I needed to lighten it up further. The Classic is a nicer boat but has more livewell and built in fuel tanks. I won’t trash any other boats…we all have our sweet spot but in the price range, I felt the Lund Fury was not as nice a boat…again, my opinion. I think in 2019 I paid like $15K with a nice roller trailer. Of course after delivery, electronics, trolling motor, batteries etc hit the pocketbook for “round 2”!
I bought the exact same boat, same year, same motor. I would do it all over again, really like this rig.
That’s the thing…we like what we like (or don’t like). Everyone’s needs/desires are different. I’m always surprised how many people at the landings tell me how nice my boat is! It’s certainly not fancy and is pretty much “entry level” as fishing boats go but it’s practical and inexpensive. Not a big water boat and 3 adults is pushing it’s limits but it works great and I’m happy with it.
Brunswick and BRP are profit driven, not a knock, just good luck seeing them use something cheaper than treated wood.
Fiberglass is far superior, not phased by moisture and stronger, but also requires more up front quality control to ensure those things. Amazes me to see carpet still going in boats.
AquaTraction was a brilliant idea although hard to justify the cost installing in a $20,000 boat. Companies like Aft-Tek in Clearwater are ripping out all wood and carpet in boats and installing custom fiberglass lids plus AQT.
Id like to see a fiberglass company take advantage of the 16-17’ tiller market. Could build a very high quality boat for $25,000 with a 70HP. Tough to get the big fiberglass brands to remove a V238/R622 from production to make room for a 17’ boat.
Crucial Boats 320-260-3474 (old Backtroller Boats) still makes one. About $49K
Rumor has it he also has a mold for a 20′ tiller with a 175 hp. motor.
Bought a new Lund adventure this year. the floors and the transom are all composite.
<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>ganderpike wrote:</div>
Brunswick and BRP are profit driven, not a knock, just good luck seeing them use something cheaper than treated wood.Fiberglass is far superior, not phased by moisture and stronger, but also requires more up front quality control to ensure those things. Amazes me to see carpet still going in boats.
AquaTraction was a brilliant idea although hard to justify the cost installing in a $20,000 boat. Companies like Aft-Tek in Clearwater are ripping out all wood and carpet in boats and installing custom fiberglass lids plus AQT.
Id like to see a fiberglass company take advantage of the 16-17’ tiller market. Could build a very high quality boat for $25,000 with a 70HP. Tough to get the big fiberglass brands to remove a V238/R622 from production to make room for a 17’ boat.
Crucial Boats 320-260-3474 (old Backtroller Boats) still makes one. About $49K
Rumor has it he also has a mold for a 20′ tiller with a 175 hp. motor.
Correct. Same company that builds Warrior builds Crucial (hull and decks). Building 3 boats per year is a hobby and not a business. Which is Thelen’s intent. Very sharp boats though.
Wrong. Thelen does his own fiberglass now. How many boats a year he does I don’t know or care. He builds a very solid affordable fiberglass boat.
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
