Boat Upgrade

Hey guys and gals, Its time to upgrade to a real boat and start getting a little more serious. I currently have a 1988 Lund, not sure of the model. I absolutely love the boat but with a bad knee its time to get something more stable for myself and the grandkids. I am a big guy, 6’4 and 380lbs. I typically fish the Mississippi river, Lake Geneva and recently started going to Green Bay chasing Walleyes with my nephew along with smaller panfish lakes in my area. Looking to stay with a Lund and looking at 17-20 feet long. I don’t need a huge motor, maybe 115. From what I can tell sometime in the early 2000’s Lund started making their boats wider. Does anyone know what year this was and what years I should be looking and possibly models. Thanks for the time

I have a 2018 1775 Impact and it has a 96″ beam. I absolutely love the width, compared to my old 1997 pro Sport 1700 I think this boat is a foot wider and nearly a foot longer. Perfect size for my family for now.

As far as year, not 100% sure. They did widen out the pro sport in the early 200’s at some point before the discontinued it. That’s a phenomenal boat, but the impact is really great too. I think Impact was released some time around 2013?

Just a thing to look for lunds built in the 2000’s have had many rotten trasoms. Just check the motor mounts to see if they are tight or are crushing the transom. Another is if you see corrosion around the screws and paint flacking on the transom.

I’m not affiliated with any boat “brand” whatsoever in this line.

All I can say is that if you are in the market for something in the 17-18′ range and will only consider Lund, you are missing out on some great competition. As already posted, the Impact is a nice rig for sure. There are other viable options too.

I have not owned a Crestliner, but have fished out of many. If I go back to aluminum it’s the first brand I’ll climb in and look around.

Do yourself a favor and hop in a couple of glass boats and go for a ride. Smoother, dryer, and more stable than an aluminum boat. Also wouldn’t look at an early 2000’s lund personally. As others have said, there’s issues with their transoms.

rjthehunter wrote:

Do yourself a favor and hop in a couple of glass boats and go for a ride. Smoother, dryer, and more stable than an aluminum boat. Also wouldn’t look at an early 2000’s lund personally. As others have said, there’s issues with their transoms.

I currently have a 2005 2025 and its been a good boat other then the transom. I would not buy a boat just because of the rotten transom I would just noegotiate the price to have it fixed. I have personally done 3 transom repairs for others and its not that bad you just need time. I’m guessing if you hired the repair it would cost arond 3-4k.

Not sure what your budget is, but if it’s in the 20-25k range, don’t be afraid to checkout a Ranger Reata 1850 or Skeeter MX series boat either. The Reata’s have a 101″ beam, super wide, super stable, and fish really well.

I think altogether Fiberglass is more durable and easier to repair than Aluminum as well, if that’s one of your concerns. I know a guy who basically split his saltwater boat in half and was able to repair it!

Bad knees and grandkids, check that.

Have both those issues plus my balance isn’t the greatest because of a vestibular issue. Have a 2000 2025 lund single counsel. Love the boat. It’s stored in a big tarp shed all day everyday and never had a transom issue knock on wood. The boat is wide and stable, very, very little rock side to side while fishing. Friends have glass boats that 100% ride unbelievable well in comparison to the 2025. Especially in rough water. But there’s enough of a side to side rock they get to me after a few days in a row fishing out of them. Not bad, just a little bit noticeable. I wouldn’t shy away from glass off that alone because the ride of glass is so far superior. The 2025 does fish well and has a very open feel to it. People who’ve fished in it say it’s the closest to a pontoon you can get in a v hull because of the single counsel. One person said you could hold a square dance in it. Floors, carpet and transoms are an issue if it’s not taken care of and stored indoors or at minimum covered all the time. Glass will always ride better and just be way smoother. A lot of it depends on how you fish and if you sit more or stand more. If sitting more and the tiny bit more of a side to side rock some glass hulls have, which is extremely minimal, just something I have a tiny issue with with glass hulls, a glass boat is far superior to aluminum in many ways. Will probably eventually go to glass but like my boat, it’s paid for, it owes me nothing, it still works great, I know everything on it inside and out, and love how it fits my style of fishing. Biggest things I don’t like about it is it’s a rough ride in big waves and it’s only a single counsel. Have thought about going full windshield a lot but the wife doesn’t mind the wind in her hair.

Those Ranger Reata’s look soooo nice and If I didn’t spend so much time running ashore on the river I’d be shopping for one of those. When I bounce off rocks and logs the aluminum doesn’t seem to be bothered much.

KPE wrote:

Those Ranger Reata’s look soooo nice and If I didn’t spend so much time running ashore on the river I’d be shopping for one of those. When I bounce off rocks and logs the aluminum doesn’t seem to be bothered much.

LOL I get that! I haven’t bounced my boat off too much yet, but I’ve scraped a few rocks here and there. I’m guessing my glass boat would stand up to as much abuse as an aluminum boat, but there’s something about wanting to keep that fiberglass hull looking pristine and shiny…I need to get over it lol.

The only other piece of advice I have is to think a lot about what type of fishing you like to do. Do you mainly cast? Troll? Jig? Pull spinners?

I’d let that guide what type of boat you get. My Reata has a TON of room in the cockpit, with a small casting deck up front (enough for 1 guy, maybe 2 if you’re throwing small jigs or something). But I do most of my fishing from the cockpit, and I have young kids, so it’s perfect for us.

Justin, that’s why I really like those Reata’s. I like a nice big cockpit and a smaller bow area. You should post some pics of that machine!