I’m considering a Starcraft Starfish 176 aluminum boat and would like owners of one of these two similar boats to share their experiences. I’m not looking for alternative boats 
to consider so please limit your responses to actual experiences with these boats. Thanks, all! 
I have a Monark King185 (hence, the screen-name)… I know you asked to limit it to the Starcraft but Monark Marine is part of StarCraft so it’s not too far of a stretch… I like my Monark – has many similar features to my buddies Crestliner but the sticker price was considerably lower. It’s a well built boat and has served me well. A few items I wish were a bit better include: aerated livewells (although I think the Starfish comes with those?) and a better quality bimini top setup. Mine is a full-console fish-n-ski and the change-over between fishing rig and skiing rig is quite easy. I also have a rear bench seat that turns the boat into a pretty nice cruiser, along with front bow padded seat cushions. I’ve also been very happy with their customer service – I ‘discovered’ an issue with some metal edges (or should I say my son’s knee discovered the sharpness) on the rear bench and when I called Starcraft, they were very upset and offered a free fix and recalled all of their boats with this seat setup. They also threw in some free upgrades (and I didn’t even have to say that my next call was to my attorney 
) and the last time I had my boat in for winterizing, they automatically upgraded a few of the finish touches.
All in all, I’ve been quite happy… Starcraft has been building boats for a long time – that’s gotta tell you something!
I own 2 Starcrafts.A 160SFM and a 170SFM I’ve had the 160 for 4 years and love it. We fish mostly Lake Michigan ( Little Bay DeNoc) but make 2-3 trips to Pool 4 each year. They handle rough water very well for its size , Are Very Fisherman Friendly Boat. I upgraded my Bimini tops with Clear Plastic windows sewn into the top above the Windshield to improve visability while driving with the Air ride seats raised. 160 is powered by 60 hp Evinrude and planes out fast and has a top speed a bit over 35. The 170 is powered by a 90 Johnson and performs even better !
Hope this helps. 
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