Deep in thought about a new boat.... Sanity check please!

[JET01]

Ladies and Gents - grab a coffee or a beer and have a read.

Had a boat before which i've mentioned a few times on this forum. `Twas a Stacer Nomad 469 with a 50hp 2-stroke Merc and a 55lb Watersnake electric motor.

Made a few mistakes with this boat and dont want to make the same mistake on the next. Or should I even think about buying another boat?

Biggest headaches:

1. Getting the outboard cowling stolen on day 3 of ownership - insurance covered it. had to make a claim though.

2. Getting the electric motor fitted. Getting the bowmount bracket welded on and repainted to look factory... In the end great result. a local business did a great job with the welding of the bracket, the fitting of the gunwale rubber. My electric motor was installed after some issues.

2. Watersnake motor issues. 3 during warranty period, 2 foot pedal issues, 1 plastic collar on the headunit issue. 1 outside which resulted in my father-in-law rewiring most of the corroded head unit.

3. Floor boards rotted out. Replaced all ($1000)

4. Steering Cable rusted.($900 happened on a long weekend up the coast)

5. Annoying list whenever the weather got bad when i was fishing solo. I did all the things people say fix it like mounting the leccy on the port side and filling the portside live well... didn't fix it.

6. Trailer brakes took a hiding as boat was always stored outside.

Biggest joys:

1. fishing alone

2. fishing with my wife

3. Fishing with my mates

4. being about to get over to maianbar to get nippers.

5. being able to move around to look for bait or fish.

6. Going flat out on glassy water at sunrise

7. Knowing you're going to be in deep sh#@ when you get home because you fished for too long.

8. Telling you're wife that you dont need to get anything out of the freezer because "i've got dinner tonight honey".

9. thinking about how nice it's going to be having my daughter pretending to drive the boat.

Theres the background.

Here are my thoughts on the next boat.

I've got a small garage. 5.5 in length although there are places near my house where on street parking would be ok.

Mainly fish the Hacking and would like to push out for Snapper and Kings when the weather is good.

My thoughts are getting a 424 Anglapro Bandit CLX. 50hp (not sure on 2 or 4 stroke yet - dealer recommends 4 stroke although i didnt have many probs with my 2stroke 50hp merc).

Factory fitted 54lb electric motor with i-pilot or equivalent (Motorguides are getting some great wraps)

Boat size - Would love a 4.5 to fit a removable rear lounge in it, but I'm thinking the 424 mainly because most of my fishing is going to be done in the estuary and I can get it in my current garage. If I ever move, it's unlikely the garage will be any smaller so there would be no need to sell it again. 4.5 means going up to a 60Hp also so more dollars.

Trailer - the 424 will fit on an unbraked trailer so that will translate to less maintenance and cost. Almost any car will tow it so don't need to worry about towing capacity.

Centre console - This seems to be a bit of a contentious issue as some people on this site believe the list on modern 420 side consoles (such as the quintrex renegade or stacer outlaw) isn't noticeable. Personally i'm a sceptic. I'd rather a central driving position with 360 access. I was really surprised how room the centre console 424 felt when getting inside one the other day.

Canvas cover - I can't help but feel that covering my old boat in a tarp was part of the reason that my floor boards rotted out so quickly. Getting a canvas cover would be my fix for this.

Bimini? - had one on my boat before but never used it as it got in the way of casting lures. Anyone with a similar boat ever use one? Would love to hear from any fathers or mothers out there about if you've come up with any other ideas to keep kids out of the sun. I was thinking a beach umbrella in a rod holder might work?

Steering cable - How long would it last if kept in a garage vs outdoors storage under a canvas cover? Not sure I'd be completely happy with a tiller steer with kids on board.

Would love to hang around and wait for a second hand one to pop up but they are pretty rare as they haven't been around on the market all that long. Especially one with all the things on it that I want.

[Busy-livin]

BOAT = BUST OUT ANOTHER THOUSAND

but god they are wicked !

i just down sized from a 5.3 to a 4.3 and love it! i wish i looked at the angla pro series! nice looking boats

[JET01]

BOAT = BUST OUT ANOTHER THOUSAND

but god they are wicked !

i just down sized from a 5.3 to a 4.3 and love it! i wish i looked at the angla pro series! nice looking boats

It's good to hear from someone that has downsized... normally people go the otherway! I had a good walk around inside the 424 that's on boatsales at the moment as the owner hasn't picked it up yet. I reckon it's a perfect little machine for what I need.

I'd hate to reopen the biggest can of worms ever but the thing I left off my main post was whether to go 50 4 stroke or 40 2 stroke. I did a bit of reading a while back on polycraft boats and on the 50Hp etec but they got a bit of a bad wrap on the polycraft forum.

[Ric001]

I have a stacer 449 baymaster. Just big enough for a bit of outside work, came with the Bimini and rear seat, canvas covers and I took the 60hp 4 stroke option. Joys1-7&9 I can fully relate to, working on #8. It is on a braked trailer but I happy to have that bit of extra help if I need to pull up in traffic when tools cut in. It ticks the boxes for me as its small enough to manage alone, yet big enough for some fun for reasonable price.

Good luck with hunt.

Edited December 9, 2015 by Ric001

[antonywardle]

A smaller boat is easier to handle by yourself.

I love my ETEC.

My next boat, assuming that I am allowed, and can get used to

being seasick, will be a little bigger than my current 4.98FG

I'm looking forward to taking my little fella out when he s a big bigger.

Not much help sorry mate,, only you will know if a new boat is for you

Bimimi for me. I hate getting burnt

Edited November 24, 2015 by antonywardle

[Fab1]

Ladies and Gents - grab a coffee or a beer and have a read.

Had a boat before which i've mentioned a few times on this forum. `Twas a Stacer Nomad 469 with a 50hp 2-stroke Merc and a 55lb Watersnake electric motor.

Made a few mistakes with this boat and dont want to make the same mistake on the next. Or should I even think about buying another boat?

Biggest headaches:

1. Getting the outboard cowling stolen on day 3 of ownership - insurance covered it. had to make a claim though.

2. Getting the electric motor fitted. Getting the bowmount bracket welded on and repainted to look factory... In the end great result. a local business did a great job with the welding of the bracket, the fitting of the gunwale rubber. My electric motor was installed after some issues.

2. Watersnake motor issues. 3 during warranty period, 2 foot pedal issues, 1 plastic collar on the headunit issue. 1 outside which resulted in my father-in-law rewiring most of the corroded head unit.

3. Floor boards rotted out. Replaced all ($1000)

4. Steering Cable rusted.($900 happened on a long weekend up the coast)

5. Annoying list whenever the weather got bad when i was fishing solo. I did all the things people say fix it like mounting the leccy on the port side and filling the portside live well... didn't fix it.

6. Trailer brakes took a hiding as boat was always stored outside.

Biggest joys:

1. fishing alone

2. fishing with my wife

3. Fishing with my mates

4. being about to get over to maianbar to get nippers.

5. being able to move around to look for bait or fish.

6. Going flat out on glassy water at sunrise

7. Knowing you're going to be in deep sh#@ when you get home because you fished for too long.

8. Telling you're wife that you dont need to get anything out of the freezer because "i've got dinner tonight honey".

9. thinking about how nice it's going to be having my daughter pretending to drive the boat.

Theres the background.

Here are my thoughts on the next boat.

I've got a small garage. 5.5 in length although there are places near my house where on street parking would be ok.

Mainly fish the Hacking and would like to push out for Snapper and Kings when the weather is good.

My thoughts are getting a 424 Anglapro Bandit CLX. 50hp (not sure on 2 or 4 stroke yet - dealer recommends 4 stroke although i didnt have many probs with my 2stroke 50hp merc).

Factory fitted 54lb electric motor with i-pilot or equivalent (Motorguides are getting some great wraps)

Boat size - Would love a 4.5 to fit a removable rear lounge in it, but I'm thinking the 424 mainly because most of my fishing is going to be done in the estuary and I can get it in my current garage. If I ever move, it's unlikely the garage will be any smaller so there would be no need to sell it again. 4.5 means going up to a 60Hp also so more dollars.

There is nothing like safely storing a boat in the garage compared to on street parking or out in the yard if your fortunate to be able to fit more than a bbq in it.

Pros for garage storage-Security,can leave everything in boat ready to fish,a dry comfortable place to work on boat as you wish,boat stays dry and will last as long as possible etc,etc.

Cons-Can't park car when there's a boat sitting there.

Storing on roadside/yard-Risk,theft,danage to any gear,engines,sounders or entire boat etc.

More exposed to weather no matter if tarped etc.

Tyres will degrade quicker exposed to uv.

Risk of collision from vehicles when parked on street.

Can be a pain in the $&%# dealing with insurance companies when things happen.

The list goes on and on and on.

Pros-you can park your car in the garage.

Trailer - the 424 will fit on an unbraked trailer so that will translate to less maintenance and cost. Almost any car will tow it so don't need to worry about towing capacity.

Unbraked trailers are rated up to 749kg,anything over 750kg needs brakes as you are aware.If a rig comes in at 670kg for instance there's not many cars that are rated to tow that weight unbraked so it becomes a concern depending what vehicle the owner has.

Centre console - This seems to be a bit of a contentious issue as some people on this site believe the list on modern 420 side consoles (such as the quintrex renegade or stacer outlaw) isn't noticeable. Personally i'm a sceptic. I'd rather a central driving position with 360 access. I was really surprised how room the centre console 424 felt when getting inside one the other day.

Canvas cover - I can't help but feel that covering my old boat in a tarp was part of the reason that my floor boards rotted out so quickly. Getting a canvas cover would be my fix for this.

Bimini? - had one on my boat before but never used it as it got in the way of casting lures. Anyone with a similar boat ever use one? Would love to hear from any fathers or mothers out there about if you've come up with any other ideas to keep kids out of the sun. I was thinking a beach umbrella in a rod holder might work? Bimini,canopys,umbrellas they all get in the way to some degree and I can imagine it being a real pain lure fishing as my canopy is bad enough bait fishing.

Keep in mind that any form of shelter will be at it's best when the sun is directly overhead.I've had times when my canopy was shading an arm because the sun was lower down in the sky and from the rear.

Steering cable - How long would it last if kept in a garage vs outdoors storage under a canvas cover? Not sure I'd be completely happy with a tiller steer with kids on board.

Steering cable will last longer but don't think for one second they don't need maintenance,they all do.

Have a look at my post on maintaining steering cables and you will see that I do mine yearly and it was still starting to corrode and my boat is always garaged.

Would love to hang around and wait for a second hand one to pop up but they are pretty rare as they haven't been around on the market all that long. Especially one with all the things on it that I want.

Having said all that I wanted a unpainted aluminium boat that was easy to maintain,garage and tow in runabout configuration to bait fish the hacking,Windang and on occasion the Shoalhaven with a 30-40hp 2 stroke for under $15,000 that would be able to be towed by both my cars and fit in the garage for all the above reasons.

At the end of the day only you can decide what's best for you and your crew.

My little quintrex 420 estuary angler has been great for the last 4 years that I've had her and has been a pleasure to own.

All the best with your search.

[The Iceman]

My 420 renegade with 50hp 4st

I don't have any issues with it listing with a side console and I'm nearly 90kg and fish solo quite a bit

My garage is only 5.4m so I had to get a trailer with a break away drawbar

It has some extras like plumbed front livewell and a rod locker and Ipilot electric motor

Ive had boats most of my life and this is the best riding hull Ive been in in chop and I have no problems taking it outside chasing reds and kings

Daughter driving the boat

Edited November 25, 2015 by The Iceman

[stevefish]

[mii11x]

make sure you measure yourself the exact length of the boat and tralier combo.......my 4.5m brooker side console is 5.7m on the trailer