I read this forum a lot but have not posted before. I need some advice or input. I'm looking for my first boat and am having a hard time. I want to spend 15,000-20,000 and would go a little higher if I needed. Is it crazy to think I can find a 10 year old 20ft plus boat in good shape with a strong motor? I'm not set on any one brand of motor, boat, graph, trolling motor, etc. I have been driving all over looking for boats but keep running into bad compression, boats in bad shape, or other random issues. I've been looking for a while now. Should I compromise somewhere and if so where;age, stress cracks, motor hours, etc? I'm at the point where I'm considering much older boats or boats a little more than I wanted to spend. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

For that kind of money you can get a real nice boat. You just need to shop around and be willing to travel some to get one. Also whatever you get always have it checked out. A couple hundred spent up front will save you thousand down the road. Don't give up there are a ton of good boats out there. You just haven't found the right one yet. Also there are several boats on this forum that are for sale. And BassBoatCentral
B=Bring
O= out
A= another
T= Thousand.
remember this going in. And hold back a few grand for that reason. Good Luck.

Look at this one. I know it more than you want to spend but not much.

http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/11330700/Re:_2009_Basscat_Pantera_2_For#Post11330700

Finding and buying a good used boat to fit your ideals is something that takes care (which you seem to be doing) and TIME. I see that you've been preapproved for 3 weeks. Bass boats in particular are very unique individualized platforms. There's a lot less consistency than with cars, for instance. Finding the perfect used boat for any one of us can be a luck of the draw thing - it could take 3 weeks, 3 months, even longer. I was on the lookout for 6 months before I got serious about it and even then it took 3 months more. If timeframe is a critical parameter for you, it will be much more difficult, or cost more - one of the two. Good luck!

Find a good mechanic that you can trust who will be able to check the boat out for you. In your price point, I could find a lot of boats that I would be happy with but my standards will be different than yours. If you are looking at a boat that was 50k originally and has all the best bells and whistles on it in your price range then maybe you will have trouble finding the right one. You might have to wait until Spring. Many people won't sell a boat in Winter because the price is typically less for one in the off season or they are just waiting until then to buy themselves a new boat.

If you are a little picky on what you want, then you just have to be patient and also be willing to pay slightly more if the right boat shows up. Everyone looking is wanting that perfect boat at a good price so if one comes along, it won't last long and you have to be ready to pull the trigger.

All of my boats have been used. Some 10years and my latest was 7. Be patient, be careful about craigslist. It may be sitting around the corner from you (as mine was) and will pop up from no ware. Electronics, trolling motor size, batteries all should be good. Some wear but working properly for that money. Like previously mention have a mechanic (repudiable) look it over for you also. Don't just buy to buy. Homework will pay off. Good luck.

Try looking here .... don't buy anything with an E-tec on it.

http://www.bassboatcentral.com/boats4sale.htm

Houston Boat Show starts today.

I really appreciate all the responses. I've been searching here, Craigslist, basscat owners, bbc, Louisiana sportsman almost everyday since the first of December. I thought I had one several weeks ago but after driving 5 hours I discovered a soft spot in the transom. I have a fiberglass shop here that has been nice enough to give me input on stress cracks etc on a few out of town boats. I got pre approved early December and have cash set aside just in case a deal comes up that I need to act quickly on. Is there a certain number of hours that you would avoid on a used by boat like say over 400? Have any of you guys bought and had a boat shipped? I have been looking within a 6 hour radius. I'm a little hesitant to buy a boat without seeing it after the boat a few weeks ago.

I would try to find one with 100 hrs or less

ALWAYS go inspect a boat in person- no exceptions. Take a trusted friend with boat knowledge also, if you have one. They might be the one to help talk you out of a mistake if you get rose-colored glasses over a particular boat. If you can't justify multiple trips in a boat purchase, that boat isn't worth the risk. The same for having a mechanic check it out. Doing that far from home is harder, but you don't want a $10,000 mistake. I'm not sure on where I would put an hours cut-off at. Many computer readings also give the RPM range for hours. On the boat I bought, 90% of the hours it did have were at very low RPM. That usually means they spent a lot of time looking with electronics; my mechanic and I don't view those hours as hard use for a motor.

Keep at it. You never know when one will pop up. I will agree with others that now is a bit soon. Many sellers will wait until a little closer to spring to put boats on the market. Many sellers figure buyers are recovering from Christmas right now. I think that way too - I will be selling one, but it is not on the market at this time.

I'd never buy without seeing. After looking at boats in the past and asking specifics to the owners before driving out, I found that my idea of condition was different than theirs. They always said there were no soft spots but always found them. All fiberglass with no wood to rot is another big one. I honestly don't think that they were lying, just not well educated on boats.

If you really wanted one that was too far to drive, you can pay for an inspector to go look at it and take several pictures and give you an assessment but even that would make me leery.

That may be what you like, and that's fine, but I see no actual logical reason for such a tight restriction. Properly maintained, outboards can run for hundreds of hours with little issue. What WOULD make logical sense is to restrict the purchase to boats that have remaining engine warranty time (whether standard or extended) simply because that's like an insurance policy against expensive repairs.

BTW, if you look at engine hour data today, you'll often see a najority of hours below 2000 RPM as quite common because of the use of electronics while searching for fish/habitat. Those easy RPM hours do very little to "wear out" an engine or make it more likely to fail soon.

Take your time and be patient. Find a good low hour boat that's been taken care of and have it checked out. They are out there.

Good luck but my last three boats I've bought new. I been down the used boat way and you're usually buying something wore out or taking on someone's problems. New boat has generally 5 year warranty on motor and lifetime hull warranty. I buy demos or year end close outs jmo

Really? That's just amazing you know everyone's motives when they sell a boat! I've sold several in my lifetime, and it each case there wasn't a &#$^@ thing wrong with them. I've often known the buyer - who remained happy with the purchase long after the transfer. Once, when a friend had an issue a week after buying a boat from me, I paid for the fix. Not everyone selling is trying to dupe a buyer. Some are like me....Against all common sense and better judgement, I simply get the bug for a different boat, usually bigger or faster, or in the most recent case, more storage that the prior boat. The untold thousands I've spent simply because "I want" over the decades is mind-boggling, all in the quest to chase an elusive green fish.