I'm looking for a fish and ski boat. It needs to be set up more for bass fishing. The ski part is just for friends. I do more bass fishing than anything else. It needs to be able to take 5 or 6 people out. I have looked at Triton, Stratos and Skeeter boats. Which is better?

I have a Ranger 210 reata and it fishes great. Boat has not had 1 problem since I bought it new in 06 besides the center seat where the cooler is rips easy if anyone steps on it going from the back deck down. Wide open is 50mph. only 6 foot rod box and not to much tackle storage. Mine is about to be for sale because it's my dads boat and he has probably been out on it 4 times since he bought it. All I use it for is to fish and its been great so far.

I would narrow it to either a Skeeter or a Ranger.

The Ranger Reata series leans toward the ski side and Skeeter SL series leans more towards the fish side. The Skeeter is a lower profile vs the Ranger being more deep-V profile.

Just my 2 cents.

If you do more bass fishing than skiing, why not just get a bass boat and ski behind it on those rare occasions. Fish and ski boats are not well suited for bass fishing. They work better for striper or cat fishing. The best brand is definatly CHEVY or FORD.

randfish,

Ibought a Stratos last year. I have been looking for a f and s for a few years, but did not see anything that really jumped out at me. Either they were too pricey or the livewells were small. I went to Jerry Whittle i n Lewisville and saw the Stratos. It had everything I was looking for. 150 Yamaha VMax, 70 lb. 24v troll motor. 18.5 ft. long. Huge Livewell for a FnS. Bimini top and bow pads included. Lowrance fishfinder, not an expensive one, but it came with it. 2 bank battery charger and 30 gal. fuel tank.

I have since put a gps on it and wide open gps speed is 60.

It has 2 rod lockers on the bow, unless your rods are 2 piece, they will not fit. 2 good size aft storage boxes and an in floor ski box. I use mine for my net, lights and tripod ski pylon that also came with the boat.

Is this your first boat? If it is have your prerequisits in mind. Mine was at least 150 motor, 24v 70lb tm and good size livewell. Also had to be at least 18.5 long.

I know the stratos is not a ranger, triton or skeeter, but for the price it is great and I am glad I waited until I found what I was looking for. I did not want to settle for something just to have a boat and wind up regretting it.

As far as insurance goes, I went through progressive and have full coverage 100% replacement and $3000 fishing gear cover for $253 a year.

Best of luck.

GB

I have owned and fished out of ProCraft. They are harder to find than they used to be, but I think they make one of the best fish and ski models and they have 18 and 20 models.

I have a fish/ski what Chris said is good advice,wish I had gone with a bass boat,instead of f/s

this is what I have,looked at them all,and the Procraft was the best of them all(imo)

I thought of a bass boat but I need a boat that can carry 5 or 6 people.

I have an older fish ski and mostly only fish out of it. I really like it for carrying the kid around.

ill vote for the ranger

I've got one of each. A nice Triton TR21 bass boat and a older Larson 18' runabout for skiing. The Larson can hold up to 10 but rarely have more than 6 on it. At least that was my solution to fish and ski.

there is no such thing as a good fish and ski.......most end up being a ski and a little fish

I found a 1995 Cajun 20 footer w/ 200 evinrude a couple of years ago in Plano. It has been a great boat thus far with top end at 58 mph. I like it because the back deck will fold over and gives a lot of room to fish off of and has decent room on the front deck. It will carry 7 people and has a lot of storage to boot.

For that many people we would use a bay boat with one that has seating and that can hold a tower from Monster Tower. That tower is removable and folds down easily. (monstertower.com)

We think the bay boats are the most versatile for this application. You can fish, dive, ski, saltwater, cruise comfortably on summer wakes and enjoy your day. you can add a bimini top for summer or a T top for all the time. The rides on these also will impress your friends more than a cross over boat.

The dual purpose cross over boats are pretty tight with large parties.