Who is running the new Ranger aluminum bass boats? No matter how happy you may or may not be I am interested in what you are not happy with if anything about them. How smooth are they going across choppy water, big water? How bad are they about hanging up on stumps? If any of you have had experience with the Ranger boats as well as other aluminum bass boats, how did they compare? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.

Have a friend who sold his 21' Ranger and went with an aluminum Ranger. He loves it.

Sounds like you already know the pitfalls of a aluminum boat. I'll add that they get blown around like the leafs in my yard.

They don't displace water when you're running the way a glass boat does. You tend to get soaked in any sort of chop.

I have the RT188; added an Ultrex to fix the "get blown round like the leafs in my yard". I agree with that, which is why I added the Ultrex. I have not tried it in real rough water since I get to pick when I go fishing. if you fish tournaments, the RT188 is probably too small for the rough water you might encounter. They make a RT198 now, but I would think that would be marginal.

It's plenty big enough for 2, and I've been all over Lake Fork in it. I've also joined Private Water Fishing, and launch off the bank in the ponds. I traded out of a 21' skeeter, and I haven't looked back. I like to fish and not see how much gas I can burn in a day.

my only gripe is it can be difficult to load. The strakes (is that right?) can get easily caught on the bunks, and the boat will not slide into the correct position like a fiberglass boat does. not a problem with 2 people, but can be a real pain when I'm by myself.

I have a rt 188, with a merc 115, I fish Fork 100 plus days a year, runs 45mph, sips gas, and rides great up to 20mph headwinds with whitcaps,
then it's time to head for the house. The trailer it came on is kinda cheap, and I went thrpugh 4 sets of lights to get ones that won't leak.
Cleans with just a wipe down, no problems for 3 years. I have a Minnkota Terrova 80 that will hold it anywhere, no problem.

disagree with the getting soaked comment; got just as wet in my old skeeter when not running straight into the wind or down wind.

my RT188 keeps me just as dry.

I have an Rt188 and have not looked back! Got rid of my 20ft Triton. There are pro's and con's! The 188 has more of a flat bottom. It will get hung on a stump and can be a pain sometimes to get off of it, but no more trouble than a glass boat. The 198 has more of a bass boat pad and to me, it would be easier to get off of stumps, but I personally have not been in one! If you cross some pretty good waves, it will get you wet! The wind does not blow you around in the Ranger vs an Xpress.

Not with an Ultrex. That TM solves that problem in spades.

Thank you guys for the input. Exactly what I was looking for.

They make boats to fit all needs. If'n you like your'n enjoy. I have a Skeeter ZX190 and it works for me but if'n I could afford it I'd have me a brand spankin' new Phoenix 921. I love me a big boat.

Also, head over to Bass Boat Central and look under the tin boat section! Tons of info to read on aluminum boats!

No it doesn't! The Ultrex will hold anything on a spot lock, but those lightweight aluminum boats are a handful if you are fishing docks in the wind, and an Ultrex ain't gonna help ya there. No more than an Edge or a Maxxum. Aluminum boats are also noisy.

That said, I have the same boat as Gigem does, a TZX190 and I would like to trade it for an Express 21ft, if I had to change to an aluminum boat.

Nothing bad about the Ranger. You wanted to know what the downfalls were. I can name as many or more about my Skeeter. That's why there are so many different boats to choose from....pick what works for you.

I was at the Fun-n-Sun shindig today, and took a good look at the Polarcraft aluminum. There is one there that is extra wide and had a 115 HP on the back.It was as wide as the Phoenix 920 sitting next to it. Real nice boat. I had an 18' Express with a 90 hp that I kept three months, and fell out of it once. Stumbled around in it a lot. Im an old guy and now drive a 250 ZX. Its much safer for me. I should have bought that one to begin with. If I still had the aluminum boat, I would hug the edges of the lake while on Fork and choose my launch sites with a little more study.
Again, look at that Polarcraft, I liked it
Good Luck

I also have an RT188 and it suits me just fine. On the positive side, it cost a lot less than a fiberglass and is easier to tow with my Tacoma. It takes fairly rough water pretty well, but how it handles in 30 mph winds I'll never know cuz I won't be out there. I've been out with James Biggs in it a couple times (Squaw Creek with 20 mph winds and Joe Pool) and he really seemed to like how it handled and was thinking about the RT198 for a future ride. I like the layout and it fishes really well. I find it easy to launch and recover by myself and I don't worry about the hull every time it gets a little bump.

Negatives? It's not a 2500 lb fiberglass boat and it doesn't draft 15" deep (hmmm, guess those could be positives as well), so it will move around in the wind more than a Z521C. If I'm running crosswind in a chop I will get wet. I have gotten wet in fiberglass boats under the same conditions, but I definitely get wetter in the aluminum boat. The rain suit comes in handy on those days. I haven't had major issues with hanging up on stumps, but I know what I'm driving so I'm pretty cautious in stump fields and don't try to motor through them too quickly. I could put one Power Pole or Talon on it but Ranger won't allow two or it voids the warranty. I can't carry BPS' full inventory in it either, but that's probably a net positive as well.

Would I like a 21' fiberglass boat with a 250SHO and a fully outfitted F-250 tow vehicle? Sure, but I'm not sure I'd like it any better than the RT188, at least for the way I fish (non-tournament, weekend warrior). I sure wouldn't like the $80K - $100k of debt associated with the bigger rig, so I'll stick with the darn good fishing boat I've got and fish out of my friends' big rigs when I get an invite.

That's my