I am looking at an Xpress X18, Xpress H56, Tracker Proteam 185, or the Tournament V-18.

Any suggestions or comments?

Iv'e got a 01 Tournament TV-18. The only thing I don't like about it is the fuel tank. It's never really accurate. It sites in the center of the boat and its' longer than it is wide. So when it's sitting in the water all the gas runs to the back of the tank. The sending unit for the tank is in the center.

I had an XPress last year. It was a great boat. The only reason I sold it was I wanted a bigger boat and bought a Sea Pro.

My cousin had a Tracker once. He said that will never happen again.

you might want to check out the Triton alum. boats as well, saw one at the Ft Worth boat show and until then, I had always been sold on Xpress..now I'm going to have to look a little deeper before I dive off the deep end

Does anyone own an X17 or H56, 51.

Thanks

Those Triton alum. boats are sharp. You might want to consider Alumacraft and G3 as well.

Alumcraft has a wood deck and transom, G3 is riveted...Triton is in it's first yr of aluminum production..I would buy the xpress, it is the original, and they know what they are doing..Tracker is **** ...ask anybody who ownes one..and your looking at one, and I am about to buy a xpress 21bay..

Alumacraft Bass boats "do" not have wood decks. The transom has a wood "Dampner" in it. Wood takes alot of vibration out. We have 5 kicker braces on the transom in our 17'5" boat. That is the same number that Express puts in their 22' boat? The "Transom"
itself is Aluminum.
The Alumacraft Deep V's have wood decks. These decks come with a 20 year warranty as well as the transom and hull. This is treated Marine Plywood.

I would buy an Express over a Tracker anyday!

Jerry www.Alumacraft.com

The G3 HP and Mod-V series bass boats are welded, not riveted.


Triton has been building aluminum boats since 2001.


Tracker may not be the best boat, but I guess it's better than no boat at all.

Duracraft also builds high quality
aluminum, all weld boats. They
custom configure every boat to your
specification.
http://www.duracraftboats.com/products/default.html

dxr

I have an X19 - great boat. The Tritons are finished out a little better - don't know if the handling is as good but it looks like they copied Xpress so it should be. I've heard the G3s do not have the performance characteristics but might be a more stable fishing platform (which is what seems important).

I bought a new 2003 Triton V186 Magnum last September and am truly impressed by this boat. So far, I don't think I could have made a better choice. Only time tells for sure, but it really appears built to last.

Get demo rides from dealers before you decide anything, Popper. Jump from side to side in the front deck to check stability, and do all the other tire kicking....

------------------
Bud Baker

I have a 2003 Tracker TV-18, 115 Merc. I really like the boat. The deep-V really handles the rough water well, but it still gets me in the shallows no problem. Even though its rated for a 150, the 115 pulls it well. It jumps on plane, and tops out near 50. I traded a '92 Tracker TX-17 in on this boat and have had good luck with both Trackers. However, the TV-18 is a lot smoother, drier, and solidly constructed.

As ehlersad says, the tank guage is inaccurate. But that is common for a lot of boats. With a 40+ gallon tank its not much of an issue for me.

Feel free to ask me any questions you have on it.

Tracker all the way.

Yep, I had my TX-17 for 11 years. Have had my TV-18 for 1 year. Take care of them and they will take care of you. I heard all kinds of negatives about the wood decks, but after 11 years my TX-17 transom and decks were as solid as the day I bought it. The TX-17 rivits did leak, but that was expected. The TV-18 is all-welded so that won't be a problem now. Also, the 2004 Trackers now have "no-wood" aluminum transoms.

All boats have some bad apples. Tracker being the top seller may have a few more out there than others. However, I have had good luck with 2 of them.

jabntx. At least that gauge problem is in our favor! It always shows less gas than we actually have.

I like the looks of the tracker v-18.
I did alot of research on this a year or so ago...just before i bought my current boat.
I narrowed my search down to the following:
Tracker -v18
Fisher
Alumacraft
The tracker was cheaper, but I liked the layout of the other two better and they both had more deck space. In the end, the Alumacraft was twice the boat and had the best layout/deck design. I also considered fisher, lowe, landau?, triton, xpress and G3.
Non of the others had the deck layout that I was looking for or they were way to $$pricy. I ended up getting a used 18ft Cajun that was 7 years old for half the price of any of those aluminum riggs...but I still dream about the Alumacraft 18ft layout...man that thing is wide.
Good luck and remember, when you are looking for a boat. You will spend 90% of your time on the front deck so make your purchase decision carefully. Carry a measuring tape with you and write down the front deck width and length for each boat you are considering. Also measure the rod storage width and depth. You might be surprised how small some of these are (LOWE!) As for the rear deck...I spend 1% of my time on the back deck and that is just to take a quick wiz. I don't care how much space is back there. Stick with Aluminum decking. and PinTail, sorry, the alumacraft does NOT have wood in the deck.
Final note: G3's are too $$, Lowe needs about another foot of depth to the rod boxes, and someone over at Xpress needs to fire the person designing the deck layouts on the 18ft rigs.
Look at the alumacraft and the fisher before you decide. You will not be sorry.
fOul_hOOk

Thanks for all the input on the boats!

I have looked at them all now and I just keep thinking the xpress is the one for me.

Thanks,

Greg

Xpress are also good boats. I looked at them real hard and they are nice. Some of the reasons I went with the Tracker TV-18 are:
- Previous experience with Tracker (11 years).
- All-welded hull.
- Deep-V hull design. Got tired of getting wet and beat up with the mod-V designs.
- Very stable hull for fishing. Not at all "tippy" like my last boat, TX-17.
- Large front deck layout. Fishes 2 very well.
- Great 3-across seating layout.
- Length 18'3, Width 7'5 beam.
- Runs great with 115, rated for 150.
- Price was right. The best boat is the one you can afford to buy and use.

Some "cons":
- No dual console option.
- Low grade standard depth finder.
- Minimum trolling motor (consider upgrade).
- Molded console design feels a little cheap.
- Front storage is not "dry".

Jerry you still pushing those alumacraft boats ha ha.sorry i could not be there for the whole show.I did make it to pull a couple back on monday.Tell steve to get in touch I want to check out those rod holders.Let me know if one of you want that cooler and i need to get on the lake with steve.My boat is up at joes so that means i need a ride lets hook up one day.First time to be with out my boat in two years and im not doing well.

My 2 cents worth,
I've got an '03 Tracker TV-18, 115 Merc, upgraded TM to 67#. Had it almost a year now, bought it from Waypoint Marine in New Braunfels, had break in check done here in Austin. Been real pleased with it so far. Handles the chop well (& dry), top speed right at 50. LOTS of storage, more so than than any other 18' aluminum boat I looked at. Price was reasonable too. Still need a rod organizer and a graph up front. Overall, pleased with the boat, no problems to date. Email if further info needed.

------------------
Garland

Shelbydog
Get you a Eagle 320. Bass pro has em on sale for $149.00. Iv'e got one up front on my TV-18. Works great!
Allen

ehlersad, shelbydog,
sounds like we all have the same boat.
I sure wish now that I had put the 67# trolling motor on mine, but the salesman talked me out of it at the time. I'm thinking of buying the Eagle 320 and putting it on the console. Then moving the 'Bird to the bow. Do ya'll prefer the better unit on the console or bow?

I put the better unit on the bow. I am going to replace that Hummingbird as soon as I can! Looking at the new 480.
jabntx..I think the only difference is mine is a Mercury 115HP four Stroke...Sweet!
shelbydog. I didn't upgrade the trolling motor either. Wish I had!

Ah, 115 4-stroke. Now that is sweet.

Popper, before you buy, consider all the options. Sounds like you're sold on aluminum, and that's good. There are many good ones out there, and the posts here point that out. Alumicraft is an excellent boat, for example. The only thing that turned me off Xpress and Tracker was the quality of finish on the welding. Just not quite there, bulgy, unground and uneven welds, spoke volumes about attention to detail. Besides, honestly, after years of experience with tin boats, I strongly recommend a manufacturer that rivets rather than welds. It is every bit as strong and watertight, but more flexible and there is no stress weak spots placed on the aluminum from the weld itself.

I shopped my b__t off and finally settled on a 16'8" Polar Kraft Kodiak, made by Godfrey Marine out of Indiana. Dual console, fishing decks, 2 livewells, 55lb MK, 90 HP Yammie, Lowrance, all bells & whistles, under $ 16K. Granted, mine is a deep v, but the've received good reviews on their bass boats as well. Dollar for dollar, it was the best deal out there, and I am really happy with it. Cost more than a Tracker, for sure, but reasonable.

Just another guy's perspective, happy shopping, it is such a blast to buy a new boat!

I have been dealing with West Boats for years. You can not go wrong with an Xpress. The people at West Boats will take such great care of you....Jigfish

I recently purchased a 17'6" aluminum Bass Tracker and need to replace the right cast aluminum transom brace-right side as you look from bow ,(front of boat towards rear-left as you are sitting in the driver's seat facing forward. The cast aluminum nose is loose as well. Is there a better way/more secure method than to just use pop-rivets? Any help you can give will be greatly appreciated. Hull Identification is BUJ21117J596. Can be reached via cell ph one at 325-513-8068. Also does anyone have a good solution to installing vertical rod n useless. Thanks for responding.

You want the Xpress. The Hyperlift series hull has a running pad,like a glass boat,and metal decks.

I have a 2004 H-51 with a 90 yamaha. It has been a great boat. The only gripe I have for the H-series boats is the layout and storage space. Of course, that is corrected with the X-series. They just cost a little more. For a 17' tin boat, it rides incredibly well with the Hyperlift hull.

+1 on FZ1. I have owned 2 other brands of tin boats, roughly the same size, and there is no comparison to the Xpress Hyperlift hulls. Don't get confused with the hydrodynamic or HD and the XP Xpress boats. They are not padded and ride similar to a flat bottom. The H and the X series have the Hyperlift.

http://www.xpressboats.com/view/performance

Lots of goodies here.

Yup, If I was to buy a Tin Boat an Express would be where I would start. I mean they just look soo BADA$$!






And they dont Sink...

Lol.