I was joking you about the knowledge. I thought it was the 11,995 boat,my mistake. I think the 16 is just too small for 4-5 people and you do want the most horsepower you can get. Really, the 175 may be,almost,too small for 4-5 people. Decide which boat/layout you want,at the boat store,then find a similar,4-5 year old one owner boat,on Craigslist,and buy used. Pay small:Lose small.

What type of fishing do you want to do?

White bass, LMB, smallmouth, crappies, stripers, etc... Multi-species. So all kinds of freshwater fishing.

- Pershing

I have an 18' aluminum Bass Tracker with 40 hp 2 stroke. I bought a place on Richland Chambers and a few trips of getting caught on the wrong side of the lake when the wind came up, and I switched to a 21' center console Baystealth. The point being, the type of water you are going to fish might be factored into the equation for your decision making. I still have the Tracker but unless the lake is smooth as glass, it stays in reserve.

I would mostly be in North Texas maybe south Oklahoma lakes. I know wind is a factor. I would think anything over 15mph winds I would not go out. Would 10-15mph winds make it an issue? So maybe I should just list my wishlist here and you guys can suggest something. I need to sit 5, I need to store in my garage which right now barely fits my Tundra double cab, I need it to be family friendly and multi-species friendly and costs 15-20K tops. Not much to ask right? I looked at the V tracker series cause it matches a lot of those items, however the wind in Texas is a factor but Im used to picking my fishing days since we were kayak fishing for the last 2 years. Thoughts?

Pershing

The typical north Texas lake can have 3' waves going in every direction during dead calm conditions due to the lake lice that infects local lakes every summer (tubers, pleasure boaters, jet fleas, wake board boats.

With all that in mind the Pro Guide 16SC with a 50HP 4 stroke can handle the aforementioned wake and 20 MPH wind as well. The 60hp is $300 more so it is a logical upgrade. The 17' boat with the 90 or 115 is less than 20K. It is no longer on trailer, but it is 1' wider. The 17' boat is a better choice, but neither of these boats are going to fish 4 or 5 people comfortably.

Thanks, that is some awesome feedback. Im considering going on a charter to test it out that type of boat.

Pershing

I have a 16 foot aluminum boat right now that I will have to sell to get my family on the water dont think of it as a boat to take small children on. The kids are growing and at a fast rate my boat was perfect for the kids when they were smaller( one hook in my back changed my perspective) i guess my point is think of a boat that will work now and a few years down the road

I fish out of an 08 17 pro guide with a 115. It's 17'4". Bought it because of the two young kids reasoning. We've caught a lot of fish out of it. Not a bass boat but gets us on the water. Will probably upgrade in another year. Not too many complaints other than the above oft mentioned wind. Upgrade your trolling motor and then upgrade your batteries. Aluminum cheaper to fix after stumps last year than many friends' fiber glass. Drought has not been easy on boat hulls.

Also drafts shallower than you think with the motor tilted up and on the trolling motor. Light, probably floats higher. Not flats boat shallow and you're not going to be running on plane shallow but you can fish way back in some creeks on the trolling motor.

just to echo what others have said. in order to fish 4 people comfortably, you will want something like a 20' center console. I have a 15'5" bass boat that is "rated" for 4 people. there is barely room in it to fish 2 people. I probably couldnt even get on plane with 4 people, and nobody would be able to stand up or move.

Pershing, not sure where you are located, but if you are by a bass pro, take the whole entire family. get everybody to climb in the boat you are looking at. Then ask everybody to stand up and walk around. see how much room you have to manuever, then invision doing that while rocking back and forth. if it is comfortable, the boat is probably big enough, if anybody has a hard time moving around, move up to the next size. The Bass Pro in grapevine has an aluminum grizzly center console, that is very wide, and i think it is an 18'or 19'. It would probably do well for you.

Hey Caribou, thanks for your advice. I have done that but only with my son and I on the boat. I have now started looking at the Lowe FM 175 SC similar size/proce boat with some positive brand feedback and rated for 6 people and 900+ passanger weight. A lot better than the tracker. Still researching, I saw those grizzly's you mentioned, but they seem little bigger and would probably not fit on my garage. Im trying to get as much boat I can fit on my garage. So far the lowe fm is fitting the bill. Thanks all for your input. Still looking for a test drive and/or charter to see how it works/feel. Im still 1+ years away from any purchase. I will say this, I cant find none for sale pre-owned.

Pershing