Procraft

[Craigums]

Does anybody have one of these boats? Ive been looking for my first tournament ready boat for a while now, but my budget must stay under $10,000. To be honest I'm a little overwhelmed with the different types of things I should be looking for but I did find this one listed at $6700, Thoughts or opinions?

98 Pro Craft Bass Boat w/150 Mariner

[Craigums]

Can a moderator move this to the "Boats & Motors" thread for me, I think I may get more hits there, Thank you.

[Shawn Kellett]

I run a 04 Procraft and have to say I'm pleased with the boat. They're pretty well built and about average to a little above in speed for a production boat. If the motor's good you would probably have a good first bass boat.

[Craigums]

I run a 04 Procraft and have to say I'm pleased with the boat. They're pretty well built and about average to a little above in speed for a production boat. If the motor's good you would probably have a good first bass boat.

Everyone tells me to do a compression test. What does this mean, how much does it cost, and how can I tell if it passed the compression test.

I know its a dumb question but this is all new to me.

[Cecil]

You would have to bring it somewhere to get that done, it shouldnt run you more than $100 and they will tell you the results at the marine dealer/repair place you get it done at

[jeffyo45]

I am not an expert on motors either but a compression test measures the compression in all of the cylinders which is very important. If one or more of the cylinders doesn't have compression you will have repairs that would need to get done before operation. It shouldn't cost much to have a place do it or there are resources on the internet that will walk you through how to do it yourself.

[RickyBobby]

I think Rapid Marine will do used boat inspections. Did you do a test ride/drive? I would definitely do that first......

[Craigums]

It's 5 hours away. So I'd have to get test drive/testing done the day of if I like it.

[bemidjibasser]

I ran a 17' Procraft for the last 5 years until I got a Ranger this spring. I loved it. The only reason I got the Ranger was that I wanted a bigger boat. I could hit 46-48 mph in the 17'Procraft with a 115 merc. So this one ought to hit mid 50's easily. The Ranger I have now has the same motor as the boat you are looking at. So far it has ran great, a little tough on gas, but otherwise it's easy starting and reliable. I say go for it! That's a pretty good price if the motor checks out and the boat is in good shape...

[Craigums]

bemidjibasser, can you give me an idea of gasoline usage? thats one thing im worried about also.

[Meyer8043]

If you are worried about gas usage in a bass boat I would stick to a 9.9 four stroke. A 98 150 depending on speed you would be lucky to get 2 miles to the gallon. Another thing that I'm not for sure about but i thought compression tests were not as accurate as a leak down test would be?

[SpitnArgueDuckClub*]

It's 5 hours away. So I'd have to get test drive/testing done the day of if I like it.

If your really serious about buying this boat and the seller is really serious about selling it. Find the most reputable marine dealer in the owners town call ahead and arrainge / payfor the seller to drop the boat off for an inspection of boat and motor. If the seller won't drop it off he knows there's an issue somewhere. This could be the best couple of hundred dollars you ever spend. Peace of mind or avoiding a major problem is well worth a couple of 100's!!!

[Ray Esboldt]

I do know a couple people that had (some still have) that late 90's vintage Mariners and Mercurys (same motor for the most part) and have had very few problems with them. The non-injected ones are gas hogs if you run them wide-open. Even the EFIs eat gas at a much higher pace than today's direct injected models.

I have not been in a Procraft since the early '90s, but they were a decent boat for a fair price.

I think an on the water test will tell you as much as anything, but a compression check is the ultimate in validity. An extended full throttle run is also important in my opinion. Some problems do not surface until the motor is hot, shut off, and immediately restarted. If you get the right mechanic to look at it, they should be able to assess the wear and tear on the engine and lower unit (another critical component).

I would also look for signs of structural damage or deteriation of the transom. Some times that is hard to see, but any cracks in the fiberglass on the transom would make me walk away.

Make the same post in the boats and motors forum. There are a couple guys in there with boatloads (no pun intended) of experience.

[mww24]

Craigums. One thing you will learn. Big two stroke motors and good gas mileage do not go hand in hand. My 130 two stroke yamaha absolutely guzzles gas if your running full throttle. I've burned 24 gallons in a day on mille lacs. I drove four hours for my boat. It was worth it. I would definitley have a mechanic look it over and run it on the water before you even show him the dollars. If he won't let you. Walk away. Also make sure you check all the livewells and turn the bilge pump on and make sure you hear it. Get under the boat and look for gouges or repair work. check that all the gauges work properly. the small things add up very fast if you have to fix them. Good luck.

[KickNBass]

If you like it I would definately get as many comparables as you can to see how good of a deal you have.

[RickyBobby]

I've had 2 90's vintage Mariners (40 HP andf a 150 EFI) and as others have said they guzzle a little gas, aren't the quietest, but are extremely reliable. Also good points with the transom check and hull gouge check, as well as inspection of the trailer tires. Most hull gouges can be repaired with a little marine tex and new trailer tires are $100 to $150 each. Neither is a deal breaker but would give you some bargaining chips. Cracks in the transom is a definite walk-away flag. A test ride is IMHO a must. You want to know how the boat handles, how quickly it gets on plane with a couple people aboard, how the motor sounds when on plane for an extended period of time. If anything arises during the test ride make the deal contigent on an inspection. All of the above is especially important if its a private seller. If you're buying from a marine dealer you often get a short warranty period where they'll agree to fix any problems that arise. If its a good dealer they've probably already checked out the motor.

[mamohr686]

I had a 94' viper series procraft, which had a slightly different hull design compared to the boat your looking at. You will like the layout of that boat with the single console. It has more floor space than others so you won't be tripping on your gear. They ride ok, but mine (liked to hop or porpuse? at low speeds). I guess that was fairly common from the factory, but can be eliminated with the proper motor height. Mine didn't come with a jack-plate. Older Procrafts have very bad carpet (no trim) and trailers. My carpet dry rotted and the trailer was rusted right away. Mine also had wood in the bilge area that rotted. It was a little scary when I tried to mount some battery trays and the screws shot all the way through the other side of the plywood. You may want to check and see if they had all composite construction in 98. Procraft was always a value band and changed hands from brunswick to tracker marine about that time. Tracker tried to rebuild the brand and built a better boat. Other things you might want to consider is that looks like it has some cavitation burns looking at the paint on the lower unit. The boat might not be set-up right and probably ran with the motor trimmed all the way up most of the time. It's smart to buy a little under budget and leave room for electronics, batteries, chargers, and mabie a new trolling motor on a older used boat purchase. In your price range, you can find some deals on a skeeter XZ180 or a triton TR186 in about the same year that I would consider a better quality boat it you want to keep it.

The best part about buying this time of year is you can take it out for a test drive and see how it runs.

[bemidjibasser]

Like stated by others, the mileage is not great, but the motor has been reliable so far. I didn't anticipate great fuel economy out of the motor when I bought it, as most of the lake I regularly fish are not that big so I don't spend a lot of time running the outboard anyways. As far as exact mileage, not sure 3-4 mpg tops I suppose?

[Craigums]

Thanks Bemidji, I could live with that since I wouldnt be doing tons of running around.

Anyways, I called the number 3 times and no answer. Let a message and got no call back. Looks like this one wasn't meant to be

Back to the drawing board trying to find my first "real" boat. I appreciate all the great info everyone provided.

[Meat-Run]

I know this is an apple to orange comparison but I have '92 115hp mariner and has been bullet proof, well except one stator but other then that it's been a great runner but anything older then the 2000 mark isn't really going to get you good gas mileage. Just don't open it up to much and you'll be fine but DO get a compression test and make sure that all the cylanders are within 5% compression of each other and find out from a Mercury dealer the specs on compression for that year and size of motor before you test.

Good luck,

mr