Looking for info on Monark boats

[giddyupbronc]

I am looking at getting a 04 Monark King 170 from a friend of a friend. Does anyone have any experience with this boat or brand? Thanks for the info.

[Eastwind]

My neighbor had a Monark boat a few years ago and then traded it in on a Lund. When I was looking for a new boat five years ago I asked him how he had liked his Monark when he had it and he said that he wished that he had never traded it for the Lund. I was impressed with them because they are built really well and had really good layouts and storage back when I was shopping. The main reason that I did not buy one is that I did not want to deal with the local dealer in my area. I bought a Crestliner because I did not want to deal with rivets getting loose over the life of my boat.

[zaxdad7]

I just bought a 175 King Monark. I guess they are made at the Smokercraft plant. My comes with a lifetime hull warranty, you might want to check on yours, I'd bet it has the same warranty that will transfer with ownership. I won't take delivery until beginning of July. the boat looks great and I agree with liking the layout.

[Eastwind]

Another really cool thing that I remember is that the floor is honeycomb aluminum rather than plywood. So no rot as the boat gets to be twenty years old. Double check the warranty transfer though, as Crestliner does not transfer their lifetime hull warranty to subsequent owners. Monark may or may not. It gets expensive re-welding hulls and struts on a boat.

[giddyupbronc]

Thanks for the info. The floor is wood, but a "marine grade" plywood. I am checking to see if that warranty is transferable. I love the layout of the boat, I can't wait to get it.

[pikerliker]

How does the price compare with Lund, Crestliner, etc?

Thanks ~piker

[BarryG]

Go to their HSOforum and you can get all kinds of info.

[Eastwind]

They've got to be priced less than Lund, although I've never seriously tried to buy a Lund. . When I was comparing them to Crestliner the Monark was less money and I thought it was at least as good of a boat. I'm partial to welded boats now that I've seen and heard of so many riveted boats loosening up over 5 to ten years of use. Big water tends to beat them up and my friends and I like to fish big water.The vbest thing about a Monark is if you find one used in Minnesota it will have lower resale value because Minnesotans are in love with Lund, Crestliner and Alumicraft.

[GoodToGo]

When I bought my Starcraft 19' Superfisherman about 7 years ago the same dealer had Monarks. My memory is that they were made by Starcraft, although someone else said Smokercraft which could be true. The dealer told me it had the same hull, it was the insides that were different, a more basic setup generally. I thought they were very nice, although we ended up going with the more loaded Starcraft. If the hull is indeed the same as the Starcraft, you'll be very happy. We have loved everything about our boat, a very dry ride, handles well in rough weather, and it was definately less expensive than Lund, Crestliner, etc.