Boats and Waves

[sightfisher]

My brother-in-law is in the market for a new boat. He will be using it 50/50 between fishing and cruising around with the family. He is looking at a fish/ski 21' Ranger boat. The boat will be on Minnetonka. Would the hull design on this boat work well in the waves from the heavy boat traffic there? Any other makes/models that would be worth considering for a good multi-use boat?

[PerchJerker]

A fiberglass boat will give you a smoother and drier ride than an aluminum boat, and Ranger makes a good hull. Not the fastest glass boats (at least not in the 619-621 series) but a really, really good boat. That boat would be fine on Minnetonka - probably better than a lot of other boats.

You said 50/50 cruising/fishing. In my opinion it's much easier to cruise in a fishing boat than it is to fish out of a pleasure boat. All depends on what he's most interested in doing I guess. Personally I've got my eye on the 1850 Reatta - more of fishing layout and big-water boat than the 210 Reatta.

[EJ]

The Ranger 1850 has exceeded my expectations. It handles big water (Mille Lacs 3 footers) well and at 98" wide it has plenty of fishing and family space. I would buy it again. The Stratos 386 and Skeeter 1880 are similar boats I also considered.

EJ

[sightfisher]

Is the rod Locker(s) on The Reata series only up to 6'6"? What do you do with your 7 footers?

[PerchJerker]

The specs for the 1850 are that it takes 7' rods.

[sightfisher]

Any disadvantages or advantages of the 210 over the 1850 as far as perfomance? Would the extra 2.5' for the 210 make it, noticably, handle any better than the 1850?

thanks a lot

[PerchJerker]

The bigger boat would be a little harder to handle in the channels, docking, going on and off the trailer, etc. but not much different than the 18.5 foot boat. The bigger boat would give a smoother ride but you're talking about Minnetonka, not Superior, so it probably wouldn't be a noticable difference.

The 210 strikes me as a pleasure boat primarily and a bass boat next - fixed seats, big platforms, minimal gunnel height above the platforms - that style of boat does not interest me. The 1850 is more of a walleye style boat - deeper, much more open layout inside, etc. I would describe the 1850 as a fishing boat that has been modified to accomodate family pleasure boating, but is still an excellent design for fishing. Just my opinion. If your brother is more interested in cruising or bass fishing then the 210 or even the 190 might be a better boat for him.

[EJ]

210 takes a larger motor and therefore is a faster boat, but is way too shallow to fish larger water and has no room in back for more than 2 to walleye fish. The lockers on an 1850 take 7' rods in the tubes, but I can fit my 8' rods in the center of the rod locker on the floor.

EJ

[sparkyaber]

this fourum is perfect- I am looking into buying a fish and ski and have been looking at the Reata very favorably.

I have excused the skeeter because of the lack of a rod locker- Nitro is still in the hunt only because of the price, I am also going to look at at the triton line. (when I finally get to talk to someone who has some info on the '06 lineup.)

My question is mostly for EJ, what others did you look at before you bought the 1850? Also- what motors have people put with these boats- the number of boat and motor combinations is unbelievable. It is blowing my mind.

Thanks for the imput-

[PerchJerker]

I know your question was for EJ but I'll chip in anyway. I'm going to order a Reatta 1850, probably this week. The only other boat I really looked at was the Stratos 386 cxf, but I like the features and finish better in the Ranger. Even though they're fish and ski style boats those 2 boats have excellent layouts for walleye fishing on big water, which is what I want. If it wasn't for the wife and kids I'd go with a Ranger 619, but the Reatta 1850 should fish just as well and the wife likes it better.

Seems like a lot of 1850s are going out with 150 hp motors, with the Yamaha 4-stroke being very popular. Personally I'm a big fan of maxing the horsepower so I'll be going with a 175 Optimax (and a 4-stroke kicker). The Yamaha 175 and 150 HPDIs are very popular too. The Mercury Verado is supposed to be available this year in 175 hp, which I think would make it the only 175 hp 4-sroke motor available. The price and this being it's first year are going to keep me away from the Verado though.

Not sure how quick you want to jump into a new boat, but I think a local dealer has some '05 or '06 Reatta 1850's comimg in with '05 Yamaha 150 HPDI motors. The price seemed pretty good if that's a motor you'd be interested in - certainly cheaper than getting an '06 set-up.

[EJ]

Sparkyaber,

I also looked at the Stratos 386, Skeeter 1880? and Triton 198. The Stratos and Ranger 1850 had the most cabin area room and the Ranger won out due to fit and finish and DRY storage. It also has the best trailer.

As far as motor, I put the F150 four stroke on it. It actually puts out 160-162 HP and has a large enough displacement to provide a decent hole shot. it is obviously quiet, smooth and fuel efficient. If you are going to do a lot of skiing with a boatload of people I would look at maximizing HP with either the OPTI or a much better option if available and dependable would be the Verado or Etec which would provide max power and are more fuel efficient and quieter than the opti. For a full fishing load (kicker, gear, livewells, cooler and 3-4 guys) the F150 is awesome. The only time I wished I had more power was with a full load and pulling a skiier. No problem getting him up, but it took a few seconds.

EJ

[sparkyaber]

you know what I just realized- I am thinking of a totally different boat. I am thinking of the reata 180 not the 1850.

The dealers that I have been to only have the 180, not the 1850- what is the main diffences between the two?

I also went in and checked the tritons out- just prices, no boats available to look at yet. WOW- more expensive then the '05 rangers, by about 2500 dollars with the same features. I think I am going to have to wait until the boat show or hope something comes down the pipeline used. I just can't justify that much money.

Thanks for the info and if you have anything more keep it coming. As for me, I will just keep researching until I am blue in the face.

[PerchJerker]

The Reatta line has models 180, 190, and 210 which are not new, and the 1850 which was new in '05. The 1850 is vastly different than the other 3 boats, and the most significant differences are that it is wider and deeper and more open inside -- more conducive to walleye fishing, but still has some nice features for the family. The other 3 Reattas are much more typical fish and ski boats in that they are laid out more for pleasure cruising and have large shallow casting decks similar to bass boats.

There should be some used 180s and 190s around and there should be a lot of other manufacturers and models that are similar boats. The 1850 is more unique with very few comparable glass boats in the market -- plenty of similar boats with aluminum hulls, but not many comparable glass boats.

[PerchJerker]

EJ, if you don't mind I'd like to ask you some questions about your boat and compare notes on a few things. If that's OK with you shoot me an email at dweber @ namginc . com. Thanks.