New (used) boat

[Fever]

A little back ground thoughts on a 1991 18 foot fiber glass Bass Tracker with a 1993 120 horse Force. It was well taken care of and the trailer is in real good shape as the guy didn't go too far too often. There is a couple minor carpet issues and the bow mount trolling motor has a couple issues. I'm not familiar with the electronics so I don't want to speculate yet. My brother knows the guy real well as he works and fishes with him. I currently fish often during all seasons and have way above average tackle, rods, and reels but my boat is rather lacking... It is a tricked out 1969 Alumacraft with an eight horse Tohatsu. I've added a casting platform with sorage and a bow mount with new electrionics on the 69 but I'm thinking the tracker would be an upgrade. Just wondering if anyone has anything possitive to say about the boat to help talk me into it... thanks.

fever

[Cecil]

What is he asking?

[mamohr686]

With a 91 Tracker boat you'll have to be careful. The early tracker boats had lots of issues, and their owners HSOforum was eventually taken down because it became a bashing site for the boats. Watch for stress cracks around the consoles and transom area. Fit and finish was poor on the early models. I've also known guys with wiring issues. My advice would be to wait until spring and actually drive the boat. The force outboard is also on the bottom of my list. It's a Merc powerhead but requires you to premix the oil and gas. They are known to be tough, but tempermental and tough starting. With a 120hp motor on a 18ft glass rig, don't expect to go over 50mph. I don't know if parts are still available for that outboard so you might want to take that into consideration. In any early 90's boat, carpet and vinyl are usually shot, so that's not a big deal. Keep in mind that a decent trolling motor like a 80lb maxxum will set you back another grand so you might want to consider that in your price negoation. I would keep looking, with the number of people out of work your bound to come across a deal.

[Fever]

Thats the thing. He was asking 4500.00 and since he works and fishes with my brother and also knows who I am, he dropped it down to 3500.00. I told my brother to tell him that is as high as I could go, and I would be using most of my Head softball coaching check to pay for it. Also told him that my wife was leary as she wanted a boat that the whole fam could use. From what I've been told, it's in good shape and has been taken care of & you guys have to remember 50 mph is WAY faster than the 14 mph (with the wind) I was getting out of my 8 horse. Brother just told me he has a 55 lb thrust 4 year old bow mount motor for me if I need it and he would cut me a deal. Concidering the price and all... I should be ok....

[mamohr686]

That is a decent price, the question remains if it's the right boat for you and your family. The bass boats do not make great family boats in my experience. You'll have seating for 3 only. If you have kids, you can expect them fall overboard or to drop/bump things over the side. A 12 volt 55lb thrust TM is the very least I would put on it, unless your a fair weather fisherman and never fish in a river. You might want to consider a tiller or multispecies boat with a raised deck in the front.

[bassNspear]

if it has a force, stay away from it!

[Fever]

Wow, I guess if anyone has any ideas or maybe a better offer for me in that price range I'd be interested in listening. I was pumped for the upgrade. Now I'm skeptical. Thanks for the heads up. Wife is completely ok with bass boat. Inlaws have one year old 26 foot pontoon with Honda 90 4 stroke which I have access to at any time.

[Ralph Wiggum]

Yeah, I don't think you could pay me to take a Force outboard. Keep looking!

[Rivernut]

These guy's are right. Stay away from Force motor's.

[Deitz Dittrich]

O.K. I have tried to stay away from this post.. Not even sure why...

We all dream!, who doesnt want bigger and better. However, its easy to get caught up in something bigger we think we can afford.

Fev- I cant tell you if this is the right boat for you. Only you can!

I personally started out in an innertube.. Cost me NUTHIN... I made ropes for a chair, and was happy.. My second boat was a Sevlor inflateable.. I used swim fins as the t=moter, so, I was the minnkota... Next was a Colman CrawDad with a Minnkota 27lb.. Great boat!!! Then was a BlueFin Spectrum W/35 Force( I personallly never had a prob with my force.. but it was only a 35), was a great boat, even won a few tournaments with it.. Right Superduty?

Then I bought a 1989 Champion W/175 Merc.. for 5k, drove to Iowa. Great boat for me at the time!!! Loved that boat.. sold it to a friend.. He still has it, and still loves it!

Then a 2001 Triton.. Got it for 14k, sold it this last fall, and got my...

2007 Puma W/ Merc 250 Opti XS..

My point is, everybody has to pay their dues. Know what you can afford, know what you want.. Know what you will be able to sell in a few years to get your next dream!

For now.. I am about as happy as a dude can be!!!!

[Hafnutz]

Yikes! The Force outboard is the renamed Chrysler which was the West Bend before that. Most of them were only related to the Mercury in that they shared some of the same electrical components. The power heads were different on most models of the same HP. Throw away engines at best....Stay away.