American made vs Aussie Made boats
Hi guys,
I've done a lot of searching on google, this forum, and on other forums and it seems this topic is one that has been beaten to death... so I do apologise for flogging a dead horse. However I am looking for as much information as possible.
I will soon be in the market for a new tub. Am looking for:
- Something in the 17-21 foot range
- Fibreglass
- Centre console / walk around
- A reliable 4 stroke engine
- Priced around the $30-35,000 mark (less would always be good)
- I love my fishing, so would be wanting to head out as much as possible - anything bigger than 2mtr swell and around 12-15knt winds would be my cut off point
- 20-25 miles would probably be the extent of my range, unless the water is a forecast to be a mirror all day.
To give an idea of where I am at, from all my research to date I am leaning towards a Mid-2000 (2005-2007) model Trophy 1903 Centre Console.
There seems to be a lot of talk of American boats not being built for Australian waters etc... I am after some first hand stories from people who have actually had an issue with an American boat in Aussie waters ? I am certain that America experiences very similar seas and swell to here (eg. hurricanes) and everything else in the world that is American made seems to be renowned for quality. However the opinion is split when it comes to boating...and all I can put that down to is people looking to keep jobs etc in Oz and pride in what they own or want to own.
I found on google / forums that there certainly is evidence of these American hulls cracking etc However the same evidence can be found for the Aussie boats such as Haines Hunters, Evolutions etc.
So my question would be, are these American made boats actually good value for money (as they are a lot cheaper than the aussie made) ? Or are there some other alternatives that I could potentially look into ?
Cheers !
Craig J
Posts: 103
Date Joined: 10/01/07
The only real problems i have
The only real problems i have heard in regard to quality are to do with boats out of China.
Australians make a good hull, Americans make a good hull. Trophy boats are one of the biggest selling boats in the world they would not be so if they were crap.
You are better looking at how the boat has been treated and if its been looked after. Anything that has been abused will have its issues.
Don't get involved in the politics.
wangler
Posts: 607
Date Joined: 26/04/08
Great advice
Want to make someone mad... tell a lie! Want to get the world upset... tell the TRUTH !
Dougie
kane
Posts: 1752
Date Joined: 07/12/08
Yep enough said
Dont necessarily disregard the local market for an American boat. I bought my trophy local and couldn't have saved much by importing one, there's good local deals out there and you don't have the stress of buying a boat just from photographs
Gooooone Fishin!
Francis
Posts: 326
Date Joined: 17/06/08
Good advice, cheers for that
Good advice, cheers for that ! I was actually almost sold on the trophy until mate piped up about how they are not made for australian waters and will crack etc etc. Your comment about not getting involved in politics is the best way i have heard it put !
Francis
Posts: 326
Date Joined: 17/06/08
Cheer's Kane. Yeah I'm
Cheer's Kane. Yeah I'm certainly not looking to import - Just aiming to keep it simple and buy a tub from the local market (well by local I'm including Eastern States, happy to shoot over east and tow it / freight it back).
Have seen info about freighting boats back from QLD in a seperate post which has given me a good idea about budget etc
Rob H
Posts: 5807
Date Joined: 18/01/12
best place to have a look is
best place to have a look is on The Hull Truth.
There are some US boats that are made lighter and more for the lakes, but I believe Trophy is not one of them. If you stick with say Boston Whaler, Grady, Sea swirl, Trophy, Proline and a couple of the other well known ones you will maximise your future resale.
I would be careful just now though as there will be a flood (pardon the pun!) of uninsured boats being sold due to Hurricane Sandy. The insured "write-offs" will probably be declared as such, but the uninsured wont be declared.
All the more reason to use someone such Justin@Portsea who has reliable contacts and surveyors who can be trusted.
Give a man a mask, and he'll show you his true face...
The older you get the more you realize that no one has a f++king clue what they're doing.
Everyone's just winging it.
Vinesh87
Posts: 2751
Date Joined: 02/04/11
Here we go again haha,
Here we go again haha, depends what you own is the answer.
But..
Your more than welcome to come on for a ride on my Trophy that i have just imported and see what you think. Like already stated there are a lot of American boats that are just made for the lakes fishing. But there offshore boats are good i believe.
The trick is to be very careful because from what i found ( after over a year of searching and contacting people) is that a lot of them look good on the website but are not. Ask for dated high resolution photos of the hull, bilge, motor, fishwell etc etc. A few i have seen for a good price have been flooded but not stated.
Remember when you budget the importing costs will be 15k+ Then add trailer mods, licensing etc etc.
I could not be happier with my buy, anything like that in aus i could not have afforded, end of story.
I highly recommend Shawn Mermilliod from Newport boats in the USA. And Justin from Portsea is great.
Vinnie
alfred
Posts: 3097
Date Joined: 12/01/07
Both the US and Au make good
Both the US and Au make good boats and crap boats.
There is no trick to importing, its pretty much a straight forward process to do it on your own and that includes clearing it at Freo.
Main thing is to get an inspection report, heaps of pic and are willing to pick up a phone and talk to people, and don't forget the trailer chassis number.
glastronomic
Posts: 892
Date Joined: 16/02/11
Yes Buyer be aware and
Yes Buyer be aware and vigilant.
New boats, old boats
Aussie build boats, USA build boats,
All have good ones and all have bad ones.
You are looking for a good one , so keep doing your homework as there are sound boats to be bought in all
johnno67
Posts: 408
Date Joined: 12/03/10
Keywest
I bought a 225cc keywest in from the states could not be happier with the boat
Francis
Posts: 326
Date Joined: 17/06/08
Has certainly helped put my
Has certainly helped put my mind to ease... like I said I was pretty much sold on the idea of the value of american boats until a mate piped up about it - I've since asked if my mate actually knows of a time when an american made boat has cracked and the answer was "well nah, but you hear about it all the time and it makes sense cos there not made as strong as our aussie boats" haha
"Here we go again haha" - Hahaha I know i know...I was hesitant to bring the topic up again as I have already found a few threads on here re: boat importing and things like that on this forum. I'm trying to keep the question more around if there was any hard evidence of American tubs like trophy's suffering in our waters etc My common sense says our open water's would be no different to that of the open water in the states. But this has given me the self assurance I needed
Just to clarify i'm certainly not looking to import a boat (at this stage)... I'm hoping to find one that has already been imported for sale locally (in Oz)
Vinesh, i wouldn't mind taking you up on your offer sometime as i will give me a good baseline for what to expect. What model do you have ?
A bit off topic, but I would assume any fibreglass boat in the mid-2000's would experience some cracking / wear in the gel coat. Is this ever a major issue ? And I would assume it would be pretty obvious to tell the difference between a crack in the gel coat compared to an actual crack in the hull / structure of the boat ?
NOHA
Posts: 914
Date Joined: 24/06/07
Depends on your requirements
If you want the biggest boat you can get for you dollar with the most options you are not going to beat an American import. There nice flash looking boats that ride well.
My biggest problem with them is that I fish. I like lots of cockpit space for all my stuff. A lot, but not all, of these US boats fill the boat with everything that opens and shut but them there is no room for a 150lt esky and 2 fisherman. Unless you get into 25ft boats.
The gunnels in some are way to short for my liking. Rock and rolling in a seabreeze with a gunnel that stops just above my knees is not comfortable
Some also state a lenght, say 21 foot but 3 foot of that is engine pod. That make it very difficult to reach arround when that fish runs arround the back of the boat and the cockpit is tiny.
My advise is to ask who has a boat like the one your interested in and dont look at how flash it looks on the trailer or how many rods to can hang up in rocket launchers. Look at it practically in the manner you wish to use it.
Twin turbo..V8 diesel..Ohh what a feeling!!
No Orange Hats Allowed
Dizzy
Posts: 753
Date Joined: 21/02/11
That's an extreme approach
That's an extreme approach for a Mercury backup plan :P
Vinesh87
Posts: 2751
Date Joined: 02/04/11
NOHA each to there own. You
NOHA each to there own. You also cannot walk around the haines, and the gunnels so high would annoy me with a lot of the things trips that i do. etc etc
And as for the trophy storage, WOW you can get some gear in there. 6 dive tanks and all gear in the cab + fishing gear and a 120l evacool no worries. Or in party mode 3 kegs, 10 cases of beer and 6 peoples gear haha.
Nice rig but with the tinny setup but !!
Francis i will pm you later.
Vin
NOHA
Posts: 914
Date Joined: 24/06/07
Exactly my point
Dont base decision upon peoples opinion of build or ride. There all good. Base it on what you need in a boat. Stand in them all. See what suits you.
I have just noticed that US built boats and Aussie built boats have a different design layout generally. And I base my choices on that.
Twin turbo..V8 diesel..Ohh what a feeling!!
No Orange Hats Allowed
Francis
Posts: 326
Date Joined: 17/06/08
Wow, that haines is a ripper
Wow, that haines is a ripper ! What an insane set up... I do love the haines !!
The fishing space is why I am leaning towards a center console. I would only ever want to have 3 people (4 people MAX if I really had to) fishing on the boat at one time. If I ever take the boat over to rotto or some of the islands up north, I would just roll out the swag on the sand at night.
Will just need to find a few examples of different boats and see how it would all work in terms of storing the eski while fishing etc.
The gunnel height was another concern of mine, so will be good to have a look at Vinesh's tub to gauge the height.
It seems to me that when you forget all of the politcs of aussie vs american, the question really just comes down to the characteristics of the build (in terms of heights, storage space etc) rather than the actual quality of the build.
Thanks for the feedback guys... lovin it
Piggy
Posts: 553
Date Joined: 24/08/12
Trophy is the go
Mate I too imported a Trophy. I got a 25 foot walk around... love it!!
At first it was a bit daunting at how big it is and how hard it was to tow, but now that I am use to it I love it. I am able to go out fishing when other people turn back to the boat ramp. It rides beautiful and handles rough weather like a dream (Even if I havnt quiet got the hang of it)
Storage space is amazing!! In my cab I have a fridge freezer (it is a waeco but rebadged.. its pretty huge) Rod holders, under seat storage.. everything folds out in a flat bed so I can sleep up to 3 people in there and also folds out into a table. Its a pretty great set up!
As for room for fishing, I fish 4 guys on the back very comfortably and thats with a big esky for the catch ect in the middle. On a day where there is minimal swell I fish another 3 or 4 guys up the front and sides... it has rod holders all along the front hand rails.
Build quality is the same from American built boats to here and all the stories you hear are all here say and no one has had first hand experience... (hope it stays that way)
I looked at the haines and didnt like them so went for the trophy.... Just my personal opinion!
Cheers
I go boating not fishing
NOHA
Posts: 914
Date Joined: 24/06/07
Comparison
Twin turbo..V8 diesel..Ohh what a feeling!!
No Orange Hats Allowed
mrwinta
Posts: 457
Date Joined: 14/01/10
FYI
I have a 2007 trophy 2052 WA, I love the walk around as you can use the entire boat to fish from or what ever and it still has a large cabin that could sleep 3 if needed.... Build quality seems to be fine to me but I have to admit the deck is fairly cramped but then again that is largley due to it being an inboard so it would be the same on any boat..
The trophy is exeptional value for money but the standard trailers are sh1t....
NEVER PUSH YOUR GRANNY WHEN SHE'S SHAVING