1st boat advice (used Mako)

[PeteV]

Greetings,
I've been shore fishing forever & like it very much but now
I'm thinking about my first boat.

I was looking for a boat to bring my two girls (8 & 11) out fishing.

I've found a boat that looks decent,
Its a used Mako 19 ft center console (1979) with a 175 HP Merc (1996).... The boat has definitiely been used but still seems to be in pretty decent shape. and the price being asked seems fair enough at $7500.

The hull looks good & the engine starts. So It looks good to me & I thought Mako was suppose to be a sturdy boat... even though the boat is arghhh 24 years old!!! is this thing too old!!


I would appreciate your oppinion.
Thanks,
Pete

[Nauti Buoy]

I'm not going to comment on whether or not the boat is a good deal; I simply am not familiar enough with this outfit to judge.

I will, however, suggest you give consideration towards the use of a CC with two young girls on board. Despite their current desire(?) to fish they will get bored, they will be very uncomfortable in rain and spray, and they will have needs for nature calls, and will not feel comfortable doing this out in "public". A dual console would give you the utility to fish bow to stern while affording weather protection and privacy with a top.

First boat purchases always seem to be the toughest to overcome: the emotion of buying tends to prevent the buyer from searching thoroughly and finding the one that really best suits him. The right boat is out there. Good luck with your search. ;)

[PeteV]

Thanks I appreciate your reply, and I realize its about balancing "needs" for everyone (including nature call). One of the folks were I work with was offering bayliner for about $5K, I thought it might work better from a convenience standpoint but would not be a very good fishing boat.
There are also some nice deck boats out there that look like they would be fun. The Mako sounded pretty good too though.....
sighhh......
Fishability, offers some modesty, safe, reliable, ... sounds like one more of life's IQ tests...I do appreciate your inputs.

[Nauti Buoy]

Do not get discouraged!!!!! There are many used boats sites that you can visit. I'm afraid I can't remember them all now, but I seem to recall boattrader.com, and I'm sure you can find other used boats online through Yahoo, or google, or others here that will jump in with suggestions.

Just my opinion, but if you can stay away from the "other" boat you just posted a picture of, you'll most likely avoid major regrets. They have well founded, bad reputation.

A small cuddy will go a long way to providing security, privacy, and "around the boat" fishability. Thhe girls can change, sleep, etc. in there.

Deck boats can be fun, but are not what you want for fishing and they do not offer much other than use as a party boat.

I would stick with a used walk around cuddy or dual console. Have someone you know, who understands boats, help you through this to find something that could satisfy your requirements. When you think you have really found what you want, then having it surveyed would nail it down for you, one way or the other and minimize potential future surprises. Your biggest problem will be keeping the emotion out of it`. Good luck! ;)

[smallboat4]

NB,
When you said "other boat" you were referring to the bayliner right? The only reason I ask is because I've been looking at older 19' hulls as well...Pete, if you decide the Mako isn't the boat for you, let me know, I might want to take a look if possible. Thanks.

[Nauti Buoy]

Right!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;)

[kamikaze1228]

Pete:

Boat looks good. Price seems reasonable. I bought a 25 foot sailboat about 7 years ago for $4500. It was an 83 Oday. I had a blast on it! Although I only had a year (financial reasons) I loved that boat. I'm looking foward to being able to buy another boat soon. I'd say get a survey and don't rule it out just cause it's older. Also, I think your wife & family will have fun on it even though it's a center console.

Good luck!

Joe

[mctrout]

I have been guiding out of a 17 mako for years. 1982. still in great shape and my kids love to go pn it. if you want a head and all that, don't expect to flyfish much from it, or enjoy flyfishing from it atleast. Makos are very solid just make sure the floor is not soft and that the fuel tank is OK. that is the one thing that would suck, everything else is easy enough to fix. have the motor checked by a mechanic, compression, power, starter etc... bought a Steiger Superfly 21 for this coming year but am keeping the Mako forever...
good luck
Brendan

[PeteV]

Thanks for your replies.... they are all very helpful.

McTrout, I am having a lot of trouble with length. Since I will be towing the boat and loading & unloading it myself (as the crew watches) . I was thinking the 17 foot size would be a lot easier to handle. but on the other side I also want a nice safe ride, ride and I thought the 19 footer would provide a better ride if things got choppy.not to mention it gives just a little more room to move around.

Do you feel comfortable in the 17 footer if you go outside a bay? it sounds like you opted for more length with your new boat. Thank you.

Naut Buoy I've started expanding my search to also look at "walk around cuddies" (but I noticed their is a price jump for those boats).

[Bob Parsons]

The 19' boat should not be a problem for a single person to handle on/off the trailer. As long as you stay within the towing limits of your vehicle then you should be ok there as well. You develop a system the works well for you and whatever size boat you have.

[AlderBrookFarm]

I would stick with the 19' vs 17'. You can always be resourceful and make a fold up curtain set up where young ladies, or old for that matter, can hide for a few minutes when needed. Something like two sets of 2 dowels, each set through bolted at one end to pivot in "L" shape, one end rest on each side of console, another dowel to keep the other end from falling in, bungy corded cloth curtain would hold tension...or bolted in center to make swing to "x" position....dowels wouldn't rust, curtain would fold up easily, cheap to replace....

[CET2]

I owned a 2000 Mako 191 loaded with everything, kept it in showroom condition and sold it for 90% of my original investment 3.5 yrs later. The older Mako 19s are great, solid boats. More of a semi-v and more flyfishing friendly given low gunnels, etc. Things to consider on a Mako of this age includes checking if transom is "dry", stringers are still ok and fuel tank. Fuel tank will probably need to be replaced if it hasn't.

many good websites on older makos, including classicmako.com

Good luck

[rockfisherman]

If you're going to be taking the young ladies out, you'll want to have some sort of porta potti arrangement. A W/A cuddy would be best, but will get you into a bigger boat, and bigger bucks, as you noted. I have seen CCs at boat shows that actually had a little potti inside the CC, but I can't remember who makes them...maybe someone else can chime in.

[SamRiley]

Been looking at older Makos myself. These sites may help
The Hull Truth (www.thehulltruth.com)
Boat Trader Online (www.boattraderonline.com)
Yacht World (yachtworld.com)
Boats (boats.com)

Ditto on CET2.

Good Luck