Used 16-17 foot Glass or Tin?

[rwingsfan]

First off let me introduce myself. I am 55 years old and semi retired (due to injury) and looking to get back into fishing again. Have not fished much over the past 15 years due to raising kids and sports! Am now at a point to start back up. Used to fish some tourneys back in the early eighties, but thats a lifetime ago now Anyway have read through almost every thread here and have enjoyed the knowledge base here. Starting to look for a used boat. My garage is only 22 ft deep so thinking kind of limited to 16-17 foot boats. Fishing will be done on smaller lakes and reseviors but an occasional larger lake. Don't need great speed. Have had both glass and tin boats in the past and while tin might be more practical I had a 15ft Hydro Sport in 82 that I loved. Fairly aware of the pros and cons of tin versus glass. I guess I am looking for opinions on boats to consider with glass having preference. Budget in the 2500-4500 range, I know thats not a lot, but preliminary searches of CL have yielded a slew of boats in this price range. Anyone want to chime in on what year and models make for a good value?

[bamabassman]

couldn't tel you what brand to get unless oyu go with a name brand. there are so many boats out there now that are great buys. i would jsut suggest you REALLY go over the rig you like with a fine tooth comb.
i would prefer glass over tin, but tomotoe, tomatoe, you know.

[champman]

Welcome to the site, I'm a Blues fan myself, that's kind of like being a cubs fan. Anyway, I would go with comfort and ease of usage. If you really need stability then stay with a glass boat. If balance isn't a factor then a tin boat will be cheaper in most cases and easier to move around in the garage if need be. Sometime it is whatever catches your eye first. Good luck and don't forget to set the drag...... That's a whole other story I'll tell some other time.

[mrmuskie5]

I will start off by saying champman is right about stability, now that that is said I am a aluminum boat guy all the way. I feel far more comfortable putting my aluminum boat is skinny water (especialy with rocks). Another good thing about these "tin" boats is that you can power them with far less power but still have all the speed. It all really comes down to how you fish. If you fish bigger water then go glass for sure tin will blow around like a piece of paper on a windy day ( drift socks help though). If you are going for looks then i would nod to the glass as well. well that my 2 pennies.

[rwingsfan]

Hey thanks for the replies everyone. I guess what I was really asking is there anything (brand or model) to keep an eye out for? I am starting my search now and hope to maybe find a mid-winter, I need the money, super deal. If not I'll have to wait until spring and pay a premium. I am leaning towards glass because of stabilty. Even my old Hydro sport I could stand on the edge and only dip it a little, and I am a big boy. The only thing being is you really get limitied in choices when looking 16-7 foot glass it seems. One other question though, are the tracker type aluminum boats unstable? A little rock would be acceptable but don't want to be surfing

[bamabassman]

in my opion only. ranger, stratos, astroglass,skeeter,procraft come to mind. and not in that order.

[skeeter1804]

I would do your research on glass boats, there are a lot of inferior boats out there. Especially in the older ones. I would recommend staying with the major companies like Ranger, Skeeter, Stratos/Javelin, Champion, Triton.

[lilmule]

Some boats have a swing away trailer tonque,so fit in smaller garages,and can catty corner,if wide enough I put a 19 1/2 ft ranger that didnt have a swing away tonque in a 22 1/2 ft garage.
Major name brands yes,but those often are hefty in weight,like the ranger not easy to move around unless hitched.
In that price range it will be mostly older boats that qualify,but as long as taken care of stored inside during winter can be good purchase.

[Dogmatic]

I fish out of a Tracker proteam175 often and it's plenty stable, even with my fat a$$ hyperactive partner jumping all over the place.

[kennethdaysale]

Do a search for Glasstream...built in S.Ga. in 80's & early ninetys they made some 15.5 wide beam shallow draft glass boats that were stable and light. If the majority of your fishin will be in smaller BOW Carolina Skiffs J14 is a sweet solid little boat. It's amazing how much boat you can buy for 2.5-4.5 k.

[Captmikestarrett]

So if you want to save money on fuel for boat and towing fuel then a tin boat is your choice. I look at a boat in the sense of comfort for passengers. That is my criteria.

Can it handle rough water?
Can it seat two nicely?
Can I push pole it if needed?
Will it eat my profits up?
Can you fly fish from it?
Can you bottom fish four people on it?
Will it last more than 10 years?

I ended up with two boats to solve that question.

I really like the Lowes boats in the tin line..
In the glass line I have only found one boat that I really like ,,, but chould not afford a Pathfinder. So I got a Mako.

Ones to shy away from are bayliner, trophy, sprint, and any tin boat with rivets.

Capt Mike