Fish & Ski boats , whats your opinion ?

[SHAFT]

I'm still thinking about a fish & ski boat for my first bass boat , the ski is for the family and the fish is for me , it seems like a great compromise . I really don't want two boats , the other option would be keep my ski boat and buy an alum. tracker like boat and leave it in the water . We have a place on Clear lake so I want to find the biggest boat possible for rough water . Please give me your opinion or feedback on this one ! I also noticed a few people on the board talking about possibly sell a fish & ski please pm me with what you have a new boat is not in the budget . Thanks Randy

[SABP]

Been there and done that.

I started out with a fish and ski, went to a bass boat, now I have a bass boat and a ski boat.


The only reason I have a ski boat is that my family like to get on the water also and the bass boat in the summer is just not the ticket for the family. Plus after fishing a tournament for a week it is fun to just take the ski boat out and drag the kids.

I think having a bass boat only is tough on the family unless you are a real serious pro and the family does not like to get on the water much.

As far as fishing out of a fish and ski. I did not have use of my bass boat one season and had to team fish out of a Triton F&S. I won more money that year out of the F&S than in other years out of a bass boat. It will fish fine and you can take care of the family.

The fish and ski just makes more sense of you have just one boat.
The Triton is the best one out there for both. Give the guys at Galaxie Marine in Newcastle a visit to look at one.

Actually they are having a customer appreciation day on Oct 21 with top pros giving seminars, a big tackle swap etc. and there is a team tourney on Sunday.

Good luck

Damon

[CORAL 96]

Actually, for me, it works out PERFECT!! I have a 1996 Viper Coral 202 with a 225 Merc efi. With a 24p Trophy, I hit 67.5 (gps) which I think is more than enough. Put my High-Five prop on for the summertime fun. The family likes to fish, ski, kneeboard, tube, pleasureboat, so it serves all our needs. Nice to have 1 boat to do all that with. Also, the full windshield in front is nice for those COLD days. Have the deck extension for more footroom in front when fishing. Poeple say that they ski outta their bassboats, but they just don't look set up to do so. Guess it's all in what YOU want or don't for that matter!!!!!

[Eric Thoss]

I have a 19' Champion 190sx fish-n-ski with a 200 OPTIMAX and a 24p Trophy plus she runs right at 60 mph loaded (on the GPS).

This is a very fishable boat.

Pro's:
Dual purpose
Winshield is nice on cold days
Good sized livwell
Made wife happy
Fishes well
Rides great!!

Cons:
Dual purpose
Windshield acts like a sail on windy days
Windshield gets in the way when fighting really big fish.
Much shorter decks than a bass boat
Very little storage room.(none in back deck)
Can only put 7' + rods in middle ski locker
Battery and gas tank layout only allows for 3 batteries in back.
Wouldn't concider using it for any Pro-am type tournaments (only team and fun events)
The wife has only ridden it 3 times in the last 5 years!!!


If I had it to do over instead of spending 30K on a new fish and ski I would have probably spent 20K on a used straight bass boat and 10K on a used fun boat.

If you do go with a fish and ski go with the longest you can get and really take a close look at rod storage.

[Riplip]

I have a '98 Coral 202 with a 225efi running a 25p Trophy...I can touch 70 fully loaded (the boat, not me ) This boat has worked really well for my needs. The family all ski and wakeboard...My kids are now 19,17 and 14...we still fit well. Plenty of storage for rods and tackle unlike the eairler post. I can even take a spare TM when tourny fishin...
As already addressed, the windshield can be a blessing/curse. Get as much TM as you can. Look at your options for batttery arrangement. Not many F/S boats are able to accomodate a true 36v setup ie. 4 batteries.

I thought long and hard about 2 boats vs 1...Do you want to insure/maintain/store two boats? Will you use the ski craft more than 1/2 the year? Will having two mean one will sit for extended periods? ( IMO the WORST thing you can do to a boat) Battery maintanience, fuel stabilizers, friggin cats living under the cover...
Hope this helps...

Rip

[Eric Thoss]

You know your right about letting a boat sit around... let me change what I stated earlier.

I would not buy 2 boats I would buy a straight bass boat and take the other money and rent a ski boat for the few times the wife gets the itch to get on the water.

[NaCl]

Many years a go I bought a fish'n ski because my family wanted the ability to have some fun time and I wanted to fish tournaments. Over the following 3 years, I used the boat 90% of the time for prefishing and tournaments. The other 10% was fair weather recreational time with family.

For my next boat, I bought a single console tournament level bassboat and incorporated the ski accessories. Remember, my family were very fair weather recreational boaters. If it wasn't 70 degrees at 7 am they didn't want to go out. So, I figured the second console and windshield were not even needed in hot weather. I was right. They enjoyed the boat...any bassboat with a 200 or 225 can easily accomodate 4-5 people and with a prop change from a 25/27 speed prop to a 23/24 four blade, it can easily pull two skiers. So, if I was starting over, I would buy the exact bassboat I wanted and add a ladder, a second prop for ski usage and some really big beach towels so my girts can sunbath on the flippin deck. By the way, my girls loved all that open deck space on my bassboat. They spent most of the day tanning on both front and back decks while I fished down the bank on the trolling motor. It was common for me to have four teenage girls in bikinis laying across the deck while I was throwing spinnerbaits from the bow.

I really liked Eric's advice about renting a ski boat on those few times when the family wants to go out and there would be more people than my boat was rated for.

Good luck!

.....NaCl

[CORAL 96]

My wife & kids like to go out as much as I do!! Plus, they contribute to the payment as well. So, from a selfish standpoint, It's nice to be able to keep the whole family happy! Also, if ya don't fish many tournies, I'm sure that helps too.

Rip Lip.... I need to try spinning a 25p Trophy or Tempest!! Might just get some better speed when it's cooler!!!

[ryland7667]

Shaft,

Earlier this year I was doing the same thing. After selling my old Champion I was boat-less for five years. My wife and I both missed the boat especially on camping trips at the lake. We started looking at the fish and ski's. We don't have any kids yet but it was important to my wife to have more that two seats in case we wanted to bring a couple of friends.

I generally don't like the fish and ski's. They're big and they're more of a ski boat with fishing as an afterthought. We began looking and saw a 2003 Triton 190FS with a 200 Optimax on the classifieds. I liked this model the best out of all of the fish and ski's that we looked at. It's a bass boat first and sking is an afterthought. It seats five and has a ladder that folds down. Other than that it looks like a bassboat. The original owner replaced that big ugly windshield with two little plastic bassboat style windshields. The best part is my wife loves it and usually goes out with me once a week. There's a skeeter fish and ski and a Triton fish and ski at Galaxie Marine. Look at the two side by side and you'll see that the Skeeter is more of a ski boat and the Triton is a bass boat. Good luck

[Andy Giannini]

A used F&S can be picked up at really good price. Many guys get them, because of the wife, and then if you ask they will tell you how many the wife actually went out in it.

Typical answer to me is,

"Three times. Now I am fishing with these windshields."

Granted, guys have just posted that they really are used for skiing too, and those guys are the lucky ones.

F&S are a good buy because often a dedicated angler trades it or sells it to obtain a pure Bassboat, and takes a good hit if the F&S was purchased new. The cool thing about them, is the hull is just like the Bassboat version, nice ride, and plenty of power, just like a pure Bassboat.

There are some that buy Bassboats, and to get even more room omit the second console, leaving the partner out there in the weather. The new removeable consoles have put an end to that.

Its just an example, of different needs/priorities when it comes to the fishing boats.

Good luck in your quest, I think I bought two boats before finally buying my third which I still own. Learning what I needed to know, and finally arriving at a good decision cost a bunch of money.

.02 A.G.

[madddogg]

Check out the Triton Fish & Ski's. Great boats. Well equipped for both fishing and skiing. I bought an '06 SF-188 and absolutely love it. I haven't got to where tourneys are a consideration but until then this is a great boat. Family loves it as well. I would have to agree that you don't want to over estimate how much the family will use the boat.

[Jeff Jewell]

Shaft,
As the other have said, the real question is how many times will the wife and kids really go on it? If it's a few times a year, and you'll fish 50 times, get a real bassboat. If it is close to 50-50 or even 75-25 look at the different brands and get what you like the most....

[tony thomasy]

Shaft- I have a 2006 21sx champion. I looked at all the fish and ski boats before settling on this one. I had a 17' ft procraft f&s before this. I have a family who likes to play and a son who loves to fish. My suggestion is simple: look at all the f&s boats that are available through and through and decide. That is what I did (took about a year) and the champion was for me. I love it. Good luck. Tony Thomasy

[ACRon]

I have a Triton 21SF with a 200 Opti will do 60+ and if I pull two vent plugs we can ski local or at Shasta. Interior is more ski than fish. We love it but I am a recreational fisher. I don't do tournaments. The boat only has one live well but they have a version with two.javascript:emoticon(':(')

We don't just fish or ski. We cruise. Take the boat out in the evening to have dinner at the lake and it's always nice to have the gear and throw for a few minutes.javascript:emoticon(':D')

We houseboat and I can shift gears by leaving all the ski gear on the houseboat when I want to be more serious about my fishing. Then when we are going to play I stick the rods on the houseboat.javascript:emoticon(':lol:')

The main down side is not enough rod storage but I am modifing one of the front lockers and adding rod tubes.javascript:emoticon(':idea:')

[SHAFT]

Wanted to thank everyone for all your input ! Randy

[Bat Turn]

While your looking you might want to consider an Allison. They can be had for a good priced used. They are extremely fast. My XB-2003 w/200xs will run 87-90 gps alone and 82-85 gps loaded with a partner. There is seating for five and the seats can be rearranged to your liking.

The rough water ride is very good due to the deep-v but there is steep learning curve to drive the boat above 60 gps.

You can take a boat ride with me on the delta below (70-75gps):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fa0g0JTRgms

Here is the layout to my boat:

http://adcache.boattraderonline.com/6/8/5/85308985.htm