I have a buddy in the market. He has no idea what he's doing. I am useless in helping him myself, but I can also see that he needs some help from somewhere. Hoping that somebody here has some good tips.

He happens to live near a bass pro shop, so of course he has been looking there. He has his eyes on a Tahoe. It's a slick looking boat. Big motor (260 HP) and it's the kind that you can also fish with.

Tahoe even a good brand? Is BPS a horrible place to buy a boat? It's tough to find anything useful online, but I can't let this guy waste 40K on a POS if there is better stuff out there. He loves in the DC area if that helps.

This post was edited on 7/6/14 at 6:32 pm

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Posted by TIGERRVER

Baton Rouge

Member since Mar 2010

369 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:37 pm to SwaggerCopter

What will he use it for? You say "ski." Will he actually ski or more like pull tubes, joy ride, maybe fish a little, etc.?

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Posted by SwaggerCopter

H TINE HOL IT DINE

Member since Dec 2012

27227 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:40 pm to TIGERRVER

He will ski. I've been out on boats skiing with him. Not a pro by any means. Just messing around really. He does tell me that this boat has the option for the wakeboard rope hinge (whatever it's called), but I don't even know if he would use that.

Definitely a joy ride type of boat. The dude is a workaholic, so I'm not sure when he's going to use this thing.

But that said, I want it to work when he invites me out.

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Posted by TIGERRVER

Baton Rouge

Member since Mar 2010

369 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:42 pm to SwaggerCopter

Will he also fish? That makes a big difference.

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Posted by SwaggerCopter

H TINE HOL IT DINE

Member since Dec 2012

27227 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:44 pm to TIGERRVER

Yes. He definitely wants to fish. And I actually believe he will do that because he used to be big into fishing.

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Posted by TIGERRVER

Baton Rouge

Member since Mar 2010

369 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:48 pm to SwaggerCopter

A fish & ski boat is kind of like an all-in-one copier/printer/fax. It will do all of them, but none of them really well.

What kind of fishing & water will it be used in? Rivers, lakes, offshore? It's hard to beat a center console for versatility.

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Posted by Chris4x4gill2

North Alabama

Member since Nov 2008

3092 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 6:59 pm to TIGERRVER

Tahoes are very popular because of their price point. They are as step above a Bayliner. Its a great entry boat to use for a few years, but the ones i have been around start to have issues and fall apart around year 5. Resale on them is not great.

They are typically underpowered to get them to the cheaper price point, but the larger motor options are fine to pull skiers.

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Posted by Grassy1

Member since Oct 2009

6249 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 7:00 pm to SwaggerCopter

There are many things to consider, and I haven't looked at ski boats in years so I'll let others give that advice.

My only advice regarding boats is... Many people fall in lust with skiing or fishing, or cruising so they go buy a new boat. Then get distracted with real life and use the boat very little for a few years, then sell it... taking a big financial depreciation hit.

Let them take the hit. Tell him to go find a boat a few years old in immaculate condition. Pretty easy to do with the interwebs and all.

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Posted by TIGERRVER

Baton Rouge

Member since Mar 2010

369 posts

Posted on 7/6/14 at 7:08 pm to Grassy1

I agree. He needs to determine the style, size, amenities, etc. Step 2 is to go look at different new models. Step 3 is to find a good deal on a used one. He can determine which new one he wants then upgrade size, motor, etc. with a used one for the same price.

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