re: recommendations for first boat purchase (bowrider)

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Deck boats seem like the perfect family boat, and it appears you can get one used for decent money. They hold of ton of people like a pontoon but sportier, you can pull tube etc and fish a bit (albeit not a “fishing boat”).

Seems to be jack of all trades master of none type boat.

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They are very good all around hulls for almost everything most people other than serious fisherman use a boat for....and with some modifications they make EXCELLENT fishing platforms. I had one for nearly 4 years in the Caribbean and I restored it from stem to stern, removed all the furniture and railings, put a center console in the middle of it, a trolling motor on front and it was the best fly fishing platform I ever fished off of. Too big to pole but I am too lazy to pole anyway LOL. It was basically a floating dock that could run about 30 MPH in 1-2s and a BAD onshore mid day chop..with a 70 HP 2 stroke with almost no compression LOL.

I bought one 3 months ago with a nice tandem axle aluminum trailer and an Evinrude 200 2 stroke that cranks like a top and runs like a sewing machine for $700. It LOOKS like a $700 hull at the moment but a year from now and about $10K (if that old Evinrude is as sound as it seems) it will look like a $1500 hull but fish like a $50k one....I am making it a complete flush deck with a console about 8 feet high....with a jack plate on a bracket and a 200 - 2 stroke it ought to run 60 in 12 inches of water....I may even redo the gel coat LOL...

Seriously I am restoring it into something akin to a Dek Kat (not pontoon though) or one of the numerous Texas Sled style boats. The hurricane hull is IDEAL for it...with all of the pontoon boat trappings stripped off and hauled to the landfill of course....it will also be ideal for fishing passes and near shore....I know for a certainty I will catch sails/kings/dolphin off it in South Florida in the summer and fall...no doubt in my mind that it will fit the bill perfectly. I had one and a 24 foot center console at the same time and other than going several miles offshore in 3-4s the deck boat would do anything the center console would and more in shallow water...

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Previous posters are on to something about the deck boats.

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Waaaaayyyyy off topic but I know an old boy in Oregon who removed the cap on a 21 foot hurricane type hull and built a massive layout blind that has six "compartments" for shooters. Has fold out panels that fold inboard for travel and outboard when hunting....they simply float at about a 20 degree angle from the boat...it can be set up in about 5 minutes, can haul more decoys than a decoy trailer and it is DEADLY....even stale birds rafting up in the middle of the river will readily decoy around the thing....it basically looks like a clump of brush bobbing on the water hundreds of yards away from any shoreline. Its also VERY comfortable. The only thing that could be more detrimental to a ducks health would be a sink-box and I think they are prohibited in all of the United States.