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Missed

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Hello!

I've been a lurker from time to time and a long time tin boat owner and user.

Currently have a 12 ft Sears V w 9 hp mud motor and a 1998 16 ft Lowe w 25 Merc - boat has some transom pitting and leaky bottom rivets (father pulled seat to open up area and got a lot of flex over the years) - boat has been from Maine to Key West and caught lake trout to tarpon, mostly trout & reds in FL along with double duty as duck boat. Used some ideas from this site and put a 3 inch square aluminum tube up the keel which tightened the bottom up significantly and then put JB weld on the leaking rivets annually to keep it afloat. LOL! Good stuff.

Okay - now for the first post question:

Anyway, after having the Lowe for 20 yrs, it is time to upgrade. Keep thinking - can always fall back on a 16 with 25 as a utilitarian boat but I want to do a little bit more than a 16 can handle. But only by a little. Say go 15 miles offshore on a calm day - we get a lot of kingfish during the dog days of summer and I like to eat them - 16 will handle but 18 should be better. Ditto for handling 6 or 7 folks during scallop season. Also fishing 3 big guys (250-350 pounds) - 16 can do it but 18 would be better.

So - started looking for an aluminum 18 UTILITY.
No desire to go with an 18 ft+ fiberglass boat - too heavy, trailing concerns, fuel consumption, etc.

Have looked at starcraft, sylvan, lowe, grumman, fisher, G-3, Alumacraft, Crestliner, Tracker, and more. Willing to drive anywhere within FL, GA, AL, SC for boat purchase. Crazy aint it. Unable to consider the west coast brands or the Aussie brands.

Lund SSV-18
and
Mirrocraft 1876
are the only boats I can find that fit the bill. They are real close, same width, same depth. Both would run good with a 40-60 hp tiller or side console.

The Lund appeal is bare open boat - easy to clean and such, less places to retain salt & grit. Double rivets along side to bottom & side to transom seams. IPS design. 460 pounds. Lund dealer nearby offered to sell me boat & trailer w financing (I have a 55 hp Johnson at home) and then pivoted, wanting to sell a motor too. Kinda ticked me off there.

The Mirrocraft appeal is the flat floor (similar to Lund Alaskan) but has threat of holding salt water under flooring for corrosion issues in 15-20 yrs. Single row of rivets along side to bottom seam and double side to transom seam. V that goes back to transom. 585 pounds. Mirrocraft dealer is about 8 hours north of here and has offered whatever I want to do.

Price diff is that I can get a side console and 60 hp on Mirrocraft for the price of a 50 hp tiller Lund. Side console and 60 hp on Lund is about $3,500 more to give apples to apples.

So - any opinion of one vs the other?

Also - am I missing any other brands that offer an 18 ft V UTILITY hull that weighs in the 450-600 pound bracket that can be had in the southeast?
 
That Lund really is a tough boat. They are the gold standard in Northern Ontario where the water gets rough and rocks are everywhere. If you're looking for a 20 year boat, that's the one.

Sent from my CLT-L04 using Tapatalk

 
Thanks, guys.

I ended up ordering the Lund yesterday. 18 SSV and 60 hp.
 

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