15ft fiberglass boats. Education required

It's a long weekend and I've run out of rocks to look at.

So, have been putting some more thought into a boat.
Will mostly get used for family outings on the lake for pulling a biscuit or waterskiing etc. Possibly a bit of fishing in the future. Personally, I've never done a lot of fishing.

With a jetboat I suspect the progression would be: Too scared to use it properly, then end up with it parked up a bank. In multiple pieces.

I think a 15ft fiberglass with outboard would do the trick. Small enough to be easy to launch but big enough for 3 kids.
Something like:
Attachment 216189


What do I need to look out for when purchasing an older second hand boat?

Do I want to know the hidden costs? Both maintenance and other things you don't need but you do.
(like reloading, you end up with a bench full of essential things)

Other more knowledgeable folk will be along, but I'll share my experience:

Check the internal structure carefully for signs of damage. The exterior may have been repaired beautifully, but often in the internals do not receive the same level of detail, and can give away signs of a prang in a previous life.

At that age, the motor is the single biggest cost. That, and feeding it. Make sure it's got relatively even compressions, see if the bottom leg will come off easily. If it hasn't been maintained well the impellor may be half rooted, and the bottom leg rusted/seized on and its almost impossible to get them off, and the engine will eventually cook itself when the rubber impeller shits itself.

Look up how to decipher the serial number of the outboard. My 90hp Evenrude came with a late 1980's cowling, but once I looked up what the serial # meant I saw it was a 1976 85 hp Evenrude:o

That'll do for now

I went down this path many years ago

Here is what I found
- alloy boat was perfect for me as we all made a few hiccups at the beginning
I hit the ramp, rock, bump the trailer when retrieving, etc
it it was a fiberglass boat maybe different outcome
- my 2 kids enjoy fishing with me at the start
then they told me, actually they didn't like fishing, they only come just to make me happy and the after fishing treat
- buy the boat that suits your need

Ok, back to your question
- outboard - 85HP Suzuki is more than enough for what you need

- trailer - look at the trailer condition as they can be expensive to repair
- tires - those commercial or trailer R13/r14 tires are good
the lower the trailer the easier to launch/retrieve

- cost
- prepare about $2500/year for service, insurance, rego, wof, CG membership
- maintenance (this one can be anything)
e.g new Hosking trailer for 15fter my guess is about $8k + long wait

- fishing gear, this one also can be anything
e.g. softbait setup ranges from $200 - no limit

on every trip you will need bait/burley/ice/petrol/food/drink etc -- cost me about $200 for 3 hours of a fishing trip

that's all I can think of for now, let me know if you want to know more

Since you are in Central Otago are you going to be mainly freshwater fishing?

I concur regarding Glass boats being difficult to accurate assess the condition. My dads first Jet boat was a Hamilton 31 (same mold as Marlborough Dart)

Leaked a bit when it sat in the tide (bilge pump on every hour when fishing!!)
Because of what it was made of and fact it was primarilly used for Salmon fishing in braided rivers, every couple years he owned it it was stripped turned over and the previous seasons "learning experiences" repaired (Dad did all the work himself)
Very maintainance intensive, it was replaced with an alloy boat (written off in highway whoopsie) and the current boat he has is Hamilton 141a. He has owned this for nearly 30 years.

Alloy boats are cold, noisey and usually harsh ride. Glass boats are better in all respects except for maintainance and not as robust. I bumped an unseen rock in my alloy boat in Lake Rotoroa while landing on a beach to go hunting, that would have holed a glass boat. All I ended up with was a ding in the keel.

Motor maintainance and service history is everything. Trailers will drive you nuts especially if braked and used in saltwater

If you think shooting is throwing handfuls of money away , boating is throwing 20lt pales of 100 dollar bills away . Im moving guns on to spend time fishing at my age and now looking at a new motor 20+ k . The big problem in nz is they will not stock parts for older motors , basically down to shit importers . alloy is better way easer to check for corrosion and repair . Figlass is very temp dependant and timber internals need to be dry clean so a pia in colder climates . Good luck with your new and take your time looking , even wait till winter for good deals .

go play with someone else in their boat and see if it does actually squeal your wheels....
if you going to be happy to just tow biscuit around...not really hoon like shit or try being wank on plank... if boat is mainly going to be for trout fishing and in few years will just be Joe alone....MAYBE 12-13ft tinny with 15-20hp is better option...
next to zero maintainence cost... much less up front cost,resale stays the same or increases you can launch,retrieve it from shore with ease if put hand winch on front of trailer..and can even drag the hua up beach by hand if need be.

some of those older figlass boats,have NASTY tendency if hit wave on something like 45 degree angle.... and in lake you get waves from all angles on calm day with other boats causing them. it can throw boat sideways and catch you out if dont see it coming. not pleasant at all.dominater etc have been around for a long time..some a VERY long time..the lark version looks neat with blunter front end,but again they are getting old and will need proper check over.

in all fairness being "first mate" on someone elses boat is better as regards $$ cost in some cases that actually owning your own.

But there is nothing like having your own boat to do your own thing when you want

I miss mine but not the bills

Some very good points to consider so far, thank you!

Will go have a beer with the local composites guy on friday after work.

Yes, mostly I'm thinking of just using a boat on the lakes. The sea has horrible biting things and corrosion.
Rather than boat fishing it would probably be easier, and cheaper, to just drive up the road and fish in the canals around Twizle.

When I was living up in Hamilton in the late 2000s, a good mate had a fiberglass boat we used to tool about on. Mostly on the dam lakes for skiing and a few camping trips to lake waikaremoana.
Being young and a smart (not clever) we tried a few experiments. I can not recommend jumping off the side at full noise. Even with watersport helmet and lifejacket it really hurts.
Also worked out just how much we could throw it around before hitting your wake tips the driver over the side. Yes, with the kill switch lanyard around wrist.

Attachment 216241

Attachment 216242

Remember BOAT stands for Bust Out Another Thousand...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jK2cGe2QO50

I do enjoy my mates boats for sure. And don’t hesitate to give them a hand and contribute to some of the running costs. And I fillet all their fish.
Attachment 216282

Fibreglass hull. Get underneath the boat when it is on the trailer with a hammer. Start tapping the hull, if the hammer makes a clean bang and bounces back at you then the glass is ok. If however it makes a dull thud you possibly have delamination ..

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sore head stoat

Fibreglass hull. Get underneath the boat when it is on the trailer with a hammer. Start tapping the hull, if the hammer makes a clean bang and bounces back at you then the glass is ok. If however it makes a dull thud you possibly have delamination ..

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and if the hammer goes right through you run away? :o

Just buy an alloy jet @Joe_90 then u can come do runs with the boys

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Originally Posted by Padox

Just buy an alloy jet @Joe_90 then u can come do runs with the boys

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Haha See post #1:

Quote:

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With a jetboat I suspect the progression would be: Too scared to use it properly, then end up with it parked up a bank. In multiple pieces.

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Best mate has a jet boat, the above points of using someone else's boat are pretty compelling...

Biggest pro/con for/against fiberglass is the weight. You'll need a bigger motor & more fuel, but if you're pulling the kids around they give a much better wake and handle the chop much smoother. I loved my little tinny & it was perfect for me but like others have said, it's best to try both your options

Haven't put mine up a bank yet trail and error

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Joe_90

It's a long weekend and I've run out of rocks to look at.

So, have been putting some more thought into a boat.
Will mostly get used for family outings on the lake for pulling a biscuit or waterskiing etc. Possibly a bit of fishing in the future. Personally, I've never done a lot of fishing.

With a jetboat I suspect the progression would be: Too scared to use it properly, then end up with it parked up a bank. In multiple pieces.

I think a 15ft fiberglass with outboard would do the trick. Small enough to be easy to launch but big enough for 3 kids.
Something like:
Attachment 216189


What do I need to look out for when purchasing an older second hand boat?

Do I want to know the hidden costs? Both maintenance and other things you don't need but you do.
(like reloading, you end up with a bench full of essential things)

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ran boats on lake Waikaremoana for eight years - the light alloys can be a real handfull on the lake if it gets windy and require the driver to run correct lines against wind driven chop -the best were the heavy fiberglass for comfort and ride -Haines hunter were the stand out the older V198 or more modern SF700 but the bigger Buccaneers were good - the trickest boat we had was an alloy Ramco Fisherman 16 footer -not for inexperienced drivers thats for sure -the worst boat we had was a 17 foot pontoon alloy I believe made in Napier - I called it the pig boat -the bloody thing just would not lift its nose and plane properly but just wanted to run level of course meant it lifted water up and over the nose in a chop and yup ya got drenched - our main bigger boat was a 24 foot Elmarco alloy - really great big heavy alloy -ran the lake very well indeed - later we got a 30 foot jet boat custom made 300 HP Yanmar diesel - great handled the lake well but weed it just did not like it at all - so for that lake at least jet not recommended - one problem at the lake newbies get wrong is anchoring at night - the correct way is nose into shore and stern lines out either side - but really pick your spot - the wind can get up overnight and cause grief - if I was doing a lot on the lake maybe alloy as the constant moving on that shoreline is hard on keels - 2-3 trips a year maybe not such an issue - REC hunting for me a big old fiberglass just for the ride

If you get keen to buy one this is at Tapanui in a shed. Old but dosen't get used much.
3 of us own it. 60 johnstone and aux.

https://i.ibb.co/ZLFTPRs/roxborough-...nopuri-008.jpg

Hi Joe_90
Check out - https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....ur-boat-76811/ - in the Fishing section – a couple of pages back so needs a “bump”
I started with a Fleetline Sapphire with a 65 Mercury – it was a great little boat that we used round Taupo, Kapiti Island and probably a bit far off Foxton
We upgraded to a Fleetline Solitaire with a 110 Mercury – a very solid boat that we used further off the coast of Wanganui – we got a bit busy and left it in a shed for about six years or so – when we got it ready to use – I noticed all the side plates on the cooling circuit side were starting to rot – so we had that side rebuilt and it was fine – sold it to a family that used it for a ski boat for years
Both of those boats had trailer problems – welds stressed and broke – so be very careful of trailer fractures around welds
There are plenty of those boats on the second hand market – most of the lake boats will be in reasonable condition but motors will be risky
Good luck

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Attachment 216299

And if your not sure just ask, unlike this dip stick :XD:

https://www.stuff.co.nz/world/austra...Pos=0#cxrecs_s

@Joe_90 Some of the older fibreglass hull designs are still very good today. I had a Fi-Glass fireball ( 1976 vintage ) and it was an excellent and safe performer. I did a lot of spearfishing and salt water fishing out of it in a variety of conditions from dead flat to some horrible bar crossings etc. Very stable and consistent . One thing I would say is the older motors can tend to be unreliable .
I noticed you mention fishing in the canals around Twizel.... just a foot note, you can't swim or have any form of boat in those canals . It's not a public waterway , they are owned / leased by Hydro companies.

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Originally Posted by viper

@Joe_90 Some of the older fibreglass hull designs are still very good today. I had a Fi-Glass fireball ( 1976 vintage ) and it was an excellent and safe performer. I did a lot of spearfishing and salt water fishing out of it in a variety of conditions from dead flat to some horrible bar crossings etc. Very stable and consistent . One thing I would say is the older motors can tend to be unreliable .
I noticed you mention fishing in the canals around Twizel.... just a foot note, you can't swim or have any form of boat in those canals . It's not a public waterway , they are owned / leased by Hydro companies.

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I've also heard they get a bit funny if you drop a line inside the nets just by the bridge at Ohau B canal. ;)

If it were me I would be reluctant to buy an older glass hull. Up until the 90's the transoms in most glass boats contained significant amounts of wood and the stringers in the hull were also wooden. people fit/modify fish finder transducers, boarding ladders, replace outboards etc and drill holes in the transom. Inadequate sealing leads to the transom wood rotting usually from the bottom up and often it can wick through and affect the ends of the stringers. People say you can tap the fibreglass on the transom with a small hammer or the handle of a large screw driver and hear the hollowness of rot. Really the only way to know is to drill some exploratory holes. There is a trend these days for people to buy the likes of older haines hunters, figlass viscounts etc and cut the transom and even stringers out if needed and glass in new ones and fit a outboard pod to get a cheap soft riding seaworthy hull. I'd stay away from older glass jet boats too. They are mostly powered by ancient V6 ford grenada and falcon engines etc that were good in their day but are now a maintenance liability.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by sore head stoat

Fibreglass hull. Get underneath the boat when it is on the trailer with a hammer. Start tapping the hull, if the hammer makes a clean bang and bounces back at you then the glass is ok. If however it makes a dull thud you possibly have delamination ..

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Wrap the face of the hammer with a few layers of rag and insulation tape. Soften the edges of the steel so you don't damage the gel coat and glass. Even better is a plastic faced or rubber faced hammer...