Looking seriously at buying a boat this weekend...looking at glass only with a cuddy. 17-20 ft Any opinions on what you would do, price not being an issue? I am leaning towards a 19 foot Arima SR hardtop or 1802 trophy. Possibly grady white, parker etc...what are your opinions on GLASS boats only in that size range, want 4 stroke Yami power only so thats not part of the debate...cheers

Price not an issue?















Grady White and save me a spot!

When I sell my Arima, it'll be for a bigger Arima.
Affordable
Economical
Stable on the water.
Comfortable.
Locally made and good customer service.
and they fish really, really well.


That's my input!

I jokingly named my last boat REFI there Keith. I suggest you do the same!

Keith....Stop by and see us at the show. We have some new proline boats that I think you would be very interested in including a nice 20' cuddy that we will have at the show!

Tim

If price wasn't an issue I'd be looking at Grady's and Whaler's.

They are definately top of the food chain. Then Pro-lines, Parkers, Arimas, etc.

I didnt list Trophy's because I'd walk on past that booth.

I really like my Arima 17 Sea Ranger. Runs great with a 90hp yami, nice stable fishing platform, and made well. I do get the urge for a couple of more feet, but it is hard to justify selling and moving up to a bigger boat in my situation. The Arima is not the fastest boat in the fleet, so if you are looking for a speed boat look elsewhere, but they are very comfortable fishing boats.

I bought a 19' Arima Sea Ranger soft top new in 2004. I have fished it out as far as Blue Dot (about 30 miles offshore) but most of my fishing is 15 miles or less from land. One drawback to my boat is that I did not add saddle tanks so my range is somewhat limited by fuel. If you are going to chase tuna (40+ miles out) you'll want extra fuel capacity. The other drawback is that the soft top doesn't give you an easy place to mount radar. If you plan to fish offshore a lot, you will want radar.

If you're going to spend a lot of time nearshore or in the Puget Sound, Arimas are hard to beat. Ask anyone that owns one and they will tell you how stable they are because of the wide beam. They are light boats which makes them easy to trailer and helps on fuel economy behind the truck and on the water. The cuddy is large enough for my wife and I to snuggle in for a few nights, but any more than that and you'll start wanting a larger cuddy.

One requirement my wife had was to have a private place to pee. The cuddy with port o potti satisfies this requirement. The deal I made was that as long as I never use that thing, I never have to clean it.

I'm pleasantly surprised by how well my Arima has held its value. I could sell it today for at least as much as I paid for it new in 2004. I bought mine at Verles right after the boat show. Verles made me a deal on a brand new but year old 115 4 stroke for power. You might save $ by asking if your dealer has any 2007 engines to put on your 2008 boat.

Two of my closest friends are also Arima owners. You'll probably find a lot of loyal Arima owners, and that is a statement in and of itself.

Good luck, and remember the best two days of a boatowners life aer the day he buys a boat and the day he sells it!

PARKER all the way

A Parker is a no comprimise fishing boat.

Been in lots of Arimas and they are good fishing boats but they ride like a dump truck! Definitely do not like they way they put their tops on.

I don't think you can go wrong with the Arima, that would be my 1st choice in that size range.
Personally I would avoid the Pro-line, I ran 1 for 3 years for a resort in Ak., along with 3 other makes of fiberglass and 2 aluminums, the Pro-line was the least durable, weakest hull of any boat I ran. The Pro-line I ran was new, I felt alot safer and more confident in the 15 year old Glasply I ran for another resort, just my $.02 worth.

I know the Arima guys well. They are top notch. If I was in the market for a new boat, and wanted glass, I wouldn't even think twice about giving John a call.

Thanks for the input, all good stuff and kid ill save ya seat no matter what I buy. Ive owned and sold a few boats and for retention of value I think the Arima and Gradys hold up as well as any...damn I cant wait for the boat show. Its like xmas all over again...cheers

I wouldnt be chasing a tuna in an arima. 19' is pushing it for chasing just about anything offshore. Go big or go home.

I also have an 17' Arima Sear Ranger and like it a lot. If I were to buy one today I would get the skip tower added. The 19' with the 'Alasaka' door and the lift-out roof panels would be my first choice however. It would make it a better 12 month boat.
Although I have not added the trim tabs, the ride can be improved according to members on the Arima owner's site, by adding them.
I also bought mine at Verle's and would recommend them without hesitation to anyone. My boat also has engines that were a year or so older and I got a good deal becausde of that.

Here ya go. I have the 209 which isn't a 12 month boat around these parts but the ride is awesome.

http://www.gradywhite.com/208/

I shopped for quite a while looking at cuddy's of different manufacturers. I compared Seaswirl, Trophy, and the Grady. I never did look at Arima so I can't comment there. It didn't make much sense to me because all of them were 20 or so feet long but the Grady had way more room in the cuddy and more fishing room in the back. I really thought I was going to buy the Seaswirl until I stepped onto the GW. And then I went and bought a center console. Go figure.

One thing about the Grady is that it does lean quite a bit if weight isn't kept centered. That's what trim tabs are for on plane but don't help much when you're all over on one side checking out that 21.5" blackmouth you're about to release. She rides incredible in rough water even for a 20' boat because of that hull design though. I would think an Arima would be a bit more stable because it has a flatter bottom but would also ride rougher in the heavy stuff. Just a guess, never been on an Arima.

You knew you were getting into a Ford vs Chevy debate here right?

Grady White all the way!

Absolutely on the debate side. Ive owned an Arima, an 18 ft trophy with a 4 stroke, a boston whaler cc etc...alot of people dont like the arima ride but the cost, lack of depreciation and overall features is tempting. I might get myself in trouble walking into Qwest field with a 50k preapproval letter in my pocket but hey Im divorced and single as you can get so I have NO ONE to yell at me when the boat pulls up in the driveway...cheers.

Proline all the way.