Ultimate 21ft Center Console

[teddyp]

You should seriously look at the Winter 22. You could buy an all glass boat if you want to sell it in a couple years or you could take a look at the winter 22 and have something to hang onto for life.

[black duck 1]

i have a 21' Contender and I fish the Ches. bay and on the ocean and this 21'er can take it!!! I have been on many other boats in the size range and it has easily out preformed any of the other boats I have been on!!!

The only real down side to my boat is also one of the best thing about my boat, the 24.5 degree deadrise. The good is this boat rides amazing! The bad is if you drift it Sucks and feels really (for a lack of better words) tippy. But the ride it SO worth it! One of the other down sides is lack of storage, but that is my issue b/c the big fishbox in the bow has toys in it for when my wife and son go with me on the boat, but that box holds 3 fold up chairs and a small fleet of trucks. If I were to to buy another I would, just the next size up like the 23t.

I have fished it in some skinny water for specks and fished offshore for bluefins, this boat can do it!

Jay

[jawz12]

here's some advice...

first,polar boats:junk,built as bad,if not worse than the sea fox or the anglers.regal boats,just as bad...
the winter,nice,pricey,but nice...
the marolina,built by bo,looks good...

contender,or a regulator,can not go wrong on either one of these...but...
you want a work boat ??? commercial fishing for stripers ??

smart play is to find an old whaler hull-this is gonna hold up alot of weight.trying to use a pricy new rig for commercial fishing may not be the way you wanna go...a deep v hull may not be the way to go either...

[Gotofish]

Look around at everyone else comm. bass fishing up there....what rig do you see more often than not? 23 Seacraft. If that's too big, maybe a 20 will do....there's a lot of great suggestions on here but there are reasons you see the same hulls on Billingsgate or Scorton's when it heats up. Also, think about a doghouse-in my opinion invaluable on a boat that size.

[canyonjunkie]

thanks for all the advice so far

Jaws, thanks for the help. what kind of whaler are you talking about? We used to have a 15 dauntless and it was an awesome little boat so I have nothing against them at all. The only thing is between where I live and where I fish is Buzzards Bay, which is a nasty stretch of water, and the waves stack up really tight. A V'ish hull would be much better, but I dont know enough about whalers to know if they have hulls that are good rough water boats... What models from what years roughly would you recommend?

Gotofish, i agree with the seacraft and I have been looking for one for a while. I think a 23 seacraft would be a perfect boat. But redone they are pricey and I'm not going to pay 10-15 grand for a boat that needs to be redone... I have worked for a boat company though and have nothing against buying one cheap and rehabing it, i just need to find the right one. And I agree with the doghouse, they are awesome. If I buy a seacraft it will get a doghouse...

The only reason i like the contender and regulators is the resale if we part with it anytime soon... Which I'm not planning on, but you never know. If i want to go bigger in the future and my dad doesnt want a small boat anymore then we would probably sell it. I know they arent commercial boats, but would they not stand up well? Its only rod and reel fishing, but would 500+ hours a year be too much for those boats?

Like i said thanks for all the suggestions and comments so far, and keep them coming. I am on a fairly short budget so custom and new boats are more or less out of the question unfortunately...
Preston

[IN$UFI$HENT FUND$]

i have been on a couple of 21 contenders and for there size they are a beast......

[N2theBlue]

How has Parker or Maycraft not been mentioned? Also Privateer.....all three absolute workhorses. Not the flashiest, but they will get you out there and get you home. Tough as nails.

[Mudflat]

I'm not sure why there's discussion of Contenders and Reg's for commercial fishing...

I've always thought the popular commercial boats were Privateer's, C-Hawk's (a lot of them need work now though), Sea-Ox's, then Parker and Maycrafts...

If you're going to spend Contender/Reg money... STOP!!!!

All
Welded
Aluminum.

I don't care who says what. Period.

http://blacklabmarine.com/index.html

I spoke with this gentleman on the phone early last summer - his name escapes me right now. Super nice guy.

They'll set this boat up how you need it. The SSI cooler #1 goes here. SSI cooler #2 goes here. The go fast fishing boats are great - but they ain't work boats - sorry.

Best wishes bro.