If you Were to Buy a Center Console for Offshore Use...

[striper swiper]

I like the 31 Jupiter on your list best. I logged enough hours in tournaments when weather sux to pick that over the rest in that size.
The 34 Venture should be on your list. I have no experience with it but those that do swear by them.

[Captain Michael Buffington]

they are badass platforms...

Mike

[dirtyj]

Sea Vee - they are built better than any other.

[juicyhook]

Regulator 32 is underpowered with f250s needs 350 to get it done. The 26 is to small for your needs, mabe ck out the 29 if you want a reg.

Southport has great fit finish, fuel economy but lacks storage. Probably kind of small for your needs

Cape horn is a bare bones fisher with little storage and to low of a transom. Avaliable with zuks (best outboards out there)

Triton is a fuel guzzler.

Sea Vee 31 is a great boat but the leaning post takes up a lot of the rear of the boat

TwinVee cat is built with a short life spand in mind. Under side of the deck is raw wood(bad).

Contender has poor resale, market is flooded right now. But builds a hell of a boat, simple, strong lots of storage and lots of options.

Sea hunter 35 is a beast, kevlar, new to the market and needs time to mature.

Everglades have to many thing to go wrong and I heard they are in trouble, could be wrong.

Pursuit is a nice boat but the beam is kind of small and tends to have snap roll on the drift. Pretty hull though.

Hydrasport has a good reputation and seems to have good resale not the prettiest of the bunch.

These are just some thoughts as I have been on the hunt for the same boat.

I am liking the sea vee and the venture so far but am still looking.

Hope my opinion does not affend any of the owners of these boat it is just the info I have gathered.

[Marlin1805]

Regulator- I owned an 04' 26 FS with twin 225 Yamahas and the boat was awesome, the quality of construction and ride for a 26' boat was exceptional. If I was only fishin S.FL and the Islands I would be fishin a Regulator. I would ride em all and make sure it's a little snotty ( remember the stream can stand up real quick ) the decision will get much easier to make after a few test rides Good Luck !!

by the way what part of Dallas you from ???

Thanks for the input. The 26' Regulator has continued to grab by attention, especially with the number of available boats on the market and the reasonable price. That 32' is pretty sweet though!

I'm in North Dallas, just south of Plano.

[Marlin1805]

Regulator 32 is underpowered with f250s needs 350 to get it done. The 26 is to small for your needs, mabe ck out the 29 if you want a reg.

Southport has great fit finish, fuel economy but lacks storage. Probably kind of small for your needs

Cape horn is a bare bones fisher with little storage and to low of a transom. Avaliable with zuks (best outboards out there)

Triton is a fuel guzzler.

Sea Vee 31 is a great boat but the leaning post takes up a lot of the rear of the boat

TwinVee cat is built with a short life spand in mind. Under side of the deck is raw wood(bad).

Contender has poor resale, market is flooded right now. But builds a hell of a boat, simple, strong lots of storage and lots of options.

Sea hunter 35 is a beast, kevlar, new to the market and needs time to mature.

Everglades have to many thing to go wrong and I heard they are in trouble, could be wrong.

Pursuit is a nice boat but the beam is kind of small and tends to have snap roll on the drift. Pretty hull though.

Hydrasport has a good reputation and seems to have good resale not the prettiest of the bunch.

These are just some thoughts as I have been on the hunt for the same boat.

I am liking the sea vee and the venture so far but am still looking.

Hope my opinion does not affend any of the owners of these boat it is just the info I have gathered.

Juicy Hook - Thanks for the rundown. The only reason I left the Venture off the list is due to the price for most unless you go back further than 2004. I did find this one though that definitely grabbed my attention:

http://www.yachtworld.com/boats/2004.../United-States

[SeaMent]

Thanks for the input. The 26' Regulator has continued to grab by attention, especially with the number of available boats on the market and the reasonable price. That 32' is pretty sweet though!

I'm in North Dallas, just south of Plano.

M1805, take a peek at the 29' & 32' a friend of mine has the 32' with the 350s and loves it, he fishes out of Va.Beach and runs it to the Canyons. Great boat. I used to live in Richardson many moons ago, great area if you can deal with the traffic :eek

[juicyhook]

I would stay away from the big block hpdi's (250-300)

They had many issues and you will never be able to get rid of the boat, IE why that boat is so cheap.

[burricane]

I'm very surprised no one has mentioned a 31 Cape Horn. Fantastic boats, very dry for what they are, and they have the best feature that any boat can offer--SIMPLICITY. All the pumps are easy to access and change. Not a lot of bells and whistles but that means less switches that don't work after two months. The Regulator and Contender are fine boats as well, but much heavier, which means less fuel economy. Heavy does have it's benefits, but with the hull design of a Cape Horn, I feel that it is a much better rough water boat. The harder you run it in a chop, the nicer the ride.

For my two cents, stay the hell away from Triton. They are without a doubt the worst sea boats I have ever set foot on. There are a ton of them for sale now, wonder why...

A new, macked out 31 Cape Horn is less than the 125k you set as a range. Check 'em out.

[patches]

I have a 32 yellowfin and it is best combination of speed and ride on the market. I looked at contenders, seavees, ventures, etc. The 32 yellowfin with twin350 is a monster. You can cruise at 42kts while getting 1.5 mpg. plus it has a 350 gallon fuel hold. I take my boat in the Gulf of Mexico 140 miles one way for over night swordfishing trips and pull lures the whole next day.