MadisonK
Contributor
I've been boating for my whole life so I will make a couple of suggestions
1) there is no such thing as finding a consensus about boats. Everyone has opinions that are true and valid for the way they use their boat but it might not be true for you.
2) You have to define where you are, what you will be doing with this boat.
3) Try lots of boats if you can. Things like cuddy cabins look great at the showroom or even at the dock but get them out on the ocean and you won't spend anytime in them in my opinion. They are great places to keep your stuff but maybe a pilothouse would be a better choice for example.
4) www.thehulltruth.net is the best place to ask questions about boats. You will be blown away by the amount of members and the amount of different boats that they own.
5) In the Northeast I would recommend a 23' - 24' boat with a seaworthy hull. I have owned a few boats and spent my life on small boats. In my opinion there is a huge difference between a 21' boat and a 23' boat but hardly any difference between a 23' and a 28' for example. I could elaborate but I'm talking mostly about the ride quality.
6) Buy the right boat and buy it once. I can't tell you how many freinds I have that have bought something smaller and instantly wished they had something just a little bigger. Each of them has spent far more money than I have upgrading from boat to boat until they found the right one. And by the way, the right way has almost always turned out to be a 23'+ boat.
Just my opinion and not meant to start a ruckus with anyone who finds their zodiak perfectly fit their boating needs.
1) there is no such thing as finding a consensus about boats. Everyone has opinions that are true and valid for the way they use their boat but it might not be true for you.
2) You have to define where you are, what you will be doing with this boat.
3) Try lots of boats if you can. Things like cuddy cabins look great at the showroom or even at the dock but get them out on the ocean and you won't spend anytime in them in my opinion. They are great places to keep your stuff but maybe a pilothouse would be a better choice for example.
4) www.thehulltruth.net is the best place to ask questions about boats. You will be blown away by the amount of members and the amount of different boats that they own.
5) In the Northeast I would recommend a 23' - 24' boat with a seaworthy hull. I have owned a few boats and spent my life on small boats. In my opinion there is a huge difference between a 21' boat and a 23' boat but hardly any difference between a 23' and a 28' for example. I could elaborate but I'm talking mostly about the ride quality.
6) Buy the right boat and buy it once. I can't tell you how many freinds I have that have bought something smaller and instantly wished they had something just a little bigger. Each of them has spent far more money than I have upgrading from boat to boat until they found the right one. And by the way, the right way has almost always turned out to be a 23'+ boat.
Just my opinion and not meant to start a ruckus with anyone who finds their zodiak perfectly fit their boating needs.
