dupe

Congrats on the xtra 8'..prob had to get a captain license? I'm still partial to the style of the last one haha enjoy.

I dont believe you need that unless you are for hire.

$250K pontoon boat?

Probably one of the most funs boats in this entire thread!!
Enjoy!!

I am counting down to spring.

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My kind of boat. Love it. Looked at a Tri-tune and was shocked how much they cost but some day.

You do not need a captain license. They let even people like me drive on the water with these big things

I remember (back in the day of great lakes boating), for some reason I thought I recalled talking to a owner of a 50' cary, I thought he said it was required..but I drank alot back then when I was on the water. 80's Thanks for straightening me out.

Finished my winter project of building some new sections to match existing piers we have. Welded up about 80ft worth. The ice can't go soon enough.

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What lake do you boat on?

Keep boats on Golden just south of Oconomowoc. But we travel once a month, Lake Michigan, Mississippi River, or chain of lakes out of winnebago

Just put in my friends pier and boat today. Still some ice on north end of Golden Lake

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Went to check on mine today(Inside still) . Had the windows tinted and love how it turned out. Wish mine was floating.

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That looks great. As far as Im concerned it's summer now. Brought my tritoon home yesterday. I'll do some cleaning and treat the seats for the year then wait for the barge to get out and put my lifts in. Picking up my checkmate next Saturday. I'm pumped.

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Buddies brand new Malibu yesterday.

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Nice day on Lake St. Clair yesterday.

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Finally ready. Went for a swim Easter Sunday.

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Lunch on the lake today.

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I am in

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I'm thinking about a 2007-2010 Formula, Cobalt or Chaparral...I've heard good things about all 3, not sure which is the best value. The only advise I keep getting from locals is stick to outboards? I'm pretty handy with cars and engines in general but I've never worked on a boat so I'm trying to learn.

I thoroughly enjoy an I/o but have all outboards now. I guess it depends on if you plan to leave the boat in the salt water. an outboard can be trimmed out and flushed after use if its left in the water. and inboard or IO is more work to flush when left in.

I think you put those 3 in the right order 1/2/3

(imho)

Ha, thank you, the research may be paying off Assuming the same size and amenities, would you buy the older version of Formula or Cobalt vs a year or two newer Chaparral if they were the same price?

Say far away from early 2000 Chaparrals
I had a 2004 31' Signature that was a piece of crap
Current quality has improved, in maybe the last 10 years - But the one I owned, had too many quality issues due to poor workmanship to list.
Everything from engine installation, to fit and finish.
You could not give me one today for free.

10000% go for a used Formula or Cobalt - Both excellent boats
Also SeaRays have usually been built well in the past

I'm new to boat ownership and completely new to sailing as of late last season (2020).

Sure is exciting, though. Learning a ton about repairs and maintenance in the off season.

Just put a new coat of VC17M on this weekend. I've done all the repairs needed while on hard. Can't wait for my first full sailing season on lake Michigan!

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There is a big difference in quality between Formula and Chaparral. I can't speak to Cobalt from first hand knowledge but my understanding is that they are slotted in between. It comes down to what type of boating that you are trying to do. I have the pictures of my Formula (31PC) being made and sent my FIL to the factory for a tour while they were building it. The construction is off the charts. Of course, you pay for that quality. All things being equal, I would lean that way or Cobalt.

Formula is leaning heavy into outboards, particularly in FL. These are in the past few model years, so could be tough to find use. Outboards are great because you can tilt them out of the water for storage. I have twin 377 Magnums in mine and store it on a lift, so not concerned about that aspect.

Just anecdotally, I have talked with folks and they have preferred the early to mid 2010's Sea Ray cabin cruisers to the new ones due to a change in hull and cabin layout. It came down to Formula and Sea Ray when we bought ours but the fit and finish of the Formula was just that little ahead of Sea Ray. Like you said, excellent boats but whatever changes they made have been a point of observation around here.

Great....thanks for the info, I'm looking at something with a cabin down below, I was leaning towards the Chaparral signature anywhere between 28 to 30, but I'll switch my focus to the other 2 brand. Outboards in those models are rare, I haven't seen any that's less than a couple of years old, so I may have to stick to I/O engine. I will be taking it out of the water and trailering it. I live less than 10 min from a Marina. Again, I'm kind of green when it comes to this things.

PS: During the research I came across a lot of chatter about hull quality of Searays, supposedly they're not very solidly built anymore. Crownline got hi marks, as did Chaparral. if you get a chance take a look at this video "Crownline boats why weight matters"
https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1588820944476381

Is anybody else

Depending upon the length and beam that you are talking, these boats might not really be trailerable. My boat for example is 11.5 beam and 34 overall, and weighs 15,000 pounds dry. If you are going smaller, they can be if you have a sufficient truck. Now this is for a Cabin Cruiser. If you are looking at something with a small cuddy, then the weight comes down.

Would you ever consider a boatel? That size boat is very rackable. Call them up and they drop it in.

Outboards on that size and type boat are really over the last 4-5 years.

Thanks again, yes, I meant a cuddy, rather than an actual cabin, I have to be able to put on a trailer. Depending on the weight I may have to adjust to a shorter boat.

Hey kvan99 just played around a little bit on Formula's page and it appears that they have cut out some of the smaller cabin cruiser options, and then you have to be a certain size for outboards. They cut out my 31 PC, which was super popular because they could make a whole lot more shifting them to the 34. Your best bet might be to see what you can find about 5-6 years used if you are looking at that type of boat.

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Great, thanks....I'll definitely keep Formula and Cobalt in the forefront now.

Seeing this MSRP makes me feel a lot better about G23!

Boat prices are insane right now. I got a great deal when we built mine at the end of 2014 because Formula was just rebounding from O8 and wanted to keep the line moving. I have a standing offer from the dealership for more than I paid for my boat but the problem is that everything has gone up so much it makes no sense to sell and rebuy for higher.

My boat is nothing to snuff at but when two houses across the cove have 40ft plus Hinkleys each, then you are getting into some serious coin.

You are going to need a big ass truck to tow a 31' boat.
Most people don't realize the what kind of truck is required to SAFELY tow stuff
A 28' boat can weight well over 8,000 lbs - then you have to include trailer weight and anything else you put in the boat and truck including fuel, gear and people. You have to consider not only the truck's towing capacity, but also it's payload capacity.

Thanks, I understand, how about one 25-27 Ft? Btw, I live literally 7-10 minutes away from the Marina...so there won't be any long hauls.

It is less about the size of the boat and more of its configuration and weight. A center console is going to weigh less than something with a cabin, outboards weigh less than inboards, etc.

https://www.keepyourdaydream.com/payload/
This is a good video for RV's but it translates the same to boats
and he has a good spreadsheet link for GVWR and Payload Calc

you would think, but my buddy has a 25' Regulator center console that has a dry weight of well over 8,000 lbs - more than some 30' express cruisers
so always check the specific stats for what you are going to tow

Good point. Regulators are heavy ass boats. And well made!

The questions made me go look at some of the towing capacity of trucks these days and even though there are some that can haul 20,000 plus I would not dare pull mine. When they sent it from the factory they had it on a lowboy.

I think a large % of people don't understand what is required to tow safely - and honestly it can be confusing
A lot forget to check and take into account payload capacity of their tow vehicle

I think the one thing that people neglect as well is it is one thing to have the towing capacity to launch a boat; it is completely another thing to have the capacity to launch and retrieve a boat. I have seen more than one vehicle slide back off the ramp because they did not have enough power to get up the ramp.

That is some funny shit right there. I feel like the guy sitting drinking beer when we watch boats docking at restaurants.

The funniest thing we ever saw was at a place called The Pointe here on the Bay. They have a big U shaped dock and this guy in a pretty small Bayliner (17 to 19 footer) open bow was parking in the middle of the U. Had his wife and child on the boat. As opposed to parallel parking or using a pole, dude ran straight into the middle of the dock with everybody watching (probably 250-300 people). Shook the whole dock to the point that somebody almost fell in. Wife lays into the husband loudly (making a scene) and tells him to go order food and starts chugging a bottle of wine. He comes back with drinks and she yells "No, you dumb MF'er, you dont get to sit on the boat!" and made him go away. About an hour later when he comes back with the food, we have a much louder, much drunker repeat. Dude had to give her the food and he had to go sit on the end of the dock to eat. The craziest shit I have ever seen.

2 most entertaining places to watch boaters are the ramp and the gas dock
in boating, slow and steady and even slower always wins out