Thoughts on 17ft Fiberglass vs Aluminum Outboard

Been keeping an eye on a used 17-18 fiberglass outboard boat for the very young family for cruising to beaches, the occasional tube ride (no skiiing or wakeboarding) and occasional fishing. Boat won't be used much really, just looking to get out with the family and my little 12' with 9.9 ain't gonna cut it. Would like to spend around $10k. Most glass outboards are 90's area it seems so a bit wary on rotten wood so I started watching the open bow aluminum boats as an option as well.

Pros of aluminum: Tougher, no hull maintenance, easy to repair, lighter, cheaper to buy & operate
Pros of fiberglass: Better riding/stability in waves, quieter, "warmer", open bow is "deeper" so likely safer with young kids

As I research more I started to think aluminum is the way to go for an outboard but looking for S&M's thoughts on this. If anyone has a boat for sale feel free to PM. I am still looking at inboards if it's the right boat.

I wouldn't say aluminum is cheaper.... holds it's value better yes, but are very expensive to buy bigger than 12'-14'. $10K will get you a nice boat. Young family - think comfort and the ability to close in the cockpit. A deep V is nice and stable, my first one was an 18' excel deep V "mud-duck" super stable and with it being a deeper boat it was almost impossible for youngins to fall out, but it did not have a swim platform so that was a negative. Open bow is nice for the extra room especially if you are going to have more than 3-4 people.

Something like this is a real nice family boat but I'm told one should avoid the mercury "Force" outboards - all the other merc's are good.

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-powerboat-motorboat/calgary/1996-starcraft-1700-outboard-120-hp/1494839258

Campion makes a real nice boat

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-powerboat-motorboat/edmonton/campion-boat/1494502929

Fawk I love boats...… we'll be lucky if the ice is out by may long this year....

Bogger said:

I wouldn't say aluminum is cheaper.... holds it's value better yes, but are very expensive to buy bigger than 12'-14'. $10K will get you a nice boat. Young family - think comfort and the ability to close in the cockpit. A deep V is nice and stable, my first one was an 18' excel deep V "mud-duck" super stable and with it being a deeper boat it was almost impossible for youngins to fall out, but it did not have a swim platform so that was a negative. Open bow is nice for the extra room especially if you are going to have more than 3-4 people.

Something like this is a real nice family boat but I'm told one should avoid the mercury "Force" outboards - all the other merc's are good.

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-powerboat-motorboat/calgary/1996-starcraft-1700-outboard-120-hp/1494839258

Campion makes a real nice boat

https://www.kijiji.ca/v-powerboat-motorboat/edmonton/campion-boat/1494502929

Fawk I love boats...… we'll be lucky if the ice is out by may long this year....

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Thanks for the good feedback.

I’ve actually contacted both those boat owners so good to hear I’m on the right track. Brother inlaw has the same Force and has had 0 problems in 15 years owning it.

If you can get a welded rather than a riveted boat. Rivets can come loose after a few years. Mostly on higher hour boats and if they were used on bigger waves. I personally never seen one but that’s one thing I was told to watch out for. And being a welder I like the thought of it more.

j335 said:

Thanks for the good feedback.

I’ve actually contacted both those boat owners so good to hear I’m on the right track. Brother inlaw has the same Force and has had 0 problems in 15 years owning it.

Click to expand...

I have no experience with the Force motors, it's just what I've been told by many. when it comes to boats the bigger the better, we have a cuddy because the wife likes to be able to get out of the sun and read also having a toilet on board is nice for the ladies.

That first one pictured was our last boat, 1994 Four Winns 238, it had a full cabin with washroom & kitchen and would sleep 4 comfortably - I paid $15K for it 10 years ago. It's a bigger boat but was no more difficult to launch & retrieve than a 17'

The last 2 pics are our current boat Regal 2650 LSC - it's a cuddy, sleeps 2 and has a porta-potty with an outdoor kitchen it was a little more spendy but it's sure comfortable. will easily fit 10 people and when we take the grandkids out there is lots of room for them to move around. This one is a little more tricky to retrieve but that has more to do with the fact that the trailer is a roller as opposed to a bunk.