Advice needed on cheap / entry point boat to get offshore

[fishitalltheway]

Hi guys,

I’m new to this online community and was in search of some sound advice from people who have gone through the same process of trying to find the right boat at the right price that has offshore fishing ability.

I am based on the Central Coast of NSW and have fished and boated my whole life. I have owned a few bigger pricy fishing boats such as a 7m Bar Crusher and other alloy boats over the years but sadly had to give it all up a few years ago in order to front a house deposit and then help financially with a growing family.

However now I'm looking again but in the cheaper, smaller end of the market. I optimally want to spend as little as possible for something that gives me the ability to get off shore in good weather to fish the reefs or live bait for kings etc.

I would like to keep it under 5m for easy handling when fishing by myself, something reasonably dry, hence avoiding centre console and ideally I am looking for something that comes under the price of 15k.

Perhaps I am kidding myself that such a boat is out there but then again perhaps not?

I have looked at, test driven and am almost sold on the Webster Twinfishers and if I could find one (non-centre console) under the 15k mark at around 4.6m would probably jump on it.

Can anyone suggest other makes or brands in the same size range that are great in chop/swell and good at rest offshore?

Open to suggestions and will consider anything that would make a good fishing platform.

Travis

[kmcrosby78]

Welcome mate and good luck with the search. Amongst your searching I'd suggest keeping a close eye on Gumtree as some good deals pop up and if you aren't in a super hurry I'm pretty confident you'll get a nice rig that fits the bill for around $15k. I've been keeping an eye out for a 16-17ish foot centre console (realistically don't need to upgrade for a few years once my young kids get a little older however who knows if a cracker of a deal pops up ....) so I keep an eye on both QLD and NSW in my searches in case they are within a 'reasonable' drive.

As an example, I just took a quick look and found these, which may or not suit what you are after:

/>http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/mulgrave/motorboats-powerboats/ally-craft-475-bar-raider-runabout/1079854489

/>http://www.gumtree.com.au/s-ad/mona-vale/motorboats-powerboats/stejcraft-5-metre-runabout-1995-model-very-clean-power/1077544363

Cheers and good luck.