Toy Boat 2 Candidates – The First Cut…

First, here are all the boat manufacturers that I considered that didn’t have dealers within 200 miles (note: Mako, Aquasport and Carolina Skiff now have dealers in the Southern California area ):

Toy Boat 2 Candidates – The Second Pass…

Here are the manufacturers who did not offer a boat that could meet the size requirements, or could not handle the old motor, or the old motor clearly would not be big enough to push effectively, or the local dealers would only sell a boat/motor package:

Toy Boat 2 – The Finalists…

So after all the reading, sifting and sorting, I was left with these finalists:

Manufacturer Model Comments
Boston Whaler Montauk 17 The classic Whaler hull, but a wet and harsh ride, and not enough fuel capacity.
Boston Whaler Outrage 17 A good fit, but discontinued
Scout 175 Sportfish A good-looking boat, but decided not to proceed with this boat, because the local dealer had only just picked up the line, and was not an experienced fishing boat dealer
Hydrasports 180 Seahorse A strong contender, but the OMC Bankruptcy caused me to shy away
Pacific Skiff V1725 Based in Washington state & no dealers nearby, but after seeing the 19′ version at one of the trade shows, I felt this boat was worth taking the chance on. The V1725 was an absolutely outstanding aluminum hull. Thick (1/4″) plate bottoms, very clean design, factory-installed zincs, very good workmanship. Eventually knocked off the list due to cost (base hull alone was around $15,000 without options). As of 2017, this hull is no longer offered.
Western Fiberglass Eagle 180 The Western Fiberglass Eagle is a rolled edge (linerless) hull built along the lines of a Carolina style skiff – lots of flare, sharp entry, etc. The price was right, but after scrutinizing the location of the bow eye, it looked like the 180 was going to be a few inches too long on the trailer. The next model down, the 160, was too small. Otherwise, it would have been a great choice for us.
Edgewater 175 CC Unsinkable construction, good fuel capacity, very good hull design (lots of flare, sharp entry, reverse chines to control spray), and almost exactly the right size.