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Seeking 18 foot, open style boat

Wanted 
5K views 50 replies 16 participants last post by  JD7 
#1 ·
Kind of a long shot here but looking for a 18 foot open tiller style boat. Will be a bit of a do everything boat from crabbing at the coast, chasing salmon and shad in rivers and a lot of stillwater fly fishing. Used boat market is really tough right now with low inventory and high prices so I'm trying to cast a wide net. Regular honest folks hoping to deal with same. Located in PDX area but will drive for the right boat.
 
#3 ·
Josh,
Let me know what you are trying to find- project or ready to fish? Traditional low side, forward steering with a big motor or something else? Budget? I am looking at boats in a lot of places and can keep looking down here for something.JD
 
#7 ·
While a project would be fun, probably not going to happen at this point. So I'm looking for a basic ready to fish boat. Not the fancy fiberglass with a 200hp on the back. Those are cool and all, but more than I need or can afford.

I'm hunting for something along the lines of an aluminium Tracker with a 50 horse.
 
#4 ·
I might have what your looking for, I have a 18ft Lund Alaskan with a 40 hp and crab pot. I has sat for a long time and i’m moving to a sled. I can only have one boat so my better half said for me to get the sled if have to find a home for my other boat. Pm me if you want pics but I’m not in any hurry if you want to check it out it’s in Bellevue wa.
 
#5 ·
I might have what your looking for, I have a 18ft Lund Alaskan with a 40 hp and crab pot. I has sat for a long time and i'm moving to a sled. I can only have one boat so my better half said for me to get the sled if have to find a home for my other boat. Pm me if you want pics but I'm not in any hurry if you want to check it out it's in Bellevue wa.
HI Den,
I think you and I might be shopping for something similar! We had an old windshield boat that just wasn't right for our needs- wasted space, hard to fly cast, never went in rough water so didn't need the windshield, hard to access the bow. We are hoping to find something from one of the mainstream NW boatmakers- Alumaweld, Koffler, North River, Willie, Duckworth...

(PS. How big of a boat are you looking for? I have seen a couple really good 20 footers down here but I can't fit a 20 in our covered storage.)
 
#8 ·
Got it. I will keep eyes open. How big of a boat can you buy/store? There actually have been some pretty decent jonboat style rigs for sale recently. I saw a good one on Facebook Marketplace just within the last few weeks. If I can find it I will send your way.
 
#11 ·
I too hope to be in this market soon.
18-20 foot Aluminum - older boat is fine
main tiller motor (125-200 hp - can be prop or pump), plus kicker.
want to add fishing the Columbia and rivers to my arsenal. plus saltwater action.
does not need to be used for Fly fishing. This will be a meat boat!
 
#23 ·
Decent freshwater boat. Semi V clipper hull can keep you drier and a little smoother ride, but wastes a lot of interior space in a smaller boat dedicated to fly fishing. I found it a bit odd that he says "too much boat for him as he's at anchor in local lakes with a speed limit." I would guess he's talking about Craine Prairie, Lava, maybe even Wickiup, East, similar, and I do not see a 16' boat with a 50 being "too much boat" in most of the Cascade lakes. Just my first reaction.
my boat, and good call, those are the lakes I fish...90% of the time around the fringes in shallow water, usually by myself, launching from ramps that tend to get shallow as summer progresses. So for a 71 year old with a cranky back, sensible trade swapping out a 1200# deep V for a lightweight 14' tiller skiff to 'age' with.

Bought the Fisher last spring as 'best available' at the time, after relocating to Bend area from the coast, leaving my salmon skiff behind.
The Fisher is a great boat for cruising, hull slices through chop with zero bounce, and it's Cadillac flyfishing banging out casts from the cushy elevated casting chair.

And that 'whirring' sound was the impeller, replaced as part of a $650 top to bottom service performed by the Cascade Lakes Mercury dealer last fall. Who will have it back in their hands end of month to de-winterize, run it up, verify everything is good to go.

There are no perfect boats, just ones that best meet our current needs.
 
#25 ·
The Fisher is a great boat for cruising, hull slices through chop with zero bounce, and it's Cadillac flyfishing banging out casts from the cushy elevated casting chair.
I feel like this might be just the thing for a guy taking an older father in law with bad knees and an 11 year old who isn't sure about swimming out to go bass fishing. Now if only I knew someone like that...
 
#33 ·
Who knew there were boat flippers? Apparently the used boat market is so hot right now guys are making flipping boats a thing. Sunday afternoon a nice open boat was posted near Chehalis. I contacted the seller and we agreed to talk the next morning on the phone. I called and the boat was sold. His list price was 16,500. Last night the same boat (same registration #s) was posted online here in Oregon for 24,000. It isn't worth that but guy can probably sell for 20. Going to be a tough market for "regular" guys just trying to find a boat to fish.
 
#38 ·
Totally hear you “don’t settle on something that isn’t quite right.” This buying frenzy almost makes a guy want to have “something” even if it isn’t exactly right. I was really close myself to buying something that had the wrong main motor just so I had a boat. Like you, I have an option (old driftboat) I can use for most things and then fish with friends. Boats are toys.
 
#39 ·
I have a 20 ft custom Koffler boat with a center console. Interesting story.....The boat was designed by me specifically for fly fishing. too much to list... but here are the highlights........Decks front and back with rod storage to carry 16 strung ready to fish fly rods. Honda 150 prop with 200 +/- hours . fish finder, 101 # riptide auto pilot electric troller foot pedal control and remote . Sea Deck on all flat surfaces. Garage kept. In Ca.
 
#45 ·
I am about to start thinking bad things about my fishing brothers up in Washington! For the 2nd time I had a verbal deal with a boat owner in Washington and before we met to exchange money for boat, the seller backed out (one guy said it wasn't for sale and another, yesterday, sold to someone else). While I am not naive enough to think this doesn't happen, if a grown man literally tells you, "I will take down the ad and hold it for you until Saturday" and we have the bank picked and confirmed for our meeting, is a person crazy for getting angry when a 1 line text/email comes Friday at 7pm "Sorry, sold the boat" or in the 1st case "Boat is no longer for sale?" We are several hours into the conversations in both of these cases. Supposed to be picking up the new boat literally right now, 10:30 up near Monroe. Grrrr. OK, rant over, other than the Huskies football team and these 2 sellers I still like the Washington guys. Please keep your eyes open for a nice 18 or 17 foot open boat that would work for fly guys fishing lakes.
 
#46 ·
I've not experience that with a boat. But, I've had that happen where I was suppose to meet a guy to buy a fishing rod off of him, he was a no show, and no response.

It's a sellers market up here. Homes are going for above asking price, and boats are going to the first guys with cash in hand. A neighbor was trying to buy a cargo trailer, and every time he'd ask to take a look at it, it was sold out from under him. Finally he just told the last person, I'm on my way with cash in hand.
 
#49 ·
All of what is described in previous posts is the same situation here in western Canada. I’ve put up a few pricier items for sale and they were gone within minutes. Probably undercut myself on the prices, but thought it just fair. Craziness. My guess is that in a year or two a lot of this stuff is going to be back out on the market, as people discover some of these recreational pursuits aren’t for them or these items are going unused just takin up space in a garage.
 
#50 ·
I have wondered if I should just write this entire year off, fish out of the old driftboat and buy a year from now when this covid crazy is behind us. The last few months has shown that by the time a boat with an affordable price shows up on the web it is already too late. I can’t imagine this will be the case forever.
 
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