3 minutes ago, zeth said:

Look into other options as well. Charger for example...

totally agree. The one that comes on the ones I've looked at was a decent 2 bank NOCO but I'm coming from 3 bank DualPro PRO on my old Ranger and will most likely never stray. Really awesome charger that's worth it's price tag.

20 hours ago, iabass8 said:

totally agree. The one that comes on the ones I've looked at was a decent 2 bank NOCO but I'm coming from 3 bank DualPro PRO on my old Ranger and will most likely never stray. Really awesome charger that's worth it's price tag.

not that kind of charger, this kind which is arguably better than nitro andpriced similarly: 

 http://www.chargerboats.com

 

 

My 2014 z8 is for sale if you are interested message me.

Beware of Nitro for a Life Long boat they are cheaper than a Ranger for a reason....  Trailers are made of cheap box steel that rusts from the inside out.  The Pro's only use their Nitro's for one season so they do not have to worry about trailer rot or transom issues 5-10 years down the road.  Ranger trailers are made from C channel and get painted on all sides.   I would set a budget and look for a used Ranger, Phoenix, or Legend.  I settled on the Z119c series (cheaper line) of Ranger.  Did not need all the bells and whistles of the 519 series.  Bit the bullet on a new Ranger because I too am planning on this being my lifer boat and I wanted the lifetime hull warranty.

17 hours ago, stfreed said:

Beware of Nitro for a Life Long boat they are cheaper than a Ranger for a reason....  Trailers are made of cheap box steel that rusts from the inside out.  The Pro's only use their Nitro's for one season so they do not have to worry about trailer rot or transom issues 5-10 years down the road.  Ranger trailers are made from C channel and get painted on all sides.   I would set a budget and look for a used Ranger, Phoenix, or Legend.  I settled on the Z119c series (cheaper line) of Ranger.  Did not need all the bells and whistles of the 519 series.  Bit the bullet on a new Ranger because I too am planning on this being my lifer boat and I wanted the lifetime hull warranty.

So, my good friend's 1997 Nitro 185 Sport should have fallen apart 10 or 15 years ago?  He says he will never sell it and fishes once or twice a week on big lakes.  Hmmm.

No where did I say "every nitro will fall apart in 20 years".  Heck I saw a Chevette the other day.  Maintain it and it will last longer than most.  Not everyone keeps their equipment in top notch.  I am glad your friend's 97 is still on the water.  Count the number of 1990 era Rangers on the water vs 1990 era Nitro's.  Let me know how that stat comes out.  I was simply giving this guy some advise on buying a life long keeper boat.  My son just bought a Nitro.  It was a 2003 and we spent several days repairing it and fixing things to make the trailer road worthy due to internal rust.  It will be a good boat for him for the next few years until he is ready to upgrade.  But a life long keeper boat it is not. 

I could be wrong but when I bought my tracker the owner of the dealership was showing me the new trailers on the tracker/nitro boats. They're made of the same metal that ranger makes theirs out of. He said they just started doing this on this years boats. Bass pro now owns ranger. 

Any of you guys with a z18 can you measure the height of your front rails to the rubber trim by the carpet.  Wondering if the lox-r-bar and recessed deck lights work

4 hours ago, clark9312 said:

I could be wrong but when I bought my tracker the owner of the dealership was showing me the new trailers on the tracker/nitro boats. They're made of the same metal that ranger makes theirs out of. He said they just started doing this on this years boats. Bass pro now owns ranger. 

The new Z21 I looked at a couple months ago sat on a box steel framed trailer.

I have been  away  from bass fishing for about 20 years now. The last boat we had was a ranger 481 in the min 90's and 2 skeeters and champion before  that. I have been looking at new and used bass boat to get back into fishing  and the new nitro  Z19 With PRO Package has impressed me a lot.

I agree with stfreed, there is no reason a boat should come with a tube trailer. The trailer is often overlooked. A C channel trailer will resist rust better, and it also to repair any wiring or brake line issue. Go and physically look at these boats. Feel around things like lids and hinges and ask yorself if one feels inferior to another. If you're buying something you intend on keeping, look for reviews, factory service reputation, your closest dealer, warranties etc. Either one is a huge investment. Make the right choice the first time. 

I would personally recommend BassCat, Phoenix, or Ranger. Buying slightly used will save you a bunch of money. 

I just recently purchased a 2013 Nitro Z7 with the 150 four stroke. I am not going to lie. I looked at boats for over a year and I had my mind made up that I was buying a Ranger with a budget of $30k-$40k. I just happened to come across the Nitro on CL and it was less than 75 miles from me and was just over half of my top end budget. The boat had only 40hrs on the motor and the fact that it had the four stroke Merc on it was a huge selling point. The Nitro so far seems to be an excellent boat and I have no complaints.

On 6/19/2016 at 10:05 AM, iabass8 said:

Just sold my old Ranger yesterday and am in the process of buying a 2016 z18 /w the 150 4 stroke. I found out the new black/grey 2017 color scheme is available on the 2016 z18 as well. Saw one down at bass pro in St. Charles, MO and that was it for me. Pretty excited.  I'm more of the computer savvy type and not outboard mechanically inclined. I do my own water pump/impeller/plugs/LU oil/ etc but beyond that I'm lost. One of the reasons I'm going brand new is the Merc 3 year warranty and the 6 year extension on top of the 3 is $1200 or less if you shop a bit. I also loved the ride in the z18 and the storage lockers and center storage is EXACTLY what I wanted in a boat. No brainier for somebody like me. I'm going a few adds on like a powerpole, graphs, different 3 bank charger, hot foot, but those are minor. I really, really like the Z18. 

Just purchased the 2017 Nitro Z18 with the 150hp Four Stroke. Just finished the 10 hour break in and opened the throttle a little. Easily brought her to 60mph with a little throttle and a lot of trim left. It's the Silver/Red/Black color scheme. I traded in a 2006 Skeeter SX180 115hp. Huge difference. The ride is smooth. As with any boat if you cut across big wakes at high speed your gonna feel it. If you angle them, with the hydraulic steering you'll breeze right through them with ease. 

I was in your exact shoes about 6 months ago im 23 was looking all over for a boat and couldnt believe the price tag they came with was insane. 70k+ for a brand new boat that being said because of where I fish "lake mead/ mohave most of  the time" a smaller 17 or 18 foot boat was out of the question for me the water just gets to big for those smaller boats. Grew up fishing with my grandfather in his 18ft cajun and we got beat to pieces everytime the wind picked up over 10mph. I was dead seat on a 20/21 foot boat with no smaller than a 225 after searching and searching for something I could afford I finally found what I picked up 02 stratos 21xl magnum with a brand new powerhead at 16 hours boat had a total of 361 hours on it and was taken care of. my point dont be afraid of a used boat just make sure you look it over really well and if you dont know what you are looking at bring someone who does. 

On 2/26/2016 at 12:08 PM, stfreed said:

I shopped them all and even Marshaled several Elite events so that I could ride in several different brands before upgrading.  I owned an 18' Javelin with a 175 at the time.  I was shopping for a 19-20 footer due to garage size. The Triton I could not comfortably drive due to the console hitting my knees (6'2"), the Bass Cat ride sucks (K-Pink about killed my back in 1 footers on Onieda), and the Nitros lack of storage and low gunnels on the front deck bothered me.  The Ranger's ride is above all others and I spent several days running the roughest waves Erie and St. Clair.  Rode in Skeeter and Tritons that week too and the Miracle Mile is rough no matter what brand you run it in.  Ended up with a Z119c Ranger.  It was a step down in fanciness from the 500 series and came with a lower price tag.  Lifer boat is my plan and the life time hull warranty was the sealer for me.  My Javelin was a 1995 and the transom was rotten.

Given all that each person has his own needs and priorities in a boat.  My opinion is if you can not afford a new Ranger buy a used one.  :-)

"bass cat ride sucks" you must be joking

Be careful buying a nitro. Mine is 2017 Z19 with 65.5 hrs an gel coat on bottom looks like you sanded it off. Tracker said it’s my fault cause trailer wasn’t in water deep enough to load an unload. BS, I’ve never not had my boats at least half of trailer in water. They wouldn’t even talk about it. Also was in shop 3 times before they found out nitro had pinched fuel line an caused boat to only run half speed. Costed me 3 trips at over 3 hrs round trip.