Hey all, my wife and I are ready to purchass our new bass boat and this will be our first fiberglass boat ever. I assure you I have looked, read and touched every make of bass boat there is, but i sure could use some help in finding the best bang for my buck (brand I am talking about) when buying a NEW fiberglass bass boat. We will probably buy a 19 or 20 fter, I would sure appreciate any help or suggestions.          Thank you very much.mm

Stratos pretty much nails the best bang for your buck.

Gambler  

I second the Stratos.  I've never had one but all I hear is about how they are the best boat without breaking the bank.  Also you will find great deals on 1-2 year old boats as well.  Look around, you may be able to find a used Ranger or Triton for less than a new Stratos in the same length.  

You cannot go wrong with Ranger.  My 1973 Bassmaster Classic is old & slow, but rock solid.  I would look for one that's just a few years old if you cannot afford new.

When I was boat shopping and still considering 'glass I looked at every brand I could.

Bang for the buck would have to go to Skeeter and Stratos.

I wish I would have bought the skeeter. It was a TZX190, dual graphs(X135's), yammi 150hpdi, hotfoot, trailer with aluminum wheels, cover, spare tire EXCELLENT fit & finish. All that for $23500. The TZX200 was $28k at my local dealer.

If I had a large lake close by I would have gotten it.

good luck

If you are looking for bang for the buck, I would strongly suggest a "new" used boat.  Let someone else take the original depreciation hit.  There is usually nothing wrong at all with a 2 year old boat, and you can get a lot more for the $$.  Since I own a Skeeter, I would have to side with them, but I have ridden as a back of boater in a Stratos that was really nice.  IMO, the Ranger and Stratos cut waves a little better than my Skeeter, but in a tourney where there were 3 outfitted with the same 150 horse motors, I had to slow up a few times to keep from running the other 2 down.  Whatever you decide to buy, good luck and tight lines!!

nitro and skeeter are the best i rode in. had a stratos every wave i hit was like hitting a brick wall. all the rangers i rode in took water over the bow in rough water. never had any of this happen in my nitro 901, or skeeters i rode in. i have found that nitro 9 series and skeeters are very similar. any other boat will do in small waters.

Make sure you ride before you decide.  Hopefully you can get the boat out a day with rough water so you can really make a good judgement.  I'm pretty prejudiced towards Champion.  Best rough riding boat out there.  Charger is another good one, not fast but a solid, predictable ride with incredible storage.  Stratos also makes a very nice boat and I'd also give kudo's to BassCat.  A fine boat made by a family owned business in Mountain Home, ARK.  Good luck with your search.

Thanks alot all.  My only question is why is no one talking Triton? We just had a big boat show here in Pensacola FL  and we looked at Stratos and Triton.  My wife and I both thought the Triton appeared to be a much nicer all around bass boat.  We compared the Triton TR186 fully equiped to the Larry Nixon rigged 18.5 ft. Stratos.  Both boats retailed for $26,500 minus dealer rebates.  Both equiped with 150 hp.  Basically, both boats were indentically equiped.  We are really leaning toward the Triton.  

  remember it's all about the ride. new hull technology goes over not threw the waves.read bass and walleye boats magazine.best info you can get. they do alot of boat tests

Reading doesn't do much, it's experience that he should have in the boat.

Thanks alot all.  My only question is why is no one talking Triton? We just had a big boat show here in Pensacola FL  and we looked at Stratos and Triton.  My wife and I both thought the Triton appeared to be a much nicer all around bass boat.  We compared the Triton TR186 fully equiped to the Larry Nixon rigged 18.5 ft. Stratos.  Both boats retailed for $26,500 minus dealer rebates.  Both equiped with 150 hp.  Basically, both boats were indentically equiped.  We are really leaning toward the Triton.  

Triton makes a fine boat.  Look, most of the major brands make a solid, dependable boat anymore. It all comes down to things you can't determine on the sales floor.  If you're going to drop that much money on a new boat and you've never owned one before I'd strongly suggest taking test rides in several brands before spending that much money and locking yourself into something you may or may not like either due to the way it handles in rough water or how it works just floating there as a fishing platform.