I considered buying a boat in my mid 20’s. I don’t come from a boating family, so I was very inexperienced (and still am). I always envisioned exciting and memorable days on the water with my Dad, my Father-in-law, and my wife.

I joined a bass club in my late 20’s to ease the learning curve which was extremely helpful, so I waited until I was more experienced.

My wife and I decided we wanted to pay the boat off in cash. So I waited a bit longer.

Then I was in grad school. I was also working full time with a 2 year old and a new born. I had had no free time. I’ll wait until I graduate before getting the boat.

Finally in 2023, just shy of my 36th birthday, I finally pulled the trigger on a 2023 Z18. Boy, wasn’t it nice not having a boat payment and being financially secure? Sure.

But… there is a cost of waiting.

My Dad was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2024 which has been extremely limiting.

He’s been on the boat once. And I think we went out for steelhead one time before he got sick. He was just in the hospital for the last 3 days and I honestly am not sure if he will ever get healthy enough to fish again.

My father -in-law was diagnosed with ALS last year. Watching a tall, fearless, extremely in-shape, 69 year old turn into an old man in 6-8 months and COMPLETELY lose his independence has been rough.

The visits now consist of me sitting next to him while he is hooked up to a breathing machine. What a BRUTAL, BRUTAL disease.

My point to all of this is that things do not always work out the way you want them to. And tomorrow is not promised. If you are on the fence about buying a boat, I strongly urge you to factor in the cost of elapsed time.

Obviously don’t sell your house or finance a boat for 20 years. But so what if you need to make payments on it? So what if you need to get a used boat?

If being out on the water helps connect you with the ones you love, I strongly urge you to act sooner rather than later. You can’t guarantee what things will be like in the future, the only guarantee is what you have in front of you today.

I am 100% living right now. My grandma always told me you should be able to retire when you’re young and work when you’re old. Enjoy life as much as you can within reason.

I am glad you got the boat but, I’m sorry you didn’t get to experience that with your father and in laws.

Thank you. This fires me up to finish my boat so I can take my Dad fishing. He has been recovering from a stroke and he’s ready to fish. We have been working on an 18’ StarCraft together for a few years now , while he has been slowly healing and that has been a great help for him and me to hang out together in the shop , fixing every little thing that we found wrong with the boat and trailer. I think the boat and my Dad are both ready for a few hours on the water. I hope your Dad gets better soon and you can fish with him again soon.

20 minutes ago, Skunkmaster-k said:

Thank you. This fires me up to finish my boat so I can take my Dad fishing. He has been recovering from a stroke and he’s ready to fish. We have been working on an 18’ StarCraft together for a few years now , while he has been slowly healing and that has been a great help for him and me to hang out together in the shop , fixing every little thing that we found wrong with the boat and trailer. I think the boat and my Dad are both ready for a few hours on the water. I hope your Dad gets better soon and you can fish with him again soon.

That’s awesome. Hopefully you two get the time on the water that you both deserve. Hoping for a continued recovery for your Dad.

My Dad is 85 years old, balance is not good, needs a walker, in assisted living. We can get him on to the pontoon, but just barely. He had sooo much fun catching crappie and bluegill a few weeks back.

One day we will look back and say, "that was the last time we were able to fish with Dad."

I love this topic because it involves things I am passionate about- bass fishing, boats, and personal finance. I think a lot of people buy too much boat too soon being financially irresponsible. I definitely don't think someone needs to save up and pay for a boat with cash 100%. There is a happy medium- used boat and a reasonable 3-5 year loan to get on the water. Then as we get older and earn more and save more, we can keep getting better and bigger and more expensive boats.

I agree that we need to live life and enjoy it BUT we also need to plan and spend responsibly. Odds are we're all going to live into our 80s and beyond. Financing some 75K+ boat when you're in your 30s with kids and a mortgage and other debt puts you in a position of being one negative life event from being in a really bad position. Obviously, I am talking about middle and upper middle class fellas.

I'm on my 5th boat. I had a used, cheap 14"er with a deck in my 20s and then moved to a deep V 17'er in my late 20s which I quickly changed to a tin 17' bassboat that I kept till I was 42. All these boats were used. My dad gave me interest-free loans and I paid them off quickly. Sure, I wanted something fancy but I resisted the urge and instead made investments and paid off my home. It wasn't until I was 42 that I bought a new boat. I was going to go used again but was lucky that my dad helped me out and gave me nearly half of the price of the boat. All this time I kept investing money that a lot of other guys were using to pay off boats. This past winter I splurged on the Basscat. Thankfully, my investments have done so well over the years that I was able to pay cash. Overall, I resisted the urge in my 30s and 40s to finance a new boat and instead paid off debt and invested which has left me in a great place in my 50s. Plus, I always had a boat and was always on the water. I spent a lot of time with my dad before he passed and I doubt my memories would be any better if we had been fishing out of a Ranger versus my 17' Lowe bassboat.

2 hours ago, Junk Fisherman said:

I love this topic because it involves things I am passionate about- bass fishing, boats, and personal finance. I think a lot of people buy too much boat too soon being financially irresponsible. I definitely don't think someone needs to save up and pay for a boat with cash 100%. There is a happy medium- used boat and a reasonable 3-5 year loan to get on the water. Then as we get older and earn more and save more, we can keep getting better and bigger and more expensive boats.

I agree that we need to live life and enjoy it BUT we also need to plan and spend responsibly. Odds are we're all going to live into our 80s and beyond. Financing some 75K+ boat when you're in your 30s with kids and a mortgage and other debt puts you in a position of being one negative life event from being in a really bad position. Obviously, I am talking about middle and upper middle class fellas.

I'm on my 5th boat. I had a used, cheap 14"er with a deck in my 20s and then moved to a deep V 17'er in my late 20s which I quickly changed to a tin 17' bassboat that I kept till I was 42. All these boats were used. My dad gave me interest-free loans and I paid them off quickly. Sure, I wanted something fancy but I resisted the urge and instead made investments and paid off my home. It wasn't until I was 42 that I bought a new boat. I was going to go used again but was lucky that my dad helped me out and gave me nearly half of the price of the boat. All this time I kept investing money that a lot of other guys were using to pay off boats. This past winter I splurged on the Basscat. Thankfully, my investments have done so well over the years that I was able to pay cash. Overall, I resisted the urge in my 30s and 40s to finance a new boat and instead paid off debt and invested which has left me in a great place in my 50s. Plus, I always had a boat and was always on the water. I spent a lot of time with my dad before he passed and I doubt my memories would be any better if we had been fishing out of a Ranger versus my 17' Lowe bassboat.

Couldn’t agree more with being financially responsible. I’m a finance guy by trade and I explained to my wife why taking on some debt can be a good thing. Especially when the cost of debt is lower than the market rate of return. And I will tell you that there is what makes sense and what makes a wife comfortable. We have no debt other than credit cards and that makes her comfortable. End of story there lol.

To your point about age. When I was younger I saw on the news some lady that was over 100. I always thought that was such a great thing. As I got older I see that quality of life can be a totally different topic. Using my Dad and FIL as an example, one is still able to live a limited physical life but quality of life is still there. For my FIL there is nothing left. Quality of life has a much smaller window in my experience than the median age of death. So I always keep that in mind to try my best to enjoy the “good years.”

I think what you mention about living within your means, such as financing an affordable boat for 3-5 years is sound advice. Even better advice is paying off major debt so you can be in a position to take on a little leverage for recreational things that will bring enjoyment.

Glad you were able to get the basscat! What model did you end up getting?

I was more proud of buying my first boat than when I bought my first house.

I had also not grown up around boats and am still getting the hang of it. I bought my 2014 Tracker when I was 26, and it’s still fairly new to me.

I keep things simple, if I don’t have the financial means to do something, I revisit the issue later and reevaluate at a later date. When I was younger, I fished out of a kayak for years and I enjoyed it tons, but that’s what I could afford at the time.

Enjoy the fun times, we only live once. Just don’t go bankrupt trying to fuel a hobby is my 2 cents!

I retired at 47 in 2007.

I bought and fished exclusively from an Old Town Canoe for 9 years.

In 2016, I sold my pride & joy GTO and used the funds to help purchase a new Lund 1875 Pro-V bass.

I took on about half the value of the rig as debt and never really 'felt' it.

This Lund and I have been together now for 10 years.

Shared so many just incredible memories.

The kind I dreamed about as a young boy has actually happened while fishing from this rig.

If and when a person has the time & the means - I vote "Yes - Buy The Boat Now !"

Tomorrow is guaranteed to no one.

A-Jay

16 hours ago, stk44 said:

I considered buying a boat in my mid 20’s. I don’t come from a boating family, so I was very inexperienced (and still am). I always envisioned exciting and memorable days on the water with my Dad, my Father-in-law, and my wife.

I joined a bass club in my late 20’s to ease the learning curve which was extremely helpful, so I waited until I was more experienced.

My wife and I decided we wanted to pay the boat off in cash. So I waited a bit longer.

Then I was in grad school. I was also working full time with a 2 year old and a new born. I had had no free time. I’ll wait until I graduate before getting the boat.

Finally in 2023, just shy of my 36th birthday, I finally pulled the trigger on a 2023 Z18. Boy, wasn’t it nice not having a boat payment and being financially secure? Sure.

But… there is a cost of waiting.

My Dad was diagnosed with Leukemia in 2024 which has been extremely limiting.

He’s been on the boat once. And I think we went out for steelhead one time before he got sick. He was just in the hospital for the last 3 days and I honestly am not sure if he will ever get healthy enough to fish again.

My father -in-law was diagnosed with ALS last year. Watching a tall, fearless, extremely in-shape, 69 year old turn into an old man in 6-8 months and COMPLETELY lose his independence has been rough.

The visits now consist of me sitting next to him while he is hooked up to a breathing machine. What a BRUTAL, BRUTAL disease.

My point to all of this is that things do not always work out the way you want them to. And tomorrow is not promised. If you are on the fence about buying a boat, I strongly urge you to factor in the cost of elapsed time.

Obviously don’t sell your house or finance a boat for 20 years. But so what if you need to make payments on it? So what if you need to get a used boat?

If being out on the water helps connect you with the ones you love, I strongly urge you to act sooner rather than later. You can’t guarantee what things will be like in the future, the only guarantee is what you have in front of you today.

My mom died from ALS. It's horrible. I wouldn't wish that disease on my worst enemy.

I traded a '66 Mustang in need of some TLC for cousin's 1986 fish & ski when I was about 36. I told the wife it was our family boat. I told my dad we would fish a lot since he no longer had a fishing boat. Well, turns out the wife wasn't really into fishing or boating. After a few years my dad told me he got tired too quickly for fishing. He was getting up in age and not really in good shape. That was a sad day for me. My daughter loved going with me when she was little and I could do no wrong. But that changed when she got a little older and got into girlie stuff. So there I was on the big lake competing with boats loaded with technology for 1-2 lb. bass.

Fast forward a few years and I almost gave the boat away to be rid of it. Bought a kayak, then bought a nicer one, then sold it and simplified again. That's my niche. Small, a simple craft on small waters away from anyone else fishing. I've caught more and bigger bass and enjoyed myself more than I ever would have in a bass boat.

50 minutes ago, stk44 said:

Couldn’t agree more with being financially responsible. I’m a finance guy by trade and I explained to my wife why taking on some debt can be a good thing. Especially when the cost of debt is lower than the market rate of return. And I will tell you that there is what makes sense and what makes a wife comfortable. We have no debt other than credit cards and that makes her comfortable. End of story there lol.

To your point about age. When I was younger I saw on the news some lady that was over 100. I always thought that was such a great thing. As I got older I see that quality of life can be a totally different topic. Using my Dad and FIL as an example, one is still able to live a limited physical life but quality of life is still there. For my FIL there is nothing left. Quality of life has a much smaller window in my experience than the median age of death. So I always keep that in mind to try my best to enjoy the “good years.”

I think what you mention about living within your means, such as financing an affordable boat for 3-5 years is sound advice. Even better advice is paying off major debt so you can be in a position to take on a little leverage for recreational things that will bring enjoyment.

Glad you were able to get the basscat! What model did you end up getting?

That's great advice about enjoying the good years. I read the book last year "Die with Nothing" and it talked about the number of people who save, save, save and never really enjoy themselves during their prime years and when they retired they were either too tired or in too poor of shape to do the things they always planned. I have kept that in mind and didn't want it to be me. I was always planning to get a high end bassboat when I approached retirement age but I asked myself- what am I waiting for? I had the money and I didn't like my old boat. Yeah, I took a big hit selling my old boat but I'm very happy with my boat now. I bought a Basscat Cougar. (I shamelessy include a picture.)

@A-Jay Wow, it’s really been 10 years with the pro-v bass? Seems like it can’t be older than 5 years, but man does time fly. I fish Erie once a year, but each time it makes me question why I went the traditional fiberglass route.

19 minutes ago, stk44 said:

@A-Jay Wow, it’s really been 10 years with the pro-v bass? Seems like it can’t be older than 5 years, but man does time fly. I fish Erie once a year, but each time it makes me question why I went the traditional fiberglass route.

Yup, 10 years.

Also, if I could design ( and afford) a quality fiberglass rig that was super similar to the Pro-V Bass, including the 25 inch transom, I would seriously consider it. Would need a V8 300 hp for sure though. To compensate for the extra weight. Plus I like to go fast.

😎

A-Jay

26 minutes ago, the reel ess said:

My mom died from ALS. It's horrible. I wouldn't wish that disease on my worst enemy.

I traded a '66 Mustang in need of some TLC for cousin's 1986 fish & ski when I was about 36. I told the wife it was our family boat. I told my dad we would fish a lot since he no longer had a fishing boat. Well, turns out the wife wasn't really into fishing or boating. After a few years my dad told me he got tired too quickly for fishing. He was getting up in age and not really in good shape. That was a sad day for me. My daughter loved going with me when she was little and I could do no wrong. But that changed when she got a little older and got into girlie stuff. So there I was on the big lake competing with boats loaded with technology for 1-2 lb. bass.

Fast forward a few years and I almost gave the boat away to be rid of it. Bought a kayak, then bought a nicer one, then sold it and simplified again. That's my niche. Small, a simple craft on small waters away from anyone else fishing.

Very sorry to hear that about your Mom. I never knew how bad it is until experiencing it first hand. One of the most underfunded diseases.

The stage I’m in right now my 8 year old likes to go out with me. My wife comes out maybe 1-2 times per year. My oldest is into “girlie” stuff as well but she comes out every once and a while to bounce a ned jig head off my head.

My grandfather introduced me to fishing at a very young age. My first time in a fishing boat was in a wooden boat that he built with a 10 HP outboard. He later upgraded to an aluminum Jon boat with a 25 HP. Those experiences on the water with my grandfather are priceless memories. How much better would those memories be if we had been fishing out of a high end bass boat? NOT ONE BIT! I share this to say you don't need an expensive boat to create precious memories with family and friends. In fact too many people are convinced they need to wait till they can afford the boat they really want. You'll never own the perfect boat. The day you think you've bought the perfect boat you will begin to realize there are better boats to be had. It's about the experience, not the boat.

The key is to learn to live and enjoy life within your means. I would never borrow money for fishing. Fishing does not have to be expensive. My first boat was a used 17ft Aluminum Tracker with a 50hp motor. My current boat is a 18ft Aluminum Ranger with a 90hp. I don't think I missed out on ANYTHING by buying within my means when I was young. I retired at 59 and do a lot more fishing and create a lot more memories now that I'm retired. I'm 63 and would still be working if I'd been making boat payments for the last 35 years. I'm so glad I didn't go down that path.

I totally agree. Do not wait until it’s too late because you only live once & there are no guarantees in life except death & taxes. My father had already passed before I bought my first boat in my late fifties so he never got to go with me after purchase. My only advice regarding boat purchases is don’t buy what you can not comfortably afford. Being old school I appreciate & have always practiced not to encumber debt I could not handle.

Checks and balances

Be smart

Timing is everything in life

If you work hard or have worked hard and you want a bass boat you better go get it. The clock is ticking, father time spares no one.

I’m 70 and if I didn’t have a bass boat I’d be slap miserable. If you love bass fishing buy the boat you can afford and make whatever sacrifices needed.I’ve had canoes and Jon boats since I was a kid. Bought my first bass boat at 36 and never looked back.The only regret I have is I wish I’d bought one when I was 26.

This is part of the reason that the "Show your ride" thread is my favorite one on the forum.

I've had my own boat now 10 years - this is the 11th season. I've made so many good memories with my wife, dog, father, son, and friends already. I grew up in a family that always had a fishing boat, but I constantly dreamed about the day I could buy my own, accessorize it myself, and use it whenever I want.

My father is 74 now and although he never says it, I think he enjoys going in my boat now than he does in his own because he doesn't have to do anything except fish. No driving the truck, boat, running the bow mount, staying on structure, etc. He just takes the back deck and fishes at his own pace.

There are days when I launch to go fishing where I almost don't even care if I catch anything. I just want to throttle down and feel the wind on my face.

6 hours ago, Junk Fisherman said:

That's great advice about enjoying the good years. I read the book last year "Die with Nothing" and it talked about the number of people who save, save, save and never really enjoy themselves during their prime years and when they retired they were either too tired or in too poor of shape to do the things they always planned. I have kept that in mind and didn't want it to be me. I was always planning to get a high end bassboat when I approached retirement age but I asked myself- what am I waiting for? I had the money and I didn't like my old boat. Yeah, I took a big hit selling my old boat but I'm very happy with my boat now. I bought a Basscat Cougar. (I shamelessy include a picture.)

Ok it’s coming back to me now. I fully remember seeing this boat from another thread. Between the boat, the trailer, and motor, I feel like I’m looking at a work of art.

14 hours ago, stk44 said:

Very sorry to hear that about your Mom. I never knew how bad it is until experiencing it first hand. One of the most underfunded diseases.

The stage I’m in right now my 8 year old likes to go out with me. My wife comes out maybe 1-2 times per year. My oldest is into “girlie” stuff as well but she comes out every once and a while to bounce a ned jig head off my head.

I remember when my daughter was little she would complain that my reel sprayed her with mist when I cast. I do so miss the little buddy phase. She's 21 now and about to be a senior in college. We're still buddies. We binge TV shows together. We occasionally hike, but I'm still a little less than 100% from surgery.

It’s not so much how you make the connection but that you make the connection however you can. Fishing is a great way to do that. I’ve always said spend the day with someone on a boat and you will get to really know them. My grandfather started it when he took me to Canada with him and my grandmother. I gave my father some of the best days of his life either on my bass boat later in life or my 2 man pvc boat catching 75-100 smallmouth a day on the Shenandoah. So much so that’s where he wanted his ashes spread. My father in law was a fly fisherman and tied his own flies. I was able to take him to the magical waters of the Shenandoah as well where we wade fished with him and I learned the art of fly fishing. My son and daughter have spent quality time with me on the boat. As a guide I had very rewarding experiences. Taking wounded soldiers out in multiple events literally changed my life. 24 years of fishing with friends on Lake St Clair and more recently Florida has kept me connected and balanced in retirement. So yeah, boating and fishing has benefited me and those around me for years.

Alas, the motley crew lol