Posts: 3479
Location: Elk River, Minnesota | Good Morning!!
If you can, I would suggest going with a used rig. You will definitely get more bang for your buck and with the lakes you are looking to fish, the extra size will be nice to have. The classic 165 is a little smaller than my navigator 165 and I've been on Chequamegon Bay Lake superior in some farily large waves and I wasn't nervous of the boat having issues...but it was a bit much for trying to fish out of and control.
for the same price as new, you can probably get into a a nice 18 foot rig with a bit more power. Being you are looking to do a bit of walleye fishing, a tiller would be nice for backtrolling if that is how you fish. I have a console version for muskies and there are times I wish I had tiller, just for the room.
I think the best thing you can do is make a list of the items you like/dislike and then start climbing through to see what you find. I know when I purchased my navigator, I spent a few hours just going through things like ease of mounting electronics, storage, rod locker length, deck space, room for a kicker, etc. Lots of variables to check into...
the search is half the fun, and so long as you are enjoying the search, it's a good thing. If there is limited funding, used will get you more, although keeping just a touch of money set aside to have a mechanic go over the motor would be a good thing too...
Enjoy!!
Steve |
