Ran into a potential deal today while working. A local guy here has a 2003 Ranger 175-VS that he is selling for $9500, but I have a gut feeling after talking to him that he isn't firm on that price. He is selling it to buy a Fish&Ski for the family. He bought the boat off a guy whose dad had bought it new and passed away. Since he has had it, he has only used it 2 times, with only about 10 hours of use on it. It comes with all the goodies, and a 125 hp Merc. He is a great guy, who takes unbelievable care of his "toys". I have every bit of trust that he is shooting me straight with his knowledge of it, but I will still have a local shop take a look over the motor. I owned a small boat for about 4 years, but sold it due to my fishing partner finding a steal on a good aluminum bass boat, so this will be my first "real" bass boat. Any fellow fisherman/boat guys think this boat is too good to pass up? Anyone with any experience with Ranger in the past?
My dad could have sprayed the Gelcoat and laid the glass in that boat. He worked for them up until 2004 when he retired. They build a quality boat, it is the motor I would worry about. Might want to see if you can have it checked out by a mechanic to make sure the motor is in good shape, they aren't cheap to fix or replace.
There is a shop about 30 minutes from me that specializes in Mercury outboards. Any idea on what a routine check-up on a motor would cost?
A routine check on a boat/motor like that will cost you between $100-$200. I've learned a lot about boats in the last year while working on my boat project, and fishing quite a bit with a good friend. Have the shop check the motor for compression, and a leak down test. Have them look at the lower unit to make sure all is well there and no water in the oil in the lower unit. While they are in there have them replace the water pump housing and impeller wheel (already paying for the labor, and usually $50ish in parts). Have them check to see if the carb look good or if it will need a rebuild in the near future. Other than this, make sure all electronics work on the boat, and that the transom is solid. For the $$$, that sounds like a good deal. Keep in mind though, a 17-18'' bassboat is perfect for small to medium bodies of water, however it's not a boat that you want to be in truly big water on. My main fishing partner has a 18' Procraft with a 150 Merc on the back that I've spent a lot of time on. We were on Champlain last year for a tournament when it got nasty out, we had about a 25 mile run back to the weigh in station..........let me tell you that was a pretty scary ride home in some big rollers. You really need a 20' bass boat for big water like that when it gets bad out. You will be fine in most places, I just wouldn't get caught 10+ miles out during bad weather in Lake Michigan. Just MHO.
You are right RJ. 17.5' isn't the ideal length, but for most lakes around here it will do fine. Thanks for the info!
Would love to see pictures! Doesn't sound like a bad deal. I just have a V bottom with a trolling motor for around here. I wouldn't think there is anyplace local really where your boat size would matter. Unless you plan on traveling? My girlfriend said size doesn't matter anyway...? :D
x2 great advice here. sometime letting something sit is harder on it then it would get with everyday usage. ie.. water impellers,pumps, hoses and fuel systems. making sure a motor is properly fogged and put away at the end of a season is right at the top of any to do list.
Its not a horrible deal, but I would offer him $8000 for it and go from there. Really the worst thing you can do to a motor is not run the thing, but take it to the shop and pretty much get everything done that Rick said, change the spark plugs, and make sure the wiring is still good. Ranger is a solid boat, and like has been said as long as you are fishing real big water it will be fine. That being said, it can go anywhere as long as you check the weather and be careful.
I'm meeting up with him tonight to talk a price and I will snap some pics and get them on here. You are right about the local lakes, where a big boat is not really needed. We have fished Jacksonville, Gillespie, Newton, Coffeen, Egypt, Pittsfield, and the Illinois and Mississippi Rivers over the last few years with small 16' and 17' aluminum boats. However, me and a friend have a list of lakes to fish, where a small aluminum boat just won't cut it. Thanks for all the advice guys. Hopefully we can agree on a price, and the motor checkup comes through good.
Ohhh. Yeah, there you go. Those are our "bigger lakes". We normally fish our 84 acre or 14 acre ponds, but when we want bigger water, we head to those you've mentioned above. Good luck!
As everyone else has pointed out get the block checked out, you cant go wrong with a ranger, we've owned a few actually tourney fishing out of a Tr-20 Triton right now, great boat but my next will be another ranger... unless i find a steal. like others have stated, with a 17ft boat dont take chances in big water, its never worth it. Up here on Champlain we tourney fish with 20 and 21s, a guy in my club is actually buying a brand new 22ft ranger this year... $68,000 his cost (works for a dealer) stupid in my opinion but he wants a bigger deck than his 21 has. a 2003 merc with low hours will run like a top with regular maintenance sounds like a damn good deal to me.
