Northwest Fishing Reports

Lookin at buying a lowe 17 ft fish and ski. Anyone own any lowe boats or know anything about them?

Thanks

Tallman

Not to totally throw negative comments about them but they are basically a knockoff Lund or Smokercraft. Nice price, but not a good boat

I know Olympic Boat centers sells them. They also sell Bayliners, Maxums and Trophy's. None of those boats I'd even consider buying.

Go used. Get on craigslist and anywhere else boats might be for sale. Get used and get more for less money. You can get a 2 year old boat with low hours for much less money then the same boat new. You can usually get things like Downriggers and all sorts of accessories like fish finders and GPS units too.

I'm with Sam, if you want a fish and ski, look at a Triton before you buy a Lowe. Lowes are alright, but when I was shopping I felt the Triton was 3times the boat for very little more money in regards to build quality. I am a boat adjuster and see a lot of Lowes that I end up totaling in the upper mid west.

I will say this about Lowes, they are all welded which and roomy. They use plywood decks, that scares me. The factory puts a lifetime warranty its decks but all wood will rot at some point.

Didn't know they used plywood. Would get as far away from that as possible.
THe most boat for your money is going to come used. Find a low hours motor and a good boat, save some money or even get a bigger boat for the same money, and you'll be set.

Better run from your Lund. They have plywood all over them too. I haven't seen a boat yet that doesn't have wood in it.

My Lund is a dinghy. 12 foot model. Standard 12 foot bench seat Lund with a divided rear bench seat. Not a fish and ski boat. The ONLY wood on it is used for the tops of the bench seats. Not a big risk to have your seats made of wood. Rather have them be that plywood then the cheap look of the aluminum bench seats which are on many smaller boats..

And your transom has no ply? All aluminum boats (boats in general, glass too) have plywood in them. You just can't get away from it. I know several guy's that have Lowe boats and for the price point they're darn nice boats, and they beat them on the river fishing and hunting, very sturdy.
My Customweld has plywood in it. I would hardly classify it as a cheap boat.

got wood in my Skeeter too!

jmay wrote:I'm with Sam, if you want a fish and ski, look at a Triton before you buy a Lowe. Lowes are alright, but when I was shopping I felt the Triton was 3times the boat for very little more money in regards to build quality. I am a boat adjuster and see a lot of Lowes that I end up totaling in the upper mid west.

I will say this about Lowes, they are all welded which and roomy. They use plywood decks, that scares me. The factory puts a lifetime warranty its decks but all wood will rot at some point.

I'll bet that Triton has it's share of plywood too. Most of them I looked at at the boat show last year had plywood floors covered with marine grade vinyl. If the company is willing to stand by the floor for life what's the big deal?

I've worked on purse seiners that were pushing the million dollar mark that were made of plywood. Most of the race boat i've been involed with have had their share of plywood. The drag boat I used to own was made of plywood. It had a 625 horse 354 hemi and went 110 miles an hour, lifejacket, helmet and goggles required. Try that with a Lund or a Triton.

Rant off.

Ranking a boat because it has plywood is just nonsence. Blanket statements make it even worse.

tallman8251 wrote:Lookin at buying a lowe 17 ft fish and ski. Anyone own any lowe boats or know anything about them?

Thanks

Tallman

You might look into Hewescraft also. I had a 14' fisherman several years ago and loved it. I have heard that they only make boats now 16' and up.

Bodo,
You can rank a boat on anything if you really want...

And you've do done a very good job of it. A guy is thinking of buying a nice boat to enjoy fishing and skiing and you bash the heck out of it. It has plywood...... I'd go find a nice used boat. Then Jmay pipes in with I see lots of them totalled. Who's doing the ranking? Way to squash a dream.

Marc Martyn wrote:

tallman8251 wrote:Lookin at buying a lowe 17 ft fish and ski. Anyone own any lowe boats or know anything about them?

Thanks

Tallman

You might look into Hewescraft also. I had a 14' fisherman several years ago and loved it. I have heard that they only make boats now 16' and up.

Right on that one Marc! Good clean rides.

No one squashed a dream Bodofish. He asked what we knew about them, and we gave them the honest answer. I'm sure most normal peopple would like to know as much as they can about the boat they are buying before the throw down that much money to get it. I'd rather have him know what he's getting into instead of him finding out a few years down the line like if something major breaks.

Also consider Alumaweld. 3 Rivers Marina up in Woodinville has a huge selection, many similar 17ft fish and ski models....

Ok fair enough.
I must warn you 3 rivers marine took in my buddies boat for a service and to install some electronics. First they left his boat parked in the yard with the bow down hill and it rained and filled his cabin with water and molded all the carpet and ruined all the upholstery. Second, during giving it a tune up the motor slipped a cylinder and ruined the motor which they claimed was broken when they got it. Third, they drilled extra holes in the transom for mounting the sonar, angled the transducer to point out to the side, filled the holes with caulking rather than repair the mistake properly. They refused to discuss the motor issue, denied drilling extra holes and the corker was they said they weren't liable for damage that occures on their lot.
All that to a boat that had been meticulacely maintained and stored indoors it's entire life. We had his boat out on the lake the day before we took it in for service, it was running fine. He wanted a tune up and the new sonar for a trip Neah Bay and a run in the blue water.
All of that equals a new motor for about 12 grand, refubished interior for about 3 grand, crappy looking extra holes in the stern filled acrylic caulk, his wife can no longer go on the boat because she's allergic to mold, prepaid hotel room at Neah Bay for a week and wost of all no fishing for his week of vacation that couldn't be rescheduled.
You might say 3 rivers is pretty low on my list.
To make matters worse that fall while fishing the Sno. their guides effectivly blocked the only navigable channel on the river then got bent when we motored by, casting their lures over our boat, hooking one passenger and ruining her rain gear and threatening us with much worse. Later up the river aways they took turns buzzing us. We were in Lowe Jon boat with a 10 horse that is about 10 years old and is still in perfect shape. Caught many fish and shot many ducks from it. It's a pretty darn good boat. I wouldn't buy a rubber worm from 3 rivers.

well, I just logged on to this thread becuaue I kept seeing it pop up (I don't always read every thread on the site). All I can say is things seem to have really drifted sideways from the original topic...

kind of like the title of a favorite movie: "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly".

As to plywood, my 15 ft Klamath has had about half it's pylwood swaped out (8 years old, stored indoors). Disapointing but on the other hand, my old sailboat (handmade by your's truly) had pylwood that lasted 20 years, stored outside. Go figure.

Kirill Krakarov wrote:To all and Mr. Bodofish,

What is your BIG problem with Mr. Kafelafish? Why do you have to single him out in such a negative way? <snip> I'm open to any criticism and will listen to what anyone has to say. May everyone have the happiest fishing adventures to come!

Yours respectfully,
Kirill

Kirill,
You’re right I was angry. Angry about Sam and Jmay jumping all over Tallman’s obvious excitement about a boat he thought would fill a void in his life making him and his family happy, getting them out fishing and skiing. Not all of us can afford the Grady White to fish from and the Moomba to tow toys. They could have at least asked a little more about his find and shared in his excitement before making blanket statements about poor quality and plywood. For all we know the model he was looking at could and would serve him well for many years and given his family much enjoyment.

I’m not an angry person and I’m not angry now. I agree with most of what you are saying and I’m glad you’re sixty five and you enjoy your wife, life and grandchildren. In that you’re not alone.

I’m not singling out Sam, Jmay was right there too. Both of them are good contributors and from what I’ve read from them good guys too, I bear them no malice. I’m just as guilty of typing before thinking as anyone. Sam just happened to respond. Jmay is normally not prone to making ludicrous statements that have nothing to do with the subject at hand. Being a boat adjuster he should know that just because a he’s seen a particular brand of boat totaled doesn’t mean they’re bad boats, we don’t know why they were totaled. If you want to follow that same kind of logic you should never buy a Porsche or a Corvette because they have a high percentage of totals as well, obviously they aren’t poor quality cars.

I’m not really sure where you get off with this blanket statement but, if I may quote you, “Back on the original subject I think that Lowe boats are impractical for any situation and Tallman should hunt for another brand of boat.”. That’s about the most ridiculous statement in this thread to date. What do you base that on? Are you packing a grudge against Lowe boats? Let’s have it are you secretly a boat dealer with an assumed identity on the forum? They certainly can’t be impractical for all situations. Why, I’ve found them quite practical for fishing and hunting. The hundreds of fish and birds brought in through my buddies Lowe, bears this out. I actually know several guys that still own Lowe boats and are very happy with them and use them rigorously on a regular basis, not to mention the State and Snohomish Co. use them as well.

As for spelling, I try but sometimes I miss. I normally don’t have a proof reader standing by when on the soap box. An old saying for an old guy, those that live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones, reread your post.

As for Three River’s guides, you’re right, you weren’t there, you don’t know situation. They were wrong as wrong can be. No matter what the situation casting hooks at someone is never right, NEVER! I would have been within my right to defend myself and the others near me in that life threatening situation with what ever means necessary. The same goes for when they attacked us with their boats later that day.
River etiquette says if you are going to anchor up don’t block the river so others can’t get by. If you’re fishing in the only passable water you need to back off when people need to get by.

Soooo, I guess to get the thread back on topic.
Tallman,
I have personal experience with Lowe boats, even though I don’t own one. I’ve used them for fishing and hunting with friends on many occasions and found them to be the best boat at the time. As for skiing I can’t say, I haven’t done that in probably eighteen years. The best advice I can give when buying a new boat is, make sure the warranty covers all your concerns. All new boats have little things to fix. If it’s a used boat be ready to make a lot of repairs or pay someone to do it.

Mike, Thanks for your input too. I'm done for now.
o:)

Bodofish
I still don't get why your mad about us telling him what we think about Lowe boats. Go re-read what his first post says. He didn't say "whats your guy's thoughts about Lowe boats? Oh and only tell me good things so my dreams aren't squashed."

Anyone in their right mind wants to know exactly what sort of boat to expect and as much knowledge as possible before going and dropping several grand on a boat. It's not like your buying a candybar Bodofish. Boats are expensive and there's reasons why people come here to ask questions. They want to know as much as possible.

I don't want everyone when I'm shopping for my next boat to be telling me "Oh yea _____ boats are great you will love them!" only to have them trying to be nice and comfort me in my decision instead of giving the bare, honest truth about the boat I would be looking at.

None of us mentioned that he had to get a Grady white either, instead of a Lowe. What made you come up with that? That's completely wrong to think that we expect him to be able to fork over that money. FYI Moomba's aren't great wakeboard boats....

And why would you think Kirill is a boat dealer? Just cause he submitted HIS OPINION on Lowe boats doesn't mean you can say it's the most ridiculous thing ever said. Everyone's entitled to their own opinions, Bodo.

3rd. I really doubt that 3 Rivers, with the reputation they have and want to keep, would jeopardize their company by flinging gear at you and ripping by you. I just don't see that happening.

4th. Any old aluminum boat, like 10 or 12 foot models all look new after 10 years. Unless you drop it from your truckbed going 60 on I-90, they all look brand new after 10 years. If they don't, then I'm not sure how you could ruin a plain aluminum boat that bad. I've seen more 20 and 30 year old Lunds then any other aluminum boat, so stick with what's a known classic, cause you can't go wrong with em.

Sorry Sam,
I'm not mad about you giving your opinion and it's always welcome. You're right that he didn't ask for only good reports but maybe you could read between the lines a bit, this isn't Consumer Reoprts. It's the way in which it was done. Tallman had obviously been out shopping and seen something he liked weather it was on line or at a dealership. He was excited enough to post to get some opinions. Tallman and Lowe both deserve the respect of a few base questions about the boat and maybe what he liked about it and was intending to use it for before slamming the Lowe and him in the process. Example... that's interesting you choose the fs185, what drew you to the boat? I've known several folks with the same model that have had trouble with......... If I were spending my hard earned dollars on a new boat in that class I'd consider a Lund 1850 Tyee (btw has plywood floors). It has some other features you might find handy and a well respected name in the marine industry. Maybe this aproach, I've looked a lot of boats lately and I'd have to say Lowe wouldn't be my first choice. Or maybe between the two of you (Kirill doesn't count) a fact, just one about the suposed poor quality. I've seen none and I've been in a number of them. On the other hand I have personal experience with Lowe's and Lund's. Beat both of them around for a few years and there's not a lot of difference. I know you're a dihard Lund fan and that's great but it doesn't mean Lowe makes a bad boat. They don't and you can get a a heck of a lot of boat for the money. Dollar for dollar a lot more than other Mfg's.
With modern manufacturing techniques in use today and the over the top warrantees the Mfgs are putting on their boats it's pretty hard to go wrong with any of them. You're covered.

As far a Kirill is concerned I can say what I did because it's my opinion. His statment about the Lowe's is as silly as saying everything Misubishi makes is bad or everything Toyota makes is bad or Chevy or Ford or GE, just an opinion and far from the truth, once again no facts. FYI it wouldn't be the first time someone signed up on a forum with a ficticious name for the annonymity. His other comments about the guides are way off base. Defending the three rivers guides by suggesting it's ok to cast at someone or that anyone deserves to be buzzed. Both agaist the law. Both concidered assault. I'm not the only person who has been harrassed by them and also not the only person that's reported them to the Snohomish Sheriffs office. Just because they make their money on the river doesn't mean they own it.


My sister has a Lund, it's spent it's fair share of time in the shop.
A buddy of mine has a SeaNymph (lowes riveted boats) circa 1960, we're thinking about replacing the transom board for the first time this year.
Three more buddies have Lowe Jon boats with OB jets. Two of them well over powered. They just keep going. and have taken many many fish and birds. Not to mention logs and rocks.
Our neighbor on Camano island has a Lund tied to the big float out front. It's still floating and has a motor.
I'd be hard pressed to say one is better than the other.

I guess just a little sensitivity when posting opinions. Make sure the other person knows it's just your personal opinion and not a fact. Blanket statments about brand names do not convey that and are rarely true.
Remember this is suppoed to be a kinder, gentler site