Hi Everyone,<br /><br />I am new to the boating world, in fact I am still looking to purchase my first boat. I would like to get your opinions regarding 18-20 foot bowriders.<br /><br />I have narrowed the selection to the Maxum 1900 SR3, Glastron GX185 or 205 and Carvelle 187 or 207.<br /><br />Part of the choice is dealer proximity - Maxum is about 10 minutes, and the other two are about 30 mintues. From what I have read, the dealer is very important cog in the propeller of a boat 
<br /><br />I plan to be towing tubes, water skiing and doing some fishing. I originally looked and some of the fish and ski boats, but decided that aerated live wells, rod storage and fishing seats are not so important, especially given the additional cost and more importantly compromise in boat selection. I would like to mount a GPS/Fish finder and maybe a bow mounted electric trolling motor.<br /><br />So I am really interested in your experiences with the above mentioned boats. The negative (slightly) comments I have read through the forums or else where are:<br /><br />1. Maxum may have some steering issues at slow speeds, but sounds like it to be common to many deep vee boats - trim tabs (I do not know really what they are) correct much of the handling issues.<br /><br />2. The VEC technology in the glastron is not as rigid from what I can tell, i.e. the boat tends to flex more (might now be bad, would like to hear you experiences). I do like the fact that there is no wood<br /><br />I would also appreciate any comments regarding the engine choices. It seems that on paper a 4.3L MPI (220HP) is the same as a 5L carb (220HP), so how does it affect performance. I do want a fairly quiet boat 82 dBA at cruising and say 93 dBA at WOT. (Note that was one reason for eliminating Larson's boats - they are lound, 107 dBA at WOT). Is there any difference between Volvo Penta and Mercury (I know this is pretty broad)<br /><br />Well, thanks in advance and hope to share some of my boating stories in the near future.<br /><br />Cheers,<br /><br />Al
<br /><br />I plan to be towing tubes, water skiing and doing some fishing. I originally looked and some of the fish and ski boats, but decided that aerated live wells, rod storage and fishing seats are not so important, especially given the additional cost and more importantly compromise in boat selection. I would like to mount a GPS/Fish finder and maybe a bow mounted electric trolling motor.<br /><br />So I am really interested in your experiences with the above mentioned boats. The negative (slightly) comments I have read through the forums or else where are:<br /><br />1. Maxum may have some steering issues at slow speeds, but sounds like it to be common to many deep vee boats - trim tabs (I do not know really what they are) correct much of the handling issues.<br /><br />2. The VEC technology in the glastron is not as rigid from what I can tell, i.e. the boat tends to flex more (might now be bad, would like to hear you experiences). I do like the fact that there is no wood<br /><br />I would also appreciate any comments regarding the engine choices. It seems that on paper a 4.3L MPI (220HP) is the same as a 5L carb (220HP), so how does it affect performance. I do want a fairly quiet boat 82 dBA at cruising and say 93 dBA at WOT. (Note that was one reason for eliminating Larson's boats - they are lound, 107 dBA at WOT). Is there any difference between Volvo Penta and Mercury (I know this is pretty broad)<br /><br />Well, thanks in advance and hope to share some of my boating stories in the near future.<br /><br />Cheers,<br /><br />Al