Re: Max HP O/B on 17'?
Maxxie, focus on the motor when you next go shopping. Get an outboard that runs well and has been well maintained--that's where the money is. if it's running, you can use the boat while fixing it up. Doesn't work the other way. And outboards are a lot more interchangeable, practically speaking, than an I/O.
Unless you want to spend all your free time fixing and none riding/fishing, get the most basic simple open hull you can. The simplest is a jon boat design--nothing is hidden. The worst is a sofa boat where you have to remove decks and upholsered parts to work under them, and then spend a lot of time reinstalling unless you want the boat to look like crap. in between: center console, simple dual console, "roll your own" like a privateer, carolina skiff or chincoteague scow.
So start simple, enjoy using it rather than fixing it, and keep an eye out for the next deal to move up into. You don't want to dump a lot of money and time into a boat and find you don't use it much and can't sell it.
You will never, ever, recoup the money you put into fixing up a boat you use, unless you are a pro at flipping, restoring classics, or putting an almost new motor on it. A boat is not an investment an more than a steak is.
