Fisher boats?? Good/bad/ugly? Opinions

[Tigger72]

Going to be looking at a Fisher boat... Not a lot of good written about them people get them and the welds crack... But these seem to be all people out on the Great Lakes which from my own experience can get nasty and a lot of wave pounding is done. This one is a 2004 with according to the seller absolutely no issues. Any one other there with real world experience?

[TROLLER]

No experience with a Fisher but I would question the complaint of a weld crack. The weld as a rule is the strongest point.

Boats in Ab. do indeed take a pounding. We get strong winds which create the waves and it happens a lot more than you would think. I would personally be more concerned with a rivet letting loose in big waves than a weld, but again it would I think take quite a beating for either a rivet or a weld to fail.

If the boat is in good condition which it sounds like it is then maybe it is the one for you. Being a lessor known brand the deal should be a good one or pass on. Lots more to come available in the future.

[EZM]

No experience with a Fisher but I would question the complaint of a weld crack. The weld as a rule is the strongest point.

Boats in Ab. do indeed take a pounding. We get strong winds which create the waves and it happens a lot more than you would think. I would personally be more concerned with a rivet letting loose in big waves than a weld, but again it would I think take quite a beating for either a rivet or a weld to fail.

If the boat is in good condition which it sounds like it is then maybe it is the one for you. Being a lessor known brand the deal should be a good one or pass on. Lots more to come available in the future.

I beleive Fisher Marine was acquired by Tracker.

Tracker is a entry level boat with an attractive package price designed to offer a low cost entry into fishing for the weekend warrior.

The market for these boats is targeted toward a person who doesn't know what to look for in a boat, isn't able to pay cash for a good used reputable boat and needs to finance his boat and really wants something brand new and shiny.

Tracker and Legends package boats are fine examples of this.

There are plenty of reviews on Trackers and Legends. The overwhelming majority of the reviews I've read have been shockingly poor.

If you can swing it - get a used quality boat a few years older and you will be much happier. I will leave it at that - I don't want to offend anyone - just trying to present factual information to help our members.

I'm sure there must be some Tracker owners out there somewhere that haven't had issues - but I'd suggest you keep looking.

Crestliner, Alumacraft, Polarkraft, Kingfisher, Lund, Princecraft are a few good quality brands that offer good reviews from many people.

[Tigger72]

I beleive Fisher Marine was acquired by Tracker.

Tracker is a entry level boat with an attractive package price designed to offer a low cost entry into fishing for the weekend warrior.

The market for these boats is targeted toward a person who doesn't know what to look for in a boat, isn't able to pay cash for a good used reputable boat and needs to finance his boat and really wants something brand new and shiny.

Tracker and Legends package boats are fine examples of this.

There are plenty of reviews on Trackers and Legends. The overwhelming majority of the reviews I've read have been shockingly poor.

If you can swing it - get a used quality boat a few years older and you will be much happier. I will leave it at that - I don't want to offend anyone - just trying to present factual information to help our members.

I'm sure there must be some Tracker owners out there somewhere that haven't had issues - but I'd suggest you keep looking.

Crestliner, Alumacraft, Polarkraft, Kingfisher, Lund, Princecraft are a few good quality brands that offer good reviews from many people.

EZM!!
The boats you listed are my searches for kijiji !!! I'm looking from interior BC to northern Ontario!! I'm in no rush .... Just waiting for the right one..... I had never heard of a Fisher.... And I did find a lot of complaints!!
Thanks for the input!!! ......and the search goes on.

[fluxcore]

I've had my Lund Rebel XL Sport for 6 years now and the seats are mint, no fading or wear marks, carpet is perfect all around nothings come loose or frayed! Floor boards and the covering is perfect. My boat gets HEAVY use in all the brutal weather alberta has to offer just search my posts I don't shy away from the rough stuff and ive never had a single issue! Also don't mind rivets, after a long day on the water my boat is bone dry inside. Maybe I just got that boat where everything came together perfect, it's my first lund and I'm over the moon happy.........still looks brand new!

[EZM]

I've had my Lund Rebel XL Sport for 6 years now and the seats are mint, no fading or wear marks, carpet is perfect all around nothings come loose or frayed! Floor boards and the covering is perfect. My boat gets HEAVY use in all the brutal weather alberta has to offer just search my posts I don't shy away from the rough stuff and ive never had a single issue! Also don't mind rivets, after a long day on the water my boat is bone dry inside. Maybe I just got that boat where everything came together perfect, it's my first lund and I'm over the moon happy.........still looks brand new!

Mine (Lund Tyee) is bone dry too. Nothing broken or worn out and I am also a heavy user and abuser.

When I looked at boats I looked at the trailer, bunks, lights, tires then looked at hinges and latches, locks and covers, carpet and vinyl, snaps and canopy quality. I looked at the wiring and freeboards, decks and transoms ..... you really will see the difference immediately when comparing apples to oranges when shopping for a boat.

Really look past the obvious and look at the details.

I have owned quite a few brands - but always will favor a few of these brands as they still produce a quality boat.

[ROA]

They call Tracker boats "Crackers". Lol. They might be better now days but probably not.

The general rule of thumb is any boat manufacture that makes them with a curved style windshield is just targeting thehome owner/ weekend warrior type people. Lunds, princecraft, sylvan, crest liner fall into this area. Most guys are fine with this stuff (I was not) Boats like this are made from thin (0.065") aluminum and get their strength from the wood floor and other wooden compartments along the sides and such. Pound these boats and the whole thing flexes and eventually loosens up.

Real aluminum boats like kingfisher, weldcraft, thunder jet, hewscraft are the ones to be looking at if you want heavy duty. Bottom thickness for a real boat starts at 0.190 and gets its strength from thicker aluminum everywhere including stringers.

[fluxcore]

My lund is
Freeboard Thickness 0.063 0.063 0.063
Bottom Thickness 0.080 0.080 0.080
Double-Plated Bow Thickness 0.143 0.143 0.143 !!

I really like my curved windshield ;) And the double plated bow is plenty thick enough for anthing around here and I've been in some hairy situations and it feels solid as a rock inside. I do love the Hewscraft boats and layouts but I'll need to save up for the one I want, maybe as a retirement boat lol for now I love my lund

[ROA]

Yep yours sounds like it is built about like the 17 foot fisherman I had. Light duty crap by my standards. LOL. Everyone is different that is why they make so many different boats.

[fluxcore]

I have to admit that welded looks cleaner and sexier, but riveted is much stronger (not brittle around the weld) and easier to fix if u do have an issue. How many boats come blasting out of the sky at 100 MPH and land in 2 foot waves on .032 and .025!!! skins... RIVETED !! http://i394.photobucket.com/albums/pp24/Fluxcore1/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpszqzgj4kq.jpg (http://s394.photobucket.com/user/Fluxcore1/media/Mobile%20Uploads/image_zpszqzgj4kq.jpg.html)
Cansos the latest HUGE water bombers do it on .063 to .080" hulls RIVETED! and in rough conditions. Bottom line is u get what you pay for, a high quality thin riveted hull or a thicker welded hull will stand up for years & years and a cheap one won't.

[Sea Hawk]

They call Tracker boats "Crackers". Lol. They might be better now days but probably not.

The general rule of thumb is any boat manufacture that makes them with a curved style windshield is just targeting thehome owner/ weekend warrior type people. Lunds, princecraft, sylvan, crest liner fall into this area. Most guys are fine with this stuff (I was not) Boats like this are made from thin (0.065") aluminum and get their strength from the wood floor and other wooden compartments along the sides and such. Pound these boats and the whole thing flexes and eventually loosens up.

Real aluminum boats like kingfisher, weldcraft, thunder jet, hewscraft are the ones to be looking at if you want heavy duty. Bottom thickness for a real boat starts at 0.190 and gets its strength from thicker aluminum everywhere including stringers.

I don't know about the curved windshield but i once once owned a lund tyee and thought i had the world by the tail. It was ok on the local lakes in alberta. Then i took it to the ocean. I tried that once and got rid of it and bought a real boat. I am in prince rupert tonight and have not seen a rivited boat in the marina yet. Kingfisher is probably the most popular tin boat here and i have seen them preform well in rough water. I have taken my north river out in water i would never attempt with my old lund tyee. I guess every boat has a purpose but if you plan to use your boat in the ocean i recommend something other than a rivited one

[ROA]

It's not the curved windshield its self its just an easy way for a boat rookie to identify the lighter duty boats. And on the tyee I saw one that was twisted enough the front centre window wouldn't open anymore. I used to watch the gaps around the centre window on my 17 fisherman open and close on the rollers as the boat would flex.

Another major thing about buying a used light duty boat with an outboard is the condition of the wooden transom. Take a look at that transom and look for signs of flexing and cracking. The transoms get their strength from a piece of plywood sandwiched between thin aluminum. When that wood gets soft and rots the transom will start to flex when power from the outboard is applied. Iv seen a boat with a rotten transom that totally caved in as well as others with stress cracks on the aluminum.

[Safety D]

Nothing beats the welded aluminum boats. Like North River, Hewes, thunder Jet, custom weld. Etc. there the toughest and best

[BobM]

One of the hardest things on a boat hull is the trailer, make sure you have good support for the boat and stay away from full roller trailers, Lund, Crestliner Alumacraft, and Princraft are all good, well built boats.

[diamond k]

I beleive Fisher Marine was acquired by Tracker.

Tracker is a entry level boat with an attractive package price designed to offer a low cost entry into fishing for the weekend warrior.

The market for these boats is targeted toward a person who doesn't know what to look for in a boat, isn't able to pay cash for a good used reputable boat and needs to finance his boat and really wants something brand new and shiny.

Tracker and Legends package boats are fine examples of this.

There are plenty of reviews on Trackers and Legends. The overwhelming majority of the reviews I've read have been shockingly poor.

If you can swing it - get a used quality boat a few years older and you will be much happier. I will leave it at that - I don't want to offend anyone - just trying to present factual information to help our members.

I'm sure there must be some Tracker owners out there somewhere that haven't had issues - but I'd suggest you keep looking.

Crestliner, Alumacraft, Polarkraft, Kingfisher, Lund, Princecraft are a few good quality brands that offer good reviews from many people.


I have an older Legend (97) that has a double riveted smoker craft hull that is rock solid and does not leak a drop. Can't speak to there new welded hulls but the older ones are very good boat.

[Mikediz]

I had a 14' fisher for several years and a 14" crack along the side where the aluminum was welded, I also had continuous leaks along the keel that I had to silicone

[TROLLER]

They call Tracker boats "Crackers". Lol. They might be better now days but probably not.

The general rule of thumb is any boat manufacture that makes them with a curved style windshield is just targeting thehome owner/ weekend warrior type people. Lunds, princecraft, sylvan, crest liner fall into this area. Most guys are fine with this stuff (I was not) Boats like this are made from thin (0.065") aluminum and get their strength from the wood floor and other wooden compartments along the sides and such. Pound these boats and the whole thing flexes and eventually loosens up.

Real aluminum boats like kingfisher, weldcraft, thunder jet, hewscraft are the ones to be looking at if you want heavy duty. Bottom thickness for a real boat starts at 0.190 and gets its strength from thicker aluminum everywhere including stringers.

My oh my but you do love your boat lol sounds like the rest of us best make sure we never try and moor next to you for fear of us sinking or the windshield falling into the water.

The boats you are in love with are for sure good river craft. Not everyone can go and buy an 80K boat so if they have even a 12ft. tinny that is OK by me. they are on the water fishn and that is all that matters.:sHa_shakeshout:.

[Nova]

EZM!!
The boats you listed are my searches for kijiji !!! I'm looking from interior BC to northern Ontario!! I'm in no rush .... Just waiting for the right one..... I had never heard of a Fisher.... And I did find a lot of complaints!!
Thanks for the input!!! ......and the search goes on.

I must say: good luck with the search. Been keeping my eye out for my brother, looking for something similar to my 1650 Fish Hawk WT, but used and a little bit older. The low dollar has really changed the boat market, new and used. Anything in decent shape priced anywhere close to what it would have been 3 or 4 years ago sells in the blink of an eye.

[ROA]

My oh my but you do love your boat lol sounds like the rest of us best make sure we never try and moor next to you for fear of us sinking or the windshield falling into the water.

The boats you are in love with are for sure good river craft. Not everyone can go and buy an 80K boat so if they have even a 12ft. tinny that is OK by me. they are on the water fishn and that is all that matters.:sHa_shakeshout:.

Hey I also still own a Lund to this day (my third one!) and love it for what it is!!!
A boat snob I am not BUT yous gots to realize the limits of yours craft.

[EZM]

Hey I also still own a Lund to this day (my third one!) and love it for what it is!!!
A boat snob I am not BUT yous gots to realize the limits of yours craft.

That seems quite contradictory to what you were saying a few posts ago.

Each type of boat is designed for a specific application. Some Boats have deep hulls and high transoms to run in big water, while others have run shallow and need to be thick and strong to run thin water - two completely different applications.

Further to that point - Each type of boat has poor quality manufacturers and some great manufacturers.

The shape of the windshield has zero bearing on this - sorry - you are 100% wrong and making a completely ignorant generalization.

[Sea Hawk]

Hey I also still own a Lund to this day (my third one!) and love it for what it is!!!
A boat snob I am not BUT yous gots to realize the limits of yours craft.

I agree 100%. I have owned three lund boats in my time. They were all ok but not exceptipnal. In my opinion i probably overpaid for the quality of boat because of the name.

[SamSteele]

The general rule of thumb is any boat manufacture that makes them with a curved style windshield is just targeting thehome owner/ weekend warrior type people. Lunds, princecraft, sylvan, crest liner fall into this area. Most guys are fine with this stuff (I was not) Boats like this are made from thin (0.065") aluminum and get their strength from the wood floor and other wooden compartments along the sides and such. Pound these boats and the whole thing flexes and eventually loosens up.



Real aluminum boats like kingfisher, weldcraft, thunder jet, hewscraft are the ones to be looking at if you want heavy duty. Bottom thickness for a real boat starts at 0.190 and gets its strength from thicker aluminum everywhere including stringers.


Somebody better tell all those professional walleye and bass guys that they are fishing in newbie boats, what with those curves windshields and all.

Give me a break.

SS




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[wildside2014]

That seems quite contradictory to what you were saying a few posts ago.

Each type of boat is designed for a specific application. Some Boats have deep hulls and high transoms to run in big water, while others have run shallow and need to be thick and strong to run thin water - two completely different applications.

Further to that point - Each type of boat has poor quality manufacturers and some great manufacturers.

The shape of the windshield has zero bearing on this - sorry - you are 100% wrong and making a completely ignorant generalization.

Ya I agree. ROA is so offside and frankly uneducated with his post. The fact he lumped Hewescraft in with 'premium' stuff is ridiculous.

Of course River/Jet boat manufacturers have different specs as opposed to bass boats/lake fishing boats. Heinously uneducated

[ATF]

I've owned 2 Fishers. First one was when Brunswick Marine owned them and it was riveted and had to go to Marathon marine under warranty to fix a leak in the hull at the bow where the keel came together. This was in the first summer of owning it. Other than that it was a great boat after they fixed it and I ran it hard for 13 years.
The second one was after Tracker acquired Fisher and was an all welded hull. The boat developed stress cracks after a few years where the stringers attached to the hull. Even had a hole where the stringer pulled out a broken piece of hull. I thought I was covered by lifetime warranty on hull but was dead wrong.
Warranty on hull is not lifetime its five years. They warrant that the transom won't fall off for lifetime though. :thinking-006:
I wondered why I seemed to have to keep the bilge pump on quite a bit but thought it was a fitting that needed some caulking and by the time I got around to it I was past their 5 year period. So had to deal with Basspro who owns Tracker and it was a joke. They offered to credit me 6 grand for my 5 year old 30 thousand dollar bought and said I could buy a new one for only 20 grand. That's boat only and not motor. So in essence it was 50 grand for a 30 grand boat over 5 years. No thanks.
It ended up being written off by my insurance company instead and I never looked back. Still took a hit but not as big as the one Basspro tried to deliver to my backside.
Stay away from Tracker and Fisher.

[THERICARDO]

Mine (Lund Tyee) is bone dry too. Nothing broken or worn out and I am also a heavy user and abuser.

When I looked at boats I looked at the trailer, bunks, lights, tires then looked at hinges and latches, locks and covers, carpet and vinyl, snaps and canopy quality. I looked at the wiring and freeboards, decks and transoms ..... you really will see the difference immediately when comparing apples to oranges when shopping for a boat.

Really look past the obvious and look at the details.

I have owned quite a few brands - but always will favor a few of these brands as they still produce a quality boat.

This is exactly the advice you gave me last year, and wow what a difference is correct... I ended up going with a LUND but also was impressed my the Crestliner and Alumacraft... Good Luck in your search

[ROA]

Ya I agree. ROA is so offside and frankly uneducated with his post. The fact he lumped Hewescraft in with 'premium' stuff is ridiculous.

Of course River/Jet boat manufacturers have different specs as opposed to bass boats/lake fishing boats. Heinously uneducated

Yep totally uneducated. Go buy a kingfisher, Wooldrige, duck worth, Hewscraft (yes different and better league than Lund), north river,,, LAKE BOAT ( YES THEY MAKE LAKE AND OCEAN BOATS BUT YOU LNEW THAT RIGHT???)to name a few and get back to me. Until you do it is you that is not only uneducated but lacks basic experience.... Or at least much less than myself and others that have spoken up.


Love it how a Multi boat owner such as my self gets called out for pointing out the limits some of these light duty boats fall into, sorry but when you own a few and actually use them you learn stuff. LOL

[Sea Hawk]

Yep totally uneducated. Go buy a kingfisher, Wooldrige, duck worth, Hewscraft (yes different and better league than Lund), north river,,, LAKE BOAT ( YES THEY MAKE LAKE AND OCEAN BOATS BUT YOU LNEW THAT RIGHT???)to name a few and get back to me. Until you do it is you that is not only uneducated but lacks basic experience.... Or at least much less than myself and others that have spoken up.


Love it how a Multi boat owner such as my self gets called out for pointing out the limits some of these light duty boats fall into, sorry but when you own a few and actually use them you learn stuff. LOL

I think anyone who has taken the time to check out the makes you list off will know who the real uneducated are. To compare a lund to any of these is laughable.

[wildside2014]

Yep totally uneducated. Go buy a kingfisher, Wooldrige, duck worth, Hewscraft (yes different and better league than Lund), north river,,, LAKE BOAT ( YES THEY MAKE LAKE AND OCEAN BOATS BUT YOU LNEW THAT RIGHT???)to name a few and get back to me. Until you do it is you that is not only uneducated but lacks basic experience.... Or at least much less than myself and others that have spoken up.


Love it how a Multi boat owner such as my self gets called out for pointing out the limits some of these light duty boats fall into, sorry but when you own a few and actually use them you learn stuff. LOL

lol I deal in hewescraft ROA. lol

[EZM]

Love it how a Multi boat owner such as my self gets called out for pointing out the limits some of these light duty boats fall into, sorry but when you own a few and actually use them you learn stuff. LOL

Not everyone is going to agree here - and that's fine - but don't assume the rest of the audience doesn't have direct experience in owning many makes/models/types of boat for various applications.

I have also owned welded boats, deep vees, production boats, custom boats, river boats, skiffs, glass boats, cabin cruisers etc.... I have also owned almost all of the boats mentioned in this entire thread ..... and spent lots of time with each.

The bottom line is Virtually every type of boat out there have manufacturers of great quality boats while others are complete junk.

If Wildside is a Hewes dealer - I'd say he is more than qualified to make a statement about the comparative quality of that brand versus other brands in that same segment - I trust him.

I have also looked at Hewescrafts and compared them side-by-side with a custom weld and they are not even remotely in the same stratosphere of quality. These are like comparing a pencil to an airplane or a banana to a apartment building.

But hey - it's got a flat windshield - so it's gotta be far better in quality compared to ANY curved windshield boat on the market ...... right? Just read that statement and think about what you are saying for a minute.

The tin is thicker so the hull must be stronger right?

Or It's welded so it's better right?

Think about that for a minute and consider the engineering that goes into a thin skinned rivetted jet and tell me how much abuse a typical jet gets over the course of 30-40 years of cotinuous service, stress, pressure change, etc...

That's it ..... that's all ..........Period.

No point in arguing and aggrivating each other.

I respect your opinion, but think you are 100% wrong here. No big deal either way.

[fluxcore]

Not everyone is going to agree here - and that's fine - but don't assume the rest of the audience doesn't have direct experience in owning many makes/models/types of boat for various applications.

I have also owned welded boats, deep vees, production boats, custom boats, river boats, skiffs, glass boats, cabin cruisers etc.... I have also owned almost all of the boats mentioned in this entire thread ..... and spent lots of time with each.

The bottom line is Virtually every type of boat out there have manufacturers of great quality boats while others are complete junk.

If Wildside is a Hewes dealer - I'd say he is more than qualified to make a statement about the comparative quality of that brand versus other brands in that same segment - I trust him.

I have also looked at Hewescrafts and compared them side-by-side with a custom weld and they are not even remotely in the same stratosphere of quality. These are like comparing a pencil to an airplane or a banana to a apartment building.

But hey - it's got a flat windshield - so it's gotta be far better in quality compared to ANY curved windshield boat on the market ...... right? Just read that statement and think about what you are saying for a minute.

The tin is thicker so the hull must be stronger right?

Or It's welded so it's better right?

Think about that for a minute and consider the engineering that goes into a thin skinned rivetted jet and tell me how much abuse a typical jet gets over the course of 30-40 years of cotinuous service, stress, pressure change, etc...

That's it ..... that's all ..........Period.

No point in arguing and aggrivating each other.

I respect your opinion, but think you are 100% wrong here. No big deal either way.
Yup!
:cheers:

[liv2fish]

Hey guys. Can anyone chime in on sylvan brand boats? Ive done some searching and cant find much for good or bad reviews unlike others where you get one or the other. Any info appreciated

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[TROLLER]

Fished with a buddy in his was not overly impressed. I did not like the steadiness of it when the winds kicked up. My feeling was I would not care to be at the far end of Minnewonka when the winds start.

[Buckhead]

Hey guys. Can anyone chime in on sylvan brand boats? Ive done some searching and cant find much for good or bad reviews unlike others where you get one or the other. Any info appreciated

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Some of the Sylvan models are good, others not so much. There is a lot of variance in their aluminum hull thickness between models. If you can find one of their models with the 0.100 or 0.125 bottom and 0.080 sides those are ones to look at.
They use midlevel (not top) quality latches, hinges and hardware so they can produce the boats cheaper.

I have been running a Sylvan for the last 8 years and have no complaints. The riveted hull has yet to leak a drop and I have been pretty rough with it (airborne in some bigger waves on occasion).

I owned a Lund prior to buying the Sylvan and the Sylvan hull has been just as good if not better. I may have just gotten a good one - but my experience has been positive.

[liv2fish]

Thanks for the replies. Im having issues finding specs on the models. The one in question is late 90s pro select. Any idea where i can get more info?

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[TROLLER]

They Sylvan web site should have a history section showing brochures from days gone by. Should go back to late 90\s

[liv2fish]

I tried that already and they only go back to 2000 unfortunately

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