Is this a wise purchase?

[love2boat]

Hello
We are considering purchasing a 2300SR Maxum, 2001 to take to lakes by where we live. It has a 5.7 V8, Alpha 1 Outdrive. We will trailer it on the weekends, going to lakes that are within an hour's drive (Clinton, Perry, Hillsdale, sometimes Stockton and occasionally Lake of the Ozarks in central Missouri). We live in KC so these are obviously all freshwater lakes. My question is do you think this boat is too big to trailer all the time? During the summer we will keep it at our house, and then store it over the winters. We will occasionally take a trip to Table Rock Lake, which is a 4 hour drive (this may be 1x summer). We have a Tundra v8 full size pickup to haul it. My husband wants the 23' for more room. We've looked at 21 footers all summer but with those we feel a little crammed by the time you get all the extra stuff on board. We have 2 young boys so we're looking at summers ahead full of tubing, and skiing, and bringing friends of course. Are we making a wise decision or is this too much boat? We want it to be roomy, yet still have the flexibility of trailering it where we want to and then of course easy in/out at the ramps.
(btw, I have quite a bit of experience w/ boats, having grown up boating as a kid. We had an IMP Aztec and then a 22'Cobalt '92 which were my fathers, but I have not owned my own boat in my adulthood yet). Thank you for your honest opinon!! -Love2boat in KC!

[dronthelake]

Until the summer of 2010 we trailer for over 25 years. Our last boat was a Regal 2565 (27' LOA). Boat, trailer and gear weighed 9,000 lbs. We pulled it every weekend to Lake Norman (50 miles each way) as well as to the FL Keys, Ohio and the North and South Carolina coasts. At first we pulled her with a Nissan Armada that was rated to pull 9,000 and it did great as far as handling and stopping. We switched to a Dodge 2500 diesel for better fuel economy (9 mpg vs +14 mpg) and easier pulling through the mountains. We miss trailering and the freedom to go anywhere.

[biggerseagar]

First welcome to the website! I have been boating for alittle 30 years and each time I have moved up in size with a bigger boat it has always been a period of adjustment but it has all worked out for the best.

Another question you haven't asked yourself is this boat going to work out on your favorite body of water? I can remember back in the late 80's when I bought my first brand new boat, I went from a 18 foot to a 21 foot because I was tried of being bounced around. It did help alittle. This was boating on the Lake of the Ozarks too. I can remember having this boat and trailer sitting in my driveway and wondering if I had made the right decision like your doing.

The room issue is valid! You want enough room in the boat for all your stuff........Your vehicle is more than enough to tow.Your husband will get used to towing it.

Just wait until your kids are all grown up, that will be a big boating change for you. That is when I decided on a weekender type boat.A 26 cabin crusier, then moving up to what we have now which is a 2001 3000 scr which I do have a trailer but not a vehicle to pull it with. My point with all this is that things change......you and your husband might get tired of all this or your kids get other interests.....who knows.

Make sure you get a survey done on this boat or atleast a mechanic friend to look at all the fluids. The trailer should have brakes on both axles and ask when the bearing have been looked at. A trial run with your surveyor on board should be mandatory also before you buy.

Yes as I said before there will be a time of adjustment or to get use to your new boat but that is what an adventure is all about......have fun!

Roger

[ss3964spd]

L2B,

Nahhh, the 2300 you're looking at is definitely NOT too much to trailer around at all, and your current truck is easily up to the task. The largest risk with trailering is getting the whole mess stopped in an emergency so the only thing I would suggest is to ensure the trailer, which will be a dual axle unit, has brakes on at least one axle, ideally both.

Go buy that boat!!!

Dan

[seapuppy]

L2B
welcome to the zoo....as you can see..some of our experienced members chimed in....(I read this too early this morning with no caffeine...so..chose not to answer till I had at least one cup in me).....but trailer boating would be easy for you guys..just practice recovery and launch...maintain your trailer in top condition...and.....you should be good to go...


SP