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I've decided it has got to be a Rinalli. I reached this conclusion after 2 days of climbing over every boat at the New Orleans Boat Show....which means I now know everything there is to know bout boats .
Not only does it have all the standard top-line components, but the craftsmanship runs deeper than fit'n finish:Entire deck cap --all bait wells & storage compartments -- is a single molded piece. No joints, screws, inserts, etc... to leak rattle and fall part.If for some reason, water does get in, under the deck is a subfloor into which water will go and then drain overboard.And then of course there's the bilge under that.Center consult is a completely enclosed, with a "tub" bottom. In other words, It doesn't have a glue seam all around it where it joins the deck. If water gets in the CC, it ain't going inside the hull.Hull is more solid than anything else out there. It's got a 3" stiffener that runs from tip of the bow to transom, about at the mid point of the sides.Glassed-in aluminum plates for trolling motor and leaning post mounts.Plumbing rinse-out system. Screw a garden hose into a fitting on the transom, and all the drain tubes, fish box drains, etc... etc... are rinsed out from within. Salt water ain't gonna linger anywhere in this boat.Step hull that produces a bow wave that the transom then rides on. Making it handle seas and chops that other bay boats can't handle. Also makes it very very fast.Substantial console for a bay boat.[/list]
The layout and decking is perfect for a bay fisherman. It's bright, shiny, and tight.
looks a little like it COULD be a chine walker to me! (Based on the opening photo on the site)
I wish companys with "step hulls" or other 'interesting variations' (eg hysucat foils, or tunnels etc) would show a damn hull upside down so folks can make up their own ideas about how the hull works and any laminar flows issues etc.
Just showin a boat in the water, on plane and on a trailer, isn't enough IMHO.
The bit you might likely be most interested in - is the underside and how it rides, and thats the bit no one seems to show very well on product website etc.
Some of the "Best" photo's I've seen have been from owners here of new vessels who photograph the stages of construction and then post them on THT's "photos" forum frankly.
Manufacturers would do well IMHO to take a leaf outta what new owners like JDB and others have done as far as promoting their products here at THT and emulate it on their own product websites.
When you wanna compare a boat with other boats out there in the marketplace you wanna see all the running surfaces, so something like a "3d veiwable model" would be a handy feature OMHO...
Could be a nice boat - but hard to tell just from the website IMHO.
The Rinalli sounds like a well finished and detailed boat.
I haven't closely examined the new generation of Whalers, but I think that the classic Whalers of the 70s and 80s are the best built and finished boats ever.
I gotta go with Hinckley. www.theHinckleyco.com The have a reasonably priced 28' Picnic Boat for only $256,000. My second choice is Boston Whaler. ( I never thought I'd say that! ) The T29 C, Center Console is the way to go. Fish not allowed! Not a bad Website either...
"Never enough time to do it right; ALWAYS enough time to do it over." Boston Whaler, "MUMBLER", 24' Outrage (1996), twin 175 HP Evinrude Ocean Pros. Snowball, the cat...
For the price and the design of the product line, the Bayliner family of boats would be my first choice. If price was not an issue, I would choose a 28' Caroilina Classic with Volvo Diesels, Jack shafts and Volvo twin prop I/O drives. It would also have a/c, a diesel generator and cruise air. Since my wife and I do not fish, our Carolina Clssic would not have a tower, but rather it would have a full camper top, and a soft / plush carpet in the fishing area of the craft. The fish wells in the floor would be used as coolers for our day cruisers. The live fish well in the rear of the boat would be used for ice, soda, wine and beer for our guests. Sort of a do it yourself bar! Now that is a good use for a fishing boat.------Just my opinion. ---Greg
I have fished in a few rinallis. Fit and finish is fine. Handleing is great at top end speed.
However if you want to cruise @1\\2 throttle,bring
the cream rinse or gore-tex cause ya gunna take a shower!!
I like my maritime skiff 20 cc. But that boat your looking @ looks pretty sweet. Just from looking at the hull design you may have to carefully pick your days on the water. It looks like it could be a wet ride in a chop.It does look like a great boat for bays and flats!! Never heard of them, looks like a well made boat.
I checked the Rinalli out last year. I made comments about them in many threads and not to many comments besides "nice". They haven't made many of these. I don't think too many people have ever seen or been on one. They are very high quality boats and that big tall guy (Greg?) is the owner and he does an excellent job "selling" the boat.
My neighbor did test drive the boat in Lake Ponchartrain in 20-25 MPH winds and was very impressed. He ended up buying the boat that wife wanted ... 250 Cobia WA.
From what I've seen, the best made (overall best) boat is Regulator where price is no object. There are many I've never seen, though.
Also, to the Whaler posters above, I've fished several times on a 1980 Whaler 22 Outrage and it is amazing how well-built it is. It is truly solid.
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Fishin-Fanatic
Get In! Sit Down! Shut Up! Hold On!
MarshFisher
Still think you need to take a look at the Tides 23. Sent one to Texas the other day, they were considering the Rennalli also. Need to get down to the Miami show this week so we can have a beer.
The Conch 27 (www.conch27.com) is by far the best deep v center console on the market. It is made by Edey & Duff in Mattapoisett, MA by a team of 4-5 craftsmen.
I had the pleasure of being on one a few years back....rides like a dream, built extremely well and is super fast. Plus, it looks damn good too.
I think they cost around $130-140k....but not exactly sure.
Scarborough? Their interiors are not much better than mobile homes. My buddy has one named Billfisher. The ride is incredible though, gotta give that to them. Don't get me wrong, I agree they are very nice boats.
The highest quality custom boat I think I have been on is the 56 Whiticar "Picasso". It's fit and finish is nicer than any other boat I have had the pleasure of going on.
Highest quality production boat? Hmmm, Cabo is a contender, also Bayshore in the smaller boat category. I would agree with Hinckley too.
There is only one "best boat", and it's named "Grady White."
There are many other very fine boats built today, but the very best among them always carry the Grady name.