Grady White Sailfish 282 or Pursuit Denali 28

[joweyenb]

Hi to all. First of all, I just discovered this forum, and I would like to thank all for posting such valuable information. Whereas I was thorn apart before which boat to buy, I have now narrowed it down to Grady White Sailfish or Pursuit Denali 28, with a strong preference for the Grady White because of resale value. I am about to decide on a late 2004 Grady 282 Sailfish, for sale in Islamorada, Florida Keys for 105k with no notable options other than color large screen Garmin GPS chartplotter and Lee F/M outriggers. Is that a reasonable price for a boat lift kept and in mint conditions? Also, and most importantly, I will use my boat primarily for gulfstream fishing with 2 buddies, and occasionally, for overnighter with the wife. The question is NOT whether I should take the 30 foot Marlin (there is always bigger and better, and one needs to draw the line at one stage), but more about the fish box in the 282. Indeed, is it true that there is only one fish box, and if yes, how big it is. It seems small on the pictures of the boat (still need to visit the boat). The specs say it is a 325 Quart fish box. What size of fish would that hold? Would you be able to fit a 50 pound fish in there (e.g. dolphin, tuna, wahoo), or is it really way too small for that. This is important to me. I currently have a center console with 3 large fish boxes and understand the trade-off moving to a more family oriented boat, but need to be able to come home with at least one large catch. Any advice?

Thanks a lot

[gw204]

Why the Grady over the Pursuit? They both hold their value equally as well.

[joweyenb]

I live in South Florida. Grady may just be holding its value a tad better than Pursuit in this part of the world. Both great boats in my opinion.

[Afishinado]

Both great boats. You need to at least look at them before committing 105 large. Well at least that's what I'd do...

[troll]

I agree there are both top shelf boats and should have as high a resale value as anything in this range. IIRC the Denali was more of a cruising boat. I believe Pursuit also made a 28 w/a which was very comparable to the GW Sailfish. I looked at both very hard and chose a 1997 GW 272 for several reasons. Both had strengths and weaknesses.

I'd recommend whichever best suits your needs, has the layout you like, has the best value in terms of options/hours/condition/price, etc. I don't believe you can go wrong with either boat.

PS: As to your fishbox question, we've had tuna and wahoo in the 40s which fit into the box. A 5 ft fishbag is always a good item to have on board if needed however.

[rred]

I have a GW 283 which is the CC version of the 282. The fishbox in the stern is quite large. I had wahoo of 55 and 35 lbs in there and there was a lot of room left. I could have fit twice that volumn of fish and plently of ice without any questions.

[From the Helm]

I think you are comparing apples to oranges a bit.
My Denali 28 was a great boat, wonderful ride, superb for entertaining at 28', and dead nut reliable.
As to resale, bought used, sold three years later for a few percentage points less than I paid with 300 more hours on her.
Fish box was roughly 4'L x 14"W x 14"D but mine was a 1998 and they make changes so look at the actual boat you are considering first.
Also, Denali is NOT the Pursuit fishing boat as much as their day boat.