Anyone have one, i see one posted locally, never heard of one until I saw this one. It’s a 150 VMAX. Any advice or opinions?
Anyone have one, i see one posted locally, never heard of one until I saw this one. It’s a 150 VMAX. Any advice or opinions?
If my memory is correct they were only made 1 year or possibly 2 years. When Stratos/Javelin was sold in ( "I think" 2002?) the company who took ownership dissolved the Javelin brand. For a limited period they made a Stratos J185. Stratos and Javelin were both made with the same material and both come down the same assembly line. The main difference was Javelin had fewer "bells and whistles" as standard options. Think of it like this. Javelin was the Chevy work truck and Stratos was the Silverado LTZ package. Same truck just different bells and whistle packages. As for the actual hull under the Stratos J185 I would bet it is the same dimensions as the Stratos 285. If I am not correct and it actually had a Javelin hull then more than likely it was the Javelin 389 hull, which is also the same as Javelin Renegade 19 hull. Either way the Stratos 285 and Javelin 389/JR19 were proven hulls that were made for several years. If you like the boat and everything is in good health then go for it.
https://richmond.craigslist.org/boa/...005065579.html
Here is the link, going to loo at it this weekend I hope!
I had an 03 J185 with Johnson 150 & 04 285 magnum with Johnson 175. Both were great hulls that fished like bigger boats. The 285 magnum was 1/2'" wider & rated for a 175.
I have a 2003 Stratos 185 Javelin Series, with a Johnson 150 hp on it. I am the second owner of this boat and I knew the original owner. I've had the boat for 8 years now and I really like it.
I've also got a '03 185J with Johnson 150, I've owned it for around 10 years now. All in all its been a great boat, fishes well, the back deck is decently sized for co-anglers and it handles rough pretty well.
I would prefer that mine was a single console like the one you're looking at and I wish the back storage compartments were a tad bigger. They are sloped, not perfectly square.
The 185 is the same hull as the Stratos 285.
Tom, i'm talking rubrail per stratos was 1/2 inch wider & allowed then to rate it for 175. That's exactly what they told me when i called & asked when trying to deal on the 285 magnum new in 2004. They also said that my 2003 185J was 12Lbs. heavier. Just what they said.Originally Posted by Tom G.
Les I have no doubt you were told that but the 285 and J 185 are both long and wide enough to be rated for 175 HP. The reason you see a 285 rated for 150 HP and then you see a 285 "magnum" rated for 175 HP is pure marketing. Some people think if they buy a boat rated for 175 HP and it has 150 HP they are buying an underpowered boat. Yes it does not have max power but in all due respect NO it is not underpowered. The 285 and 285 magnum have the exact same length and width. The word magnum may also include bells and whistle options. Kind of like how you can buy a Chevy Silverado LT or LTZ. Both are essentially the same truck but one has better "package" options. Length, width and horsepower are the same in both trucks. It's options that make them different. In the case of Stratos the word "magnumn" means it gets a 175 HP rating.
The National Marine Manufacturers Association along with the US Coast Guard has regulations as to how much horsepower you can put on a bass boat. Most people don't know this but in reality there is no limit of horsepower on boats over 20 ft via the regulations. "Most" boat companies have a 250 HP limit on 20 ft plus bass boats but a few manufacturers have wording such as "unlimited" or "any V8 or V6 motor". This subject has been brought up in the past and I saved the link to the thread for future reference. If you read reply#32 it was made buy the owner of Bass Cat Boats. I would take his word because he is definitely in the know. There is interesting stuff in this thread if you take time to read all of it...
http://www.bbcboards.net/showthread.php?t=430248
If you don't want to take time to read it then I will use my boat as an example...
18' ft 9" long
89" wide
The numbers need to be converted in a number that uses 12"=1 ft....so 18'9" = 18.75........89" = 7.41
The formula is L X W X 2 -90 and round to the nearest variable of 5
18.75 X 7.41= 138.93...138.93 x 2 = 277.87...277.87 - 90 = 187.87...round to the nearest 5 and my boat is rated for 190 HP per the formula. 3 more inches in either direction and my boat could technically be rated for 200 HP.
Javelin chose to rate it at 175 HP. If you crunch the numbers on a 285 it could have a 175 HP rating but Stratos chose to have two different ratings. The 285 is 150 HP and the "magnum" which sounds good but in reality it is no different, but it gets the 175 HP rating. Same thing on the Stratos J185. If you crunch the numbers it could be rated for 175 HP. A company can chose to rate it for less HP than the formula allows but never more HP than the formula allows.
Gene i'm saying the J185 is half an inch narrower then the 285 according to stratos. They said the rubrail was one half inch wider on the 285 which allowed it to have a 175 horse power rating. I specifically asked what the difference was between the two hulls & that is what they said. I just don't see why they would tell me that if it wasn't right.I totally understand what you guys are saying. I also understand what the manufacturer of stratos told me back in 2004 when i was checking them out to buy, but some don't seem to believe it.
I have no doubt the dealer told you what you posted. If his claim is 1/2" wider was what allowed the HP rating of 175 then his statement was misleading. It was already wide enough based on the NMMA/US Coast Guard formula without being 1/2" wider. A quick goggle search shows a 2004 Stratos 285 had a 7'7" beam (91") and a 2003 Stratos J185 had a 7'7" beam (91")...lets say the dealer was correct and the number I found on the 285 was 1/2" wider than the J 185. It really does not matter because either number is big enough to warrant a 175 HP rating. I will round down the width and length to an even smaller number and show its still long and wide enough to have 175 HP rating if Stratos chose to do so.
Using the NMMA/US Coast Guard formula it is L x W x 2 - 90....
Width 90-1/2" but I rounded down to 90".... divide by 12 and you get 7.5
Length 18 (which is actually longer but I rounded down)
18 X 7.5 = 135....135 x 2 = 270....270 - 90 = 180 HP
Even rounding down to 18 ft and counting it 90" instead of 91 or 90-1/2" the 285 and J 185 could be rated for 175 HP if Stratos chose to do so...Les I hope you don't think I was calling you out because that was not my intent. If so then I am truly sorry. I just think the dealer gave you misleading information based on what NMMA and the US Coast Guard say. Stratos chose the 150 or 175 rating. This was part of their marketing deal. You had a 285 rated for 150 HP and a 285 Magnum rated for 175 HP. The hulls were identical but if you put a 175 badge on one and hung a 150 HP motor the consumer though he bought an under powered boat. By placing a 150 sticker and hanging a 150 motor all is good. If they wanted a 175 then they "sold" them the magnum package which in all reality was changing the label to 175 HP and hanging a 175 HP motor. They never offered this in the J 185. It always had the 150 HP limit. There were years when the 285 could be bought with either a 150 or 175 and then there were a few years when it was only offered in 150. Some years they called it the magnum package and some years they did not call it anything and simply put a 175 HP sticker on there. Nothing never changed structurally on the boat. It was just a matter of the marketing team selling a boat with 150 or 175 HP.
My 367 DC is rated for a 130, but the 16-7 hull was a workhorse for Javelin through the years with multiple topcaps used. Javelin rated them from 120 to 140 all with the same bottom hull. It's up to the discretion of the manufacturer as to lower it.Gene i'm saying the J185 is half an inch narrower then the 285 according to stratos. They said the rubrail was one half inch wider on the 285 which allowed it to have a 175 horse power rating. I specifically asked what the difference was between the two hulls & that is what they said. I just don't see why they would tell me that if it wasn't right.
Hammerdog, back about 2002, a friend of mine beat me out of a Stratos 185 in a tournament by 6 oz and I had the winning 3# fish on but lost it to some barnacles. He still has that boat and I’ve fished out of it several times. His has a Merc xr6 and is a very good fishing boat. It’s very wide for the length so it’s very stable in the water and takes rough water as well as any 18.5’ hull,lots of space inside but not the best storage. I would make a front deck extension for it. That Yammie on yours are very good engines,very reliable and not known for ant inherent issues. If the price suits you,buy it.
Gene, one more time.
No problem Les...you know me I have no problem calling out the dealer or the manufacturer. Stratos was wrong when they said what they said. Also I have zero doubt they said what they told you. I firmly believe the reason they said it was so they could market boats for sale with specifically a 150 or a 175 when in reality by the governing body that oversees boat production they would allow a 175 rating but Stratos chose to put a 150 on the tag.
Man this got a little more drawn out then i ever figured it would.
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