Rodney,
I'm coming out of a Z520C and had a Z520 over the past 10 years, and the first thing I was concerned about was the width of the front deck on the .204 vs. my Z520C. I can say there were several factors that helped me make the decision to go with the Ballistic .204. I've always been a fan of a good handling and high performance boat with good quality, I started with Champion years ago. When I got into Rangers, the quality was very high, with tons of bells and whistles but the rough water handling and high performance was not necessarily up there. I do have to say, when spending time at the factory with Jim, looking at Craigs boat and being in it, I did not get the impression the deck was 12" narrower where I place my rods, however, yes it is narrower than the aircraft carrier deck of the Z520C. However, I've accepted that altogether I can manage with maybe a rod less on each side and have a great performing, handling and outstanding quality boat that I can still enjoy true performance in before I get to darned old