186XT owners what's your thoughts?

Thinking about pulling the trigger on a 186XT w/115 E-TEC.....been searching through different posts on here about them and seems most owners are pretty happy with them......From the posts on here there is at least one New Englander that owns the exact year and motor combo I'm looking at, and I'd really like to hear his thoughts as well as anyone elses..... How stable is it?...can 2 guys stand on the same side of the boat without issue?....Tell me what you love and tell me what you don't about the boat....Any an all information is greatly appreciated.

Thanks....Mike

Make it a 115HO (same motor as the 130 ETEC). I think it would be a great fishing rig. Biggest front deck on a 18' rig out there! http://www.bassboatcentral.com/smileys/thumbsup2.gif

I like mine. The question has been asked several times; do a search for "186XT".

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by Marauder &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">Thinking about pulling the trigger on a 186XT w/115 E-TEC.....been searching through different posts on here about them and seems most owners are pretty happy with them......From the posts on here there is at least one New Englander that owns the exact year and motor combo I'm looking at, and I'd really like to hear his thoughts as well as anyone elses..... How stable is it?...can 2 guys stand on the same side of the boat without issue?....Tell me what you love and tell me what you don't about the boat....Any an all information is greatly appreciated.

Thanks....Mike</td></tr></table>


The boat is VERY stable. The front deck is HUGE! My partner Rick is about 275lbs and I'm only 160, and we can both stand on the same side with no problems. I've even had three guys in the boat comfortably.

The 115 moves the boat along pretty well with two of us. I've seen 50mph on the dash, still no GPS on board. I have a 21p aluminum prop and it takes about a minute to get on plane, the holeshot is terrible but that's not the boat's fault. I've been trying to save up for a Raker all year, just hasn't happened yet.

After two years I'm still happy with it. It's a great entry level glass boat.

Matt

56mph speedo, 50mph GPS with 21p Merc alum. prop.
The holeshot was average, but I drilled vent holes in the prop and the holeshot is now very fast. The downside to venting the alum prop is that the exhaust gases erode through the paint finish on the aluminum, and probably over a long period of time would wear into the metal itself.
I've got a 21P Laser II in the mail as we speak; I'm curious to see how it works.
I don't know how big a difference it would make, but the Opti gear ratio is 2.07:1, and the ETEC is 2:1. At 5500rpm's my prop is turning 100 rpm's slower than the ETEC, which could account for the slower holeshot with the same prop.
But it still shouldn't take a minute to get on plane; 115 is the max HP for that hull. Is the motor trimmed in tight against the transom?


Modified by Nova Kaw 650 at 1:41 AM 11/1/2011

Thanks all for the information...I have been using the search feature for info as well, and after I posted I had better results with "stratos 186xt" as oppossed to "186xt"...Matt how has after the sale support been from the dealer, as I would be buying from the same dealer....you can pm me with that info if you prefer....I saw in other posts you were talking about the 21 pitch prop, did you try to swap out for a lower pitch unsuccessfully?..or did you just decide to stay with the 21. I'm assuming if you did it over again, you'd ask for a lower pitch from the dealer to begin with.

Mike

Dealer support has been fantastic. No complaints at all. The only reason for me keeping the 21p was that I banged it on a rock and couldn't swap it out for a 19. I tried a smaller prop from my Uncles boat but I spun the hub...

I didn't use the boat hardly at all this year because of time constraints and other misc. bs. Lost the brakes on my truck, cost me $600... Tree fell on my house during Irene, etc etc...

Really want to try a Raker in '12 and also shoot for a humminbird unit.

Matt, I'm originally from New London and can't imagine a better boat for all the lakes you all fish up there! The 186XT would be ideal. I've seen a few people down here with them and have been surprised by how well they handle the rivers we fish along the coast.

That's why I wasn't sweating the 115. The biggest lake I fish is only 860 acres. Most of the others are less than 400.

<table width="90%" cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 align=center><tr><td>Quote, originally posted by Nova Kaw 650 &raquo;</td></tr><tr><td class="quote">56mph speedo, 50mph GPS with 21p Merc alum. prop.
The holeshot was average, but I drilled vent holes in the prop and the holeshot is now very fast. The downside to venting the alum prop is that the exhaust gases erode through the paint finish on the aluminum, and probably over a long period of time would wear into the metal itself.
I've got a 21P Laser II in the mail as we speak; I'm curious to see how it works.
I don't know how big a difference it would make, but the Opti gear ratio is 2.07:1, and the ETEC is 2:1. At 5500rpm's my prop is turning 100 rpm's slower than the ETEC, which could account for the slower holeshot with the same prop.
But it still shouldn't take a minute to get on plane; 115 is the max HP for that hull. Is the motor trimmed in tight against the transom?&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Modified by Nova Kaw 650 at 1:41 AM 11/1/2011</td></tr></table>
I tested the LaserII 21p yesterday..... it was awesome! Super holeshot, 3 more MPH, and no blowout when trying to trim out. It was the perfect choice.