I've had a Ranger and are selling a Pro Craft, now I'm looking @ the 188's, 196's and The 200's whats the best hull ride and power ratio for the champs? I want a mid 70's boat that rides well in rough water. any help would be appreciated.
I've had a Ranger and are selling a Pro Craft, now I'm looking @ the 188's, 196's and The 200's whats the best hull ride and power ratio for the champs? I want a mid 70's boat that rides well in rough water. any help would be appreciated.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bassman04 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I've had a Ranger and are selling a Pro Craft, now I'm looking @ the 188's, 196's and The 200's whats the best hull ride and power ratio for the champs? I want a mid 70's boat that rides well in rough water. any help would be appreciated.
The closest boat you are going to get to a new 75MPH Champion is going to be a 198 with a Phase II Yamaha or a 203LE with a 250.
Wow! That's a very wide-open question. What kind of water do you fish mostly? John has the right idea....
What is your budget?
What years are you looking at?
and on and on......We can help, but you need to be more specific....
Kentucky and Barkley Lakes, a lot of offshore structure that is prone to wind and waves, also plenty of heavy cover and flipping. Im looking in to stay in the 2000's year model and looking to spend in the lower to mid 20,000's and also had a question about the rod boxes do they not have an 8' rod locker? Oh and why do they call you Mom?
Good luck find any boat with a 225 that will run 75. Loaded anyway. I have bumped 74.8 but that was really, really light and in cool conditions...
They say "Ride and Decide",,,personally I love the 203 LE with my Mercury Pro XS 250,,,the 90 inch beam fits my need better. Some say the 202 might be the best fishing platform ever. Had I not been able to find my 203 the 210 with a Mercury-XS-250 might have been my selection. You will be amazed when you find out how much you have been missing. Welcome to the Champion Family,,,you will love your Champion.
****2008 203 LE ****
****Boat #6 ****
****250 Pro XS ****
Lake Seminole
It doesnt have to hit 75 but I want it to be as fast as my ranger was, 72.8, I just want to stay competitive on tournament day.
My 198 with a 225 hpdi does 72 gps light and 70 with 2 men and load. Yesterday in the hot weather with a heavy load it did 68.6 but it was in the mid 90's so that robs plenty of HP. What I like is at 5000 rpms I am getting 61 mph which is an awesome cruise speed.
Speed is nice and it is the sole purpose of some boat builders, but you dont buy a Champion for speed, but many models run 70mph,,you buy a Champion over the other brands because what it was designed to do, be the best riding bass hull in rough water, and yesterday on the Upper Bay it proved itself to me once again that I will take comfort over speed any day. Good luck with your choice but i dont think you will be disappointed with any Champion model you choose, some are faster than others but they all have that great Champion ride...
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Bassman04 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Kentucky and Barkley Lakes, a lot of offshore structure that is prone to wind and waves, also plenty of heavy cover and flipping. Im looking in to stay in the 2000's year model and looking to spend in the lower to mid 20,000's and also had a question about the rod boxes do they not have an 8' rod locker? Oh and why do they call you Mom?</TD></TR></TABLE>
2000s? Do you mean the year 2000, or do you mean any year from 2000 to 2009? The 196 is 200 hp rated. The 198 and 200 are 225 rated and will come closer to the speeds you mention...and are excellent in rough water. The 203 also might suit you. It is 300 rated...slightly narrower beam than the 198 and 200, but very quick and a superior rough water ride...as are all Champs...
You do know I am a woman, right? They call me Mom because I am old....I hope it's affectionate, but it could well be otherwise...
I didn't know staying competitive in tournaments had anything to do about how fast you run.
Ok its not about the speed, its about the best speed for the best rideif I really wanted speed I'd buy a bullet allison or stroker but its nice to have a little of both. Also its not uncomin here to make a 70 mile run in a tournament so if your rig wont get you there promtly then you have lost on your fish. I am not a speed junkie and all ive heard about Champs is ride and quality I'm just looking for the model that might fit me best and you guys are the experts!
188hands down.
Get a 210 with a 250 anything. You need it for KY/Barkley.
I can tell you one thing, a Champion isn't going to beat many boats to a spot 70 miles away but it will beat everything back to the ramp 70 miles away if the weather is bad.
Oh yea that is comfortably and dry..there are always a few cowboys that think beating themselves,there boats and there riders is performance.
198. I have very rarely been outrun to my fishing spots and I do run about 68 to 69 loadeded with a 225 PRO XS. It will run 73 to 74 if I run light. Who really runs that light anyway. It is amazing how many boats I can either pass or run with only to have them tell me they are a mid 70's boat. The ChampioN will really show its true colors in the rough stuff and will give you all the speed you can handle without hurting your back or tearing up your equipment. The 198 fishes great and to me is the the perfect size. Not to big or to small. The 203 would be a good choice for you rigged with a 250 if speed is a big deciding factor.
Good luck.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Skip »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">188
The 188 is just to small for a full time KY Lake boat. I manage to fish tournaments out there with my 18 foot boat just like I did with my 18 foot Champ but I would NOT want to fish out there every day with it. Santee is another lake like Fred describes where the channel wanders from one side of the lake to the other. When the wind gets up
You can get in trouble QUICK on KY Lake in any bass boat, the bigger the better. If I were buying a Champion for that lake I'd be looking for a 203 or a 210. There are only a handful of bass boats brands I want to be on that lake with I own one of them.Do your homework and you'll be happy with your decision.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Skip »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">188 again
I've came out of Paris Landing in a tournament fishing from a 223 Champion hoping I didn't land on my twigs and berries when she launched off the waves.
There is NO WAY any 18 footer made rides like a 20 footer with the right driver. He is not talking about 70 miles round trip on that lake, it's not uncommon to run 70 miles each way.
Then again what do I know about Champion boats go ahead and buy a 188.
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