Fall Boat Buying...Really?
By Wayne Ek
By
the time late October rolls around a high percentage of anglers are probably
thinking of winterizing their boats or hunting. Making a fall purchase of a new
boat just does not seem practical at this time of year, or so I thought.
During the 2006
Minnesota
“Ultimate Bass Challenge” sponsored by Ranger Boats, I had a chance to sit down
and talk with George Liddle Jr. and Kent Sheel. George is a representative for
Ranger Boats and Kent is the Crystal-Pierz Marine line-leader for Ranger and
Stratos boats.
George and Kent brought up a couple of points that made me change my mind about
the best time
to purchase a new boat. We talked about the natural rise in material costs
after January. Let’s use the fall of 2006 as an example. We are already seeing
a huge increase in the cost of aluminum. Petroleum based materials like
plastics are also increasing in price. If you ordered a new boat late in the
year, October for example, you would still be ordering off the 2006 price
sheets, but the boat would be a 2007 model. If new options became available
once the 2007 product line went into production, you would probably not have
those on the rig you ordered, but the boat would be a 2007 model. George also
said it was a great time of the year to take advantage of any dealership’s stock
reduction sales. These are new boats that the dealership ordered for one reason
or another and have not yet sold. Most dealerships like to reduce the current
year inventory by winter, as the spring boat show circuit starts around
February, and they will be taking possession of the next year’s models around
that time.
Kent
talked about the need for inventory reduction on the part of the dealership. He
said a buyer could sometimes find a really good deal on non-current model
boats. I understood this to be a brand new boat the dealer had purchased that
the manufacturer (say Ranger) has now taken out of production or replaced with a
different model.
Kent
also mentioned that boat shows are fun for the buyer and you can see a lot of
different types, models and makes of boats at a show, but there is the
additional cost of tickets, parking, and the all important hot dog and Coke. On
the other hand you can stop in at any Crystal-Pierz dealership this fall (or any
time of the year) and they can bring up every boat in the system for you to look
at, even if it’s not at that particular store.
George also mentioned that a lot of Ranger Pro-staff boats and dealership demo
boats become available in the fall. Kent said the FLW/ Ranger Cup packages that
become
available are usually marketed at a better price than you could get if you
walked into a dealership and ordered the same
boat/motor with the same options. Now that’s something I have first hand
knowledge of. My current boat is a 2004 Ranger 520 Comanche VX, powered by a
225 Yamaha. I purchased this boat from Crystal-Pierz at a considerable
savings. The boat was an FLW boat loaded with all kinds of options and only had
10 hours on the motor. This is my 3rd Ranger boat. The first two were muti-species
(Fisherman Series) boats, even though I’m currently running a bass-style boat I
think the Fisherman Series boats are some
of the greatest family friendly boats made. Kent indicated that a lot of the
Ranger Boats Field-staff and most of Crystal-Pierz Pro-staff list their boats on
the Crystal-Pierz web-site (www.crystalpierz.com).
Both George and Kent agreed that glass and aluminum boats are holding their
value pretty much equally. Kent indicated that the extended financing and
better rates are giving buyers much more purchasing power, allowing them to look
at the higher end boats that they had never considered before.
In
closing our discussion, Kent brought up a good point. He feels that it’s not
the dollar amount you spend, or if you want a glass or aluminum boat. It’s
about what you will use it for, how you will use it, and how much you will use
it.
Kent
feels it’s far more important to find a boat that fits the customers needs than
to compromise those needs to fit an available boat.
If
you’re thinking of a new boat or a first boat, maybe the fall is a better time
to buy than the spring. We know that a new boat ordered or purchased in the
fall will certainly be there for you in the spring. There will be no waiting
and gnashing of teeth, hoping your new boat arrives prior to the first planned
outing. Have a safe fall and we hope to see you on the water.
Wayne Ek,
Agape Fishing Guides
classicbass.com Field Staff
Wayne Ek is a fishing guide, tournament
angler and writer in Alexandria, Minnesota.
