Thoughts on buy a 16' open silverstreak

JAC

Ran tillers for years in my early boats and herring skiffs. Have fished the last 4 years out of a 16.5 Campion 492 center console. Terrific to fish out of as you are on top of your gear and have the benefits of a regular boat with steering, electronics etc and is big enough to fish Nootka, Bamfield or close to shore on a reasonable day. Knowing that you like tin .....why not a center console, 18' ish with a lid over the console. Lots of used ones around or have one built. I would not go back to a tiller if I had a choice.
 
If you try the SilverStreak for a year and don't like how it works for you, you'll never lose one cent on it if you decide to sell. And it will sell quick.
Edit: I just read it's brand new... Never mind. Lol
 
Last edited by a moderator:
It looks like a pretty good package deal JAC, buy it. Worst case you may loose the tax or so. Really depends on the economy. Lots of boats given away cheap in 2008 and other years. If boat builders are slow then good deals will be offered. That being said your buying a very sought after brand so your chances of it holding it's value are good. If you we're going to hold it for a few years, it's a no brainer. In your case if you have any small loss you can make that up over your next couple. Do it and get it rigged up. And post picfures.
 
my friend has a 16` Hewe boat -alum. very similar good wide boat, strong...but little bit heavy to carry to the hitch ball.
 
test drive the boat before you buy it, I had a 16 foot silver streak that I won at the Juan de Fuca Derby. It had a Suzuki 20 horse 4 stroke on it. The first time I took it out it would not get up on plane and the nose was way up in he air. Turned out that the leg was too long for the boat. Had to take it back to Silver streak to get it modified. After that I still had to have gas can at the front and put my body weight forward to get it up on plane. It would then fly. I will say this about Silver streak. They are one tough boat.
 
My opinion is that you will not be happy out in the elements in an open boat. Also that is a huge amount of money to spend on a 16' boat when you could get a used windshield boat(alumaweld, hewescraft, north river, thunder jet, duckworth, etc, etc) which will provide you with a much safer, more comfortable fishing platform for only a small amount of more fuel. I've seen several nice packages come up for sale recently in the 25-30k range on Craigslist, south of the line. Even something like http://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/bod/4475590902.html would be so much better in my opinion.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ive fished Otter point and Secretary Island out of a 12 ft fiberglass with a 10hp Merc when I was young and fearless. Lol. The looks I got from people was priceless!
 
I guided for several years out of a 17' whaler with a 50 tiller... I now have an older 16' wide but not terribly deep welded aluminum CC with a 2012 camp return 50 merc. My buddy runs a 17 whaler with a 70 Johnston on it.... just got back from a 4 day trip to hotsprings cove with the two boats..... my boat was less than $100 bucks in gas for a 70 mile return run loaded with camping gear and people and two full days fishing
my 2 cents:

1. I would prefer to still be in a tiller boat... I like looking forward and being able to take everything in... gear, what is ahead of you, and your buddies. I also miss the instant manouverability of the tiller. If set up well it can be pretty comfortable....
2. I would never go back to fiberglass.... It is great to be able to run ashore for a beach fire and not worry about whether the launch has a dock... water is rough etc... I can launch by myself, pull it up on the beach and go park the truck.. no worries
3. I would not buy new... you are paying too much of a premium and there are lots of great used welded boats out there... Unless you get ripped off you can turn around and sell for the same price you paid

in short if I had a choice I would go welded aluminum, tiller and used
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Dennis.t said:
Ive fished Otter point and Secretary Island out of a 12 ft fiberglass with a 10hp Merc when I was young and fearless. Lol. The looks I got from people was priceless!
Click to expand...

I know someone who fishes regularly off Otter Point in a dingy boat..pretty brave to do but catches nice fish on good days.
 
My boat is 18ft and I find that it is a little bit cramped. It would be great if it had a pod but thats not going to happen. You and i both know how fast the weather can change here on these interior lakes. I was out a few weeks ago and the weather changed as i was fighting a fish. Went from slight chop to large swells/whitecaps in 10 minutes and i had to go all the way across the lake to get back to the launch. Taking waves up on the windshield was a humbling experience. Im not sure how much winter fishing you plan on doing but being in an enclosed boat makes a world of difference.
 
I'm also looking at a hardtop 17' silverstreak hardtop it has a pod and is 19' overall
 
that 18ft silverstreak would be perfect in my eyes. 13 more gallons of fuel than the 17 and 3/16" sides compared to 1/8.
 
Well.....you know my opinion JAC.....lol It's a great boat but in my case it's my 2nd rig so it has only been used for the types of fishing and exploring that I bought it for. Lots of good points made on the pro's but mostly the con's it seems? It sounds like for what you want it for it would be just fine.....IMO Maybe if you were full time on the coast you would want one with a top? But maybe not? I saw quite a few guys this weekend in Renfrew in far smaller tillers than the one you are considering and they didn't look all that sad to me? lol Like we talked about.....mine is the 15RC model and I put a 25hp Yamaha long shaft on it. It tops out at close to 28mph and definitely will make your eyes water! I definitely don't get as much time to use mine so far but hope to change that it a year or two. I did look around at a few used ones but they were pricy and not exactly what I wanted so not worth it to me but everyone has a budget. I didn't mind so much having one built since I plan on keeping it and hope to have my kids enjoy it when they are older like many people have talked about. I think almost all of us have memories fishing in someone's 12 aluminum growing up? I know I do. Good luck on your decision! Keep us posted!

Greg
 

Attachments

  • DSC00957.jpg
    DSC00957.jpg
    98.8 KB · Views: 275
  • DSC00485.jpg
    DSC00485.jpg
    86 KB · Views: 272
  • DSC00504.jpg
    DSC00504.jpg
    87 KB · Views: 273
I like that Silverstreak in pic ...except for:-

No splashwell in the back....I suppose they can make one custom at the time they build them though.

Kicker will need it's own jack-bracket.......which might affect connected-to-main steering.....(If I bought one it would have steering).

Price seems really good for a boat that size with 1/8 inch aluminum....

Nice sturdy boat........
 
Ya I'm looking at the 16 open with a 50hp and the the 17 ht with a 115 and a 9.9. Obvious the hardtop is bigger but it's also twice the cost.
 
And the welded attachment for the rocket launch rod holders will come back to haunt the owner. Look at the mounting plates for the DRs .. just imagine trying to land a big fish near the boat and getting caught up in either the rigger or rod holder!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

J
new open boat (16 Silver Streak) storage cover
Replies
3
Views
246
Corey_lax
Corey_lax
H
1st Boat Ever - Advice?
Replies
54
Views
3K
Samnjoe
S
L
Transducer on a Lifetimer
Replies
9
Views
1K
Laxputs
L
U
Help for a place to start ?
Replies
9
Views
1K
seahorse
seahorse
Baxter
Adding a Power Socket / Port Plug
Replies
20
Views
2K
Sr SQ
Sr SQ
Back
Top