Thunderjet 26 Alexis Offshore XL

[Chasin' Dreams]

Does anybody have one or have been in one that can give an opinion on how they ride and handle our coastal rough water?

Dealer doesn't have one on hand that I can sea trial until December before the boat show.

They have a 9' beam. My last Weldcraft boat was the same LOA and same chines but was an 8'6" beam and it handled our waters very well but could benefit from some more beam.

I have been giving some consideration however to having a custom one built by a friend boat builder that makes a 27' x 10.5 beam so I would have that nice extra stability when there's multiple people on board moving around. Only draw back would be the need of a permit when trailering.

 

[ship happens]

I have fished in the 22 and the 24 boat lots. Very poundy. Suspension seats are a must and they come with the Bentleys I believe. Shockwave would be better. They are better than most production boats in alot of ways. Still a production boat though. One piece bottom with no extrusions which is nice. Not a fan of the open bow. Older models all had non self bailing plywood decks. Wtf. Powder coated topsides. Wtf. High sides and beamy. Welding and fabrication is good. Very stable and can pack alot of weight. Economical. I had to weld a buddy's pod/bracket and delete the duckbill drain and all the open seems underneith where water was intruding. Think they build them different now bit I'm not certain. All in all they are decent and better than most other production boats. Very solid.

 

[Max123]

Haven't ridden in one, but there are a few I see all the time running in the Pitt. You can always spot them coming, huge tapered / pointy bow that lifts way up out of the water, very distinctive. I can't speak to how they feel - but from watching them go by they throw up a ton of spray in even the mildest chop.

The ones I'm seeing in the river are likely in the 22 ft range as well, larger may hunker down a bit more.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

I have fished in the 22 and the 24 boat lots. Very poundy. Suspension seats are a must and they come with the Bentleys I believe. Shockwave would be better. They are better than most production boats in alot of ways. Still a production boat though. One piece bottom with no extrusions which is nice. Not a fan of the open bow. Older models all had non self bailing plywood decks. Wtf. Powder coated topsides. Wtf. High sides and beamy. Welding and fabrication is good. Very stable and can pack alot of weight. Economical. I had to weld a buddy's pod/bracket and delete the duckbill drain and all the open seems underneith where water was intruding. Think they build them different now bit I'm not certain. All in all they are decent and better than most other production boats. Very solid.

Thanks for the input SH. Ya they are now coming with Shockwaves which are alright but are known to break I've heard from a few guys now and when they go up and down they project forward I found so not so sure about them yet.

The 26 isn't a one piece hull because they're buying USA aluminum not Chinese so the sheets are too short to make the 26 or bigger in one piece. There's a weld seam towards the bow. Some other manufactures using the USA aluminum do the same. Some builders grind tge weld bead down and paint or vinyl wrap over it. The Thunderjets it's a visible weld seem.

Nice to hear about the stability. The 22 and 24s are 8' 6" beams while the 26s are 9' beams.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

Haven't ridden in one, but there are a few I see all the time running in the Pitt. You can always spot them coming, huge tapered / pointy bow that lifts way up out of the water, very distinctive. I can't speak to how they feel - but from watching them go by they throw up a ton of spray in even the mildest chop.

The ones I'm seeing in the river are likely in the 22 ft range as well, larger may hunker down a bit more.

The TJets running the Pitt are jet boats. I used to run it in my North River jet boat. Very different animal and hull than the ocean boats. Jet boat hulls are much flatter barely any dead rise and yes will pound and spray on lakes, rivers etc.

 

[ship happens]

Thanks for the input SH. Ya they are now coming with Shockwaves which are alright but are known to break I've heard from a few guys now and when they go up and down they project forward I found so not so sure about them yet.

The 26 isn't a one piece hull because they're buying USA aluminum not Chinese so the sheets are two short to make the 26 or bigger in one piece. There's a weld seam towards the bow. Some other manufactures using the USA aluminum do the same. Some builders grind tge weld bead down and paint or vinyl wrap over it. The Thunderjets it's a visible weld seem.

Nice to hear about the stability. The 22 and 24s are 8' 6" beams while tge 26s are 9' beams.

Yeah I know what you mean by that since they can only source 20ft sheets, however I was more referring to the width. Most production guys don't use the 12ft sheet and seem the entire keel. Think I'm correct on that. It's been a while now since I spoke with them back in think 2012ish. The 22 had a seem at the nose and the 24 was a little further down for the 2 ft and 4 ft extention on the 20ft sheet ( or whatever the measure is) that being said they use a bent peice to join the seem and solid weld it instead of most production guys who use that down the entire keel. Some of those guys use extruded. Which is really bad. Thunder is doing it pretty good on that front imo. Still a production boat though.

I'd ask if they are still using powder coat. All the older ones are starting to bubble on the topside.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

Yeah I know what you mean by that since they can only source 20ft sheets, however I was more referring to the width. Most production guys don't use the 12ft sheet and seem the entire keel. Think I'm correct on that. It's been a while now since I spoke with them back in think 2012ish. The 22 had a seem at the nose and the 24 was a little further down for the 2 ft and 4 ft extention on the 20ft sheet ( or whatever the measure is) that being said they use a bent peice to join the seem and solid weld it instead of most production guys who use that down the entire keel. Some of those guys use extruded. Which is really bad. Thunder is doing it pretty good on that front imo. Still a production boat though.

I'd ask if they are still using powder coat. All the older ones are starting to bubble on the topside.

Ah I see what you mean. Ya I think they are doing a good job with a production boat. I was checking them out the other day in the show room and I think a 24 would work ok as a charter boat but the 26 is the better choice I'm sure. I don't want regrets after spending a lot of dough on the boat. If I go with the production boat I think I'm pretty sure I'll go with the Thunderjet. Just have one last option of a used but excellent shape custom one my friend built 8 years ago; the 27 x 10.5 which is actually much larger in usable boat too cause he doesn't waste space on a longer narrower bow that most production boats do. Hoping to check that one out soon. It just got re powered with twin 200 Yammies this year too.

 

[InterMechanico]

I’m happy with what I bought (Silver Streak Gambier), but if I was doing it again in and above that price range I would almost certainly go with a custom build based on a Cope or similar design. I have a fair bit of envy of some SF members custom builds.

Production boats are fine, but being able to spec added reinforcement and/or changes to the layout is invaluable.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

I’m happy with what I bought (Silver Streak Gambier), but if I was doing it again in and above that price range I would almost certainly go with a custom build based on a Cope or similar design. I have a fair bit of envy of some SF members custom builds.

Production boats are fine, but being able to spec added reinforcement and/or changes to the layout is invaluable.

If you order a SS from them before they build it can you not get them to build it the way you want in terms of layout, custom add on's or omissions?

 

[kaelc]

If you order a SS from them before they build it can you not get them to build it the way you want in terms of layout, custom add on's or omissions?

Maybe now

Andy is good to have a BS with, not sure he would be my first choice to build a custom boat with.

Try and get Jaxoncraft to build one more!

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

Maybe now

Andy is good to have a BS with, not sure he would be my first choice to build a custom boat with.

Try and get Jaxoncraft to build one more!

Funny I have just heard that same thing from another forum member

Those Jaxoncrafts sure do have a cool look to the design. Will check them out thank you.

 

[kaelc]

Funny I have just heard that same thing from another forum member

Those Jaxoncrafts sure do have a cool look to the design. Will check them out thank you.

Yeah, my buddy has one. Charters and commercial tuna fishes out of it. Takes it from the north island to tip of HG some days. Slays….. I wish I had the money. A 10 foot beam by 26 would be my dream boat. Still towable but two full size beds, or do a walk around curry with a side door like @Rain City. Lol it takes me forever to buy 1 thing for my boat I would have analysis paralysis if I had the options. You also save the dealer markup to spend on burwinn or whatever! And pay less taxes to JT. You are likely getting into luxury tax with a factory boat but could piece things together to stay under the tax if you do a custom local build.

 

[Chasin' Dreams]

Yeah, my buddy has one. Charters and commercial tuna fishes out of it. Takes it from the north island to tip of HG some days. Slays….. I wish I had the money. A 10 foot beam by 26 would be my dream boat. Still towable but two full size beds, or do a walk around curry with a side door like @Rain City. Lol it takes me forever to buy 1 thing for my boat I would have analysis paralysis if I had the options. You also save the dealer markup to spend on burwinn or whatever! And pay less taxes to JT. You are likely getting into luxury tax with a factory boat but could piece things together to stay under the tax if you do a custom local build.

Great insight thank you!

 

[InterMechanico]

If you order a SS from them before they build it can you not get them to build it the way you want in terms of layout, custom add on's or omissions?

Yes, depending on size. On the gambier 18.6 maybe if you’re patient but they are really targeted more for their dealer network as turnkey boats. I’m pretty certain that the larger models are available with a bunch of optionality. If you were looking at 25’ swiftsure you would need to provide a ton of input before the build would start.

I’ve spoken with various people including Andy and Scott over the past 5 years, and have always had positive interactions.

My take on Andy; he’s a boatbuilder 1st and salesman 5th. 10 times out of 10 I would choose to buy a welded aluminum boat from boatbuilder over a salesman.

They build great boats, have been/will be around forever and stand behind their work. I bought mine because i was impressed with another that’s been around the cabin (island) for 30 years or so. Time in business has to carry weight when making this type of purchase, because a lifetime hull warranty is not worth much if the business has closed down.

Just my 2 cents, and is not comment on other builders. Maybe a little bit on salespeople hahaha

 

[kaelc]

Yes. SS builds great boats. I just meant I would chose a company that sells custom boats direct, adding a dealer to the communication chain and total cost only makes sense if you want local dealer support.

 

[InterMechanico]

Yes. SS builds great boats. I just meant I would chose a company that sells custom boats direct, adding a dealer to the communication chain and total cost only makes sense if you want local dealer support.

You bet! I get you and agree.