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Rangers

2556 Views 28 Replies 13 Participants Last post by  Softbaitmaker
I have always said you get what you pay for in boats and a few years back I saw it first hand. FLW was here for a tournament on Old Hickory Lake. I know some of ya'll have been on this lake and you know it can be very unforgiving if you make a mistake on it. Well, because they didn't have a full field of 150 boats they opened it up to anyone that was a member and fished BFL's. Three of our local anglers signed up to fish and on the end of day one a local angler was in second place with 18 pounds. One of the Pro's decide he was going to follow the local around and fish his areas on day two. Well that will work as long as your following him and you make sure you run exactly where he runs. Well the local decided he did not appreciate having the shadow and made a long run and part of that long run required running a very very narrow ditch across the back side of a flat. On one lip of that ditch is a stump about 3 feet across the top and about 6 inches under the water. Well when the local passed the stump he zigged just barely enough to miss the stump. The Pro was not quite that lucky at 65 MPH the boat came to a very abrupt stop for a mili-second and then eased forward. The Pro turned and looked and his 225 Yamaha was completely gone. The entire motor was gone. He was only 3/4 of a mile from launch site so he gets on trolling motor and cell phone and was getting them to bring him his back up boat so they came to the dock with another Alpo Dog Food Boat. He told them on the phone that he had lost his motor and they thought he had blown it. They didn't realize that he had actually lost the whole motor. They swapped his gear to the other boat and he went back fishing and we stood there as they inspected the boat. The motor was gone. The jackplate was broke in half and both the positive and negative battery posts were ripped out of the starting battery. No that is one heck of an impact any way you look at it. They wound up sending the boat back to Ranger at Rangers request. They sent the boat off and paid to have an MRI and CT scan done of the entire boat. After a complete inspection inside and out they replaced all of the equipment and sent it back into service. They said that the Ranger Boat did not have as much as a stress crack anywhere in the boat or transome area at all. Now say what you want but I will say this Ranger does build a very strong and sturdy boat. That Yamaha is still down in Davy Jones Locker here on Old Hickory Lake unless some else has salvaged it in the last 5 months case you could pass over it and see it on depth finder. I know a few guys that have send cameras down to see if any parts might be worth going after. I am sure someone may have did a little diving and salvages some stuff off of it like Prop and a few other things but I think the bulk of it is still down there.......
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I dont know much about all the different boats out there but I like ranger because they dont move much when I do. I am not a small feller. I fished off a nitro a couple of years ago and was afraid to set the hook because my buddy or me might be swimming. I'm not knocking Nitro, they make a darn nice boat but I like a boat that I'm not afraid of.

Thats a good story Softy. I imagine that being a tournament boat the motor was decked out. I'd say some pretty expensive parts went to some lucky guys.
yea I thought it was funny about the guy trying to follow David to begin with. David can run Old Hickory Blind Folded to begin with and some folks say he didn't do it on purpose but every time I look at David , even today I smile and he busts out laughing so who knows, but there is alot of us that knows how to hide and get gone from a shadow on that lake........
I am truely glad that the Pro did not get injured in the crash. It could have had a totally different outcome had the guy been in a less well built boat........
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We can always count on Softy for some good reading..



Thanks Softy that was good.
Good story Softy!
Rangers are good boats!
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thats a good story and you are right Ranger makes a good boat i have fished out of a Ranger before and they are good boats.
Problem is...the average man like myself cant afford a new ranger or a new anything for that matter.....I could get one, but my little girl would go naked, my dog would starve and Id have to hear my wife complain that the newspaper isnt doing a good job keeping her warm at night.





or, if I did get one, I wouldnt have to hear her at all.......she'd be gone
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Problem is...the average man like myself cant afford a new ranger or a new anything for that matter.....I could get one, but my little girl would go naked, my dog would starve and Id have to hear my wife complain that the newspaper isnt doing a good job keeping her warm at night.





or, if I did get one, I wouldnt have to hear her at all.......she'd be gone
Brad Paisley said it best... "Oh I'm gonna miss her... when she's gone..."




Just kidding! I know what you mean, those are some pretty pricey boats.
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Well like I said Rangers have always been out of my price range but if you look at where all boat company prices have gone in the last 5 years Rangers are not all that expensive any more. I looked at an I Class Skeeter a buddy of mine bought last month. I-class 21 foot Skeeter with 250 Series II Yamaha and fancy fiberglass fenders on trailer. $61,000.00 bucks MSLP. There is no way I'm gonna spend that kind of money for a boat even if I could pay cash for it like he did and had his kind of money. He also bought a 2008 Chevy Avalanche painted to match the boat and paid cash for it. He now has $100,000.00 tied up in a truck and a boat to go fishing......
Like Forrests Momma said STUPID IS AS STUPID DOES. Guys like him are exactly why the prices of everything is that high. Because people are crazy enough to pay it. This guy had a 2006 Avalanche and a 2004 ZX 201 Skeeter with VMax 225 on the back with nothing wrong with any of it and long warranties on both still and trades them off. It's guys like him that make guys like me hate guys like him. Not because of what he has but because what he does........
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I agree Softy, the rich people always spoil it for us poor people. If I had the money though, I would find it to be very difficult to pay $60,000 for ANY boat.
I agree Softy, the rich people always spoil it for us poor people. If I had the money though, I would find it to be very difficult to pay $60,000 for ANY boat.
Ditto! I could buy a nice small house for that kind of money... Shoot I could build a small rental house and bring in $1000+ a month for that kind of money.
I don't want anyone to get me wrong. I am gald for someone to be successful and prosper but to do so and allow it to make you stupid I will never understand. I could see it if he was driving an older model truck and fishing out of an older boat but to just go out and blow that kind of money makes no sense to me what so ever.....
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Money makes you do stupid things and you really cant say you wouldnt do that if you did have the money. I mean think about it if you 10 million dollars there is a good chance you might buy a $60,000 boat. Money can make you or break you. I would like to have one of those high dollar boats but im perfectly happy with mine.
Snoot what are you scratching your head about i laid that out pretty good. I broke it down pretty well.
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boone, If I won a lottery and had 10 million dollars I would give 9 million dollars away to family and friends and put 1 million in investments like 401 k plans and live off the interest very comfortably but not stupidly. I have never wanted to be rich, only comfortable. Being rich involves way to many headaches and leaves no time to fish.........
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I'd like to try being rich once. Just for the fun of it.




Ditto! It would be kinda nice going to a Dealer and getting a new Triton TR-21. I would just be sad for a minute while waiting on the paperwork. Then I promise I would smile all the way home.
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I'd like to try being rich once. Just for the fun of it.
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