Why choose a jet boat?

[vetplus40]

Hello to all. I am looking to switch boats from my current 2014 Stingray 180RX- which I simply do not like for various reasons. Recently, I decided to put a jet boat (most likely a Yamaha) into the mix of possibilities. I own two Yamaha Waverunners and used to race Yamaha motocross bikes as well. As such, I have had great results with the brand.

That said, outside of avoiding the obvious issue of dealing with an outdrive (damaged my prop and skeg within a month of buying my I/O) what were other reasons that you folks went the jet boat route?

Thanks for the insight.

 

[buckbuck]

Simplicity
easy maintenance
rear swim platform for hanging out
no children choppers in the back

 

[Seadeals]

1. Prop-free stern and huge swim platform was perfect for our young children.
2. I liked having two engines and independent control (a pilot who likes mastering machines requiring finesse).
3. With a smaller tow vehicle at the time of purchase, going jet let me buy a bigger boat as they are lighter.
4.the people on this forum!!! Everyone here is soooo helpful and I was able to know everything I needed to purchase with confidence AND tackle ALL the maintenance and repair work (including an engine pull) without ever having to be at the mercy of a boat shop.
5. They are simple machines and are less demanding when it comes to maintenance (winterizing, etc.).
6. I loved the looks.
7. I love having 50 gallons of gas (more than friends' boats).
8. While debris and weeds can cause impeller issues and a few have impacted things with the new skew/rudder, I like knowing the keel of my boat is the lowest thing in the water. You can explore farther and into shallower places.
9. When the wind is calm, I LOVE making it dance (do exactly what I want) with slow speed maneuvering and docking. Docking stern first, maneuvering around a ton of boats at the ramp, sneaking past submerges rocks and timber to see waterfalls. Most start watching and seem both disappointed they didn't see what they expected (me crashing into something tearing my boat (prop?) up) and amazed that a boat can do that.
10. It fits perfectly in my garage. I love having it there and being able to work on it when I want. Mods mods mods!

 

[bumpy]

We had a Four Winns deck boat for 10 years; the maintenance and repair costs were bad, at least $1000/year! I change the oil and spark plugs myself, so maintenance costs are less than $120/year. The Yamaha is better at my dock, with 20-24" depth, and the swim deck seating is phenomenal. The hole shot and handling are so much better than our older I/Os. What can I say, we love our Yamaha!

 

[ar240owner]

What they said ^^^^ !!

 

[captras]

I owned a Four Winns for 18 years before going to a Yamaha Jet. Here are the reasons I regret my decision to change:

 

[4x15mph]

Jet all the way depending on what your expectations are. What don't you like about the Stingray which sounds like more than just the prop. Want to make sure it addresses your various reasons for not liking the Stingray

 

[haknslash]

Here's my top 10 illustrative reasons:

1. It fits in my 7' garage (with simple tower cable extension mod)!

2. No lower running gear or skegs. As much as I love wake boats my heart would sink if this happened to me like it did to a guy on my local lake.

3. Ease of maintenance. Change the oil once a season, plugs if they need it and that's pretty much it. There is no winterization I do which basically consists of topping off the tank and adding stabil along with using my battery charger. No coolant to fill or outdrives to service. Sorry no pics since there is little to no maintenance .

4. The swim platform. It is by far the most used area on the boat and rightfully so since there are no outdrives or props to worry about while hanging your feet off into the water or sliding in.

5. Flexibility. You can take her to the fresh water or salt water without worry or much involved. There are flush ports to rid the engine cooling passages of salt and you can get the boat in the skinny water since they have such shallow draft.

6. Because you can do fun maneuvers like this!

7. Room and storage space. These boats offer a lot of room per foot of boat. Even the 19' Yamaha boats can feel pretty roomy compared to other 19' boats out there.

(24' 242 Limited S below with big ballast bags, tons of gear, surf boards, you name it)

Leon's video is great at showing just how much you can cram into even the smallest boat on the lineup...

8. Watersports options. Tubing, skiing, wake boarding, air chairing, it can do it all. You can even surf off these boats given the right combo of ballast and/or wake wedge.

Heck if you have the balls you could even Fly Board with these boats!

One of the members on here has a Fly Board setup for his jet boat.

9. Easier on the wallet than traditional boats. They don't call them B.O.A.T. without reason . Whether its the lighter weight helping in towing or the low maintenance, jet boats offer a nice savings each season compared to an equally towed and used conventional boat.

10. And last but certainly not least, This Forum. It is all you need to install, fix, troubleshoot or learn about damn near anything on these boats. There are years worth of users and knowledge here. Eveyone is very kind and willing to help should you need it. These boats also have some kind of gravitational comradery among them and there are gatherings all the time if that's your thing. Even if it's not if I see a fellow jet boat on the water there is usually a nod, waive, horn honk or something involved to acknowledge one another. When I rode motorcycles it was very similar in nature. Not sure if all boat forums or brands are like this but these boats seem to bring people together and at the very least will give you a good time and lots of fun.

 

[scokill]

Simplicity
easy maintenance
rear swim platform for hanging out
no children choppers in the back

Ditto.

 

[WaltB]

Better acceleration.

 

[djetok]

Our biggest reason in this order.

swimdeck
No props
Maintenance (lack of)
Space in the boat
Utility
Ease of towing

We had a i/o, outboard boats. I have 36 hours on my 2015. Sometimes I feel like I am not doing enough maintenance as compared to what I did on my other boats. So I would do extra maintenance. I have changed my oil 4 times so far since we bought it in July of 2016 and will again before I store it for winter. I tend to WAX and clean it a lot since that's about all I have to do.

 

[Ilmmct]

Trying hard to think of something that hasn't already been stated ...
-jet boaters are cooler, trendsetters and don't follow the crowd (unless it is a maintenance recommendation or a mod idea from the many knowledgeable members of this forum)
-there is engine redundancy on many of the jetboat models so you will likely never take the towboatus or seatow "walk of shame".

 

[Mtschelling]

Ease of maintenance. Hands down biggest benefit IMO, otherwise, what they said.

 

[vetplus40]

Here's my top 10 illustrative reasons:

1. It fits in my 7' garage (with simple tower cable extension mod)!

2. No lower running gear or skegs. As much as I love wake boats my heart would sink if this happened to me like it did to a guy on my local lake.

3. Ease of maintenance. Change the oil once a season, plugs if they need it and that's pretty much it. There is no winterization I do which basically consists of topping off the tank and adding stabil along with using my battery charger. No coolant to fill or outdrives to service. Sorry no pics since there is little to no maintenance .

4. The swim platform. It is by far the most used area on the boat and rightfully so since there are no outdrives or props to worry about while hanging your feet off into the water or sliding in.

5. Flexibility. You can take her to the fresh water or salt water without worry or much involved. There are flush ports to rid the engine cooling passages of salt and you can get the boat in the skinny water since they have such shallow draft.

6. Because you can do fun maneuvers like this!

7. Room and storage space. These boats offer a lot of room per foot of boat. Even the 19' Yamaha boats can feel pretty roomy compared to other 19' boats out there.

(24' 242 Limited S below with big ballast bags, tons of gear, surf boards, you name it)

Leon's video is great at showing just how much you can cram into even the smallest boat on the lineup...

8. Watersports options. Tubing, skiing, wake boarding, air chairing, it can do it all. You can even surf off these boats given the right combo of ballast and/or wake wedge.

Heck if you have the balls you could even Fly Board with these boats!

One of the members on here has a Fly Board setup for his jet boat.

9. Easier on the wallet than traditional boats. They don't call them B.O.A.T. without reason . Whether its the lighter weight helping in towing or the low maintenance, jet boats offer a nice savings each season compared to an equally towed and used conventional boat.

10. And last but certainly not least, This Forum. It is all you need to install, fix, troubleshoot or learn about damn near anything on these boats. There are years worth of users and knowledge here. Eveyone is very kind and willing to help should you need it. These boats also have some kind of gravitational comradery among them and there are gatherings all the time if that's your thing. Even if it's not if I see a fellow jet boat on the water there is usually a nod, waive, horn honk or something involved to acknowledge one another. When I rode motorcycles it was very similar in nature. Not sure if all boat forums or brands are like this but these boats seem to bring people together and at the very least will give you a good time and lots of fun.

Here's my top 10 illustrative reasons:

1. It fits in my 7' garage (with simple tower cable extension mod)!

2. No lower running gear or skegs. As much as I love wake boats my heart would sink if this happened to me like it did to a guy on my local lake.

3. Ease of maintenance. Change the oil once a season, plugs if they need it and that's pretty much it. There is no winterization I do which basically consists of topping off the tank and adding stabil along with using my battery charger. No coolant to fill or outdrives to service. Sorry no pics since there is little to no maintenance .

4. The swim platform. It is by far the most used area on the boat and rightfully so since there are no outdrives or props to worry about while hanging your feet off into the water or sliding in.

5. Flexibility. You can take her to the fresh water or salt water without worry or much involved. There are flush ports to rid the engine cooling passages of salt and you can get the boat in the skinny water since they have such shallow draft.

6. Because you can do fun maneuvers like this!

7. Room and storage space. These boats offer a lot of room per foot of boat. Even the 19' Yamaha boats can feel pretty roomy compared to other 19' boats out there.

(24' 242 Limited S below with big ballast bags, tons of gear, surf boards, you name it)

Leon's video is great at showing just how much you can cram into even the smallest boat on the lineup...

8. Watersports options. Tubing, skiing, wake boarding, air chairing, it can do it all. You can even surf off these boats given the right combo of ballast and/or wake wedge.

Heck if you have the balls you could even Fly Board with these boats!

One of the members on here has a Fly Board setup for his jet boat.

9. Easier on the wallet than traditional boats. They don't call them B.O.A.T. without reason . Whether its the lighter weight helping in towing or the low maintenance, jet boats offer a nice savings each season compared to an equally towed and used conventional boat.

10. And last but certainly not least, This Forum. It is all you need to install, fix, troubleshoot or learn about damn near anything on these boats. There are years worth of users and knowledge here. Eveyone is very kind and willing to help should you need it. These boats also have some kind of gravitational comradery among them and there are gatherings all the time if that's your thing. Even if it's not if I see a fellow jet boat on the water there is usually a nod, waive, horn honk or something involved to acknowledge one another. When I rode motorcycles it was very similar in nature. Not sure if all boat forums or brands are like this but these boats seem to bring people together and at the very least will give you a good time and lots of fun.

 

[vetplus40]

Awesome responses!..........Thanks

 

[vetplus40]

Jet all the way depending on what your expectations are. What don't you like about the Stingray which sounds like more than just the prop. Want to make sure it addresses your various reasons for not liking the Stingray

Stingray hull designs less than 20 foot in length are rough on anything other than smooth water. They go faster than other boats with the same size motor, but you pay for that speed in any kind of chop. I have an 18 footer that sux. The only thing that we like about the boat is its roomy swim pad. Wwe might actually miss that.

 

[RiverRat]

No dangly bits....

 

[djetok]

Stingray hull designs less than 20 foot in length are rough on anything other than smooth water. They go faster than other boats with the same size motor, but you pay for that speed in any kind of chop. I have an 18 footer that sux. The only thing that we like about the boat is its roomy swim pad. Wwe might actually miss that.

If the swim pad is what you will miss. You will love the back decks on these

 

[vetplus40]

I like the reclined sitting concept, and dangling my feet in the water, but I am not sure where the wife would lay out? The deck isn't padded.

 

[haknslash]

I like the reclined sitting concept, and dangling my feet in the water, but I am not sure where the wife would lay out? The deck isn't padded.

On these boats the bow is kind of the sun pad area since most come with a bow filler. That and the J seating areas on some models.