Find an Alumacraft (AlumIcraft?) dealer, too. Based on conversations with
owners at launch ramps, they seem to be well constructed, too. Slightly
different layouts, but still serviceable.

Earlier, I mentioned the friend who let me borrow his trolling motor.
Because he lives out in the sticks, he spends more time driving around rural
farm country. A couple of years back, he was looking for a second boat.
After a week of driving around, he'd seen a dozen parked on lawns with for
sale signs. In many cases, they're very much underpriced. And, he worst
thing he saw was boats which were filthy, needing nothing but an afternoon
with a scrub brush. He ended up finding a 16 ft aluminum boat for about
$300.00.

Might be worth a tank of gas to pack a big picnic lunch and drive around
aimlessly. :-) Or, if you're going to see that dealer, take some back roads
on the way home.

-Doug

"Budd Cochran" wrote in message
...
Thanks, Doug.

I'll call him tomorrow and see what's available. Gas, locally, is over
$2.10
a gallon for 85 octane and even at 29 mpg, it would be an expensive trip.

I looked at Lund boats back in the mid 80's just before losing a good job
due to a downsizing. I liked the solid look and was considering a 17 foot
with a 20 hp motor, trolling plate, fish finder (flasher) and remote
steering. It was a package I could tow easily with a 6 cylinder Valiant.

Budd

"Doug Kanter" wrote in message
...
"Budd Cochran" wrote in message
...
I'm getting the feeling that used is going to be the way to go but
every
used boat I've had so far, like used cars, has come with a load of
problems.

I can only speak for the one I own, and what I'd look for. Look at the
boat
with and without the motor on the transom. With the motor on, see if you
can
spot any sag, which could mean someone towed with the motor up, but the
motor fell. With the motor off, give a transom a few good hard yanks and
look for any play that seems abnormal. As far as the hull is concerned,
any
major dents will be obvious, but a properly designed hull isn't going to
suffer much from the occasional bump with a log or rock.

The Lund WC series boats are popular with Canadian guides who sometimes
drop
the boat (without motor) from the fly-in airplane before landing to
deposit
passengers. They're nothing but hull, and VERY solid metal benches with
some
sort of composite board on top. I've encountered some obstacles in 5
years
which should've done more damage to the bottom, but still, I have
nothing
but scratches.


I think there is a Lund Dealer in Grand Junction CO, about 3 hours
away
from
me.

Call him. My dealer explained that he's more likely to TAKE a small boat
in
trade if he knows he's got a serious buyer who's looking. This is
especially
true as the season progresses. The dealers don't want to be stuck with
inventory, especially low-margin boats which take up space they could
use
for fancier boats.