Boat Size for Havasu

[rebelmark75]

Getting ready to purchase a boat, and looking at a 22-24ft open bow. Primarily will be on Lake Pleasant, and occasionally Havasu and Parker. Is this a big enough boat? I had a Four Winns Liberator on the Dirty Delta, and the main channel would get rough AF. It was slow going, but it did fine. Will one of the modern powerboats like Ultra or Cheetah allow a little better speed in the rough, or will I be forced to go slow. If winds come up, will I have trouble with a boat that size? Thanks in advance.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Depends on the specific hull. Some in that range will work decent and only bounce you around on the worst days, some will be a really rough ride. Some here will tell you a boat of that size is not useable on Havasu

 

[rebelmark75]

What hull do you recommend?

 

[H20 Toie]

Way to small you need a 40' at least.

 

[RiverDave]

What hull do you recommend?

Hallett 240 is a great all around boat that can handle big water. Others in that size range sill be 25 bullet / 24 Lavey Off the top of my head.

 

[RCDave]

Shockwave 25 Tremor!

 

[Singleton]

V - 24 feet is the smallest I would go
Cat - 26 feet is the smallest I would go
Pontoon - 24 feet

 

[spectras only]

find one with min 22 degree deadrise and deepest freeboard. 24 degree and 24-26 length would be vastly superior, especially if choosing an open bow.

 

[dezrtracer]

My 24 does just fine in Havasu.....

 

[Ace in the Hole]

We have essentially a 30’ now... next boat will be a 26-28’ for a variety of reasons. 21-24’ is fine except for the busiest or worst weather weekends IMO. We had a 20’ in the ocean that I miss...best all around boat we ever had.

 

[Jay Dub]

Getting ready to purchase a boat, and looking at a 22-24ft open bow. Primarily will be on Lake Pleasant, and occasionally Havasu and Parker. Is this a big enough boat? I had a Four Winns Liberator on the Dirty Delta, and the main channel would get rough AF. It was slow going, but it did fine. Will one of the modern powerboats like Ultra or Cheetah allow a little better speed in the rough, or will I be forced to go slow. If winds come up, will I have trouble with a boat that size? Thanks in advance.

Hallett 240 would be ideal. I have a 210 and its fine most of the time. Saturdays can be very busy at Havasu.

 

[hallett21]

Our vector has worked for 30+ years.....

Hallett 240, Lavey 24, Howard 25, eliminator 26, Schiada 24 if you’re looking to have a Cadillac ride.

 

[185EZ]

GO BIG OR GO HOME
Give those roll bar botes a thrashing

 

[hav19]

I have a 2005 Eliminator Eagle 26' Open Bow / 496 HO Bravo (250 appox. hours) She is not listed however we are talking about selling $52k

 

[C08H18]

I boat all 4, compared to the Delta's sacramento or san Joaquin river on a windy day:
Havasu will be equivalent due to boat wakes but Havasu can get really nasty if a storm rolls in.
Pleasant may be better, but also gets quite a bit of boat wake on weekends. On Pleasant, you can be back to the marina in 10 min. or float in the 5 mph areas.
Parker will be better than the Delta's Sacramento or San Joaquin rivers. Parker has plenty of shallow areas and shoals.

I recommend a min. 25-26' and there are plenty of great suggestions already.

 

[Spot]

Not all boats in the 22-24 foot range are comparable, make sure you shop around and sit in them all. Hallett 240 is solid boat in the class but they are hard to come by. IMO the best 25 foot boat is the Shockwave Tremor. It has tons of interior room and handles great. My good friend has one and that thing is bullet proof. Any bigger you will get into the Hallett 270 range which is also a great boat but bigger than your specs.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Shockwave 25 Tremor!

Good suggestion.

My 23’ Cobra with tabs is manageable on the roughest days. The Hallett, Shockwave or Lavey are better still

 

[zbudman]

Good suggestion.

My 23’ Cobra with tabs is manageable on the roughest days. The Hallett, Shockwave or Lavey are better still

Tabs make a HUGE difference.

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Tabs make a HUGE difference.

Truth. It transformed my boat. I didn't really notice it a first because in the rough I drive more by feel. What I did notice was that now I'm walking away 10 MPH faster from my friends that I used to cruise with in the rough that don't have tabs.

 

[185EZ]

You guys and your west coast dingies
Midwest has some great boats, Sonic, Powerquest, Fountain, Donzi, Velocity, Checkmate
304 by 185 EZ, on Flickr

 

[HBCraig]

What hull do you recommend?

Howard or a Hallett will do great. Lavey too.

My Ultra 247 does okay on a Saturday afternoon but it's a bit light for that chop in my opinion

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Howard or a Hallett will do great. Lavey too.

My Ultra 247 does okay on a Saturday afternoon but it's a bit light for that chop in my opinion

Tab it There is a lot going on in the back of that boat though. Some people don't have enough room.

 

[samsah33]

I had a 22' deck boat (not the twin v-hull cat decks but the mass market modified v-hull decks) and I'd have to slow way down going over wakes or any time the h2o got choppy because the boat would "slap" the h2o hard coming back down. Not sure if that's an issue with all modified v's, but it caused me to get a deep v on my next boat, which slices rights thru. I wouldn't get a modified V deck again because of that.

 

[TCHB]

Saturdays 28 and above. The rest of the time it does not matter.

 

[brgrcru]

Queen marry

 

[spectras only]

You guys and your west coast dingies
Midwest has some great boats, Sonic, Powerquest, Fountain, Donzi, Velocity, Checkmate
Is this a Checkmate Convincor, otr Powerquest? About 28 feet

 

[707dog]

what are you going to be towing with and boat budget? will kind of narrow down size too

 

[185EZ]

It was my 1997 253 Convincor Checkmate
25' 3", 24* deadrise, delta pad
Bought it new. Never a stress crack or any flaws
22 years and no regrets
Then bought a toon lol

 

[spectras only]

Freeboard is important. Look at my boat next to buddy's 33 Donzi.
My boat is 25'7 , 24 feet without built in transom. There're 25 27 foot boats with marginal freeboard for serious swells out there.

 

[spectras only]

It was my 1997 253 Convincor Checkmate
25' 3", 24* deadrise, delta pad
Bought it new. Never a stress crack or any flaws
22 years and no regrets
Then bought a toon lol

My friend has the Checkmate too. It's a beast with built small block

He also has the red.whit 34 Hallett sitting at the dock.

 

[185EZ]

My friend has the Checkmate too. It's a beast with built small block

He also has the red.whit 34 Hallett sitting at the dock.

Dang! That sounds badazz
I had the HP500.
The boat is rock solid. My best was 74.6 mph
Not the fastest but it went through the worst weekend river runs

 

[HBCraig]

Tab it There is a lot going on in the back of that boat though. Some people don't have enough room.

I have tabs brother. They help...... a lot

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

I have tabs brother. They help...... a lot View attachment 1073264

Looking gude!! They make it... adequate on those rough days out there for sure.

 

[rush1]

I have a 23' Essexs monarch that kicks ass in the rough stuff ,she's heavy as hell and no speed demon though. It is one solid built boat.

 

[Sharp Shooter]

Stay with a 21 or smaller. You don't want to look like a sissy plowing around in an offshore boat on a small lake.

 

[Ace in the Hole]

what are you going to be towing with and boat budget? will kind of narrow down size too

He's obviously towing with an f150, its all anyone needs!

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

He's obviously towing with an f150, its all anyone needs!

Maverick should be fine for what we are discussing here.

 

[2Driver]

For 25 years I ran mostly a 21 and have the pins in my back to prove it.

 

[SOCALCRICKETT]

Love my 271 formula for that reason, small enough to trailer but can handle anything havasu can throw at it. She is a heavy one though, part of why I stepped up to a diesel

 

[Wizard29]

Truth. It transformed my boat. I didn't really notice it a first because in the rough I drive more by feel. What I did notice was that now I'm walking away 10 MPH faster from my friends that I used to cruise with in the rough that don't have tabs.

So they got you up to 35MPH?

 

[BUDMAN]

Hallett 255 all the way. Baddest MoFo on the water

 

[Happy Smitty]

I just couldn't get in the groove boating at Lake Pleasant. And I live 20 mins away. Offroad lake pleasant is fun.

For havasu I'd say just about any deep v or offshore style hull. If you want to cruz with class go with a Hallet and F150. You'll also want to get matching Hallet t-shirts.

 

[CoolCruzin]

My 23 ft cobra rode nice.
The 260 is even better

Every brand is a different ride

 

[rebelmark75]

I have a 2017 F350 or occasionally my Diesel Pusher moho. Budget around $30k or so. How do the Cheetahs do?

 

[77charger]

depends on what you want to do.I have a elim 207 does fine for me but then again i dont care to go 60 plus all day long either and i prefer upper river but nmo matter the boat the wake surf boats can ruin your day if you hit their wakes wrong,

And ive been passed by bigger boats going full speed and even some 26ftrs that dont look like the passengers are having a good time bouncing around.

 

[Bowtiepower00]

Pleasant doesn’t “usually” get as rough as havasu. A decent 24 would be fine 99% of the time. It is a washing machine when it’s busy- and crazy when the storms roll through. I watched waves roll over the back of my 23 Lavey as I tried to get it on the trailer during a severe thunderstorm (pleasant) and ended up with water up to my manifolds by the time I got it out.

 

[spectra3279]

My 32 loved it in havasu. It rode like an old 70s thunderbird on a rough road.

 

[WTR&PWR]

I have a 2005 Eliminator Eagle 26' Open Bow / 496 HO Bravo (250 appox. hours) She is not listed however we are talking about selling $52k
View attachment 1073223

Let’s talk. I have a 23’ eagle I’m going to be selling and have been looking at 26’ eagles. Text me some pics when you can 562.665.4635

 

[HNL2LHC]

Let’s talk. I have a 23’ eagle I’m going to be selling and have been looking at 26’ eagles. Text me some pics when you can 562.665.4635

Let’s talk when you two talk. I am looking for the 21-24 before the coming summer.

 

[Bpracing1127]

I have a 23’ ultra. Does good 95-% of the time. Saturday afternoon on a holiday weekend sucks. But with tabs. Go slow and enjoy the ride. I cruise mostly at 40-45. 95-% of the time.