Quinte Fishing

Z series bassboats, specifically the Z7.

Anybody have any feedback. I'm thinking about one.

Thanks.

wouldnt buy a nitro used... if your looking at new, i would say go for it.. they arent the best boat, but are the best for that price,
bass boats really are a you get what you pay for kinda of boat.. i think you will be very happy with it.
but is it not the same quality as a triton, or skeeter in the same size.. diffently not, but a triton or skeeter in the same size would be more expensive.
tritons have life time hull warranty to origanal owners, while i am not sure what kinda of warranty nitro's have.

key to it, get hot foot, a jack plate, hydrolic steering. those are options you have to add to a base nitro.
you should allways max out rated horse power for the boat, it helps for resale.

I guess I did the complete opposite of what Steve's written.

I'll admit, my dream boat would be a Ranger or Allison and am a big fan of all bass boats, but bought a used Nitro Savage with a 200, no jack plate (they say they're not needed with Nitros due to the design) but did install a hot foot and wouldn't be without one for safety reasons.

It was in my price range and loved the design. IMO - they have huge decks, amazing storage, stable and a fast hull.

Nitro's get slammed for well, I guess being a Nitro. But once again, for me it was a great all around match.

So, for what it's worth, I love my boat and would for sure look at purchasing one again. I'd probably want to go with the centre dual console though...you can walk completely around that sucker!

Cheers,

Paul

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The fishing was so good........I thought I was here yesterday!

we have had people in the family have problems with nitros, those boats have been sold and are around with the problems still not fixed. . i upgrade from my skeeter last year. just wanted another foot and 35 more hores (150 from 115).
had the money all saved up for it, so i spend months looking at boats, drove all over ontario etc. i saw many nice boats, never saw a nitro that didnt have a problem, or was beaten up. i looked at one in ottawa and the guy said to me what do you expect your looking at entry level tournament rig, so alot of the guys that buy these have never owned a bass boat before so they dont know how to care for them and at close to 10,000 less then the competetion you got guys getting into boats that cant afford to take care off them..
legacy, they all look good in a zoomed out picture bud.. but there is exceptions to it, and off course if i would of found one, that was decent, i would have a nitro not triton. i could of got a boat like legacy's for what i paid for a trtion with a 150 (same year as the boat i got).
i have seem them delaimating, messed up stingers, a front deck that sunk in the middle, majority where just scracth to hell, or clear coat starting to flake on the top.

Thats why i say buy new, then you can take care of, and it will last you a life time.. nitro has first owner hull warranty......
And as paul said it...

Nitro's get slammed for well, I guess being a Nitro.

People beat the hell out of them, and well being they are built in a 1/3 of the time it takes to build a triton.. they just dont hold up well..
i did alot of reasearch on them, and all most bought one new, was going to order a new triton, i think around 32,000 compared to around 26,000. (before taxes etc), same set up. they wouldnt sell me a nitro with out a jackplate told me nitro's need them to get max speed..
but then my dealer got the boat i have now in , and the motor had super low hours on it.. so i jumped all over it..
Disclaimer, lol, all boats can be good or bad. Buy a new one or do what legacy did and bought a old boat in great shape.. his is from the 90's.
then when you are ready to upgrade to some thing bigger, you wont have a ton of money invested.

oh, there is really good deals to be had at boat auctions in the states, the father in law bought a stripper with twin 250's on the back (salt water boat, set up for trolling). for a 1/10 of what he has in new brand new allison bass boat with a 300. i am going down in august, and plan on giving it some seat time..

You dissing my Nitro Fireball?!?

Remeber though - I had to take it zoomed out...an 18' triton fits in a square camera screen, a 20' nitro not so much.

As said, I love my nitro...I've pounded that thing and been in some pretty big water, never had an issue and always felt comfortable. I understood that when I bought this, I wasn't going to get much if I sold it and wanted to upgrade but am happy with this and not looking to do so in the near future...if anything, maybe down-grade to a triton.

You know of course I'm kidding Steve and all Triton owners...I've seen your boat Steve and she's a beauty. Triton's are an amazing rig and I'd own one in a heart beat.

My wife and I agreed...I get a boat, she a new kitchen and I'm happy with my (floating) kitchen...she with hers.

In the end though as Steve said...it's all about what you can afford.

Did I say I love my Nitro?!?


Cheers

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The fishing was so good........I thought I was here yesterday!

Wish I had a Nitro or a Ranger or a Triton. Lol.
The only boats that need slamming are the ones sitting in a garage instead of a lake.
To each their own. They are all nice boats.
Jason

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If you whisper to the walleye they will come!

Couldn't agree more...

My favorite boat that I've owned, was an 8' wood duck hunting boat.

...now that was a boat!

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The fishing was so good........I thought I was here yesterday!

Well said Jason!

Scott

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West Lake Willows Resort, Picton Harbour Inn, and Bay of Quinte Charters
Bay of Quinte Charters offers a 26' Charter Boat operating out of Picton Harbour with a fully enclosed cabin.
Picton Harbour Inn offers 31 rooms, docking, and a restaurant on the sheltered waters of Picton Harbour.
West Lake Willows offers 8 cottages and camping at the doorstep of the famous Sandbanks on West Lake.

www.bayofquintecharters.com, www.pictonharbourinn.com, www.westlakewillows.com

Yup to above, and a QAULITY DEALER as we have in Belleville

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Thanks to Pro Advantage

Agree!!!!

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There's something wrong with that rod.
It has a bend in it!!!

All boats break, all boats have their own good qualities and the poor ones too. Mike Desforges runs a Nitro, he fishes the biggest water in Ontario almost every day for months doing tornaments and guiding. He has never broken a Nitro hull. But before he ran Nitro's he ran Tritons. Ask him sometime how many of those he broke. I personally know at least 10 guys who have broken a Triton hull and made the "Triton Pilgrimage" back to the factory to drop off a broken hull. Guys like J.P. DeRose, Curtis Richardson, Scott Palmer and Matt Seeley just to name a few have all broken at least one Triton on big water and I mean these are broken hulls, not many can be repaired they are usually replaced.

Nitro has some of the best deck layouts on the market and innovative console designs as well. The biggest complaint I have heard from Nitro owners are the storage bins breaking as they are just plastic drop in style, trim pieces coming off. Basically the fit and finish is not what you expect from a Ranger or a Bass Cat for example. But they are quick and do run well in rough water. Come down to the Canadian Open next week in Kingston if you want to see a lot of different boats and see some Nitros.

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Hooksets are free, so when in doubt, hit 'em hard!

Colin Friel

of course colin, i was just given my experience based on what i saw looking at a ton of boats.. i agree nitros are good boats, they all are, i just wouldnt buy a used one... i did say he should buy a new one.. There is a nitro dealer in belville now ???
when i looked last year closest one i could find was ottawa..



Thats a dreamer's statement, thinking like that is only going to get you screwed. you cant just go and buy any boat, and if you really like it you should have a marine survey done on it.. people laught at me for getting them done because they think its a waste of time.. but i had 3 done last year, 2 of them came back with the boat need major hull repairs...
i mean do you think scott from west lake willows is going to list in his add that he hit a shoal, with his boat, probly not, but knowing him, i think he would be sure to tell you in person, show you the area that was damaged, probly even have some insurance info to show who it was repaired by etc... its there legal commitment as a seller to inform you of this..
i dont think it happens very often. but if it does, and you didnt spend the time to check it out, you could end up with a boat that has serious problems, because some one covered it up by doing a bad home repair..
Fiber glass is a different world then those old tin boats..

wow, never heard of any the desforges bit before, but he is not a lake ontario guy... he's known as a lake erie, niagra river. guy. and thats where he does all he guiding as well.. your talking about guys who hit shoals, and drove the piss out of them. i dont know all those guys, but the ones i do, are known, for having one speed and thats full out.. the new tritons have been reworked, the hulls sit twice as long in the molds now, and a few other quality improvements that the new company made this past year... but with a life time hull warranty for the origanal owner, if they broke them, they got a new boat. Whats nitro have for a warranty ?? i cant find it on there website.. i should know, but i cant remember as i need allmost buy one, i had done the financing, just had to go sign on the doted line.

Belleville Sport and Lawn sells Stratos, Bay Marine sells Ranger, they are the only dealers I know of in the Belleville area Fireball.

I guarantee you Palmer, Desforges and JP never hit a shoal. As far as going full out I wouldn't bet on it, although the famous pic of Strub and Al Patton in their TR 21 airborne shoes otherwise!!. These guys know how to drive a boat, they can run faster in big water than most of us can and they do it safely. If you aren't fishing the Open next week Fireball you should be as an am. It will be the best money you can spend on fishing this year. Aside from learning tactics, you will see how to drive a boat in big water on days most of us wouldn't even think about launching. By the way, Simon Frost is arguably one of the best big water boat drivers out there and even he has broken a TR 20 in the past. Regardless of how they drive, no brand is indestructible, but new or used, my advice is get as big as you can, get the most horsepower you can and go as new as possible, like Fireball suggested.

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Hooksets are free, so when in doubt, hit 'em hard!

Colin Friel

Haha, thats funny, cause i fish in 4 footers all the time, oh and i did it for years in a 17 foot skeeter.. you learn from doing it, i dont hit waves head on, i hit them on angle, i can handle big water, i am sure i would still learn a ton, fishing is all about learning, a day spent on the water with nothing learnt is day wasted.. i launch out of colins bay 3-5 times a week, will probly be back out again tonight, just kinda beat from fishing the last few weeks, have probly loged 200-300 hour's since bass season opened. probly going to go try and expand on the smallie stuff i learned yesturday.
I have been getting out with some really good fisherman this year, guys that have tournament wins on there records. (renegade, quinte, etc)
i was planning on it, but i just cant afford the $1000 bucks the weekend would cost, me after entry fee and giving gas money.
i mean it was fish that or run the two club's i am doing this year. its just hard on a single income and i pay the insurance on the wifes truck and boat, as well as on my own stuff.. i figure the clubs i am running will cost be around 200-250 a tournament. thats with $40 and $60 entry fee's. Any time you have a open seat, or want to fish out of a triton, send me a pm, i dont mind fishing out of the back of my own boat.
the triton still has hull warranty on it.