Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

A conversation among Whalers
SLR
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Joined: Sun Feb 26, 2017 12:13 pm

Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby SLR » Sun Feb 26, 2017 12:54 pm

Hello all,
New person here. I'm very seriously looking at a new Montauk 150. I need a boat that will fit in my garage with a standard 7 foot tall door. Actual clearance would be 6'10" with door open. I will be using the boat in Florida mostly fishing in the inter coastal and areas like Mosquito lagoon, Sanibel/Pine Island Sound. Mostly it will be my wife and I or possibly a 3rd person on occasion. I have searched the forum and read that a few folks have recently purchased this model. I'm wondering what your opinions are about the ride in this boat. Is it sufficient for what I want. I have owned several boats in the past including a Grady White 24 sailfish, Wellcraft 18 CC, Scout 160 Sportfish, and currently own a 2006 Regal 2200 bow rider. I am 63 years old and the Regal has just gotten to much to handle by myself. I'm looking for something easy to load and unload and easy to clean. Out of all the boats I've owned I enjoyed the 16 foot Scout the most. It had a tunnel type hull so I'm wondering if the Montauk 150 might be similar in ride. Thanks in advance.
Last edited by SLR on Sun Feb 26, 2017 8:25 pm, edited 1 time in total.

ConB
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Location: Suttons Bay, MI

Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby ConB » Sun Feb 26, 2017 6:08 pm

I keep thinking a 170 Montauk would be a great senior citizen boat.

Should fit in a 7' garage door.

Has more room than a 150 Montauk.

Less maintenance than my old Outrage 18.

Con
!987 Outrage 18 / 2011 Yamaha F150
1969 13 / 30hp Johnson tiller

frontier
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Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby frontier » Mon Feb 27, 2017 8:42 pm

Get a good used classic (2002 or older) 17 Montauk. Lots of them in Florida. About 1/2 the price of a new 150 Montauk, same weight as the 150 (950#) but more room. Re-power if needed with a new F70 Yamaha or good used Yamaha 90 HP 2-stroke. Maximum power on a new Montauk 150 is 60 HP. (not enough for the 950# weight). Classic Montauk is rated for 90 HP. To fit in a standard garage, add a swing tongue or buy a new trailer with the swing tongue option. New trailers are usually under $2000.00.

vze2gbs4
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Joined: Wed Mar 30, 2016 9:34 pm

Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby vze2gbs4 » Mon Feb 27, 2017 11:20 pm

After owning all the boats you mention I think you will be disappointed in a ride of 15 footer that has skiff platform. It all depends what kind of waters you will be boating. Its strictly flat,calm water boat with very low to the surface bow entry . Any moderate chop and you will not like it . As mention before I would think 170 montauk will be better boat for your needs.

macfam
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Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby macfam » Tue Feb 28, 2017 8:18 am

We really enjoy our 150 Montauk here on Cape Cod. In my opinion, with over 50 years with first hand boating experience, the 150 Montauk is the real deal. Yes, it is the same weight as the classic 17 Montauk. Because it's one solid, beefy 15 footer.
Remarkably dry, and runs damn well in a brisk chop(Nantucket Sound, and Vineyard Sound)
OF COURSE, you need to pick your day, but it easily runs to the Vineyard from Falmouth for a breakfast at The Black Dog.
I've driven many classic Boston Whaler 15's,(considered by many to be the best 15 ever made)and owned a 1964 Nauset for years. I'll gladly put the 150 Montauk against any one of them.
Is a 170 better? Sure it is. With that argument, you can talk your way to 190 or a 210 Montauk!
For the money.....the 150 is a great boat. Easy to handle for one person, and slips into the garage with ease.

jimh
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Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby jimh » Tue Feb 28, 2017 10:51 am

The newer MONTAUK boats are indeed fine boats, and the notion that the 150 model is somewhat on par with the classic MONTAUK 17 has been made before. We compare the relevant dimensions:

CLASSIC MONTAUK 17
Length = 16-feet 7-inches
Beam = 6-feet 2-inches
Weight = 950-lbs
Source: http://continuouswave.com/whaler/reference/16-17/

150 MONTAUK
Length = 15-feet 5-inches
Beam = 6-feet 6-inches
Weight = 950-lbs
Source: http://www.bostonwhaler.com/family-overview/montauk-boat-models/150-montauk/#specs_150-montauk

The "17" version is only 14-inches longer than the "150." But the "150" is 4-inches wider. If we use a simple length-times-beam area comparison, we see

MONTAUK 17 = 102.3-feet-squared area
150 MONTAUK = 100.3-feet=squared area

We see that the hulls are of equal weight and the interior space differs by only 2-percent.

Clay
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Joined: Sat Aug 27, 2016 8:58 pm

Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby Clay » Tue Apr 04, 2017 6:38 pm

My wife and I (ages 63 and 65) had planned to purchase a new Montauk 150 after seeing another couple our age using one on Lake Sunapee in New Hampshire. But when we went shopping and compared the 150 side by side with the 170 in a showroom the decision was easy to spend the extra for the 170. Still easy to handle for us older folks and definitely more room and better ride. The 190 is nice but expensive and more to manage....seemed unnecessary unless you were going on the ocean or very large lakes. My humble advise? If money is not the biggest factor, get the 170. If it is, you will still be getting a very capable boat in the 150 and you will be very happy with it.

Rascal
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Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby Rascal » Fri Apr 07, 2017 11:17 pm

I recently sold a 150 Montauk, but only because my kids were getting a bit too big for four of us on the boat. It's a great boat, fit easily in the garage, and was easy to trailer. The simplicity of a Montauk can't be beat. Not a lot that can go wrong and if it does, then it's easy to fix or replace and easily accessible. No built in gas tanks or other problems hidden under the deck or inside hard to reach places. Also, few hidden places to get covered in mildew. I imagine it will ride similar to a 160 Scout as the weight and other dimensions are pretty close.

Buying new, that big chain Whaler dealer in your area will likely take good care of you. In the early days they didn't seem to know much about Whalers, but now that they've been selling them for a while they seem to have figured it out and hired people who know Whalers at the locations I've visited.

If the 170 will fit in your garage, then get it for a bit better ride and more room for gear. While the console and seat are the same size in the 150 (well, the newer 170 console is a little taller), the space you gain in the rest of the boat allows more room to move around or to put your stuff. A 170 is just as simple to own, trailer, and maintain as a 150.

We replaced the front cooler on our 150 with a 72 quart version and a cushion from Whaler (this is the cooler size on the 170). It was easy to add small Starboard extensions to move the existing brackets out to hold the bigger cooler. Also had to swap to the longer bungees from Whaler. If you are bringing a third person regularly this might be worth doing.

For other people who are considering used, we couldn't just couldn't see buying a classic 17 Montauk over a newer 150 Montauk. As mentioned, they are similar in size and weight. Repowering a 17 Montauk costs around the same as a few year old 150 Montauk. However, even a well kept classic 17 is still and 16+ year old boat with older parts and more wear and tear. But then a classic 17 can draw you in with some beautiful woodwork.

You can't go wrong with a Whaler. They hold their value better than most brands. People will come up and talk with you about your boat. And this forum is a fantastic resource with folks that can answer any question you've got. There are few brands of any product that have such a strong following.
Rascal (Scott)
2015 170 Montauk

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Dutchman
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Re: Ready to purchase a new Montauk 150 and need opinions

Postby Dutchman » Mon Sep 11, 2017 3:30 pm

SLR did you ever buy a Whaler? Let us know!
We are a couple in our sixties too and love ours (Montauk 150). I by myself can easily handle the boat from hooking onto the SUV, to driving to the launch, launching the boat, enjoying some alone time on the water, taking out the boat, and going back and storing it in the garage.
When the Admiral is with me all the above is done slightly faster as she (the boat) is easily handled with a couple for launching and retrieving.
We have a smaller garage but with the swing tongue trailer I can easily walk around the boat with the garage closed. A 170 would fit too but I wouldn't be able to walk all around aft and forward.
We have truly enjoyed our Montauk 150 after getting rid of the 32+ft boats we previously had.
We have traveled over long distances in order to enjoy St.Lawrence Seaway, the Great Lakes (mainly Lake Michigan and Huron) I can tell you from experience she can handle snotty water but always feel she is slightly under powered for her capacity. 4 adults and gear she can plane and hit 30 mph but 5 or more and the 60 HP has trouble getting her onto plane although with some weight shifting you can get there and run in the mid to high twenties.
Bottom line one of the best small boats I ever had the pleasure of owning and driving in my 60 years of boating.
EJO
"Clumsy Cleat"look up what it means
50th edition 2008 Montauk 150, w/60HP Mercury Bigfoot