- Joined
- Apr 5, 2012
- Location
- Pembroke Pines, FL, USA
Okay. I've teased long enough and have had time to secure my new boat from other greedy souls!
It's a Phoenix 618 Pro! Of course, I already told everyone that. No one noticed though.
Anyway... What started out as a late night to discover the best combination of soda and Captain Morgan, ended up with me being barely able to stand. Unfortunately, this led me to sitting at my desk chair which happens to have a computer on it. In my drunken haze, I surfed over to Boat Trader and started looking at boats. As I searched through boat after boat, I came upon a left over new 2012 Phoenix 618 Pro. By this point, I had already thought to myself that I wanted a Stratos VLO, but if I could get this Phoenix for the same price, it would be awesome. Then things became a little blurry as I was drinking more Captain than Coke.
The next morning, I'm getting return e-mails from a dozen dealers. To my utter and total surprise, the 618 Pro I looked at was at an amazing price. We're talking less than a similarly equipped Nitro Z-7, and $3000 less than a comparable VLO. Who in their right mind could possibly resist that and the years of debt that come with owning such an awesome rig just to catch 2 pound fish that you throw back? I know I couldn't!
So here are the specs:
Phoenix 618 Pro
Mercury Optimax Pro XS 175 (Sorry Darth...No SHO for this boat).
24V 80LB Fortrex trolling motor with Sonar
HDS5 with GPS at the helm.
Elite 5X at the bow.
Minn Kota 330D Charger
Minn Kota MK2 Alternator Charger
Removable Passenger Console.
I decided to hold off on the Power Pole for now as I want to add it when I put a Hydraulic jack plate on in a year or so. When Okeechobee becomes my primary grounds, that's when I'll add them. Instead, I upgraded the engine from 150 to 175.
Anyway, the dealer is in Wisconsin and we arranged to meet at the Phoenix Plant so I can get a tour and see how my boat was made. I've been e-mailing them and let me say I was pretty shocked to be getting e-mails back at 9PM on Sunday! These people are dedicated.
Here is a pic from the dealer site.
It's a Phoenix 618 Pro! Of course, I already told everyone that. No one noticed though.
So, as I've been teasing in my other threads, I'm actually trading in the Nitro Z-6. I love my little Nitro, and I'm going to miss it, but I need something a little bigger and slightly faster. I'm not going to say what the new boat is yet until all of the xeroxing, faxing, emailing, and paperwork is complete, which should be a few days from now. I don't like to tempt fate!
However, I will give a few hints.
Physically, it's an 18 foot class boat. However, a lot of people say it rides like a 20. Other than the lack of a padded deck, it's pretty well equipped. Especially the front deck, which is huge and has lots of storage! Now I did consider something that could do saltwater as well like the Ranger Intracoastal, but it was too expensive, so I'll just keep going out with friends on their salt rigs. I actually am purchasing from out of state because dealers down by me are still charging an arm and leg for a jon boats. Xeroxing and faxing all of the paperwork to an out of state dealer has been surprisingly easy!
However, I will give a few hints.
Physically, it's an 18 foot class boat. However, a lot of people say it rides like a 20. Other than the lack of a padded deck, it's pretty well equipped. Especially the front deck, which is huge and has lots of storage! Now I did consider something that could do saltwater as well like the Ranger Intracoastal, but it was too expensive, so I'll just keep going out with friends on their salt rigs. I actually am purchasing from out of state because dealers down by me are still charging an arm and leg for a jon boats. Xeroxing and faxing all of the paperwork to an out of state dealer has been surprisingly easy!
Anyway... What started out as a late night to discover the best combination of soda and Captain Morgan, ended up with me being barely able to stand. Unfortunately, this led me to sitting at my desk chair which happens to have a computer on it. In my drunken haze, I surfed over to Boat Trader and started looking at boats. As I searched through boat after boat, I came upon a left over new 2012 Phoenix 618 Pro. By this point, I had already thought to myself that I wanted a Stratos VLO, but if I could get this Phoenix for the same price, it would be awesome. Then things became a little blurry as I was drinking more Captain than Coke.
The next morning, I'm getting return e-mails from a dozen dealers. To my utter and total surprise, the 618 Pro I looked at was at an amazing price. We're talking less than a similarly equipped Nitro Z-7, and $3000 less than a comparable VLO. Who in their right mind could possibly resist that and the years of debt that come with owning such an awesome rig just to catch 2 pound fish that you throw back? I know I couldn't!
So here are the specs:
Phoenix 618 Pro
Mercury Optimax Pro XS 175 (Sorry Darth...No SHO for this boat).
24V 80LB Fortrex trolling motor with Sonar
HDS5 with GPS at the helm.
Elite 5X at the bow.
Minn Kota 330D Charger
Minn Kota MK2 Alternator Charger
Removable Passenger Console.
I decided to hold off on the Power Pole for now as I want to add it when I put a Hydraulic jack plate on in a year or so. When Okeechobee becomes my primary grounds, that's when I'll add them. Instead, I upgraded the engine from 150 to 175.
Anyway, the dealer is in Wisconsin and we arranged to meet at the Phoenix Plant so I can get a tour and see how my boat was made. I've been e-mailing them and let me say I was pretty shocked to be getting e-mails back at 9PM on Sunday! These people are dedicated.
Here is a pic from the dealer site.