234 to be specific.
And if we want to split hairs, twin 150s vs single 300?
And and, don’t give me **** about needing a yamaha.
Thanks 
2002 Key West 1900CC
Go for it!
It would be a sweet upgrade! I would go with the least amount of weight on the motor setup!
God Bless,
Capt Buddy Bizzell
Being on the water is a blessing, catching fish is a bonus!
Matthew 4:19
Thought I would share this thread I saw recently on another site. There are some additional links to some more threads regarding Mako boats. It looks like there may be better boats out there for the money but that is a decision you’ll have to make.
http://www.thehulltruth.com/boating-forum/617377-buying-mako-18-lts-bps.html
“Apathy is the Glove into Which Evil Slips It’s Hand”.
I hesitate to reply, but I think you could do better for the same money. Diplomatically speaking it wouldn’t be on my top 5 list.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Cracker Built Custom Boats
“Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made.” -Robert N. Rose
http://www.pioneerboats.com/sportfish222.html
3x the boat. Same price.
I can go into great detail if you’d like. I have a high degree of familiarity with both brands.
http://www.sustainablefishing.org/
www.joinrfa.com
Luke 8:22-25
What about a Parker or Dusky. They make a solid 23’ class battle wagon still. Lots of other manufacturers seem to be leaning towards the family comfort side with a 23’ boat. Hard to find a hardcore fishing boat in that size now without going custom or Contender. Personally I think Pioneer has done a great job of blending the hardcore construction for an offshore boat with the style and comfort of modern hulls.
“Banana Pants”
Indigo Bay 170
90 Johnson
Wilderness Ride 115
quote:
Originally posted by Phinhttp://www.pioneerboats.com/sportfish222.html
3x the boat. Same price.
I can go into great detail if you’d like. I have a high degree of familiarity with both brands.
http://www.sustainablefishing.org/
www.joinrfa.com
Luke 8:22-25
I looked at a lot of boats including the Mako 234 before buying the Pioneer 222SF. The fit and finish in the Mako doesn’t compare to the Pioneer and there wasn’t enough difference in the price between the two when considering that much money to go with a Mako again.
Lots of boats in that price range, Pioneer would be at the top of the list were it my choice.
If you’re basing you decision on special financing offered by BP on the boat, consider talking to a local credit union as their rates and terms can be as good or better.
The Mako felt cheap and flimsy compared to the Pioneer, SH and even Tidewater. Add to that the Mercury power, not a shot at Mercury I just have had bad experiences with Mercs over the years. Can’t say anything about the ride of the Mako, they wanted me to sign papers before I could test drive one, no way I’d do that.
Throw in the factory support of Pioneer and it’s a no brainer. Pioneer cares about their customers. Mine was one of the first run 222SF’d out there, I had some livewell issues with the pump. They worked it out and my livewell is great now. I think the new models have a sea chest in them because of it now.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
quote:
Originally posted by Phinhttp://www.pioneerboats.com/sportfish222.html
3x the boat. Same price.
I can go into great detail if you’d like. I have a high degree of familiarity with both brands.
http://www.sustainablefishing.org/
www.joinrfa.com
Luke 8:22-25
Please do, this is exactly why I posted the question. I had heard/read rumors of the lack of build quality since the acquisition by Bass Pro but I preferred to hear from someone firsthand if possible.
Went to the Saltwater Sportsman thing in Myrtle Beach over the weekend and went to BassPro to check out the 23 and spent a good hour there optioning it out in different ways. It kept coming out to be way more than the $69,xxx price as advertised, which puts it in the realm of the others I was already considering, namely:
Key West 244CC
Sea Hunt 25 Gamefish
Tidewater 23 / 25
and now I guess I’ll toss in the Pioneer 222.
2002 Key West 1900CC
of that list it would be a toss up between the seahunt and the pioneer I would have to do a fair comparison of the size, features, and cost of each, and pick the one that suited my usage the best.
I don’t know anything about the build quality of the new Mako, so I cant help you there.
I do know that locally seahunt has one of the best resale values
A new Mako and Pioneer are on opposite ends of the production boat spectrum.
The difference is so significant that you will tear up the Mako fishing on days that wouldn’t phase the Pioneer.
A lot of people think that a “23” is better than a “22.” It doesn’t work that way. Boats are built differently, and they’re designed differently.
The 234 is trying to fit a 25-26ft boat layout into a 23ft platform. You can tell by the weight. 4000+ lbs. The Pioneer 222SF is at 2100lbs. The weight in the mako is coming from all the add ons that are normally seen in a 25ft+ boat- like a eurotransom. The thing is, when you put all the weight in a boat, especially aft, but it doesn’t have the strength, it will come apart from the pounding under its belly rather than plying the waves with the bow and deflecting them down with more of the running surface and chines to absorb and balance the extra forces. Many boats that are smaller but laid out like this overcome the harder, wetter ride by “getting on top.” In order to do that but still track well, they have a sharper deadrise and narrower beam. An example is a 23 contender. When they can’t get on top, it’s because they are underpowered or it’s too rough to “get on top.” My old 25 Mako and 25 sea vee’s and contenders are this same way. They need a lot of power or else they can’t run in their sweet spots. This is the problem you will have with the 234 Mako except it isn’t built well enough to take the abuse that you’ll be able to put it through, nor is 300HP enough to really make it run where it will like best. Like I said, it is a heavier, fatter rig. Not as much deadrise. In calmer water, great. In rougher water, you will pound the boat apart.
On the other hand, the Pioneer is overbuilt in the stress areas- the radiuses, the joints, etc. There’s a molded grid stringer system bonded to the hull and then filled with closed cell foam. Then, the grid and cap are bonded together and you get more closed cell foam. The tolerances are tighter where all these parts of the boa
PM sent
Cool guys, this is all good info. Thanks.
2002 Key West 1900CC
Here is another example of Pioneer CS. I had some areas of gel coat that had cracked and spalled off at the radius of the corners of the center console. I spoke with them about it and Henry Sikes called me back. He knew exactly what it was. The first runs of the boat had a chemical compound in the methacrythlate that was too hard for those radius corner areas. It didn’t flex so the gel coat cracked. I didn’t have to take the boat back to Pioneer, they came and picked it up, after I fished it for the entire season and are bringing it back to me. I doubt many factories will pick your boat up and take it 3hrs away to fix a minor issue. Most of them would have you take it to a dealer to do a cosmetic repair, not an all out fix.
I also had an issue with the 21P prop on my F300 and getting up loaded in the open ocean. They put a new 19P prop on it for me at no charge.
If you don’t like the Pioneer, buy from one of the local builders like SH, Tidewater, Sportsman etc. You support the local economy and have someone in the area close by should you need factory support.
Take a ride up to Gtown. Boat Shed has Pioneer, Parker, Scout and Nautic Star. Marshall’s has Key West. Tailwalker has Cobia and Sportsman. Marine Service Center in MI has SH.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
quote:
Originally posted by saltydog235Here is another example of Pioneer CS. I had some areas of gel coat that had cracked and spalled off at the radius of the corners of the center console. I spoke with them about it and Henry Sikes called me back. He knew exactly what it was. The first runs of the boat had a chemical compound in the methacrythlate that was too hard for those radius corner areas. It didn’t flex so the gel coat cracked. I didn’t have to take the boat back to Pioneer, they came and picked it up, after I fished it for the entire season and are bringing it back to me. I doubt many factories will pick your boat up and take it 3hrs away to fix a minor issue. Most of them would have you take it to a dealer to do a cosmetic repair, not an all out fix.
I also had an issue with the 21P prop on my F300 and getting up loaded in the open ocean. They put a new 19P prop on it for me at no charge.
If you don’t like the Pioneer, buy from one of the local builders like SH, Tidewater, Sportsman etc. You support the local economy and have someone in the area close by should you need factory support.
Take a ride up to Gtown. Boat Shed has Pioneer, Parker, Scout and Nautic Star. Marshall’s has Key West. Tailwalker has Cobia and Sportsman. Marine Service Center in MI has SH.
Mark
Pioneer 222 Sportfish Yamaha F300
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
I will say one of my favorite things about the Key West is the local factory support. It was a HUGE help when I was fixing all the stuff the previous owner had let go / needed to replace.
2002 Key West 1900CC
21 degrees and 9.5 feet of beam… No thank you. I would stay away from Mako.
hey adam, check out the key west 23 bluewater in the swap shop forum. is this close enuff to what your looking for?
I am looking into a 2015 2320 Parker with twin 150’ yamaha’s any comments sure could use
It’s hard to beat a Parker for a well built boat. Not as fancy as some, not as fast as some, but a very solid boat that will last a long time.
Capt. Larry Teuton
Cracker Built Custom Boats
“Ships are the nearest things to dreams that hands have ever made.” -Robert N. Rose
My 2300 Key West is for sale in Swap Shop…you wont get a boat that will come with more than this anywhere!!
NN
07, 23 Key West, Twin 115 Yammys
“Coastal Bound”
Saw it, posted in there.
2002 Key West 1900CC