Are Double Eagle boats considered good? A buddy is thinking of buying one and asked me for advice - lol.

The short answer is Yes but tell him not to buy anything without having it surveyed.

If it's $1000 or less it's in rough shape. if it's $1000-$3000 it's in rough shape, but you might find a good one that is key turn ready.

Checklist for buying a boat
Look at where it's kept. Front yard covered good. Front yard under a tree bad. Is the persons house well kept. If so, the boat is probably well kept too.

Check the trailer. Is the rubber cracked, are the wheels rusted, push the boat around and see if it squeeks. Ask to roll the trailer a full rotation of the wheels. if your trailer won't get the boat to the water, you have an achor in your yard.

Look at the body of the boat. Any big scrapes, dents, cracks. Can be fixed, but do you really want to fix what you are buying?

Are there registration numbers on the hull? If not, you will need to send the paper work in. if there is, is it the current registration or the port of oragin numbers? Boats should have actual registration numbers. (Free to get the numbers) I think you have to have the numbers if the motor is over 10hp in the ocean, but I'm not sure about lakes. The numbers are really only used in case of trouble. Either you're in it, or you're causing it.

Get in the boat. Walk around and check the floor. Does it bulge, squeek. crack, flex? Not always a big deal. I've owned a boat where the floor was weak, but it held my weight enough to go fishing and bomb around lakes.

Turn the stearing wheel al the way one way. Check the hoses and cables. Are any pinching. Did the motor turn easily. Turn to the other way and check again. On some motors the prop will make the motor pull to one side or the other. This is normal, but it might also signify the lines need greese.

Is the stearing set up as a clothes line style? Line comes in from the left and right. I'm told this is illegal now and needs to be changed out. I don't know the facts on this though.

Check the seats. Are they ripped? Lift the seats, are they fastened down or just on boxes? Turn the seat all the way around if it does turn. Does it hit anything?

Electronics, Do the lights work, does the radio work if there is one. Look under the dash to see if the wiring is clean or a rats nets. both are fine if everything works. But you might want to loom up the wires yourself if you buy it.

Does it have all the lights needed? Get out of the boat and touch the lights on the boat. Some boats I looked at didn't even have real lights, they were just dead ones placed on top of the boat with no wires.

Ask to start the boat. Did the seller put a water boot on the engine or put the engine in water or just start it dry? Take the cover off and look at the engine. I looked at a few that were frankinsteined and ran away from them even though the price was dirt cheap.
Note: The engine is going to be LOUD, so seller may start it up and turn it off. Make sure it runs for at least 1 minute without stalling. if the boat is old it may take a couple of tries.

Is the propeller dented or pitted to hell? Props cost alot to replace.

Check the fuel hoses. Are they cracked or stained or pinched?

Bring a multimeter with you and test the battery. it should be 12 volts or more.

Does it come with everything like ski bars, extra seats, fishing stuff, kicker motor, down riggers? Are all of these things complete?


At the end of the day. if it floats and moves, it's a boat you can fish from. And the price is always negotiable. However you buy what you pay for. And with boats, the time of year is 90% of the price.

Check UsedVictoria and Craig's list for other boats of the same type/size for price comparison. And also look at boat parts to see how much it costs to fix one or how much you can get for parting out your boat when you are tired with it.


Boat stands for Bust Out Another Thousand. Keep that in mind. It's not a cheap hobbie.

Great Write up PurrNak and spot on with this:

Double Eagle is a good brand...however...

When buying a fibreglass boat:---

(1) Don't beleive ANYTHING the owner tells you about the condition of the boat.
They will lie through their teeth...as I have found out on previous occasions and narrowly avoided getting "burned".

(2) The condition of the deck (usually plywood in older boats) can be an indicator of stringer/transom condition as well. If the deck sags and sinks while you're on it or has soft spots.....have the stringers and transom checked out by a pro.
Especially the transom if the boat is an older inboard with a leg. And also if it is an older inboard Bayliner. I was actually once on an older boat that when the driver gunned it from a standing start there was a loud SNAP! as the transom wood snapped because it was rotted out although you couldn't tell by looking at it.
You don't want this happening 10 miles out.
(3) have a look at the back end of the boat where it sits on trailer. Older boats will develop a "hook' there where the hull is "indented" beacuse it has sat for so long on rollers. This can affect hull performance in the water....it can also be an indicator of a "soft' hull starting to go. Ideally the trailer bunks or rollers should be matched to the design of the hull. Not just any old willy-nilly roller setup that could have a huge amount of weight resting on the corner of a rocker or chine.

(3) First thing I'd get checked out on an old boat is stringers/deck regardless of all other bells and whistles on it. Bells and whistles are usually an easy (albeit sometimes expensive) fix. Why fix the bells and whistles if your stringers /deck/and transom are rotted out.?
(4) If it's an older boat with an inboard......get back in your car and drive away.

As far as boats are concerned you DON"T get what you pay for. You get whatever they can charge you and get away with it.
A highpriced boat does not mean by any stretch that you bought a good boat....especially the prices here in Canada.
The fact that a boat is "garage" or "boathouse" kept ...or only used on Sundays by their Grandmother means nothing........you can't be too careful.......DO NOT buy on cosmetic looks alone.
If the boat has "pulley" steering istead of single cable you are looking at an ancient boat or a very small boat that was being used about the time Elvis first appeared on the Sullivan show. Make sure the trailer is the correct one for that boat and not one that they rounded up just to make the sale. Also with older outboards you can't tell what's going inside corrosion-wise even if it runs o.k. My rule is....if the boat is over ten years old it is suspect from every angle. if you want to go offshore WCVI with the boat....you need a good solid hull to take the pounding of chop and rollers etc. If you are going to do this, stay away from the lightweight flimsy lake-built stuff.

Be careful when buying any boat, regardless the brand name, if the deal seem to good to be true it probly is, a friend of mine got a smokin deal on a 16.5 ft double eagle boat, with a great name like double eagle we all thought it was a great deal, after tweaking and messing around with the 50 hr johnson for day we could not get it to plane, turns out the the floor had been replaced and the hull was full of water.

Price on a used boat is always negotiable. Usually up to about $1000.

Inspect the boat as well as you can and if you can swing it, have them bring the boat to a lake so you can test it. Of course if they bring it to the lake you won't be able to negotiate the price very well.

"I'm taking a risk with buying this boat as I don't know much about it. Would you take $???? for it?"

Here's the run down of your expenses...
1. Price of the boat
2. Insurrance on the trailer ($200)
3. Trailer light bulbs ($20) or light housings ($60)
4. Gas ($80)
5. Oil ($20)
6. RainX (Awesome for boat windows) ($15)
7. Zap Straps or screws for the license plate ($4)
8. Flushing boot to flush the motor ($16)
9. Trailer Harness and/or Adapter ($14-$50)
10. Trailer hitch bar (Ask if you can have theirs) ($40)
11. Trailer hitch ball (Ask if you can have theirs) ($25)

So you can see how the cost shoots up. keep this in mind when negotiating your boat purchase.

Insurrance on the trailer ($200)

i don't think this is correct, i have never paid more than $50.00 for trailer insurance ?

$50 gets you basic liability and nothing else. I pay $64 for basic on my single axle trailer. If you want theft insurance it adds up pretty quickly. My theft insurance policy is combined with my boat policy.
Dave

Insurrance is something like $50 transfer/registration fee + $64 basic insurrance + HST. Then add on theft etc if you want it. So make that $150 on the high end. Still it's money out of pocket you should plan for.