2002 crestliner fishhawk 1750

[06 tracker pro]

I recentrly am going back to aluminum from fiberglass. I have a guy holding a 2002 crestliner fishhawk 1750 with a 2003 johnson 115 4 stroke, 65 lbs thrust 24 volt trolling motor, hummingbird colored graph with gps, etc. Besides a few minor decal scrapes the boat looks pretty clean. Any one have prior experience with these boats???
or with the johnson?
The only problem i have heard is with floor rot, but i did a lot of jumping in the boat lol.
I have only owned mercury, and my last aluminum boat was a brand new tracker in 2006(BIGGEST MISTAKE ANYONE COULD MAKE) And even though the crestliner is a 2002 it still has way more to offer than that boat did.
Any insight from anyone would be greatly appreciated!
thank you-matt

[Burr]

I had a 99 1750 Fishhawk. There have been some design changes between the 99 I owned, and what they have now - but I don't know when the changes were made?

The side rails on mine had somewhat of a trim piece on both sides, that has been changed to a flat rail, which may accomodate riggers a bit better.

All battery storage on my 99 was above the floor. That bit into the ability to use that storage space for things other than batteries. At some point, battery storage was moved under the floor, which I would have preferred.

I was not completely satisfied with the rigidity of my boat. That being said, I purchased my boat used, and it certainly is possible my boat may not have been all that the model is. In rough water, I had some shuddering, and screws liked to back out of their holes. If I was to purchase another, I would like to put it on the water first to see if the lack of rigidity was my boat, or indicative of the Model.

Newer boats have also put a bit more thought into the trailering tarp/cover. While what I had worked, some of the thought being put into new tarps have considerable benefit with small design changes.

That being said, there were many things I liked about the boat. Boat width was nice. Easy to tow. 24 Volt trolling motor is all you would ever need, and the 4 stroke 90 (the Johnson was a Suzuki Powerhead in those years - no problems with the motor, should be dependable and efficient) should allow you to stay away from a kicker motor - eliminating the weight addition that comes with a kicker. I was surprised at times with the boats ability to handle big water - not with speed, but with safety and ability to fish when it gets a bit rough out there. It seemed like it would handle more when I was on the water in waves, than I tought it would when I was thinking about on shore.

I had a 115 on mine - which was @ 40 mph boat. It might be nice to have a 115 on the boat rather than the 90 - but a 90 should certainly handle the boat fine, and a bit lower pitch prop on the smaller motor will benefit with a slower trolling speed before you resort to bags etc.

With it being a welded boat, I would check all corners carefully for stress cracking - it's nice not to have to deal with that. I did not have any issues with my hull, but I have heard others detected cupping near the transom that has negative effects getting on top of the water while on plane. Easy to check with a straight edge before you purchase.

While a much larger boat you can load up with your tackle, and be ready to leave by hooking up with your tow vehicle - when I had my 1750 I generally had to pack for the trip, and unpack when I got home. Maybe I just have too much stuff....

[billinin21]

My brother has that same boat and I have fished in it many times. I've also driven it. I really like it. It is a very solid boat. He has only a 80 Yamaha four stroke. It will go pretty well, though....about 38 mph top end.

The only negative is (and it's no big deal)...his has the 20" transom. Sometimes it gets pretty close to the lake level in the back...with a bit of water coming over when it's rough. The newer ones have the 25" transom...I'm pretty sure his is a '01 or '02.

Overall, it's a great boat. I have a Lund and it seems comparable to me.

Good luck!

[Wooden Walley]

I have the 2002 1850 fishawk with a f115 Yamaha. It is only slightly larger but had the 25" transom which is very nice with a 400lb motor hanging off the back. If this one has the 20" transom you will take a bit of water over the transom when backing, but you can control that. The only time it mattered to me was when backing away from the lift or the dock when you had to back into the waves. I made sure my bilge worked.

These boats have a very large front deck and I love mine for bass and muskie casting. My battery storage is in the floor, don't know about the 1750's.

Will handle big water, but you need to watch your speed and you will get wet, but you'll get wet in just about any boat in rough water. Very wide and very stable. Good all around boat. We use ours to ski, wakeboard, etc.

That boat will push mid 40's I would expect.

Good luck.

[JohnG]

There is not a better multi species boat made if you are a caster, love the fishhawks. I currently own a 2004 1850, it's my second 1850, I also owned a 1650, and my Dad owned a 1650. I loved every one of them. There are some cons to the fishhawk, it's not the dryest riding v hull made, but really, is it that much better driving over railroad tracks in a cadillac rather than a ford? Yes the screws do tend to back out, my suggestion is put a little lock tite on them and it won't happen again. I don't believe floor rot was any more of a problem with the crestliners as any other brand, I think what's more common is the lids on the back deck over the livewell and storage are aluminum, and don't have sufficient bracing, so they tend to sag and need to be reinforced. It's not a huge deal, I just did it to my 1850.

The Johnson/Suzuki 4 stroke is a great motor, as long as it checks out, my bet is you'll love the package.

JohnG, what did you do to reinforce the live well doors? I'll be doing the same on my boat as well.

Thanks

[walteye]

I had a 2001 1750 FishHawk with a 70 Johnson and 9.9 Evinrude 4 stroke. Storage was unbelievable-sturdiness and stability was great. Backtrolling was not a doable thing-but I don't backtroll anyway. Front casting deck and storage was great. Did I mention about the storage? Mine was a single side console.
Walteye

[kazual]

Have a 1750 tiller and a glass boat. Floor isnt its strongest point as you indicated. Biggest adjustment when going back and forth is how much more the Cresty blows around while on the bow mount. Experience overall though has been good except for the POC trailer but that's not the fault of the boat.