For those of us remembering sculling a heavy wooden boat with one had while trying to fish with the other while fishing alone, the modern bass boat is an amazing development. We remember having to paddle half the time when we fished with someone else while they fished, then swapping places.

Now we sit in comfort, maneuver the boat easily with a foot controlled electric motor leaving our hands free to fish, and there is little noise. We can also glance at our fish finder and find fish holding cover and structure, and even see the fish under the water.

When we want to move to another place the turn of a key, rather than yanking on a rope for what often seemed like hours, gets the gas motor cranked. We zip quickly around the lake and don’t waste fishing time going from one hot spot to another.

The boats are stable, allowing us to stand and fish, even right on the edge of the boat. Livewells keep our catch alive and fresh to either release after a little showing off at the ramp or to take home and clean. An electric bilge pump automatically gets water out of the boat when it rains. No more bailing with tin cans!

But what do you really need for fishing? What you want and what you need may be very different things. Right now there is a Triton bass boat with a 300 HP Mercury motor and fully rigged out that lists for $102,000.00. Yes, a fishing boat sells for over one hundred thousand dollars!

The only reason I can see for spending that kind of money on a boat is the same reason you want the penthouse condo – to show off. Buy there is no need for a boat that is not even legal in tournaments because of the size of the motor.

For less than half that amount you can get a top of the line bass boat that will meet any fishing need. But fifty thousand dollars for a fishing boat is still a ridiculous amount. If you fish a lot of tournaments on big waters it is probably worth it, but what does the normal bass fisherman need?

To me the most important development in my fishing lifetime are strong, reliable electric motors. If I put my boat in for a tournament and it won’t crank, or the electronics won’t work, I can still fish as long as the boat doesn’t sink and my trolling motor works.

I have a 24 volt 82 pound thrust Motor Guide trolling motor. With the two batteries I can easily fish ten hours on Saturday, charge them up over night and fish 8 more hours on Sunday. And the motor is strong enough to hold the boat and even move it against any wind I have ever fished in, as long as the waves are not so high they raise the front of the boat and the trolling motor out of the water.

I have a 20 foot long Skeeter bass boat with a 225 horsepower Yamaha motor. It will run over 70 miles per hour, but I never run that fast unless trying to get in when a thunder storm hits. It is nice to have the reserve power when needed, and with a motor that big I can cruise at 50 mph at a fairly low RPM and save gas. But unless you have a big boat you don’t need that big a motor.

How big should your boat be? If you fish on normal days and don’t want to run for many miles, a 16 foot boat with a 90 HP motor will get you around quickly and be comfortable even on big lakes. A 14 or 15 foot boat is ok most of the time but on bigger lakes they can get rough, and they are not as stable as a bigger boat.

Aluminum boats are lighter and require a smaller motor and many do a great job.

I have top of the line Lowrance depthfinders on my boat. With them I can ride over a brush top in 20 feet of water and see every fish in it. And I can find rocks, brush, other cover and structure up to 100 feet on either side of the boat as I idle along. But those units cost thousands of dollars and I think I caught just as many fish on a simple unit costing less than $200!

Livewells are required in tournaments and are nice at all times, but you can get by without fancy ones if you keep your catch or if you let fish go as soon as you catch them. Onboard battery chargers are fantastic – just plug one thing in and it charges all three batteries in my boat. For many years I used regular chargers and they cost a lot less.

I would not be without a good bilge pump with a float switch that turns it on when water gets a few inches deep in the bilge. One of them can save your boat from sinking when tied up to a dock if you are staying inside out of a heavy rain.

Brand new boats are fantastic. But you can get a used boat that is in really good shape for less than half the cost, if you are careful. Just spend the money and take the motor to a good mechanic to be checked – it will save you money in the long run1

The bottom line is get what you need unless you want to spend the money for what you want. Make two lists – one of what you want and one of what you need, set a budget, stick with it and start your search!