Center Console Boats for Sale

Center Console Boats: what to know

An open deck, the helm in the middle and room to walk all the way around it. Center consoles are the saltwater fishing standard because you can follow a fish from bow to stern without climbing over anything, and they make a quick, dry day boat besides.

What to check before you buy

• The outboards are the whole conversation. Get the hours, the service record and a compression test before you agree a price.
• Open every hatch. Rigging tubes, fuel lines and wiring all live under the deck, and a tidy loom tells you how the boat has been kept.
• Run the livewell pumps and the washdown. They are cheap to fix and expensive to discover after the fact.
• Look for stress cracks around the base of the console and the leaning post mounts.
• On a saltwater boat, look as hard at the trailer as the boat. It rusts first.

Common questions

What size center console do I need?

Under 22 feet for bays and calm inshore water. Twenty-two to 26 feet to run offshore on a good day. Over 26 with twin engines if you want to go out when it is not a good day.

Single or twin outboards?

A single costs less to buy, run and service, and on a modern four-stroke it is reliable. Twins buy you a way home when one stops, which is the argument for them once you are running far enough offshore that a tow is a long afternoon.

How many hours is a lot on an outboard?

A four-stroke that has been serviced on schedule will go well past 2,000 hours. Under 500 is low. On a saltwater boat the flushing and service history matters far more than the number on the gauge.