Looking to buy my father a bass boat

With him being retired, he'll be able to get out on non traffic days, but I wouldn't look at anything under 18 ft, regardless. The Tracker 185 that SloppyJ mentioned, is a fine boat to have for when you can fish relatively light wind and without a ton of traffic on the lake. I fish out of one on Kentucky Lake regularly.
 
I'd be looking for a Basscat pantera for that price range in the 2008-2014 year range. I think that would make for a nice all around boat.

If it were me...I would be looking for a 19' boat with a 200.
Brand wise I would look at Bass Cat. And year wise I would not buy anything older than a 2001 model
Most all older boats had a wood type transom across the back where the motor hangs. Over time people drill holes for Electronics transducers, boarding ladders all kinds of stuff. This promotes water intrusion. Which will rot even Marine grade wood over time.
In 2001 Bass Cat was the first to have a full Vacuumed sealed fiberglass Transom.
This made the entire boat fully fiberglass construction. Meaning no Rot.
A pantera classic or p2 would be a fantastic boat. I own a 03 classic that I fish on champlain a lot, which is also a pretty big lake. Its “small” for a bass boat (19’) but capable of handling bigger water. They are screaming fast if you want, but cruise easy at low rpms. Handles chop and waves very well, WAY better than my lund did and worlds better than a flatter-bottomed aluminum boat. Its also a light weight hull, really not much heavier than a bigger 17’ aluminum boat , so its ok on a single axle trailer and you can legitimately tow it with a mid-sized vehicle, and it handles well with lower horsepower (the hull was originally designed when tournaments were limited to 150hp). You can find one used in your price range probably, although probably not a recent one. A p4 has a deeper hull and would also be great, as would a pile of other models.

I heartily agree with the folks above, just be REALLY careful about buying a good engine. See my earlier comments. I walked away from 4 or 5 boats in a row based on bad compression…I was not kidding when I said bass boat people are hard on engines.
 
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