Nordic Quality?
09-12-2004, 07:16 PM
#52
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Re: Nordic Quality?
Wowchad...I've never been on either so I can't be much help there. Please don't get me wrong about the construction of the Nordic...it's high quality, the design is just not as good for my waters as the offshore designs. They still use good materials and take great care laminating the boat. I've never looked inside a Baja, but from what I hear from friends that have been in them, they're not as well built as the Nordic
Linnie...I don't go running in 4' or 5' if I can help it, it's not that much fun for me either. However, the Cigs, Apaches, Pantera's etc. I've been on hold up just fine in the rough. Sorry about your buddy's AT...they seem like nice boats.
Linnie...I don't go running in 4' or 5' if I can help it, it's not that much fun for me either. However, the Cigs, Apaches, Pantera's etc. I've been on hold up just fine in the rough. Sorry about your buddy's AT...they seem like nice boats.
09-13-2004, 09:25 AM
#53
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Re: Nordic Quality?
Wowchad...I am the first to admit i know nothing about Nordic, except what i read about in Powerboat Mag. That said, i do know alot about Baja, as i am on my third. I just traded in my '95 and there was no sign of stress anywhere on the hull. The gel looked like the day it left the factory. This boat was not beat on but no babied either. It has been through some pretty rough stuff, both on my lake and the 1000 Islands. For a 22' it handled the slop pretty well...within reason. As for your saying you have seen many Baja's with signs of stress after 10-12 years, i suppose it depends on how these rigs were run. Baja is the biggest selling line in my area, and i can honestly say i've never seen the condition your speaking of. I'm not saying you haven't seen this, i'm just saying i haven't. Any boat, regardless of manufacturer, that is abused will eventually show it's weeknesses. As for the Rage vs. 25 Outlaw question...it's not an apples to apples comparison. The Rage has a relatively flat bottom at 22 degrees...the outlaw is 24 degrees. The Outlaw also is a much heavier boat. On flat water with similar power the Nordic no doubt will be faster. Once the water gets stirred up, the Outlaw will be in it's element. I'm sure the Nordic is a very well built boat. I just wanted to chime in with my .02 on the Baja. The bottom line is get what you like and hit the water with your family.
09-13-2004, 10:26 AM
#54
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Re: Nordic Quality?
jjh3 you bring a good point to this disscussion about offshore capability.
For now this Nordic is a good boat for me being on a 500 acre lake. When I decide to hit the bigger water of Lake Michigan I didn't realize the bottom on the Rage was that shallow. I suppose even a 25' would be too small anyway, but do the larger Nordic's have a better bottom for the rough stuff?
My comment on the Baja's gel coat was from personal experiance on my 20' Outlaw and a neighbors 208 Islander. Both boats are mid to late 90's models and both suffered terrible gel coat cracks. This is from use on our small 500 acre lake!! Mabey they put more effort into their larger boats, but you said yours was only a 22' and didn't have the same problem.....
I would love to buy a stripped 30-32' Baja on ebay and stick a diesel into it with a surface drive!
For now this Nordic is a good boat for me being on a 500 acre lake. When I decide to hit the bigger water of Lake Michigan I didn't realize the bottom on the Rage was that shallow. I suppose even a 25' would be too small anyway, but do the larger Nordic's have a better bottom for the rough stuff?
My comment on the Baja's gel coat was from personal experiance on my 20' Outlaw and a neighbors 208 Islander. Both boats are mid to late 90's models and both suffered terrible gel coat cracks. This is from use on our small 500 acre lake!! Mabey they put more effort into their larger boats, but you said yours was only a 22' and didn't have the same problem.....
I would love to buy a stripped 30-32' Baja on ebay and stick a diesel into it with a surface drive!
09-13-2004, 10:44 AM
#55
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Re: Nordic Quality?
jjh3...good points. I don't know much about Baja, are the hulls hand laminated? What type of resins to they use??
Wowchad, the bigger Nordics have a pad at the stern and are 24 degrees. However, the entry angles are not aggressive. The Nordic is perfect for your waters.
Wowchad, the bigger Nordics have a pad at the stern and are 24 degrees. However, the entry angles are not aggressive. The Nordic is perfect for your waters.
09-13-2004, 12:55 PM
#56
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Re: Nordic Quality?
Wowchad...it sucks that you know of two Baja's that have had that problem with the hull. I have heard that the quality control of the line has gotten alot better over the years. Mine were a '90, '95 and 2004. Maybe i just got lucky and you guys did not. These a machines built by human hands, and anything can go wrong. I've had better luck with new boats than i have with new trucks. The Nordic is a great choice for the water you boat on. I'm unfamiliar with the area but you should shred it up.
Indy..i know the Baja's are hand-laid, but as to the types of resins, glass, etc., i can't speak to that. As i said, i have been very happy with my previous two, and after 14 hours on my new one, i can say i am extremely pleased so far. 24'5''...4,000lbs...496 Mag...64.4 on gps. Not the fastest on the water, but i didn't buy it to be.
Indy..i know the Baja's are hand-laid, but as to the types of resins, glass, etc., i can't speak to that. As i said, i have been very happy with my previous two, and after 14 hours on my new one, i can say i am extremely pleased so far. 24'5''...4,000lbs...496 Mag...64.4 on gps. Not the fastest on the water, but i didn't buy it to be.
09-14-2004, 04:02 AM
#57
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Re: Nordic Quality?
We boat in the Chesapeake Bay a few times a year. I have never been to the big lakes up north but from what I read, they look like on a windy day, they can get crappy. The Chesapeake is the same. On any given day the water on the Bay can change. A good day is 1 to 1-1/2 footers. I've been caught in 6 footers out there. It get as bad as 8 to 10 footers. These are not rollers either, a very hard chop.
I do not know much about the smaller Nordics, but I can say this about the 35. It is a deep V without a pad. In 3 footers going up the Bay it did good. I had to put the tabs down 3.5 lines and only trim up the drives 1.5 lines on the indicators. It lands soft in that type of water. The good thing about the Nordic is the bow will lift for fast speed. In bigger water that is not good because the boat wants to try to launch off the waves. You need to play with the settings to get any boat to handle well in rough water. Have good tabs is a must if that is what you may want to do.
I am a fan of the larger Baja's. The 33 Outlaw is a very nice boat. It will attach rougher water a little better than the Nordic, but is not as fast because it is truly a V bottom. A Fountain on the other hand is a very wet cockpit in rough water. You will get wet.
The answer you are looking for is not clean cut. I would evaluate the costs, decide your use, and pick one you like. I choose the Nordic because there is not one within four states of me. Also I only boat in the Bay a couple of times a year so speed was more important. Remember that length overcomes waves on all boats. Where we are,I had a Velocity. When I got mine it was three. Now there are 15 and selling one is difficult.
I do not know much about the smaller Nordics, but I can say this about the 35. It is a deep V without a pad. In 3 footers going up the Bay it did good. I had to put the tabs down 3.5 lines and only trim up the drives 1.5 lines on the indicators. It lands soft in that type of water. The good thing about the Nordic is the bow will lift for fast speed. In bigger water that is not good because the boat wants to try to launch off the waves. You need to play with the settings to get any boat to handle well in rough water. Have good tabs is a must if that is what you may want to do.
I am a fan of the larger Baja's. The 33 Outlaw is a very nice boat. It will attach rougher water a little better than the Nordic, but is not as fast because it is truly a V bottom. A Fountain on the other hand is a very wet cockpit in rough water. You will get wet.
The answer you are looking for is not clean cut. I would evaluate the costs, decide your use, and pick one you like. I choose the Nordic because there is not one within four states of me. Also I only boat in the Bay a couple of times a year so speed was more important. Remember that length overcomes waves on all boats. Where we are,I had a Velocity. When I got mine it was three. Now there are 15 and selling one is difficult.
Last edited by Linster; 09-14-2004 at 04:06 AM.
09-17-2004, 10:15 AM
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Re: Nordic Quality?
Wowchad,
It has been a while since I have posted in the Nordic forums, but here is my opinion.
I have a 2001 Nordic Heat (closed bow), we run it on the lakes, delta and SF bay in California. The big rivers of the delta can get very snotty, and this little 28 will run with everything in it's class.
As RV has said you have the little rattles and need to keep everything buttoned down after those runs, we call the screw parties! Tighten every screw. Now with that stated their is some good and bad to the Nordic. It is a very stable boat, but not quite as fast as say the Warlock counterpart.
A very good friend of mine has a 25 Warlock that he races as well. The boat has held up, but after only 3 season had to have major reconstruction work done this last offseason. To be fair, he drives this Warlock much harder than I drive the Nordic. I use the batboat in the real rough stuff these days.
If you are looking for a good all around boat, you cannot go wrong with the Nordic. From your post I suspect that you boat with a young family. If that is the case and you take them in the real rough stuff, you should slow down to a point where the boat would not take a beating anyways.
I have buddies with boats from all of the west coast manufacturers and the Nodic is as good as any, and bang for the buck... second to none.
We are very good friends with the Lavey guys, all great guys and build an incredible boat, but the cost difference between the Nordic and the Lavey is huge.
Eliminators are good boats and I know Bob Leach stands behind his product, I could give you details of how he took care of an out of warranty boat that had some problems (he replaced it with a new boat, yes I said it was out of warranty).
In the end all of the "west coast" customs are good boats, and don't buy into that east coast boats are better built for the rough. The only people who say that have not been offshore at Hunnington Beach or Ventura. Trust me, the Eliminators, Warlocks and Lavey's can run with any east coast boat at anytime.
But also bear in mind, the Nordic is built to be a lake boat that can handle the rough.
I have attached a picture of the Nordic and our race boat that we run with Pacific Offshore.
It has been a while since I have posted in the Nordic forums, but here is my opinion.
I have a 2001 Nordic Heat (closed bow), we run it on the lakes, delta and SF bay in California. The big rivers of the delta can get very snotty, and this little 28 will run with everything in it's class.
As RV has said you have the little rattles and need to keep everything buttoned down after those runs, we call the screw parties! Tighten every screw. Now with that stated their is some good and bad to the Nordic. It is a very stable boat, but not quite as fast as say the Warlock counterpart.
A very good friend of mine has a 25 Warlock that he races as well. The boat has held up, but after only 3 season had to have major reconstruction work done this last offseason. To be fair, he drives this Warlock much harder than I drive the Nordic. I use the batboat in the real rough stuff these days.
If you are looking for a good all around boat, you cannot go wrong with the Nordic. From your post I suspect that you boat with a young family. If that is the case and you take them in the real rough stuff, you should slow down to a point where the boat would not take a beating anyways.
I have buddies with boats from all of the west coast manufacturers and the Nodic is as good as any, and bang for the buck... second to none.
We are very good friends with the Lavey guys, all great guys and build an incredible boat, but the cost difference between the Nordic and the Lavey is huge.
Eliminators are good boats and I know Bob Leach stands behind his product, I could give you details of how he took care of an out of warranty boat that had some problems (he replaced it with a new boat, yes I said it was out of warranty).
In the end all of the "west coast" customs are good boats, and don't buy into that east coast boats are better built for the rough. The only people who say that have not been offshore at Hunnington Beach or Ventura. Trust me, the Eliminators, Warlocks and Lavey's can run with any east coast boat at anytime.
But also bear in mind, the Nordic is built to be a lake boat that can handle the rough.
I have attached a picture of the Nordic and our race boat that we run with Pacific Offshore.
09-17-2004, 11:17 AM
#59
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Re: Nordic Quality?
Originally Posted by ryoung99
Wowchad,
If you are looking for a good all around boat, you cannot go wrong with the Nordic.
...and bang for the buck... second to none.
Absolutely...very accurate statement. One of the best family 28s I've ever seen. Well built, very comfortable, excellent layout, reasonable speed with given power.
In the end all of the "west coast" customs are good boats, and don't buy into that east coast boats are better built for the rough. The only people who say that have not been offshore at Hunnington Beach or Ventura. Trust me, the Eliminators, Warlocks and Lavey's can run with any east coast boat at anytime.
In ride comparison, the Nordic is not even close to the more aggressive east coast designs in the chop. I'm speaking for the 28 since I've never been in a Rage, and only once in a Flame.
If you are looking for a good all around boat, you cannot go wrong with the Nordic.
...and bang for the buck... second to none.
Absolutely...very accurate statement. One of the best family 28s I've ever seen. Well built, very comfortable, excellent layout, reasonable speed with given power.
In the end all of the "west coast" customs are good boats, and don't buy into that east coast boats are better built for the rough. The only people who say that have not been offshore at Hunnington Beach or Ventura. Trust me, the Eliminators, Warlocks and Lavey's can run with any east coast boat at anytime.
In ride comparison, the Nordic is not even close to the more aggressive east coast designs in the chop. I'm speaking for the 28 since I've never been in a Rage, and only once in a Flame.
09-17-2004, 12:05 PM
#60
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Re: Nordic Quality?
I pick up my 22' Sprint tomorrow. 
I've heard that east coast boats do better in the really rough stuff, like offshore, do to their steeper V's. West coast boats are flatter until you get into the really big stuff, (over 30'.)
I've heard that east coast boats do better in the really rough stuff, like offshore, do to their steeper V's. West coast boats are flatter until you get into the really big stuff, (over 30'.)
