Optiker,
What is you gunnel depth?
Wife favors the Bulls Bay 200CC because it is a deeper boat with deeper gunnels & also has a lowered front deck. She feels it will be a better ride & safer for the kids. I agree on the kids part but They do good in my 18ft Jon boat but I pick my places to go when they are with us, keep the speed down, & make sure th
I’ll measure it this afternoon. The Masters has higher gunnels than the Tournament series. I did not sea trial the tournament but I am told the Masters has a better ride. I have yet to take a wave over the side (front, sides, or back) and have had the boat in bigger seas than I’m sure you would take your kids. Upcoming boat show would be a good time to crawl around one. Will reply later with depth measurements
________________________ 1966 13' Boston Whaler "Flatty" 2018 Sportsman Masters 207 www.eyestrikefishing.com #predatorsstriketheeye
Thanks Optiker.
Would love to check the show out, not sure if I can make it though.
Again, thanks for all the help.
Gunnel height is approx 17", increasing to 18" toward the front.
To be clear, this is measured from the top of the sides to the floor.
________________________ 1966 13' Boston Whaler "Flatty" 2018 Sportsman Masters 207 www.eyestrikefishing.com #predatorsstriketheeye
________________________ 1966 13' Boston Whaler "Flatty" 2018 Sportsman Masters 207 www.eyestrikefishing.com #predatorsstriketheeye
Thanks, I would have thought it would have been deeper. The Carolina Skiff website shows 23" on the LS models, I would think they would have had the shallowest gunnels.
Appreciate the help.
I just got back from a boat show the First new Carolina Skiff LS I’ve seen what an improvement over the standard dlv. Finally a self bailing cockpit may be wrong on this but apparently they’re running the foam stringers long ways now so that there shouldn’t be as much of a problem with a waterlogged Hull not getting out not sure on that positively seems to be about the only boat in my price range anymore apparently my salary doesn’t keep up with new boat prices in the last decade
I have been checking those out on line. Hard not to include them based on the price point. I plan to go check them out as well.
this boat with a 150 and an aluminum trailer starts at $39,000
without t-top, trim tabs, electronics, etc.
we have one arriving in a few weeks.
we have a 19 here now if you want to stop by and see what they look like.
here is the performance bulletin on this boat, and the F150 is plenty of motor for this boat
https://yamahaoutboards.com/en-us/home/outboards/350-150-hp/in-line-4/f150-(i4)/pb_nst_215xts_f150xb_2016-06-01_bay
you have to copy and paste the entire website link or it wont work:question:
www.teamcharlestonmarine.com IF I RESPOND IN ALL CAPS, ITS NOT ON PURPOSE, AND I AM NOT YELLING
www.teamcharlestonmarine.com IF I RESPOND IN ALL CAPS, ITS NOT ON PURPOSE, AND I AM NOT YELLING
www.teamcharlestonmarine.com IF I RESPOND IN ALL CAPS, ITS NOT ON PURPOSE, AND I AM NOT YELLING
None of the local SeaFox dealers would help me order a seat cushion, the wouldnt answer the phone, transfer to parts, return calls, return emails, etc… It went on for months.
No help visiting the factory in Monks Corner, which they provided the wrong part for my boat (special screws to hold the livewell lid on), and gave me a number to a Ford Dealership (later learned the boat dealer was attached).
Ended up using a dealer in FL. Have the parts shipped to FL, then shipped back up to Goose Creek less than 10 miles from the factory.
Doubled the cost of the parts and was the last thing I ever ordered from SeaFox.
If you head over to THT there is a nice thread about SeaFox suing a small custom boat builder Sea OX because their names sound the same. Guess which one has been around longer?
Cant get any lower if your already at the bottom.
The problems I experienced were with the Company and Dealers not the actual boat. Except when the bow eye sunk through the anchor compartment wall because there was no blocking.
Talked Fatrat a few weeks ago, he seems pretty happy with his new Viper.
There’s a lot of sea- boats. Sea Hunter, sea hunts, sea-birds, sea -fox, sea-ox sea-pro, Sea-Doo and a few more I can’t think of right now, a couple of them have great reps, a couple don’t. If there’s a lot of similar opinions those are usually close to the truth.
Thanks guys, all this really helps to cull out some of the brands.
Areeldrag. Have you looked into motors ?interested in what you may have come up with. I’m running a 3 year old Suzuki 200. With a 6 year warranty. The remaining three years are with a warranty company I think. Not Suzuki.I don’t know what that would involve.And from what I understand it don’t really cover corrosion. The big thing about Suzuki and E-Tec are limited service centers. I’ve been looking at the Yamaha 225 s h o. The rep made it a point to tell me the Yamaha warranty was not farmed out…
I am fragile. Not like a flower. But like a bomb.
Most dealers I am looking at have Yamaha on them & found an out of state one goes with Suzuki on a lot of theirs. So I may go with what the dealer carries?? I had a Yamaha F115 back in 2008 & had a lot of trouble out of it, I know they have a good name & like to think I just got the lemon out of that year. I currently have a Tohatsu 25hp & love it, never a problem. I never see them around here in the larger motors only in the smaller HP like mine.
Not sure if it is more expensive to get a brand that the dealer does not carry?
If the dealer I go with has choices I may go with the one with the best warranty, from what I have seen there isn’t a huge price difference between brands. That was when I was shopping for my 25hp, so with larger motors the price gap could be bigger.
If I can choose, the warranty is still good ,& there is no big cost for getting a special order then I think I would stick with Tohatsu.
The only one I would avoid is the E-tec, I have heard a lot more bad than good out of them.
Yamaha did a lot of deals with manufactures and that lowers there cost for them and helps with sales so that’s a big reason companies went with Yamahas. Look around and see how many not that old used 4 stroke Yamahas you see for sale. People don’t like to bad mouth what they own or sell. Don’t forget it is also a competitive industry and not everything you here is true. I here a lot about Yamahas having issues. The stuff you’ve heard about etecs probably were from none etecs owners. They are widely used in different forms of services. In overall longevity the 4 strokes can’t compete. A lot of the original four strokes went to trash and the same will likely happen with the newer ones. Then you see the amount of 30 and 40 yr old two strokes still running even Yamahas sought after engine is there late 90s and early 2000 two strokes.
It was back in 2008 when I was looking at the Etec & found some bad reviews on them from an Etec forum. Then several years later a guy I worked with got one & had a bunch of issues with it, but like I said so did I with my Yamaha. They may be better now, that has been a long time.
I can say I am not sure if the new motors (2 or 4 strokes) will last like the old 2 strokes did. I had a 50hp Johnson, 1953 model & was still running when I sold it in 2010. It ran good just cold nature & could’t hardly find parts.
What ever I get it will be a 4 stroke, just don’t want to go back to a 2 stroke even though they have changed a lot from what they were.
I haven’t seen anyone mention the Sea Hunt boats in this thread. I don’t know anything about them but they appear too have a good reputation and made in Lexington, SC. Have you considered them? Is there a reason why you would or wouldn’t go with a Sea Hunt?
I have but they are out of my price range once I add some extra options I want. I like their bay boats but just too expensive from what prices I have seen.
The CC I mentioned I had was a 186 Ultra. Nice boat but it was an awkward size.
@ 40"red - just curious what type of issue(s) you’re referring to with the Yamahas? My current boat that I’m selling has an F150 and has been rock solid - easily the most reliable piece of machinery I’ve ever owned. Granted, it’s under 450 hours and I’ve kept up maintenance on an OCD level, but I trust it more than any vehicle I’ve ever owned. Almost every one of my friends are running/have run Yamahas and never heard an issue from any of them (outside of some bad gas a buddy got that fouled his injectors). I know of the old flywheel issues on the larger HP ones, but don’t know of any prevalent issues with those guys.
*Additionally, I have two skis that are also both Yamaha and again, as reliable as a hammer - I don’t think I could kill those things.
My new boat has a new 300 Verado and as stout as that motor is, that was the one thing that gave me pause - was really hoping to stick with Yamaha.
I’ve heard of power head issues, over heating, exhaust issues, corrosion issues and timing issues. I even got my motor worked on a few years ago by a guy who said he makes good money on those Yamahas because he takes them apart and sand blast the corrosion out and resells them because most are lowish hrs. Most of this was a few years ago and the engines where a few years old so It could be considered a bit dated depending who you view things. But they haven’t changed a lot since then.
Well I got over to the coast to visit some of the dealers that have the boats I am looking at & it really helped. My wife had to work a conference in NMB so Friday I took the kids with me to Georgetown to check out the Bulls Bay, Key West, & Sportsman. Then Saturday we went to Little River to look at the Carolina Skiff & some more Sportsman boats. On the way home Sunday we swung through GT so my wife could check out the ones the dealer’s had out on the lot.
The Carolina Skiff 21LS had a lot & I mean a lot of floor room but lacked in storage. It was nice but nowhere near like the Key West or Sportsman. The price point is really great & it is hard to over look that. My biggest concern is the ride & I have heard issues with water in the hulls? The wife did not get to see that one but I kind of doubt she would like it compared to the others.
The Bulls Bay was really disappointing… I felt it was overpriced for what you got & the quality was not there. It is a good layout for fishing but that’s it, strictly a fishing boat which is okay if that’s all you want. I looked at two 200CC & both had rust on the hardware & I saw multiple defects in the gelcoat on both boats. So I am taking it off my list.
The Key West 203FS was a really nice boat but it felt a little tight for room & I did not like the layout of the back of the boat. Wife liked it because it has deep gunnels & a head for her & the little girl (which is a good thing). Overall it felt more like a luxury boat rather than a fishing boat & I really want something that fits both those needs.
The Sportsman Tournament 214 SBX was originally top of my list & it was nice but the Gunnels were way to shallow (like 12" to 13") so I took it off the list right away.
The Sportsman Masters 207 I fell in love with even though it was a little lower on my list. Plenty of storage, live wells, & comes standard with a lot of nice features.Gunnels are 18" which is a lot better.& it is really spacious. We walked around in i