New boat, opinions?

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mariner36

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May 6, 2009
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31220
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As background, I am new to saltwater, new to skinny water, and new to Florida living in general. I will be boating on Charlotte Harbor, Fl.

On Sunday I went out for a 4 hour charter on a Haynie flats boat, and caught 7 snook, two of which were keepers. In short, I had a blast. I also learned that in order to really fish the Harbor, you need a boat that can get into 12" of water.

So, I looked around and I think I found the perfect fishing boat for this area. I took it for a test drive today with 4 people and it was super stable, ran in 12" both at and off plane, and really impressed me. Tomorrow I am having a mechanical inspection done on the 2004 Yamaha 150hp OSx66, the hydraulic Jack plate, etc.

Enough stalling, the boat is a 2004 El Pescador 240,

http://elpescadorboats.com/models/

I know, never heard of it.

It is a custom boat out of Texas. A google search came up positive reviews from fisherman who had experience with it. Supposedly very solid, stable and durable. During he "test drive", I was very impressed, but then again, I have no frame of reference. I can only compare it a 21 key west bay reef, a Skeeter 21' bay boat, and the haynie. It was much more stable,and seemed to handle chop better than any of he three. It will float and plane in less water than all but possibly the Haynie, which is a poling skiff and sucked in the rough.

The boat has a T top with front, rear, and spreader lights, 2 raw water live wells, 2 VHF radios, hydraulic steering and Jack plate, rod holders, etc.

Only things are found wrong were a non functional fuel gauge, and a badly scratched faded speeo that was hard to see.

One thing that alarmed me is that it doesn't have a drain plug? It is self bailing on the deck, but it seems like water could accumulate in the bilge if it got in the hatches.

I will cllose the deal tomorrow if everything checks out mechanically. Btw, the seler is retired Coast Guard, and the trailer has Coast Guard on the plates.

So, am I crazy? This boat is just for fishing and exploring, I plan to bring down my boat, or a similar weekender when I am down here more often
 
A few people posted that they have been known to " swap ends", but then others said that happens with any flats boats if you jack the engine up to high and turn sharply. Not sure how scared I should be of this?

I was most concerned about the lack of a bilge drain plug till I read ths.
 
The boat has a proud bow with a v running to mid ships, then it flattens out and becomes a tunnel hull in advance of the motor.

Pretty wild design that I am not familiar with.
 
Lots of reads, but no responses. I bet no one else has heard of or seen a boat like this before either.

I am headed to the marina for the mechanical inspection now.
 
Details Page won't load for me. Main page pic looks like the same bow design as the small commercial fishing boats I used to see in the Sea of Japan. Very stable platform.

Good luck.
 
KiDa, thanks for the reply. It felt really stable when we tested it. It has a TRP outboard, twin rotating props, which helps it pop up on plane immediately. It easily planed off in 12" of water. It floated with the engine jack plate up in water just over my ankles, not even mid calf.

It also came with a Garmin 3210 chart plotter, which I am going to research tonite. All I know is the screen is huge, larger than what I have on my main boat. It wasa nice surprise.

The mechanical test is done, The seatrial is tomorrow, and assuming all goes well, we will take possession tomorrow.

It is a unique boat, and I hope it performs well for us.

I hadn't seen a twin prop outboard before.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=chfDSJ2d_a4&desktop_uri=/watch?v=chfDSJ2d_a4

Above is a video on the counter rotating prop set-up. I am surprised we don't see more of these.
 
Could not load the page either but flats boats IMO are just too much fun, too fast, too flat on bottom for other than calm water just be careful, did I say too much fun??. Charlotte harbor chop will be tough if you cant stay in the shadow of the shore but you will be able to chase Doc Ford all over Pine Island sound. Have fun!
 
Don't know anything about the boat but it looks realy good and like it would be perfect for shallows fishing.
 
That might even handle some chop. Let us know how it works.
 
The wind has been blowing 20mph since we bought it, and Charlotte Harbor is quite rough. Spent some time playing with the Garmin 3210, and getting to know the boat.

I took one test run out to Marker 2 at 35 knots to get a feel for how it would handle at speed on a windy day, and it was very comfortable with no spay at all.
It was a short run because my passenger was not enjoying the weather, and we were really going to throw a net for some greenbacks to fish with in the canals.
Very tricky throwing the net. Not much in the live well after a few tosses, but enough to feed the snook under the docks. Caught a couple once back in the canal along with a small redfish and a keeper trout.

We ran back planed off at 8-9 knots which was very pleasant. I knew it was capable of low speed, but it was nice to see it run on plane at 10 mph in the chop.

I'll play a bit more tomorrow, but is supposed to be even winder, 20+ according to weather.com.

I just cleaned out the bilges, anchor well, fish boxes and live wells to keep myself occupied.

Overall, pretty fun considering the weather. Thank you for the replies.
 
I love that design! "Flats" boat have to have flat or nearly flat bottoms for shallow draft, but the high, sharp bow is new and should address their tendency to pound your teeth out. I'll bet a cookie it has a jack plate too. (oops just read that it does, all the better).
 
It does have a hydraulic jack plate, and hydraulic steering. It handled better than the 21' center console we ran out with. They were pretty soaked and said they got bounced around a bit following us out.

It is a pretty wild hull. A panga like bow, a flat middle, and a tunnel around the prop at the transom.

The counter rotating prop really does help with low speed handling, as well planing off.

I wonder why you don't see more twin props?
 
Well, I am back in NY, and the boat is in storage. It performed really well, we ran it across some 10" deep flats and had no issues at all. It planed off without kicking up sand, which was impressive. I also ran it across the harbor in 20+ knot winds out to Boca Grand. We didn't go out into the gulf as the NOAA forecast was for 6-8' waves. The harbor as rough enough for us to feel like we tested it adequately.

I will be mounting a power pole the next time I am in Florida, most likely April. I looked at the models available, and there desnt seem to be much difference between them.

I also need to get the bet chip or card for Charlotte Harbor/ gulf coast for the Garmin 3210 plotter. I love the screen and interface, but the data set built in is pretty sparse.

Anyone have any experience with this plotter? Or have advice on what card to purchase?
 
I have a 3210 and have had a GARMIN BLUECHART G2 2US018R for the great lakes since new. The card gives you a lot of detail plus harbor pictures are included. The 3210 uses Garmin's older proprietary chip.

Good luck
Niles
 
quote:
Originally posted by nwaring

I have a 3210 and have had a GARMIN BLUECHART G2 2US018R for the great lakes since new. The card gives you a lot of detail plus harbor pictures are included. The 3210 uses Garmin's older proprietary chip.

Good luck
Niles

Click to expand...


Nice, hopefully they make a chip for South/Gulf Coast Florida. I have a Garmin on my Carver on Lake Ontario, but I believe it has a Navionics chip.
 
I believe they do but I would call Garmin to get your options because of the older 3210 technology. The 3210 can support a network. I have the sounder and XM weather radar all showing on mine.

Niles
 
Next thing is a power pole.

I have no experience with them, and I am having a hard time choosing between the 10' Blade model, or just an 8' pro series.

I don't know if the longer ones work as well in shallow water, which is mostly where I'll be.

Anybody with any experience with them?
 
I was going to ask about leaving the boat in the water for 3 weeks without bottom paint, but I started a new thread.

Btw, the link to the manufacturer works now.
 
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