Reginald P. Smithers III wrote:
HK wrote:
Reginald P. Smithers III wrote:
HK wrote:

Hatteras no longer is a premier manufacturer of top-end
sportfishing boats. Cabo no longer has its edge. Albemarle is
going to become just another nameplate.

Sad to see, whatever the reasons.



Who is the premier mfg'er of top-end sportfishing boats who has
retained it's edge.



There are top-end sportfishing boats in just about every size
category. If I were in the market for a large Atlantic Ocean
"battlewagon," though, I'd be visiting the independent Carolina
builders.

There are some builders in the Maritime Provinces of Canada who
build some really serious fishing boats.

Are these custom boats or do they have a model line up of different
size sportfishing boats that one can see online or at a boat show?
The reason I ask is I normally think custom boats are more expensive
than similar boats using an existing mold and design.


In the larger sizes, most of the boats are pretty much custom even if
an existing mold is used or stretched or modified. And not all the
boats come out of molds.


There's a relatively new builder of larger custom glass boats...Mirage
something or other. Forty to 60 footers, with Bertram-like hulls in
their lineage. Lots of custom features, very nice. There's a fellow on
a boat discussion board who is having one built for him, and he's
posted a zillion good photos. I'd have to say they are the best
looking (from photos, anyway) glass battlewagons I have seen lately.

Most of the custom builders will have a lineup at the Miami show.
Their customers are glad to help them, so you'll see several owner
boats included at the show.

If you are a serious fisherman, you cannot evaluate a boat by seeing
its photos or specs on line. Even on a bitty boat like my new Parker,
showroom visits alone were not enough, at least not for me. I got the
dealer to arrange a "demo" with a customer who bought the identical
hull and engine combo a year earlier, and from that demo I concluded I
did not want the forward vee-seating he opted for. Fortunately, Parker
is a manufacturer who, within reason, will semi-custom its stock boats
to some degree.




I have always purchased a boat from a dealer who had the boats already
in the water for a demo or they could easily get them to the water for a
test ride. I thought it was normal for a test ride until I heard Chuck
and others talking about not having a test ride until your signature was
on the contract. I never asked for a test ride, unless I was seriously
considering the boat, but whenever i asked it for a demo, was never a
big deal.



Well, it may be a problem on "broker" boats, but I've never had a
problem arranging a demo on a new boat. Even with the one I just boat,
the dealer did not have one in stock, but made a call and arranged a
ride with an owner. Even better, because the boat was a season old and I
could see how it was doing.