Tournament style Fishing Boat for moreton bay

[mookyandlumpy]

hey all ,
looking into upgrading my tinnie,
my 4.2 mr tinnie was my first boat, i have no experience in tournament style fishing boats, so i thougt ill ask in here

i like the look of the nitro 640
http://www.boatsales.com.au/boats-for-sale/boatdetails.aspx?R=6747221
but the low sides worry me, and it would seem out of its element
i also like the bluefin sports range, the thundercat8-) especially

im not really after a perticular boat to go and buy but more a recommendation of what style is needed as a minimum for moreton bay

any help would be great :)

thanks mooky

[lethal098]

mooky, the bay can be extremely unpredictable and i would think on one of those days where it starts great and turns quickly a boat like that would become dangerous very quickly, i would be thinking you would be better lookin at a runabout style, half cab or centre console type boat. But it all comes down to what you will be using it for and how far you will be going. cheers Lee

[Midnight]

Gday,
What Lee said!

That Nitro is a Broadwater or lake/river boat, not for Moreton Bay unless it is gonna be like it has all this week, glass out and predictable.

Get yourself a Haines V17r or similar( or bigger if the budget allows) and enjoy a nice smooth and safe ride.

The Bay can be a b@stard at times, most summer afternoons in fact!

Cheers,
Myles

[Dodgy_Back]

Yes the Nitro 640 is quite a small boat. I do know of one bloke that fishes the bay quite often in his 640 , but it is on the small side.

Mick

[Coontakinta]

I watched, one not so pleasant morning, one of those fast tournie boats try to negotiate its way outside the protection of an otherwise glassy waterway. It was a very slow & pitching ride for the occupant who soon decided that the relatively calm water of the Port River was far more suitable for his Ranger or nitro or what eva they're called.

No idea what Moreton Bay is like, but imagine its not unlike our Gulfs here in SA. Notice that a number of boats, fishing the local circuit at least, are along the lines of the makocraft 440. Think the thundercat is similar is it not? These have to be a good compromise in that they deal well with the need to be fishing both inside & outside of the protection the Port River provides. They are stable, ride well, and offer as much protection to the elements as any of the fast boats.

[NIZ180]

Why not a Galeforce or the Attack 23' centre console. Higher sides than the bass boats & more suited to the bay. I reckon the American bay boats are alot better suited to our style of fishing than bass boats. I don't know why more of them aren't being sold over here. If I had the money a 22' bay boat would be at the top of my list.

What would you prefer a Skeeter or one of these????
http://img119.imageshack.us/img119/7959/img6504smwr2.jpg

[bennyboy]

If you are after a good bay boat get a standard hull with a reverse chine hull shape to give you a deeper V and still stable boat and get it customised with high front cast platforms and kill tanks to whatever you desire.
Sea Jay will customise and perhaps look at somthing like the Haven Sports to start from. Any decent boat builder will customise to your needs.

[Horse]

The Galeforce boats work well on the bay or one of the smaller haines like a 146 centre console

[udlman]

Even though I have gone to glass, The Bluefins are a very good boat, well made on the gold coast. The boys down there are good to talk too, and will customize to what ever you like.

Brad.

[Leighton]

Lewis Typhoon is another well worth a look at

[Dicko]

. I reckon the American bay boats are alot better suited to our style of fishing than bass boats. I don't know why more of them aren't being sold over here.

You're right. They're a good compromise. There's a few getting around up north, plus another on the way now the $ is good. ;D


mookyandlumpy,

I wouldn't look at that if Moreton bay was your main area you want to go.

Most of the bass style boats can travel in a bit of 'roughish' water, but the main thing that makes them not practical in anything past sheltered waters is they can be bloody difficult to fish from.

Because all the fishing area is a high casting deck there's bugger all floor level places to fish from. When it's a bit lumpy you need to be able stay lower in the boat, and at times be able to lean your leg up against the side for stability.

That's why most of your all round type lure fishing boats have some high level casting space, but still have a fair amount of floor level space.

[Why Not]

Have a look at the G.S Marine boats. They are made in Darwin but are sold in Brisbane. They have a Tournament boat (heaps of storage) with nice freeboard and handle the chop pretty well.

Why Not

[halfpace]

Having a tournament style aluminium plate boat being built at the moment. It will be capable of moreton bay trips. The guys at Bluewater Alloy Boats are looking after me. If you want to talk about it PM me.

Andrew

[Getout]

How can anyone, fish in Queensland, out of a boat that has no sun protection??

[TonyM]

Lewis Typhoon is another well worth a look at

I agree Leighton, nice boats. Higher sides than most bass/barra boats but still very usable in the bay. I believe when they were first introduced by Yamaha they were referred to as Barra/Bay boats in boating magazine articles.

I have a Southern Star Stealth MkIII which is the hull design used to make the Typhoon. Mine is up for sale once I get organised as I'm downsizing to something smaller for launching in remote locations as I mostly fish estuaries/impoundments nowadays.



How can anyone, fish in Queensland, out of a boat that has no sun protection??
That's what hats, sunscreen, sunnies, and long sleeved UV protected shirts are for - In my opinion biminis, T Tops etc get in the way too much on small boats when you're fishing.

Cheers
Tony

[Getout]

That's what hats, sunscreen, sunnies, and long sleeved UV protected shirts are for - In my opinion biminis, T Tops etc get in the way too much on small boats when you're fishing.

Cheers
Tony


Fair enough, but it still gets bloody hot without any shade. I'd rather be cool than look cool.

[lee8sec]

Fair enough, but it still gets bloody hot without any shade. I'd rather be cool than look cool.

+1;D leigh

[TonyM]

Fair enough, but it still gets bloody hot without any shade. I'd rather be cool than look cool.

Whatever floats your boat ;D

As usual, it all comes down to what you want from a boat, if you want a boat to sit back and relax slurping on a beer whilst soaking a bait then something with some sort of shade is great. If you're throwing lures around all day it becomes a complete pain.

Every single boat is a compromise ;)

Back to the subject though - another option to consider could be the 530 Polycraft. Quite high in the sides and handles rough conditions quite well (I had one a few years back and had it out in horrid conditions a few times and it handled it well)

I prefer the Stealth over the Poly though in that it has lockable rod locker, waterproof hatches etc etc - Basically a much nicer level of finish and features, performance wise it's better too.

Cheers
Tony

[finding_time]

Tony

mate i agree with you! Another thing to consider is how targa tops effect boat performance and fishing performance, they catch the wind whilst under way a tip over, i know when i removed the targa from my old UB it was a much better boat! during fishing without the Targa it drifted slower with the wind also the lure casting as you said was a pain!

ian

Ps. I reckon i got more sunburnt when it had the top as it provided a false sense of security and i was slower to apply cream and a hat!

[GBC]

I'd be grabbing the 542 centre console signature from the for sale section and putting a bow mount and casting chair in - easily done.