Recommendations for a Tinny

[ozscott]

I'm selling my Vagabond. I am moving house and won't be likely to fit her in. Also i am thinking about doing more luring and fly in estuaries, rivers and dams with a leccy up front so smaller boat it is.

I am thinking around 4.5m for my 2 lads and me. Whilst I would love a helm station (side probably) I suppose to maximise fishing ability a leccy trim and tilt tillar with a decent seat (not thwarte...im not 20) is the go. Although as I say my driving preference is wheel.

I would like the ability to still go to Peel on a good day but won't be going far and wide like I did on the Vagabond... (and yes i will miss just opening the taps on the Yammy in rough chop and riding back in at 50kph plus 🤣)

Any recommendations?

Cheers

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[scottar]

4.5 polycraft - tough as nails, nice soft ride.

[chocolatemoose]

i agree with the polycraft. owned a 4.8 soft riding stupidly stable go anywhere crazy easy to work on. none of the problems of alloy. looks different and fun. brilliant boats.

[blue_marlin]

stabicraft frontier with tiller option.
what you lose in internal space you gain with inshore fishability and awesome stability
also throw in a softer ride than you'd think
https://photos-3.dropbox.com/t/2/AADbnotWqIHu6AsdggvduP_s21WVPGdCloQYX4zAQ9hNBA/12/71689699/jpeg/32x32/1/_/1/2/Stabicraft-1.jpg/EK3Z2zcY6AYgBygH/IFVBWSX1hFV4NC9rtcQC4D_EsdUIs9xwhCI4pKStNlk?size=3 2x32&size_mode=5

[gunna]

4.5 polycraft - tough as nails, nice soft ride.

Wettest boat I have owned

[scottar]

Wettest boat I have owned

Any boat this size should come with a snorkle. I have on occasion resorted to wearing a face mask so I could see where I was going in my old 4.5 Savage. Can't say I have spent any time in any open boat that was any drier either.

[indian man]

kiwi built poly smart wave dry stable super safe sw4200 or sw4800

[ozscott]

Thanks gents

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[ozscott]

What power for the poly 4.5 ?

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[scottar]

They are heavy so go max hp in your chosen flavour.

[myusernam]

tiller in that size so much better. Much better ride up back with tiller, less to go wrong, less weight, more responsive and fun to drive, easier to put pots in, more room etc.

[Noelm]

I reckon if you ask 50 people, you will get 50 different opinions on this, there is just so many offerings to consider, from the "off the shelf" Telwater products right up to full custom build plate boats, and everything in between, then add glass, alloy or poly, and it is really hard to choose.

[ozscott]

For sure Noelm. I'm taking it all on board. I have used a lot of tinnies in the past but no plastics. Open mind.

Cheers

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[Skusto]

I suppose it always goes down to how much you want to spend as well? Certain brands type will/may be out of the budget your willing to spend.

I got a platey built and is the driest open boat I have been due to the big reverse chines, self draining deck all the gear etc. no carpet or rotten floors to worry about but you would have to be looking new to justify spending the amount and comparing to other boats.

Does pretty good in crappy weather but also gets through a foot of water.

But the best thing is having it customised to your requirements. If your looking new don't go past looking at some of the smaller platey guys as from when I done the research they weren't that much more then a Telwater boat bit obviously built a lot stronger.

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[Ducksnutz]

I'd suggest the Cootacraft little ram or the Haines seawasp or the Haines 4m prowler all in tiller steer.

If you need something a little bigger than those, the Haines Signature 485sf in a tiller looks the goods too.

Fun decisions to have. Happy hunting.

p.s.- not bashing Ali boats at all but suggesting an alternative especially coming from a big beautiful seafarer.

[Crocodile]

Hello Ozscott,

Consider a Webster Twinfisher 4.3m.
I've had one for 11 years and love it.
Unbeatable combination of soft ride, stability, safe handling and fishing room.
One you've cracked a cat there is no going back.

[Dignity]

I'm selling my Vagabond. I am moving house and won't be likely to fit her in. Also i am thinking about doing more luring and fly in estuaries, rivers and dams with a leccy up front so smaller boat it is.


Commiserations mate on selling your vagabond, I had a peek at your boat and I must admit if I was after something like that I'd snap it up, way to cheap. Good luck on whatever you settle on.

[Gon Fishun]

Young Seahorse has recently bought a tinny and asked a lot of similar questions on here. Size? power? etc. Might help if you were to search his threads.

[Firsttimefisherman]

I bought a 4.4m Stessco from Marine Tune on the Gold Coast five years ago and it is a champion of a boat. Tiller steer and 40hp Yamaha 2 stroke and plenty of bells and whistles including electronics, sounder, Bimini blah blah. Use it for everything from fishing in Moreton Bay to 1770 as well as tubing in Somerset with the kids. IMO and looking at their stand at the Brisbane boat show these guys still have some of the best deals around. http://www.marinetune.com Worth a drive down to take a look.

Danny