Pacemaker Fishing Forum

Curly,

Whatever I get will be named Pacemaker!

The Maycraft draws 18" not bad but the DLV only draws 8. Tons of room in that baby!

I keep going back and forth which is good.

I am sea trialing the DLV on the 31st at 3PM in Baltimore. I will be cold but I will check it out. I may go see the Maycraft this weekend.

Both are good boats and options. The money will be close.

I am sure something else will pop up in there somewhere.

And I do know hat Bomber is always ready to catch fish!

E

Or this one....

Curly,

There are multiple ways to post pics...

1. Link directly to the site. For example... if you wanted to post the picture located at http://www.3d-screensaver-downloads.com … r/big1.jpg

you would type [img][/img] with the website in between those two tags. Like this: [imghttp://www.3d-screensaver-downloads.com … r/big1.jpg[/img]   (i shortened the url so it wouldnt display the pic).

2. you can post pics for free at http://imageshack.us/, then copy and paste the url that it makes for your picture and put them between the [img][/img] tags

Let me know if you need any more help with it!

Check this out!

http://www.thehulltruth.com/forums/thre … mp;posts=8

I could put my 115 on this and sell the 90!

Ernie

I have been posting all over to help me make a decision. Here are some of the responses I have received:

1. Go with the 218 dlv and don't look back.  I looked at the Maycraft as well as the Sea Hunt and a host of others.  If you like to fly fish, jig and get into skinny water, there is no better rig in the price range.  I have heard on other boards that the Maycrafts ride hard and it definitely won't be as stable or as wide. 

I just bought the 218 dlv with t-top and 115 Suzuki for fly fishing the ches bay and tidal rivers. I also spin fish and on rare occasions I troll although I will never admit it.  I had a Sea Hunt at one point.

2. Got one (DLV) and love it. Would recommend it to anyone looking for a boat in the range of 19 to 23. I fish the Chesapeake Bay area near Kent Island. I think you will like how it handles, and how close you can get to shore, very shallow draft. Again great boat, functional and well built like a tank. High speed in rough water, it will be a rough ride, but by laying off the throttle not a bad ride at all. I have a 115 Yamaha on mine and saw no need for a larger motor. On the GPS noted after trimming 42 MPH.....All I need to get where I am going and get me back. Good luck

3. I love the boat DLV), stable as a dock but it does pound in chop but I've never gotten wet. You can minimize the rough ride by throttling back to about 20-25 mph. I'd be happy to answer any questions but I can't recommend the owners group forum enough. Where are you looking - I’d avoid Ed's Marine in Ashland, VA if I had to do it over again, but other than that I wouldn't do anything differently. GET A T-TOP!!! I primarily bottom fish on tidal rivers, the Potomac and the James. I have a 115 Yamaha on mine - I get 42 mph by GPS at WOT - plenty fast. I guess if I were fly fishing the T-Top would get in the way, I like it to keep the electronics up out of the way, a place for rocket launchers, antennas and PFDs. I chose a CS due to the ease of maintenance - not a lot of shiny stuff to work about - very functional.

4. First, don't expect any boat to be perfect in every situation.  The Chesapeake is big water and should not be taken lightly.  This boat (DLV) will be fine on the good days and get you home on the good days turned snotty.  I would NEVER purposely go out on a bad day in any baot much less a skiff.  I have been in the bay when it is bad and you don't want any part of it on any boat.

The 115 Suzuki will push the boat between 42 and 44 mph most likely.  The reason I choose the Suzuki is that they have a full 6 year warranty, and their HP ratings are more accurate than Yamaha.  With the Suzuki 115 you will get a true 115 HP at the prop.  You won't get that with the Yamaha.  Both are good motors.

For trolling you can install flush rod holder in the rear deck for trolling or mount rod holders on the rails if you have them. 

5. Either boat will work for your general fishing. But since you know you'll end up at the CBBT sooner or later, buy for the worst possible conditions. I believe the Maycraft will provide a drier ride in the chop - it has a nice flair to the bow. Besides, you won't look as professional or sexy in the barge. To put some balance to my comments, you should know that I'm fond of Maycraft boats.

6. It's very stable and has alot of room, don't think you'll go wrong if you get one, only problem I could see would be getting slapped around on rough days.

7. May crafts are tough no frills fishing boats. You cant beat their toughness for the price.

8. Great boats for the money. No fluff fishing boats. Tons of commericial waterman use them in our area (NC) because they are built tough.

Getting close!

Ernie

There is another player in the mix!

Through a good friend of mine who lives in Pittsburgh, I have found a 2000 Hydra Sports 212 with a 150 Ocean Pro engine. The boat is in St. Marys WV....just 5 hours away!

This boat is in brand new condition and the engine only has 125 hours....that is nothing!


Road trip anyone?

Ernie

Going to the boat show on Sunday to see what might be lurking out there!

Time to get a boat!

Ernie

Moving on to Plan B, C, D & E.

Plan A, the MayCraft is off the market so here are the options:

Plan B- 21' Hydra Sports in WV- will need to take a road trip as it's 5 ours away!
Plan C- 19' Pathfinder owned by Capt.  Tony Harding- no need for test run as I have fished in this boat
Plan D- 19' Sea Chaser hull (will use my Suzuki) - taking test run Saturday
Plan E- 20' Sea Pro near Richmond- just started the talks

Ernie

On December 15, Jim Rekas, John Casale and I were having an incredible fishing day at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. We had heard all kinds of stories and we decided to go and figure it out. And THAT we did! We caught 90 some stripers and we were worn out. But we were going back out the next day. Oh.....the next day. That’s the day that the Pacemaker died when the hull cracked and we (Curly mostly) had to bail water for a couple of hours to get back to the dock safely.

After taking it to the shop, the bad news came in that it would cost big $$ to fix the hull which had been poorly made.

All of that is behind me and next Saturday (3/24) I am headed to St. Mary's WV (other side of WV) to meet Jim Janes who is the owner of a 21' Hydra Sport CC.  I have been exchanging info with Jim for several weeks and I feel like I know him and his boat well. Our plan is to get on the water (pray for warm weather) and get a compression test done on the motor.

If all goes well, I cold be trailering it home that day which means I'll be ready to fish on March 30 which is the 1st available day on the schedule. We shall see but I can't wait until Saturday.

I know this. Stripers are already coming up the river. Big blue cats have been caught all around the WW bridge. The shad, herring and white perch must be getting close!

Ernie

Back from WV with  the new ride!

See the "rest of the story"!

Ernie