I'm going to spend the winter in Ft.Lauderdale . I want to purchase a used flats boat in the 16-18' range . Does anyone here have one ? And can you suggest what to look for or what to stay away from ..thanks
I have one I'll sell you. 2011 Mitzi 16. 50 horse Yamaha four stroke. 50 hours on it. Stored inside. Aluminum trailer. I'll even throw in a Stiffy 20' carbon fiber push pole.
Flats boats Hey Dits, I thought you might be one of the guys who would have an opinion on this subject . You boat looks nice , however I was on a website this morning that went into very major problems with the Mitzi flats boats made after 2009 . Not sure if I can post that up , but if you Google it , there are tons of sites in reference to subject ... No offence , but would not touch a new one with a 20' push pole .
Flats boats Dits, I do like the Baycraft boats made in your home town . Do you know anything about them from people that have one or have used one ?
Where do you plan to utitize the boat? Other than the Everglades, IIRC, one has to venture some distance South to get into some Saltwater flats.
That 50hp motor isn't really that large. Boat is very small, and the camera angle makes the motor appear larger than it is.
I will use it in the Keys , and the Canals of Lauderdale this winter . Then in the waters of Michigan during the summer . They are a very versatile boat in skinny water , not just Salt .
I haven't noticed any hull/liner separation at all. It's one of those things that can happen with any boat. Hopefully, it would be covered by the factory if it happened. I do not know the people that make the Baycrafts, but they were pretty popular for awhile. I know one guy who had one and he was generally satisfied with it. Let me give you some real advice (from someone who has owned five flats boats). Get a 16 foot Hewes or a Maverick. I've owned a Hewes Bonefisher and a Maverick HPX Mirage. You simply cannot beat the quality of those boats. They invented the genre and perfected it. Couple one with a Yamaha F90 and you'll be a happy angler. I'm going back to Hewes when I offload the Mitzi. Yes. Actually, they need more. The Mitzi is no speed demon. It tops out at around 30 knots. The Maverick referenced above cruised nicely at 45+ in a foot of water... and smooth as butter.
Flats boats Dits , from everything I've read , both the Hewes and Maverick are the most popular ones out there , from the pro's who use them on a daily basis for there livelihood.
Before you buy any flats boat though, ask yourself what you're going to be doing with it primarily. Because all of them do something extremely well, but other things not as well. For example, between a Redfisher and a Mirage HPX, here are the trade offs: A Redfisher is very stable, handles big chop well, lots of storage, very comfortable. On the downside, it drafts more water than the Mirage, is louder and doesn't pole as well. A Mirage will float in spit, it's light and fast, it's extremely quiet and you can pole it all day. On the downside, it doesn't have as much freeboard and it's much tippier (and it will cost you more). So if you primarily want to pole the skinny for bonefish in the keys or stalk reds in Mosquito Lagoon, the Mirage is the way to go. If you want to tarpon fish, run from Islamorada up to Flamingo, or take an occasional run beyond the reef, the Hewes is for you.
100% agree with that insight Dits , I am looking for a boat that will handle chop and short runs to deeper water !
I have a 16' Carolina Skiff J16 I use it to flounder gig, river fish, flats fish, even bay and big lake fishing in FL and South AL. I recommend checking a Carolina or Sundance Skiff out. They are great. I have a 40hp 2 stroke on mine and it tops out a GPS indicated 34mph. Plenty fast to get you where you need to go and it will float in about 7 inches of water. Its wide and very stable. You can find good used ones for 7k or less pretty easy.
Good thing, because you can get some choppy water in the intra-coastal and Lauderdale canals. Not everyone follows no-wake to a T.
We used a Mako 21 just like this in the Keys. It would go through most of the mangroves but was perfect when we headed out to blue water. Two of my knucklehead friends even took it over to the Bahamas one day. Great boat...handled everything we threw at it. It was the station rec boat so it was abused like no other. We actually tried to break the thing but couldn't.
That is an awesome boat . My family has a 21' Boston Whaler Outrage , but I need something smaller to get in and out of small lakes & rivers up north . I would have no issues running that Mako or Whaler out to West End and then out to the Abaco's ... Provided the wind was blowing out of the south for at least 24-48 hours before leaving .. As you know , you don't want to cross the Gulf Stream with a North Wind .
Unfortunately I didn't have easy access to a camera back in the day, but I wish I had taken pictures of some of the "boats" that we rescued and towed in during the Mariel Boat Lift in 1980. Actually beyond description.
