Question:
Bass Hunter Boat Stability?
I've been wanting to get a small pond-hopper to fish the small
electric-only lakes around my area. A local sporting goods store has
the Pelican 10E for $649.00, and there is a 20% off deal this week, so
I reckon that to be a pretty decent price. My question is, is this
type of boat stable enough to fish standing?
Answer:
-The Pelican 10E is not a Bass Hunter. Its a nice boat. A Bass Hunter has a
pontoon/tunnel style hull that is extremely stable. A single adult can
standup in one in good conditions if they are careful. BUT you were asking
about the Pelican 10E.
Lets looks and see.
http://dsp.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/p2327436dt.jpg
Looks like the same type of design as a bass hunter. My dad had a similar
boat and I fished out of it a bit. It was very reliable for us. After 20
years or so the heat in the desert got to it and the plastic got hard and
cracked, but then what do you expect for a cheap boat eh? We had a lot of
fun with it. Camping out on Lake Powel I would take it out and chase
morning striper boils before anybody else woke up. Just always wear a life
jacket when out in it. It is a small shallow boat and it would be easy
enough to fall out. In some states (like here in Az) it is required to wear
a PFD in a smaller boat at all time.
We had a blast with our plastic boat. One thing I would reccomend is a Big
Foot trolling motor switch. Its basically a heavy duty switch designed to
be screwed down to the deck of a boat for use with a bow mount non-foot
control trolling motor. That way you can set the speed on your motor and
reach over and repoint it by hand, but if you are fishing along a weedline
or something like that you can just tap the switch with your foot to move a
little while still using both hands to fish. I would not screw it to the
deck of a plastic boat though. Instead I would mount it on a board or piece
of ply and lay that on the deck of the boat instead of punching holes in the
boat.
Sounds like you have a plan. Also, if you do fish some ponds or lakes that
allow gas motors those Briggs & Stratton 5HP motors seem to be the best deal
for them. I see them for sale lots of places, but rarely see a used one for
sale. The only reason I might consider a motor from another MFG for that is
because of space. The Briggs uses an external fuel tank that will take up
space in your boat. SOme of the other MFGs have a fuel tank mounted on
their small gas motors.
