Before all this covid mess, I was ready to pull the trigger on a Tavernier build. I still love the idea of a Tavernier but now I'm confused.
The purpose of the skiff was to have something small and easy to maintain that I can keep in garage and take out whenever I want. It is mainly for me and my son but occasionally my son and Dad will fish with me. Most of my fishing is on the west coast of florida where my dad keeps his Carolina Skiff most of the year and we do a few trips in the winter time to Flamingo/ENP. I wanted something to fill in the gaps when I wasn't using my dads skiff (I live on the east coast, and want to explore other fishing grounds).
I liked the utility of the carolina skiff but hate the ride in even the mildest of chop. I considered a 16-17ft CS but no way Jose, that will be worse than what I'm used to. I had settled on the Tavernier because it seemed like a good compromise of cost, utility, and reasonably good handling.
Here is where things got screwed up. I went fishing recently aboard an older Maverick HPXv (17) with a 2 banger yammy 90 and holy shit was I impressed. The speed, the ride quality, the fishability. I don't do a lot of poling on my dads CS but I got to pole the maverick and I had a blast sighting snook and redfish. I was also impressed by the stability and the amount of storage aboard. It was 2 adults and my 10 year old aboard and was totally comfortable.
So now I feel like its back to the drawing board. Not sure I have the budget for a new maverick build, but now I'm reconsidering going with something a little more conducive to poling with a longer range. I still want some utility to possibly do a camping trip or 2 a year, and something comfortable to fish for my family. I loved the fact that this thing handled awesome in a windchop. Remember, all I know is Caronlina skiff so I'm sure anything with a pointy front will be better.
All this considered, what else should be on my radar? A used maverick or beavertail just got added to my list, but I like the idea of having something built just for me and the peace of mind of a new engine with full warranty as I'm not so mechanically inclined.
I still need to recover from the financial hit from all the time off, but I'd like to make a decision in the next 6 months so I'm back to the drawing board.
The purpose of the skiff was to have something small and easy to maintain that I can keep in garage and take out whenever I want. It is mainly for me and my son but occasionally my son and Dad will fish with me. Most of my fishing is on the west coast of florida where my dad keeps his Carolina Skiff most of the year and we do a few trips in the winter time to Flamingo/ENP. I wanted something to fill in the gaps when I wasn't using my dads skiff (I live on the east coast, and want to explore other fishing grounds).
I liked the utility of the carolina skiff but hate the ride in even the mildest of chop. I considered a 16-17ft CS but no way Jose, that will be worse than what I'm used to. I had settled on the Tavernier because it seemed like a good compromise of cost, utility, and reasonably good handling.
Here is where things got screwed up. I went fishing recently aboard an older Maverick HPXv (17) with a 2 banger yammy 90 and holy shit was I impressed. The speed, the ride quality, the fishability. I don't do a lot of poling on my dads CS but I got to pole the maverick and I had a blast sighting snook and redfish. I was also impressed by the stability and the amount of storage aboard. It was 2 adults and my 10 year old aboard and was totally comfortable.
So now I feel like its back to the drawing board. Not sure I have the budget for a new maverick build, but now I'm reconsidering going with something a little more conducive to poling with a longer range. I still want some utility to possibly do a camping trip or 2 a year, and something comfortable to fish for my family. I loved the fact that this thing handled awesome in a windchop. Remember, all I know is Caronlina skiff so I'm sure anything with a pointy front will be better.
All this considered, what else should be on my radar? A used maverick or beavertail just got added to my list, but I like the idea of having something built just for me and the peace of mind of a new engine with full warranty as I'm not so mechanically inclined.
I still need to recover from the financial hit from all the time off, but I'd like to make a decision in the next 6 months so I'm back to the drawing board.