Pulling trigger on new bay boat.

Have fished off of Majek, Bulls Bay, and Sea Fox. Leaning towards 22' Majek Illusion.

The OB is flush with boat owners. Please share your thoughts/suggestions. TIA.

What style of fishing do you mostly do and where?

Personally, if I'm getting a big bay boat like that I'm looking at a Pathfinder in the 22' to 24' range.

Wade/pole/drift. Trout, reds, etc. Baffin/Upper Laguna Madre.

That is a great choice for that application and area. Can't go wrong with a Majek. I run a Parker Big Bay mostly in Galveston bay.

Majek is a very quality boat. Plenty of people down here have em and they are essentially built for south texas flats/bays

If you are considering a Majek Illusion, you need to ride on a Trancat.

New as in brand new or new to you?

If I were ordering an illusion, I'd look at Tran Cat 220 and JH Outlaw 230x as well.

I almost pulled the trigger on a used illusion a few months ago and haven't seen one I wanted since. If you are buying used, figure out what you want and pull the the trigger fast. Illusions won't last long at a good price. Tran Cats and Outlaws are even harder to find used.

You won't be so pinche when you drop the jack for that new boat counselor.

FIL, had a majek but it was the kind with flat front, no hull. Great ride in shallow, a complete bear in open water. Have not got a chance to ride in an illusion but imagine it would be a good boat.

We have a pathfinder now and it is a great boat, just can't run in the same places, but really haven't missed that much. Very solid boat.

We should be friends. I even work in the King William district.

Dad has a majek redfish line and have fished on one my whole life. Great in low water, but as said, sucked in open water when choppy. But if I had the cash, I'd buy one today.

Simmons Custom Boats (SCB) makes some pretty sweet skiffs and bay boats.

Very few hulls handle open water and shallow water well. You compromise a little on one to do well on the other.

If you like trout fishing, keep in mind, we are going to a 5 fish limit on the middle coast come September. Three years after that, we should have plenty of trout much closer than running for an hour in a high end boat to "beat the crowd" to the fish.

I had an 18 Majek RFL and loved it. Dad used to joke that it would get up on concrete if I could afford the props. Sold it, though as my Dad's boat, a 16 ft Flatlander did almost the same but needed a few mods and had it at my disposal so freed up some cash for house updates. It is the 16 ft. hull the 14ft. Chiquita was derived from.

Well, my Dad gave me his boat before he passed away in January. I have made the necessary mods to it. Yeah, it's rough in choppy/wavy open water. Yeah, it looks to be a smooth but skinny beast when it comes to shallows.

It has a 90hp Yammy 2 stroke ('97) with only 18 hours and looks new. That motor is over 110 pounds lighter than a 4 stroke. Love that motor on that little boat.

Bob's Jack Plate
Shaw Wing cav plate.
Custom prop by Jack Foreman at Crossroads Propeller.

It's not getting anywhere real fast, but it's getting up, out, and home.

After getting my 18' RFL stuck only twice in the 8 years I owned it, it did still make quite an impression on what it took to get it "unstuck". Blood, sweat, and strings of words that might hold you up at the Pearly Gates.

[This message has been edited by Old Sarge (edited 7/8/2014 10:24p).]

Majek does make a damn good boat. Not a fit for what I want but it sounds like it fits your needs.

[This message has been edited by Finn Maccumhail (edited 7/8/2014 10:29p).]

Shoalwater's are also made in south texas & are great for getting skinny. Just another option. I have fished out of Majeks and sw's. Both great boats.

I would take a look at Shallow Sport as well. My buddy has one that I fished many times and it is a great bay boat.
Can't go wrong with a Majek either.

Just for discussion- are the El Pescador boats out of style now or what? It seems like 10 years ago everybody from POC south was all over Pescador and their whole "6 inches to 60 fathoms" tagline.

Don't seem to hear as much about them or see quite as many people running them now.

My cousin has one in that style. I think they are fine, but everyone wants to brag about the latest and greatest.

Frankly, there's not much to these hulls you can do to optimize them any more than they have been for the last 10 or 15 years other than making the layout more user friendly and saving some weight.

Nothing new under the sun, but they'll tell you it is.

[This message has been edited by MouthBQ98 (edited 7/9/2014 10:19a).]

Solid boat.

get on the kidney transplant list before you go with a Majek

They are rough rides, I know...but, getting skinny...they seem to be flawless

My buddy just sold his Pathfinder and got an Illusion. No comparison as far as fishing skinny water. I have 2 flats boats now, but if I was getting another boat, it would be an Illusion.

If I were pulling the trigger on a sled today, I would buy a Haynie Cat. I've been told they handle the chop better than an Illusion with comparable drafts and hole shots. Full disclosure: I've never been on an Illusion.

My main goal in life is to find a beer as cold as a woman's heart

quote:

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up-n-aTm
posted 4:41p, 07/09/14



My buddy just sold his Pathfinder and got an Illusion. No comparison as far as fishing skinny water. I have 2 flats boats now, but if I was getting another boat, it would be an Illusion.

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Well no kidding. The Pathfinder hull isn't meant to run in 6" of water. It's a much more all-around hull that will float pretty shallow (10-12"), run in a similar depth, eat up a chop, and run fast & smooth.