Alright all knowing texags. Tell me about your Caymas boats experience. I'm looking to sell my current boat and get into a new one here in the next couple of months.

I've ran a ranger my entire life so I know it's a completely different type of hull. I did a demo ride a couple of weekends ago and it was an incredibly nice ride and it was quick.

If there's another brand I should look at that you've been running let me know. Right now I'm looking towards either a Caymas CX20 pro or A BassCat.

Caymas is of yet but another Earl Bentz boat line. Over the years he founded Hydra-Sports, Logan's Run, Stratos, Triton. He starts the companies, builds them up, then typically sells them.
Skeeter has the highest market share in Texas, built in Texas, retains high resale value, has the best warranty in the business, and is owned by Yamaha. Skeeter is the only company that utilizes a patented aluminum transom torque transfer system that is incredibly strong.
It also is the only company that spends the money and effort to have a factory selected and trained Demo Team that attends 100's of events to make it a priority to be able and give demo rides to prospective customers. Says something for the confidence they have in their ride and performance.
Bass Cat is now owned by Correct Craft, a water ski boat company. Bass Cat is a well built boat and is fast. The company has stayed relatively small over the years by design.
Rick Pierce, the son of the founder of Bass Cat …the late Ron Pierce, still works for Correct Craft and oversees the daily operation of the Bass Cat factory…. he is tremendously knowledgeable in bass boat design and building and very hands on at the factory and a great guy that is dedicated and passionate about his business.
Phoenix was started by Gary Clouse that did work for many years for Earl Bentz. When Bentz sold Triton, Clouse and a some investors started Phoenix. They are a well built and good performing boat. They also have a good dealer network.
I suggest you take a factory tour of Skeeter as it's located in Kilgore Texas …. Watch them build one.
Then take a demo ride in the Skeeter, Phoenix and Bass Cat so you can compare apples to apples to the Caymas.
If you have narrowed your search down to Caymas or Bass Cat, I would, imho, say the Bass Cat is the better of the two in performance, construction and fishability…. again, just my opinion.

Thanks Gunny. You were exactly who I wanted to respond to this. I need to look at the bugs again. I almost went that direction when I bought this Ranger but the deal I got was just to hard to beat.

I know they were having some finish issues a couple of years ago but I think everyone was. Honestly it's one of the reasons I won't buy another white river marine boat. I got what I think is one of the last of the Forrest quality boats.

Do you have a skeeter or phoenix contact?

Both. I have a couple of dealer friends that sell both brands. One of them daughter is an Aggie.
The finish issues was due to new EPA regs to prohibit styrene emissions. Skeeter spent mega bucks some years ago to have the state of the art air reclamation system installed at the factory that would allow them to build up to 30 boats per day and still stay under the released styrene emission regulations.
Other smaller manufacturers could not spend that kind of money so the resin and gel cost companies changed their formulas to help inhibit styrene emissions.
These new formulas created havoc with boat builders because it made the resin/gel coat products much harder to work with…. So finish problems arose for lots of builders using those products for a while during the learning curve.
Skeeter, imho, builds a really good boat that is not only built well but rides and handles great. That's why they spend so much money on the Demo Team and putting people in their boats for the demo ride. It's not just a boat ride. They push the boat and show hard maneuvers and want to have rough water for the ride… as they all ride good when it's smooth.
The downside is Skeeter is not the fastest boat out there. Yamaha's direction is a safe easy driving ride with longevity and ease of handling and dry ride.
If you look and compare pure hull weights you will see Skeeter. has a much heavier hull than the others. … much like the old Forest Wood Rangers.
A fully tournament loaded Skeeter with power poles, fuel and two guys is going to top out in the low 70's (20 or 21 with 250 SHO.)
The other thing is you can only get a Skeeter with a Yamaha only…. And some guys just prefer Mercury.
I have dealer contacts that sell Skeeter and Caymas and Skeeter and Phoenix.

I've fished out of and drove a phoenix and a skeeter quite a bit and both are great boats. Only issue with skeeter is it will porpoise bad if you are going under 50 just cruisin. If you were going over 50 it's the best riding/handling boat I've been in. The phoenix took rough water really well and has a wide fishing deck like the skeeter. My uncle got a new skeeter ZXR and said it would porpoise bad just cruising around 30. Maybe gunny can comment on this if he's seen it or heard of people having that problem. Rode in a couple older model skeeter 08 and 2013 and they didn't porpoise at all at lower speeds. Been in a bass cat puma once and it rode great, but fishing deck is a lot smaller/narrower than the other two. I have a champion 223 and it rides great and has a narrow fishing platform too like the bass cat. Nitro rides good but the interior such as dry box's and live wells are lacking compared to the others.

Both skeeter boats that porpoised were newer models 2019 and 2021-22

God forbid the weekend warriors get a boat that only tops out in the 50s or 60s!!!

The bass market, like it or not, is often driven by the quest for speed at full tournament loads. Typically boats designed for maximum weight carrying top end speed will then porpoise at slower speeds.
With the advent of dual power poles, additional batteries, more tackle storage, heavier 4-Stroke engines, etc the ideal compromise between maximum top end vs low end performance is a constant changing challenge for bass boat engineers.
I think you will find that the new hulls no longer have the slow speed porpoise/ albeit top end speed was comprised somewhat….. Hence my comment above on attainable top end speed.
However, Skeeter has a superior hole shot imho, and also does not have the usual high bow rise that prohibits being able to see over the bow when coming on plane….. an important safety point.

Bass Cat has three new designs in the Jaguar, Puma and Caracal models called STS hulls. The fishing decks are now really wide and they deepened the deadrise V of the hulls to give a smooth ride. Imho they are impressive boats.

ETA: Champion was a great boat. Great ride and superior fit and finish for its time. People who have them never want to get rid of them.

Last year, I fished draw tournaments in the back seat of a Vexus and Phoenix. The Vexus was like 3 months old and the Phoenix picked up from the dealer less 4 days before and purchased for $93,000. It was the nicest bass boat I've ever been on. The Vexus was also very nice.

That being said, my normal tournament partner has a 1998 Skeeter and it does everything those other boats do, just slower.

Yes sir. Vexus is relatively new in the market.
Unless you look at Stroker, Bullet or Allison ….. Bass Cat has the fastest performing hull imho.

For the money they cost take your time in your decision process. Do your research, take factory tours if able, take a true demo ride in all of them. Go when it's windy and rough. Look at all aspects of the ride…..How smooth and dry is it, how does it turn at mid range and top end speeds, how is the hole shot, how does it handle at top end speed and below, how stable is it when fishing, does it backwash when stopping quickly…. All those things should be shown to you.
If a dealer wants you to put a deposit down before giving you a demo ride….walk away. They should be glad to get or give you a ride.
Look for a good service dealer that you trust and develop a relationship with him.
Read and understand the hull warranty closely. Many word them similar but are totally different.
Look at the stability of the manufacturer…. how long have they been in business etc.
Right now is a great time to buy. It's a buyers market. Some of the brands are offering rebates that are at all time highs. Dealers are being very aggressive to make sales.
Above all have fun in your journey of buying. These things (the boats) are supposed to be for fun and joy and relaxation.
Make the best decision you can then go out and make memories and enjoy it.
Tight lines and smooth water sir.

Thanks everyone. Gunny, I'd love to chat with you at some point before going this way. It will definitely take me a while to decide but will very much enjoy the process. Fortunately I have a nice boat now so I can take my time as I go through the search. I went on line last night and looked at some different boats and features that I hadn't looked at in the past. I think it's very much worth looking through a few boats. I also have friends with other brands but like you said, everyone's boat is the best they've ever had. It just really depends on what you like.

Because I've driven a ranger my whole life, I've never touched mis 70s so speed is not that big of a deal. I want a comfortable ride, and a boat that I don't have to over drive. I like fishing docks but I also like to scope and from time to time take all the big rods out and sleigh crappie.

You are not going to find another boat as nice as your Ranger. I just updated the electronics and trolling motor on mine. I'll probably have to repower at some point also.

1. You don't need a new boat, signed - Your wife.
2. If you do need a new boat buy the nicest Champion you can find and let's spend the balance fishing.
3. If that doesn't work I will transfer my deal from the Red-Headed Stranger on the new Ranger and you can cut me in for 15% of the savings.

If all of those fail see #1 above.

Gunny is correct on nearly everything.

Here's my take. I don't have a boat at the moment. My prior boat was Triton 19X3. Merc 225. Not Tritons fastest hull at the time. But it was wider and designed to be easier to drive. It still took work to not chine walk.

If you get tons of time on the water where you can really learn to drive your boat, then no problem getting a higher performance hull. Earl Bentz boats, Bass Cats, etc.

If you are going to be like most folks and weekend warrior it, get a Skeeter. Go with the easier to drive boat.

Well said.

If it were me I would definitely be laying eyes on a new Ranger at least. I've heard with the BPS purchase they have gone down some in quality but I'd have to see this first hand versus dock talk. The price does not seem to indicate a cheaper value.

docb said:

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If it were me I would definitely be laying eyes on a new Ranger at least. I've heard with the BPS purchase they have gone down some in quality but I'd have to see this first hand versus dock talk. The price does not seem to indicate a cheaper value.

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I talked to a dealer a few days ago that gunny knows and he sold me my ranger 7 years ago.
He said he went to another dealer buddy of his a month ago and looked at the "new" ranger similar to mine vs the tracker and there was no difference. So why pay more for the ranger name?

This dealer has been awesome from day we bought to now just talking about golf and fishing. I thought he was a good dude and then gunny verified so I trust him and will be first call in next boat no matter what it is

I hate to hear that. Ranger was by the best built bass boat for years IMO. Just curious but does the mentioned dealer still sell Rangers and he's telling you that or did he lose the ability to sell Ranger with the Bass Pro purchase?

Nope.... When they sold he carried for a little bit and then dropped them
They were exclusively the only aluminum boat he sold.... He still hasn't replaced them

I'd still like to see say a Z520 new to see what it looks like to compare to my boat. I think a lot of dealers that sold them lost that with the Bass Pro acquisition so there may be some resentment with that amongst those dealers. Maybe not? I've only seen pics on the Ranger website but the specs still look good to me. When the time comes for a new boat I'm sure I'll check them out.

I know that the customer service aspect of Ranger is definitely not what it used to be when calling to order a part. It used to be really solid and you could tell you were dealing with a tight knit company. It's definitely dealing with corporate now. Thankfully I likely won't be in the market for several years if I can keep going in my Ranger 2013 Z520. It has been a great boat and I just updated all the electronics and trolling motor. I'm just not the type of person to go through multiple boats if mine is doing what I need it to do.

You have a darn good boat. And what you say is some sound wisdom sir.

ETA … I really don't know how guys can afford them. The prices are really high. Guess it's all relative though.