Fishing Forum

Hi all:
I'm new to this platform.

I'm looking to get into a new 'toon with a casting deck and have two questions for those with direct experience (no hearsay or second hand anecdotes, please). So, if - and only if - you have direct experience with a 'toon with a casting deck/platform...

1) Do you like the casting deck and use it? What are the pros and cons in your experience.

2) If you were to buy a new 'toon with casting platform, what would you buy? I've been looking at the Scadden Skykomish for a long time but have been put off by reports of poor quality, missing parts, etc. I saw the Water Skeeter Chetco and Guid Pro on the web today. They look good, but not much data out there on them.

Thanks in advance,

Bob
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Oh boy, here we go......................
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Water Skeeter Chetco Pontoon Boat
$734.95 $1,050.00 Save 30% Item #1606F

1200 denier nylon pontoons with double PVC coating
0.5mm dual-chamber PVC bladders
Frame is 1-¼” aluminum tubing
Adjustable standing/casting platform
Foam padded swivel seat
Six-position adjustable leg rests
7’ glass-wrapped two-piece oars
Steel cargo deck
Anchor mount
Motor mount
Nylon webbing cinch straps
Mesh stripping basket/work station
Rigid polyester zip storage compartments
Repair kit included
Weight capacity: 400 lb.
Length: 108” (9’)
Width: 54” (4’2”) from oarlock to oarlock
Pontoons: Circumference 55”, diameter 17-½”, 23” tip rise
Oars: 7’
Weight: 89 lb.
Closeouts. China.




Skykomish
10'6" 1500 denier over Urethane bladders
Aircraft aluminum
60" wide
Largest standing platform at 28" X 15"
Weight 62 lbs
600 lb capacity
15 yr warranty
Made in the USA



Water Skeeter™ Guide Pro Pontoon Boat
$1495.00 at Troutbum Flyfishing Co.
1200 denier PVC coated
117" long so under 10'
A raised rear storage deck,
multipurpose gear bag, and two side compartments
Overall weight: 125 lbs.
Maximum weight capacity: 450lbs
Made in China
no idea what the bladder is
Doesn't give to much on the Pro
But allot of goodies

There is your stats.
I do have a standing platform and I do use it. It is fantastic.
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Thanks "Fly Goddess".

I'm aware of the specs for the these boats. I assume from your use of bold face type that you prefer the Scadden Boats. I can appreciate the benefits of the NFO/Scadden designs; they look great in theory. But I've heard/read a lot of horror stories about implementation/quality issues. A friend of mine had one of the oar locks of his Scadden boat break off in the middle of a class III rapid. More than a little inconvenient... A 15 yr. warranty is nice, but not if the boat falls apart during a once-in-a-lifetime trip. To be fair, I've read and heard first-hand accounts of good experiences with Scadden boats.

You point out some relevant issues with the Skeeter boats.

Kind of when you have to pick the lesser of many evils and work out the issues for your self.
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I do prefer American made and Urethane over Vinyl, but the bold print was just "TO ME" things to look for in a boat.
Like I said, the great feature about the Sky is, it has a larger standing platform. A big plus.
There are failures with many different boats. The old Sh&$@ happens.
My brothers NFO flew off the roof of his car at 68 miles an hour. Damage? One side of the seat broke, one of the nylon oar holders broke and a little road rash. Boat is still on the water five years later.\
One of the Tooners here had his Asian made boat frame brake in the middle of the lake.
Choice is yours, good luck and thanks for joining in here.
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[quote TroutNoDoubt]Hi all:
I'm new to this platform.

I'm looking to get into a new 'toon with a casting deck and have two questions for those with direct experience (no hearsay or second hand anecdotes, please). So, if - and only if - you have direct experience with a 'toon with a casting deck/platform...

1) Do you like the casting deck and use it? What are the pros and cons in your experience.

2) If you were to buy a new 'toon with casting platform, what would you buy? I've been looking at the Scadden Skykomish for a long time but have been put off by reports of poor quality, missing parts, etc. I saw the Water Skeeter Chetco and Guid Pro on the web today. They look good, but not much data out there on them.

Thanks in advance,

Bob[/quote]
I'd ask the satisfied Scadden owners. I'm going out on a limb and saying they're the majority. And I'm one of them. I have a lot of buddies that own them (NFO being based here in Utah) and never had a problem either.
I have a standing deck on an Outlaw X5 and I love it. I like to anchor down and cast into shore. Great for sight fishing. I have yet to find a con on the casting deck.
I've had no problems with service from NFO. But then again, I've known Dave for a long time, and had quite a few of his boats and tubes. I must like them because I keep going back.
So the ball's in your court. Check out some of the other fishing forums too. There's tons out there with the answer you're looking for, whether it's NFO or Water Skeeter.
But be it as it may, I went to http://www.waterskeeterdirect.com/
And home page says Your manufacturer resource
to purchase clearout, dated, returned or end of model, WaterSkeeter pontoon boats and accessories
at reduced prices,
direct to the consumer.

The other Water Skeeter site http://www.waterskeeter.com/ is dated 2008. So I'm not sure if they're currently building boats.
Good luck on whatever you decide.

EDIT- Quote "A friend of mine had one of the oar locks of his Scadden boat break off in the middle of a class III rapid."
The brass oar lock? http://www.nrsweb.com/shop/product.asp?p...rm=fr_1407\
Made by????????????. I don't think you can't blame that on the boat manufacturer.
BTW the new boats from NFO have the Sawyer Cobra oar locks. And like FG said
$h1t happens.
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Thanks to all for the input.
Bob
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