Coleman Crawdad any good?

[JBplusThuy]

Anybody have an experience with the Coleman Crawdad? Somebody's selling one locally with a trailer and a bunch of accessories. Looks nice in the pic but before I drive 60 miles to check it out in person, hoping for an opinion or two. Seems really hard to find reviews of them online.

Thanks!

Jonathan

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

Typical jon boat, this time in plastic. Coleman name would sell me if the price is right.

To borrow from a popular phrase... "I'd get it in a minute!"

[bobby emory]

i agree with david on that i've fished out of a similar boat and it was pretty stable and fishable

[bobby emory]

coleman is a pretty good brand i was gonna get a scanoe but bought my new wilderness systems commander 120 which i've only paddled today for the first time but it was amazing

[Lord of the Fly , Rods]

I have had a scanoe for almost 10 years now and we have so much fun with it in the summertime.  I have both a troll motor and a gas 3hp  to push it , on the river we go to it's great going downstream but there are places it wont push itself upstream in the swift shoals, overall I like it  but like everything else you have got to know it limitations and you can work around them using common sense.   LOFR

[Jim Gronaw]

I had a Crawdad for years, and I threw it in the back of the truck and fished all over the Delmarva with it in small ponds and lakes that did not have boat ramps. I imagine that the trailer would help put it in the water, but I used mine for tough access situations...so it was always a 'two-man' gig to launch.

I caught a lot of fish from mine, and customized it the way I liked with swivel seats and carpeting and rod racks. Paid $500 for it and sold  for the same after I had it for 12 years. Nice piece, if you want to fish small lakes that are not vulnerable to wind conditions or fast moving rivers.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

There you go, Jim nailed it. Lemme add a few things l've learned, lately, since Ive been searching for my own "right boat" over the past few months.

Keep it to the back waters of larger lakes, small ponds and creeks, and other places that don't need a power and it would be not only useful, but fun. But watch out - it will be a danger if tempted to take it too far out into high winds or heavy swells, like you get on large lakes come the weekend. That flat bottom/light hull combo would be scary, and maybe worse!

(This happened to my friend: too small, flat bottom boat + too big water = almost dead.)

It will also limit your mobility, in that you cant fly to the other side of the lake on a whim. For me, I'd have to add horizontal working/storage surfaces and some added storage throughout. It really doesn't have enough to suit me.

On the plus side, you can probably find many waters to get it into. Most of us don't live near really large expanses of freshwater, or if we do, there is likely something smaller just down the road. It is shallow draft, to get you into these 'far yonder' places others can't - or won't - visit. This isn't bad, since it forces you to really work the water that is before you... something most fishermen fail to do. It has plenty of room for two people and lots of user support out there. The message: Keep it within its limits and it can be your ticket to adventure.

Here is just one interesting resource - http://myweb.ecomplanet.com/BARA9232/

[JBplusThuy]

Thanks for all the great info! As always, BBG continues to be the heavyweight champion of great fishing information.

Now, if the choice was a 10 or 12 foot Livingston or a Crawdad, same general price range, which would you pick? :-)

Thanks!

Jonathan

[JBplusThuy]

I typically do not fish in large lakes (a few hundred acres) and the California delta, since California just doesn't have many, although some of them can be windy. The boat I'm considering only has an electric, not an outboard, so I wouldn't take in the delta except in places with little current. Also, lots of speed boats and wakes, sometimes at close quarters. I saw a guy fishing in a channel in the delta out of a kayak, thought he was kind of brave :-)

By windy, I mean 20 mph, not gail-force. Could I (safely or at all) push a crawdad into a 15 - 20 MPH wind with an electric motor?

Jonathan

[Dwayne Denison]

I have heard great things about the crawdad boats. I have also heard this type of boat is very stable.

[JBplusThuy]

I considered ones like that, Dwayne, and they look very nice and very stable. The only things that ruled them out for the moment is budget, first and foremost, and that while they are awesome for 2 people, taking a third person would be really hard. There's not even a place for a third one to sit, really. Now, going fishing with three kids is so challenging even on land that I wouldn't try it in a boat less than 30 feet long <g> but I can imagine sometimes taking both of the older ones at once, although in principle it would be just me and one at a time.

The Crawdad I saw advertised already has front and rear casting decks installed, with swivel seats, which is kind of attractive. Just missed a 12 foot Livingston, somebody else got there first and bought it.

Jonathan

[Lord of the Fly , Rods]

 I went by my fishing buddys  yesterday and since yall are looking at small boats on this thread I thought I would include his, this is rigged up for shallow water  , it's a 13 ft. gheenoe. Notice the jack plate , He also uses it for cat fishing in the back waters.     LOFR

[JBplusThuy]

That's a nice looking boat! Gheenoes are quite rare on the west coast, they seem to have no dealers farther west than the midwest, and I have yet to see one advertised for sale out here, either.