That's a nice custom ride and pile of fish to boot. You ever consider putting rod holders up front and pulling plugs with that bad boy?

are you kidding me? you ripped skookum you just made some dumb anchor mount and called it your own. Merg's handicapped buddy staring at the vending machine waiting for that candy bar to magical drop would point that out.

Why dont you see all the Real whitewater guys using galvanized frames and only NRS parts and aluminum tube....... because its the best you can get.

Yes...I have rod holders mounted...it pulls plugs well

Rag,

Okay, I can't tell if your trolling, confused, or enjoying an adult beverage but you are not making any sense so I'm backing away from this until you write something rational because I'm still waiting for any shred of evidence that we ripped off Skookum.

By the way, I will gladly meet you at any floatable steelhead river in the state. You bring your Bad Cat, I'll bring two Catchercrafts...one with the anchor mount and one without. We'll test row all three and if you still think our deluxe anchor system is just "some dumb anchor mount", I'll buy you a 6 pack of your favorite beverage. We'll video tape it and post it on PP.

Nice...I looked and didn't see them so that's why I asked. But then again, I'm not a big plug puller.

Ok, I gotta chime in here...

So the frames that all the hardcore whitewater guys use are Down River Equipment, NRS, Recretec, River Boat Works, AAA Inflateables, etc...

These frames are the best. They are all bulletproof, and as for me it may be overkill but I am ok with that. There are quite a few people who do real whitewater and use a frame made from emt, however.

And the tubes...
.
I personally am not a fan of the Chinese glued pvc Maxxon or Saturn tubes. They are pretty tough, though, and will last a while. But they do not compare to the Maravia, Sotar, Aire or Hyside tubes in durability or performance. The high end boats cost a little more, but if you do some homework you can put an affordable package together that will last forever and handle well.

I run a 15' sotar cat with a frame I loosely modeled on an NRS frame (I weld). And those NRS fittings are bombproof, btw.

Oh, and if anyone is still reading this there is a great deal of info about catarafts on mountainbuzz.com. check out the "gear talk" forum.

Skookums boat
http://shop.steelheader.com/viewcategory.php?groupid=0
The imposter
http://www.catchercraft.com/Products___Prices.html
Dude same bends and breakdown....just you put a different anchor mount/system on "some" and even your kick boat is the same as the Osprey

you tell us what the difference is? Im stumped.


Your right drinking the High Life tonight might blaze up that pinner hear in a min.

Just make sure you buy a whitewater rated boat...that's not a boat that is made out of tent poles, a la Creek Company.

The above mentioned boats are all in the ballpark. I've been running two man Skookums for many years and have nothing but good things to say about them. The Catchercrafts look just fine to me, as do the BadCats, Water Readys, and anything from NRS.

Fish on...

Todd

not according to catcher his buddy had to fix 2 this year....

I am just trying to be fair...

aka "The Steel Curtain".



They say hauling hanging beef is a tricky load for any trucker.

One advantage I do see to this set up though is at least folks won't pester you about how you did.

BTW, that bar definitely looks strong enough to support a stainless cleaning station. A little aux pump and you could clean while you drift.

Danno84,

Good post, nice to see some true WW knowledge come to the thread. One problem with Maravia, Hyside, Sotar, Aire is they don't make smaller pontoons, of which the original post was pertaining to. Sotar is the only one even close with their 11 footers that retail for $2275 just for the pontoons, no frame (they do have deals sometimes). Most fishers don't need that quality of pontoon for fishing applications. JPW offers a great US made pontoon that is reasonable and that is why I mentioned it in my earlier post. Not even Saturn offers 9, 10, or 12 foot pontoons so everyone is pretty much stuck with Maxxon or JPW at the smaller size, which is why Skookum, Bad Cat, Water Ready, and yes, even those crazy loons at Catchercraft all use Maxxon or JPW pontoons in the smaller boats.

And just to confirm, I'm not suggesting that NRS frames are junk in anyway...but the fact is we are repairing 3 cross members right now.

Rag,

First of all, our Kamloops frame is made from galvanized steel and made in North Bend, WA. The Osprey Frame is made overseas out of aluminum and then power coated. It says so right on their website. If you only knew how much they paid for the Osprey frame and how much they are marked up...

Next, and I'm going to be very clear so there is no misunderstanding...Prior to February 2011 the Skookum Steelheader frame and since March 2011 for Catchercraft, the 1- and 2-Salt Steelhead frames are exactly alike because they were built by the same man, Ken Rambow out of North Bend. He provided the Steelheader frames for Skookum Products until he built them their last frame in February 2011. Since that time, Skookum must have contracted with somebody else to have their frames built.

For example, Todd's Steelheader II frame, yeah, it was built by Ken Rambow. After Ken stopped making frames for Skookum, he started making the same frame for Catchercraft...the same frame he had built for over a decade. Now I ask you again, how we ripped off Skookum?

And regarding the NRS frame that you refused to believe we are repairing, I'd be more than happy to have the guide contact you if that's what it takes. Again, not saying that NRS makes inferior products, just saying that we happen to be fixing one right now, coincidentally.

<---abu
Catcher?.....why would you want to keep the design that another boat compay used? Why wouldnt you want to start with a new design for catchercraft?
theres 1000's of ways to build a toon frame and you decided to use a style that allready has a name?

Rag,

Not a bad question, I'll do my best to answer it.

First of all, the Kamloops was an entirely different frame design than what anybody else was using.

Second, Ken was the one who put the time, labor, sweat, energy, thought into the frame design, not Skookum. Just like any quality product, Ken took pride in building his frames and the craftsmanship. Why wouldn't he use something that he put so much effort into perfecting? Would you?

Third, efficiency-when you get that good at something like Ken is at frame building, it takes time, labor, sweat, energy, and thought to produce something different. That increases costs. Why do you think we can sell a better boat (better in that our fab guy is more experienced at building the frame and we have better anchor system components otherwise the stock boats are very similar) for less money than Skookum? Efficiency and experience. They have to find somebody new build the frames and are not going to be as proficient right away.

Fourth, It is a good, proven design that has remained relatively unchanged for years. Pretty hard to improve on something that has stood the test of time. Besides, there are only so many ways to bend metal. A design needs to be strong enough to provide a lifetime warranty (which we do) yet not bulky as to add unneeded weight.

Five, We actually do have some big differences compared to others that we have recently added to our options. Even though you disregarded the deluxe anchor system, it really does VASTLY improve anchoring and GREATLY reduces swaying. I was being totally serious about taking it out for a spin to see for yourself. You'll be a believer too. Ken tried to get Skookum to use it but Mr. Day refused because it added shipping costs so Ken quietly offered it to his other clients who thought might appreciate it. Besides, it provides a great place to put a cooler for fish or beverages. We also offer other frame options such as raised seats and wider frames and riveted rod holders that the old Skookum was hesitant in trying.

Go back and look at some of the older threads on sinking drift boats. One reason was the anchor rope coming un-done from the clam cleat. Working with Leelock, they built us a unit specially designed for smaller pontoon boats that replaces the clam cleat, which GREATLY improves safety while drifting through rapids.

Are you satisfied or do you want more?

If I built a top quality frame and changed companies I would certainly still use my frame design.....unless my prior company had rights to it.

Who really cares what company copies who. All that matter is that you put out a quality product that is safe. Safety is the key

Same frame, less money.

Yeah, I was DaveD on board from 1999 until very recently. Actually, I didn't feel I was getting a raw deal personally and appreciate the opportunity to educate a few folks.

We don't have a huge sales pitch. We won't say our products can handle Class V rapids. We won't say we make our own pontoons when we don't. We shoot straight, let our products speak for themselves, give honest feedback to questions, and let the consumer make the final decision on what to get.

Only a couple points...

Rag, I'm down with you and, even moreso, your avitar pics.

I will also say that Catcherman seems to be dropping 100% fact/knowledge. I can back 2 of his statements. First, those frames that Ken built ARE badass. I have a good story about watching my 2 man Skookum do the krzEEstyle on the river. Straight up sideways into a sweeper, LOADED up HUGE with power, and then flipped like a pancake at Denny's WITH a novice rower still on top of it. Upside down, boat got pounded under the sweeper in a few feet of water. Bent out one of the angled brackets that lead to the oar lock. Floated out with the oar in a weird position. Ended up being able to bend it back without noticeable damage to the weld. That was probably 4 years ago and the boat has been down Beaver Creek and its tributaries (Little Beaver Creek and Pink Beaver Creek) since without incident.

I will also attest to that "clam cleat" being complete BS. In fact, I fished in the ice/snow last weekend and had it let my anchor fly away. Fortunately, Merg has studied the brain A LOT and vibed me in on how to retrieve it.

....and that's all I have to say about that.

-AP

Props to you for working merg into your post. Took it from good to top notch.