The first of these two boats was introduced early last year: the Striper 200 CC, a center console fishing machine that’s ideal for use in bays, rivers, and perhaps a quick shot out into the ocean on a nice day. Unlike many of the modern “Bay boat” designs, gunwales are full height, and the hull maintains a steep 20-degree transom deadrise. Construction is all composite, with a foam-cored fiberglass stringer grid and a hand-laid hull, and an inspection of the deck hardware, grab rails, and console construction provides reassurance that the boat is built to take heavy saltwater use.
Speaking of saltwater use, this is a fishing boat through and through, and it shows. The optional livewell holds a stellar 43 gallons, which would be big for a boat with six or eight more LOA, and it comes on top of a small standard well in the transom. There are stainless steel rodholders in the transom as well as in the gunwales, and those gunwales are bolstered. One beef: the macerated 12-gallon integrated fishboxes will be a bit on the small side, especially if you have a spectacularly successful day during the spring trophy season.
Striper calls a 115 the “standard” engine, but with a 150-hp outboard the 200 CC offers solid performance, cruising at about 30 miles per hour while getting in the neighborhood of three miles to the gallon. The boat can handle a 200, but why pay more up front and then burn more fuel? The top end of 40 miles per hour is plenty fast for most reasonable anglers.
Unexpected perk: the 200 CC has a head compartment in the console which is (unlike those found on most boats of this size) large enough for use by the average American.
Close on the heels of the 200 CC Striper rolled out the 200 DC, at this fall’s Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. And it’s no surprise that dual console boats have become more and more popular in recent years. If you like to head out onto the Bay for a bit of fishing now and again but are just as interested in taking out the family for a cruise or some watersports, the DC design is a winner.
As you’d expect, this boat’s hull is no different from the 200 CC. The bow layout, with seats to either side, stowage underneath, and a pedestal mount in the middle for a removable table, is also the same. The helm area is, on the other hand, quite different. The passenger and captain each get a small helm console, with the passenger’s side being taken up entirely by a head compartment. It’s not as large as the one in the CC version, but it’s still useable and also has a small sink. Instead of a leaning post you get pedestal seats, but they’re a lot more comfortable than old-school pedestals and have both arm rests and flip-up bolsters. Fishboxes and the transom livewell remain the same, but stern seating is also quite different. There are jump seats in both corners of the stern, and a larger center bench in front of the motorwell.
If you’re into watersports, you’ll want the extended swim platform with a boarding ladder. There’s also a boarding ladder at the bow for easy beaching. But if you’re really into watersports, you’ll be glad to learn that the deck comes pre-reinforced for adding a wakeboarding tower.
I haven’t been able to run the 200 DC yet, nor has Yamaha published a performance report, but it’s a safe bet that performance will be nearly identical to that of the 200 CC. Not only are the hulls the same, the boat’s weight is the same, too, so cruising and top-end speeds and efficiency should more or less mirror images. That said, it’s worth noting that the weight of these boats (3389 pounds) is pretty darn beefy for a modern 20-footer. Yes, the Stripers would run a bit faster and more efficiently if they weighed less. But the upside to added displacement is a better ability to bull through choppy waters. And hey — we all know that around here, a tight chop is not exactly unusual. So the next time you go out hunting for stripers, maybe you’ll want to do it from the deck of a new Striper. #
Wednesday, February 25, 2015 - 08:45
With new center console and dual console models, the Striper brand is back in action as part of the Larson Boat Group.
Remember the Seaswirl striper line? It was part of the boat-building goliath Genmar, which went bust back in 2009. Since then a number of the Genmar brands have been reintroduced (and flourished) under different ownership. But Striper was more or less in slumber, since coming under Larson ownership back in 2012. Now, however, Striper has gotten back to building new models — starting with a pair of 20-footers that will interest Bay dwellers.
The first of these two boats was introduced early last year: the Striper 200 CC, a center console fishing machine that’s ideal for use in bays, rivers, and perhaps a quick shot out into the ocean on a nice day. Unlike many of the modern “Bay boat” designs, gunwales are full height, and the hull maintains a steep 20-degree transom deadrise. Construction is all composite, with a foam-cored fiberglass stringer grid and a hand-laid hull, and an inspection of the deck hardware, grab rails, and console construction provides reassurance that the boat is built to take heavy saltwater use.
Speaking of saltwater use, this is a fishing boat through and through, and it shows. The optional livewell holds a stellar 43 gallons, which would be big for a boat with six or eight more LOA, and it comes on top of a small standard well in the transom. There are stainless steel rodholders in the transom as well as in the gunwales, and those gunwales are bolstered. One beef: the macerated 12-gallon integrated fishboxes will be a bit on the small side, especially if you have a spectacularly successful day during the spring trophy season.
Striper calls a 115 the “standard” engine, but with a 150-hp outboard the 200 CC offers solid performance, cruising at about 30 miles per hour while getting in the neighborhood of three miles to the gallon. The boat can handle a 200, but why pay more up front and then burn more fuel? The top end of 40 miles per hour is plenty fast for most reasonable anglers.
Unexpected perk: the 200 CC has a head compartment in the console which is (unlike those found on most boats of this size) large enough for use by the average American.
Close on the heels of the 200 CC Striper rolled out the 200 DC, at this fall’s Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. And it’s no surprise that dual console boats have become more and more popular in recent years. If you like to head out onto the Bay for a bit of fishing now and again but are just as interested in taking out the family for a cruise or some watersports, the DC design is a winner.
As you’d expect, this boat’s hull is no different from the 200 CC. The bow layout, with seats to either side, stowage underneath, and a pedestal mount in the middle for a removable table, is also the same. The helm area is, on the other hand, quite different. The passenger and captain each get a small helm console, with the passenger’s side being taken up entirely by a head compartment. It’s not as large as the one in the CC version, but it’s still useable and also has a small sink. Instead of a leaning post you get pedestal seats, but they’re a lot more comfortable than old-school pedestals and have both arm rests and flip-up bolsters. Fishboxes and the transom livewell remain the same, but stern seating is also quite different. There are jump seats in both corners of the stern, and a larger center bench in front of the motorwell.
If you’re into watersports, you’ll want the extended swim platform with a boarding ladder. There’s also a boarding ladder at the bow for easy beaching. But if you’re really into watersports, you’ll be glad to learn that the deck comes pre-reinforced for adding a wakeboarding tower.
I haven’t been able to run the 200 DC yet, nor has Yamaha published a performance report, but it’s a safe bet that performance will be nearly identical to that of the 200 CC. Not only are the hulls the same, the boat’s weight is the same, too, so cruising and top-end speeds and efficiency should more or less mirror images. That said, it’s worth noting that the weight of these boats (3389 pounds) is pretty darn beefy for a modern 20-footer. Yes, the Stripers would run a bit faster and more efficiently if they weighed less. But the upside to added displacement is a better ability to bull through choppy waters. And hey — we all know that around here, a tight chop is not exactly unusual. So the next time you go out hunting for stripers, maybe you’ll want to do it from the deck of a new Striper. #
The first of these two boats was introduced early last year: the Striper 200 CC, a center console fishing machine that’s ideal for use in bays, rivers, and perhaps a quick shot out into the ocean on a nice day. Unlike many of the modern “Bay boat” designs, gunwales are full height, and the hull maintains a steep 20-degree transom deadrise. Construction is all composite, with a foam-cored fiberglass stringer grid and a hand-laid hull, and an inspection of the deck hardware, grab rails, and console construction provides reassurance that the boat is built to take heavy saltwater use.
Speaking of saltwater use, this is a fishing boat through and through, and it shows. The optional livewell holds a stellar 43 gallons, which would be big for a boat with six or eight more LOA, and it comes on top of a small standard well in the transom. There are stainless steel rodholders in the transom as well as in the gunwales, and those gunwales are bolstered. One beef: the macerated 12-gallon integrated fishboxes will be a bit on the small side, especially if you have a spectacularly successful day during the spring trophy season.
Striper calls a 115 the “standard” engine, but with a 150-hp outboard the 200 CC offers solid performance, cruising at about 30 miles per hour while getting in the neighborhood of three miles to the gallon. The boat can handle a 200, but why pay more up front and then burn more fuel? The top end of 40 miles per hour is plenty fast for most reasonable anglers.
Unexpected perk: the 200 CC has a head compartment in the console which is (unlike those found on most boats of this size) large enough for use by the average American.
Close on the heels of the 200 CC Striper rolled out the 200 DC, at this fall’s Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show. And it’s no surprise that dual console boats have become more and more popular in recent years. If you like to head out onto the Bay for a bit of fishing now and again but are just as interested in taking out the family for a cruise or some watersports, the DC design is a winner.
As you’d expect, this boat’s hull is no different from the 200 CC. The bow layout, with seats to either side, stowage underneath, and a pedestal mount in the middle for a removable table, is also the same. The helm area is, on the other hand, quite different. The passenger and captain each get a small helm console, with the passenger’s side being taken up entirely by a head compartment. It’s not as large as the one in the CC version, but it’s still useable and also has a small sink. Instead of a leaning post you get pedestal seats, but they’re a lot more comfortable than old-school pedestals and have both arm rests and flip-up bolsters. Fishboxes and the transom livewell remain the same, but stern seating is also quite different. There are jump seats in both corners of the stern, and a larger center bench in front of the motorwell.
If you’re into watersports, you’ll want the extended swim platform with a boarding ladder. There’s also a boarding ladder at the bow for easy beaching. But if you’re really into watersports, you’ll be glad to learn that the deck comes pre-reinforced for adding a wakeboarding tower.
I haven’t been able to run the 200 DC yet, nor has Yamaha published a performance report, but it’s a safe bet that performance will be nearly identical to that of the 200 CC. Not only are the hulls the same, the boat’s weight is the same, too, so cruising and top-end speeds and efficiency should more or less mirror images. That said, it’s worth noting that the weight of these boats (3389 pounds) is pretty darn beefy for a modern 20-footer. Yes, the Stripers would run a bit faster and more efficiently if they weighed less. But the upside to added displacement is a better ability to bull through choppy waters. And hey — we all know that around here, a tight chop is not exactly unusual. So the next time you go out hunting for stripers, maybe you’ll want to do it from the deck of a new Striper. #