Interested in honest Caracal reviews. Especially for bigger bodies of water. Pros and Cons. How is the boat for boater/co-angler type tournaments? Been running 920s for the past 10 years.
Interested in honest Caracal reviews. Especially for bigger bodies of water. Pros and Cons. How is the boat for boater/co-angler type tournaments? Been running 920s for the past 10 years.
the Puma STS is going to be more comparable to a 920 or 20 PHX. The caracal is 19 footer and more comparable to the 919 or 19 PHX
"Any pizza is a personal pizza if you believe in yourself"
I'm in a Caracal now after being in a Cougar & P2 previously. It is EASILY the easiest boat to drive I've owned, BCB or otherwise and really does have a great ride. The roughest water I see is Wheeler and Guntersville, which is fun with the current pulling 1 direction and the wind blowing the opposite. I stay dry and comfortable regardless. Someone once described the Nitro as a 'point and go' boat that didn't require any input from the driver - that's about the best way I know to describe driving mine. I do only have a 200, so I'm sure with a 225 you would have to drive it a little bit to get better top speed, but it's stupid simple to cruise at 65 with a full load in mine.
Cons: It's slow, but I'm underpowered and it's not a go fast hull like other BCB's I've run.
yes sir, I understand. Just curious about the caracal in general.Originally Posted by b*******51
My Caracal is the most stable boat I have ever been and fished in, and I have owned just about them all. It is all about what you are looking for out of a boat for the money. It is probably one of the if not best built boats for what it is. I have owned an Allison which most people would not even associate with being a good rough water boat but it was...so was the Stroker, Gambler etc. that I owned as most of what makes a good boat in rough water is the driver...don't care what anyone else says.
Is the boat slow? Mine isn't and I am running a 225 4-stroke. If you know how to drive a boat to its potential you will be happy with the speed if that is a factor to you. The boat is WIDE so plenty of deck space, which also makes for plenty of storage space. Boat handles well, gets on plane quick, and I am happy with the way it runs/handles. There is no such thing as a perfect boat regardless of who builds it and or the model as there are trade offs on all of them but this is my first Caracal and I couldn't be happier with it. Very much doubt there are any downsides to having one as so far I have not found one so far.
I concur with angleiron’s review. I’m very happy with my 2021! Full disclosure I know angleiron personally so we talk Caracals all the time. And he definitely knows boats. Sherms Marine has a very nice one in stock now. I took a look at it today dropping mine off for annual service.
I am in San Antonio with one if you are close and want to check one out and talk on it.
I have been in my Caracal for two years. I have had a 2016 Cougar/250 and a 2010 Pantera II/200. The Cougar was an awesome boat. Great in big water and very fast. I did not have a serious complaint about it. The Caracal is better in every way except two. One is the top end but my Caracal is 71-72 with just me and 68-69 with two people. I still have some set up work to do on it yet. I just haven’t had the time or the money to buy a bunch of props and play with them. I am using a 23P Fury4 right now and WOT RPM is 5980 so I have a couple hundred RPM to recover. The other way is pretty minimal but it still gets to me. The side rod lockers are very shallow compared to the Cougar. I originally wanted to put some extra rods in the port side rid locker but my plastics take up all the space in there. I need to cut down on the amount of plastics or put them in the aft center compartment, where all my crankbaits are currently. There is plenty of storage in the Caracal and I absolutely love the larger rear compartments and underseat storage.
USN Retired
2020 Basscat Caracal
2020 Mercury 225 ProXS 4s
I sure appreciate that. I’m in east Texas so a good bit away. Actually going to look at one soon.
Thanks for all the reviews. Great stuff!
I have a 21 Caracal and before that I was in a 2014 Eyra. I agree with the other folks on what they said about theirs. My favorite thing about the Caracal is all the storage space. I like to pack a lot of stuff and still can’t fill all the spaces. It’s very easy for me to drive and very stable. Just loads of deck space. I have a passenger console and it’s a little tight between but I’m kinda large so there’s that. I really enjoy mine. If you get a chance then take one for a test drive.
I have a 21" Caracal and fish everything from the great lakes to smaller river bayous and lakes and the boat handles it all well. With a 225 its plenty fast and will out run many boats with a 250. Like others have said the storage in the boat is unreal. I agree with 06 SB comments on the side storage being shallow, but you can still fit 3700s in them as well as way too many soft plastics. It fishes well with 2 people either one on the font and one on the back or both on the front deck since its massive. I've fished on and rigged a couple other 19' class boats and the Caracal is head and shoulders above the rest.
I have had my Caracal 5+ years and it has been a great boat. Tons of storage and I can run it 70 loaded with two people. 225 SHO with a 24 Fury 3 blade. The boat is so sturdy I feel like I am on a dock fishing and I really like the width of the front deck.
I am in a 2022 Caracal, came from a PIV, that I considered a good riding boat. The Caracal is a much better ride, wider, and both hull and seats make it such a comfortable ride. My wife fishes with me, and in the PIV, I'd get the nudge about 65, I don't get that nudge now until I'm running about 70 (hardly do). There is crazy storage, and it's wide enough to fish three up front easily. The net storage and tool scabbard are a plus. I am running a 3-blade fury 24, and it was setup at factory, I have no issues. A buddy drove it to 71/72 loaded with all my tackle, us 2. It easily cruises at 60/65 with little effort.
The downside - the compartments are shallower than my PIV, so I had to rethink storage. The butt seat or rear seat do not fit in any compartment, if you put the rear seat in you can't open any rear compartment. We fish without seats now. It's tight between both consoles. The net storage - you have to learn which way to pull the net out, once you figure it out, it's great, but before, you'll pull your hair!
I'm in San Antonio also, my boat is a little faster than Bobby8's boat, so you may want to try mine. We also have a dealership here that can assist, answer any questions, or see any other models. All-in-all, you can't go wrong with one.
Thanks,
JP
I have been in both a few times and here is my thoughts -
It will be a slightly wider front deck than a 920 with similar storage (caracal storage will be more compartmentalized; which I prefer whereas the 920 has one big compartment). the 920 has a "short" deck IMO for a 20 footer...the Caracal deck is at least as long as the 920 especially with the TM forward design on BCB front decks. the Caracal is a deeper boat and you will sit down in it more. from my ride experience the 920 performs a bit better in chop and boat wakes but when you start getting into bigger waves (white capes, rollers, etc) the 920 bow slaps...the caracal will cut those big waves and ride smoother. the Caracal will also ride drier.
the 920 will be a couple MPH faster with a slight holeshot advantage...hard cornering I am not sure..havnt done that in either.
fit and finish is much better in the Caracal...from carpet, to electrical components, to fiberglass/resin mixtures, pumps, (no plastic consoles or front plastic area).
I love the phoenix seats..the BCB wants are really good but I prefer the phoenix seats.
Trailers...BCB builds one of the best trailers in the industry and builds them in house....phoenix uses marine master trailers
"Any pizza is a personal pizza if you believe in yourself"
What color is it? Didn't see it on their site?
I can’t find any pics of it. It was red not sure on the bolt colors from memory.
I have a 2020 caracal with a g2. I had an eyra before that and 2 falcon 205’s before that. I liked the eyra hull better for rougher water. It cut thru waves better and landed softer. The 205’s were a lot better in rough water. I like the front deck layout better in the caracal. But with a dual console it’s tight getting thru. I liked the rear deck better in the eyra. The caracal has more legroom than the eyra. In really rough water the caracal seems to land a little harder and the nose hunts when trimmed down which I don’t care for. In normal water conditions is runs very well but not as fast as the eyra. I get 72-3 loaded with 2 in the boat. 75-6 light by myself. It’s a really nice boat. But for rough water I’d take the bigger boat any day.
You feel it was a better rough water boat than the cougar?
Depends. They are pretty equal IMO. If using Fury4s which grip the water pretty well and would give the nod to the Cougar. The Trophy is a better riding prop and works well on the Caracal. It does not do well on the Cougar though (holeshot sucks). The Cougar with a Fury4 vs a Caracal with a Trophy is the same.
USN Retired
2020 Basscat Caracal
2020 Mercury 225 ProXS 4s
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