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2000ish 16 red fisher vs. 17 ma


HoneyB

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Does anyone have input as to the difference in a 200ish 16 redfisher vs the same vintage 17 ma. Curious about total length and width. The MA seems to have everything in the size beat for storage. I have seen people think the MA is a better ride in chop. Does this hold true for the smooth side refisher as well?  Thank you for any and all input

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All things considered, the Redfisher 18 and 16 must have a slight edge on the Master Angler 18 and 17.  That's why Maverick scrapped the MA 17 and kept the RF 16, right?  I mean come on, if it were the other way around, they could have kept the MA 17, MA 18 and MA 21 designs and rebranded them as Redfishers, and 86'd the current Redfisher line.  But they didn't, so there you have it.  It must have been the right decision for the company at that time.  I've never taken a ride on a MA 17, but they are known for the soft ride more so than speed.  However, I've been in some rough chop (white caps and 20 mph wind) with my 2017 RF 16, and I was able to trim the bow down, stay on plane, and stay comfortably seated while driving.  The dry storage in my RF 16 is more than adequate, and the stability of the boat at rest for fishing, is great.  Walk the gunnels and it hardly moves.

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I've been in both, besides speed and ease on the pole, the MA17 beats the RF16 in every aspect. The RF will move faster with less HP, but the MA I believe is rated for more, 130 I think still in 2000, eventually moved to 150. The MA rides better, more storage, drier and more stable of a platform, but does draw more water and will make ya a man a day on the pole in any kind of wind. The 17 MA also holds a metric ton of live bait for a 17ft flats boat.

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I've been on both and the MA is the better all around boat. I do think the Redfisher is faster, but the MA ride is way better, draft difference isn't a factor.

I was told they quit making the MA because it cost more to build, so the profit margin was less. The last MA years had Carbon/Kevlar decks, so maybe that was a factor.

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I do like the look of the Redfisher after the smooth side introduction. I like the dedicated anchor locker. I do not think I would buy any boat that did not have that. It seems the Redfisher hull has stayed very much the same since the smooth side change and it has very nice lines. I was courious if if the two boats is the 16 exactly a foot shorter than the 17 MA. It just seems like they will feel like about the same platform 

     Thanks guys 

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On 3/11/2019 at 10:19 PM, geeviam said:

ll things considered, the Redfisher 18 and 16 must have a slight edge on the Master Angler 18 and 17

I have owned both a RF 18 and MA17.....again, one boaters opinion...there is NO comparison how the MA17 compares in a chop to the 16 RF.

I have also ridden many times in a RF16....again, no comparison to a MA17.

I just posted a video a the MA17 running in the chop in Choko....no spray in a quartering seas at 26mph...

Remember, the RF16 and RF118 are "Hewes" boats, not Maverick...therein lies the difference...and the Maverick "Brand" then became know to the the "flats technical skiffs"....the MA17, MA18 and their big brother the MA21, then evolved into the Pathfinder we know today as a result of the hull design....again, my perspective, not a fact I know....but, to me it's about branding and keeping true to the brand...that's why COBIA if focused more on the "family fisherman" were the RF, Mavericks, and Pathfinders up to the 22 TE, are hard core fishing machines....

That video is in a calm water lake.....here again, is my MA17 on a nice chop....I don't think you'd be as comfortable in a RF16 at the same speed with no spray...we were running 26-28mph and sitting relaxed.

 

DC

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That's a great video Dino.  Like I said, I am happy with my RF 16 - but I have never experienced the ride of a MA 17 to compare the two.  However, I've got to say... IMHO, the smooth side Redfishers built from around 2000 on are as much Maverick as the Master Anglers are.  They were designed by Maverick and are totally different boats than the lapstrake flats skiffs designed by Bob Hewes Boats.  And, if you look closely at the earlier Pathfinder designs, they are basically larger versions of the Hewes smooth side Redfisher hull designs.  The Cobia 21 Bay hull looks like a larger Hewes Redfisher too - very similar lines.  Maybe it's just me, but I don't see anything resembling the Master Angler Series hull in a Pathfinder bay boat.  Not that it's a bad thing either.  Now, if MBG brought back the MA 21, made with carbon kevlar, VARIS, and powered with a 250 SHO, I would soon be talking with the banker about placing an order - if it was affordable, haha.

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