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I am creating a new thread here specifically looking for feedback on Sailfish boats, the 266 and 238 in particular.
Anybody with more info on Silverhawk is appreciated as well.
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Upon further investigation of Silverhawk, I found out that they are no longer producing boats, and are owned by Topaz. The NJ dealer I spoke with had one leftover with a Mercruiser inboard/bravo3 sterndrive. He said he didn't know what plans Topaz had for the line, but if they had that 24' in an outboard version, based on what I've heard and the price, I would have seriously considered it.
Sailfish, appears to be more of a price boat, but far be it from me to turn my nose up at a good value, if the quality and resale is there as well. That said, in the class of boats we are talking about, does anybody have any feedback on the 266/238 and sailfish quality in general. Yamaha power is typical for Sailfish, which is a plus in my book. I also like recent Merc Optis as well though.
I hope these commercials help a little... I am seeing more and more around here in MD. I have heard a few nice things about them but all this could be because there is a new dealer in the area.
Pretty cool videos. I looked at the Sailfish 238 when I was boat shopping, but discounted it because of the 9 foot beam. With a beam that wide, it won't fit next to the house. Also, in some states, I think Florida included, it would require a permit to trailer.
Ive got a 2002 236.TTop 225 efi.I fish out of Atlantic Beach NC....This boat handles well.On avg I fish in 2 to 3ft seas up to 40 miles out..I cruise at 3500 in these conditions and its a good ride...She is not a speed demon 42 to 44 wot with full fuel..I have had a few minor problems in the begining.My Dealer "Coral Bay" handeled these with out a hitch..This is a solid boat and I am very happy with it..Bang for the Buck is the best way to decribe this boat..I looked for 2 years at alot of boats and found the Sailfish to suit my needs the best..Another boat I was Impressed with was the Kencraft..Email if I can answer any questions...
I'm a dealer, so we all know you have to take what I say with a grain of salt. When I first rode in that boat I wasn't a dealer though. It was one of the most impressive first rides I've ever taken. Very nice ride. Tracks true, and extremely stable at rest for a deep v. Finish and attention to detail was better than expected for the price point. Overall, a winner. We signed up and ordered several. We're as picky as any customer.
Tom Marlowe, sales at Summerville Marine. Past Master Tech.
Boatdood. I see the specs are exactly the same for the 266 and 238. Are they the same mold just that one has better hardware and added features for tournament fishing?
I like having dealers here who can answer these types of questions with facts!
Faithful, I understand that they are the same mold. The difference comes in the interior arrangement of the 238 being aimed at the SKA tournament fisherman. It's got a huge 60 gallon livewell incorporated in the leaning post. Some SKA guys seem to think that alone makes the boat great. It also qualifies for the 23 and under class.
The day I ran it we had five guys in the boat and plenty of fuel, so we were heavy. It was the boat named 'Size Matters' pictured in the brochure. It topped sixty mph on the GPS pushed by a pair of Yamaha 250's. I paced it with a 34' Fountain for pictures before they stopped and picked me up. It runs beautifully with classic lines to boot. I haven't been this excited about a boat since the first time I ran that Fountain.
Tom Marlowe, sales at Summerville Marine. Past Master Tech.
If you were to point out the weaknesses of the Sailfish 266/238 what would they be?
What is lacking on them when compared to the more expensive premium boats like GW, Boston Whaler, Contender, and Regulator (aside from the lighter price tag ;-) )?
If fit and finish is the thing that is lacking can you give specifics?
Any issues with hull integrity?
How do they drain water? Self bailing? if you get a lot of water in the cockpit with that closed transom, how does it get out?
Does it have basic floatation? Being a Boston Whaler fan, I like to know that I'm on something that will at least be afloat long enough for me to fire the EPIRB.
How you've seen older hulls to know how they age with use/abuse?
Overall, without first hand experience, I am impressed by what I've heard, and am gonna give them a close look.
TG_190, I also have a 2002 236 w/a 200 HPDI have enjoyed it. The 266/238 are the same hull as I understand it. The 236 is a great boat and very similar but 3 feet shorter. Good bang for the buck! I have no problems with the self bailing or hull integrity only some small plastic grommets for the rod holders. They were replaced under warranty even without a dealer close to me. Great factory support. Mine has been in Monterey Bay (several months), the Atlantic (S. Fla) and the Gulf of Mexico (majority).
Not sure about the basic floatation but I think the hull is injected with foam. Hope that helps. Good luck with your choice.
What is lacking? I'm not sure anything is. The first one I saw around seven years ago was fairly basic, needing attention to many details. I didn't look twice. Last year the sales rep brought one by and we looked it over real close. It was getting better, much better, but we made several suggestions for improvement in wiring, placement of switches, instrumentation, and such. We also noticed some ragged edges in the bilge area. None of this was serious being cosmetic mostly, but it's the kind of things that trained eyes and most potential owners look for these days.
The boat I looked at a couple of weeks ago looked fine. There is still some debateable placement of certain items, but it's coming down to a matter of opinion now, instead of simply a mistake. The fit of all parts I looked at was fine. The only finish issue there were were things such as the inside of the console was not a smooth finish. That's not a problem with me but the higher dollar boats you mentioned mostly have a bit more finish in those areas. This one was well done, but it was gelcoat over the textured finish of the fiberglass.
It is a self bailing cockpit and even with the load we had in the boat we had no issue with water intrusion into the cockpit. It's a big boat though. I'm not sure about floatation in the big ones. Coast Guard regulations do not apply to anything over 20' so it would be up to the manufacturer to do so. There are many builders that still do use foam over 20', but some of them, like Whaler, do so because it is an integral part of their construction; they wouldn't stay together without the foam.
I'm not sure about the aging thing since I've not seen enough of them to form an opinion. I didn't see anything in the construction to indicate that it would have a problem though. Consider this. If we as a dealer sell a product that will create a problem for the consumer, that problem becomes ours. We do not look at warranty work as a profit center, therefore we'd rather avoid it through careful placement of product. In the long run, this attitude gives us happier customers and we live happier. It's not a perfect world though, so we just do our best.
I'll be getting my first stock boats in today and I'll have a better idea of the average boat looks like. I already know what they ride like.
Let me know if you've got any other questions. Feel free to e-mail if you'd rather.
Tom Marlowe, sales at Summerville Marine. Past Master Tech.
Thank you for your reply. I am left with a couple of questions:
What placement of things remains "questionable" in your opinion?
Basic floatation is not the same thing as level floatation (which all Boston Whaler's have) and is more difficult to achieve. I don't know if basic floatation is a requirement, but most of the boats I've looked at claim to have it. Level floatation is required in boats under 20'.
Does water drain while at rest? How many scuppers go overboard? How big are they?
Is water meant to go out under the transom door as well during a real swamp? What are the likely paths that water will take into the bilge?
Are they 100% hand laid? Are the stringers glassed to the hull? What is the hull/deck joint?
What kind of hardware do they use (i.e. 316 SS)? Do all screws have a backing plate or other 2-sided fastening?
+s Its got a good ride wide beam great looks alot of boat for the money -s the rod holders are poor there is no room under the gunnels to store any thing longer then 6 ft without bending the hell out of it. With the design of the cap with no toe room it feels like your going to fall out of the boat if you lean over the forward gunnel the stepup in the front a has to go or be made bigger also the console door needs to be reversed to keep from banging open in seas overall there are a lot of other 2 peice boats with the same issuses
I have the second 238 boat built "Fair Game" and have fished the SKA and worked closely with "Size Matters" who is a friend of mine and works for Sailfish to refine the boats. Sailfish has worked very closely with many SKA teams to make improvements on the boats. We have ran them hard and had them in rough seas and they are holding up great. We have had ZERO hull issues anywhere on any of the boats. At first we bent a few tabs hence the now heavy duty tabs on the boat. Sailfish has improved the layout of the console and has also added many new options. The boat rides Great! Size Matters and Fair Game and a 326 Sailfish named Smooth Drag took a bunch of the employess from Sailfish out for a grouper fishing day two weekends ago in the northern Gulf with 15 to 22 knots winds all day and 4.5 ft seas measured at the bouys. Not a problem at all although we did not run 45mph. But I had no problem doing 24 to 30 running down sea without getting the boat out of the water or stuffing the bow. It was slow going staight into the seas that were tight but we did not have any problem with pounding and the boats feel sturdy, smooth and safe. Of course we did have to go a little fast at times so the Sailfish employees would understand why the boats have to be built STRONG. A little air time and some water in your face is a good thing for understanding why things have to be done right. The guy on the 236 is a guide and did not want to go out that day due to the weather, he followed us out anyway and stayed out the longest(caught the most fish also). When he got back in he was really bragging about how well his boat took the seas. I have never had water come in the boat through the drains. They are not fully foamed. I can't tell any difference in the angle in the back with 200's or 250's on them. Great ride and a great price. I think they will get popular really quick. Makes a great family boat as well. They have alot of padding options and extra seating. The people that work at Sailfish are a great bunch of folks and from what I have seen, they are doing everything they can right now to make a really great boat and do the customers right. The boat is a great mix of hard core fishing and family fishing.
Does water drain while at rest? Yes
How many scuppers go overboard? Two in the back corners and the livewell, two front fish boxes and anchor locker.
How big are they? Big, I can only reach the water in the back corner.
Is water meant to go out under the transom door as well during a real swamp? Nope, full transom
What are the likely paths that water will take into the bilge? Water the gets inside the console drains to the bilge. The front floor locker drains to bilge. Water that gets in rod holders drain to bilge. They have two Large bilge pumps.
Are they 100% hand laid? Not exactly positive what that means, but they were hand rolling in the fiberglass when I've been to the plant. Are the stringers glassed to the hull? Yes What is the hull/deck joint? They glue the heck out of it with some type of super stong glue, forgot the name, and screws.They had a couple at the plant that had damage to the decking and when I asked if they were going to put new liners in them, nope cant get them back loose.
What kind of hardware do they use (i.e. 316 SS)? Not sure, but its heavy duty and still looks good on my boat.
Do all screws have a backing plate or other 2-sided fastening? The things I have checked have backing plates or have plates fiberglassed into the hull and tapped.
Fairgame, thanks for the input. You managed to answer most of the questions.
Using your terminology On the floatation issue, this boat appears to have basic floatation. The stringer system is a grid type much like the fiberglass systems used in Triton, Key West, HydraSports, and a number of other boats. It is glassed to the hull. Many boats in this class have no floatation at all.
I see woven material used in the layup. I don't know if they use 100% hand lay or not, but honestly there is a lot of misunderstanding surrounding that terminology. A boat should not be 100% hand laid to have the best layup. If boats were perfectly flat it would be different, but with the many contours and intricate corners that need to be filled with glass it is best to chop the first layer. A good man with a chopper gun can obtain a much more consistent thickness of glass plus it is easier to get a good foundation of glass for the subsequent layes of woven material to bond to. This helps to eliminate the air bubbles in the gel coat that plague so many boats. Either way, this boat is hand laid where it counts.
As far as the issues of placement. I'd put the batteries in the console along with the battery switches. The industry is fairly split these days as to the best location and there is a strong argument both ways. The batteries from the factory are located high in the rear of the boat. Well done, but my second choice. I'd also like to see bigger drains in the corners of the cockpit. The hoses and through hull fittings are fine, just the drains need to be bigger I think. The guys using them say they work though.
The issues mentioned above regarding the console door and storage under the gunnels. Maybe those things have been changed, but I don't see a problem in the boat we just received.
Tom Marlowe, sales at Summerville Marine. Past Master Tech.
I was just nit picking from a fishermens point The boats are awesome, but if they ever make some changes to the inner liner they could have one of the hottest fishing boats on the market!
Sailfish Products 266/238
