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I inherited a 2000 aquasport tourn cat 161 with a 90 hp motor last year. I know its a rare one but if anyone has one or been in one I would like some info about boat. This will be the first season this boat will sea saltwater. Only 40 hours on it in fresh water. Any input will be helpful.
They weren't around very long but were darn good looking boats as were all of the newer Aquasports. I had a 17 CC and loved it! Talked to an Aquasport dealer at a small Tallahassee, Florida boat show and he had fished 8-10 miles offshore in the 16 Cat and said it handled great in 2-3 foot seas. Be careful out there!
Take your time with it, I demoed one before I bought our 18 angler for near shore fishing, the problem with it is that due to it's size and single engine, it amplifies the awkward driving characteristics of a cat.
It does handle seas well for such a small boat, but you won't be towing any skiers or tubes with it, most likely. If you are just using it for cruising or fishing, then just be careful.
I also went out on the larger cat they built, that was a fast hull, I believe it was a 25', it hauled butt.....they got rid of it quickly too though. I don't think they could compete with the larger cat guys like wc and glacierbay.
I guess to sum it up, take some time getting used to the ride before you go out and hit it.
thanks for the info... I appreciate it, I know its pretty small and looks pretty good but i'm keeping in mind its a good beginner catamaran boat and hopefully I will move up to a larger boat. You said I wont really be able to pull a tube behind? Why???
thanks for the info.... I think I will start out bay fishing first. Hopefully I will be able to afford to move up to a larger cat style boat soon so I can head out pretty far. Was this considered a mediocre or really good boat for its time?
I forgot to add: A company named Caracal just went out of business I think. They built a GREAT 18 foot cat that can still be seen on caracalboats.com. Their factory was just outside Palatka, Florida and they likely have some left.
They were very well built and there are many good compliments you can find by clicking onto "search" above and input caracal.
Good luck!
The 161 Tournament Cat was built in small numbers back in the '98-'00 time frame. Not much of a demand for her. I rigged all of her sisters, the 23 Tournament Cat. 24, to be exact. You actually have a pretty rare little girl there.
I just bought one of these a 2001 with a 90 Merc on it. Great little boat, smooth riding, cuts throught the chop, but I noticed as others have said, drives a little "floaty" and take some getting used to. Nothing like a deep V. I went ahead and put a Davis Whale tail on it to help the stability and it made a difference. Also make sure the torque tab on the bottom back of the engine is adjusted proper or it will darn sure pull hard to one side.
I just bought one of these a 2001 with a 90 Merc on it. Great little boat, smooth riding, cuts throught the chop, but I noticed as others have said, drives a little "floaty" and take some getting used to. Nothing like a deep V. I went ahead and put a Davis Whale tail on it to help the stability and it made a difference. Also make sure the torque tab on the bottom back of the engine is adjusted proper or it will darn sure pull hard to one side.
The first time out I was having water coming it wondering what the ????? They (scupper openings) are right there at the waterline at idle or sitting still when fully loaded for sure. At speed the water went out/away. Then once home I noticed that someone pushed the rubber flaps inward allowing water to backflow inward, probally some kid poked his finger in them. They are pulled out now and I am ready to try it again with hopefully 15 gallons less water flowing around in the boat. I think with them now being pushed in from the water weight/water pressure they should seat properly ...fingers crossed will find out this weekend. Why do you ask that question ???? Just wondering...... Do I need to address something else on this? Thanks,
Also I noticed with the trim all the way down and jack plate all the way down I had a little cavitation going on.Don't understand that either ???? Hence the install of the Davis Whale tail as well. Comments thoughts????? A note on the boat http://www.boats.com/news-reviews/ar...html?lid=14767
I also have one which I would be happy to sale as I am not using it. I bought a bigger cat. I must say that I did have much fun with it. Only problem I ever had was the bilge pump once went out. I used the boat to free dive off of and to go tubing which the 90 was adequate but not fast. I added a gps and depthfinder. I also installed a very expensive LARGE shade top made by Tunci. The nice thing is I can run the boat with the big top open.
Hey Aquacat, I was aking about your scuppers because I have my boat in the marina for this season and I am new to boating. When I have two people in back of boat water comes in through scuppers, nothing major but I was worried about leaving boat for a week or so without being able to check on it. When boat is sitting in water with no one in it no water comes in. I posted an inquiry about the scupper problem and got lots of replies.... The boat should be fine in the marina but when I take it out I'm just goin to plug the holes to keep the water from comin in, Simple. Hey, did you customize anything on your boat??? I switched out the captains chairs to a leaning post and it was the best thing I could of done!!! I also installed a nice radio and speakers. I you have any pics of yours send them. As for your cavitation problem, I installed a hydrofoil stabilizer onto the motor and I now dont have any problems.
T-Cat I put a VHF radio and a Humminbird 798 side scan sonar fish finder (NICE ! ). The 798 is an awesome piece of equipment I highly recommend. You see fish and bottom structure in a whole new view. The boat is all original even the seat covers/cushions. Working out trying to fill the bait well may have a dead pump but other than that its in great shape. I will post some pics soon.
Ya ,mine handles great. I use it in the bay in Ocean City Md and handles the chop real good> I would definitely advise a whale tail on motor to help with cavitation. This boat flies, around 25 mph cruising, 34 WOT. I just had some problems with bilge pump not working and had to rewire entire boat. It wasn't easy said the mechanic and it cost me alot.
Be careful leaving this boat in the water. We pulled several decks to address the water drainage issue. Not many boats built and even fewer that stayed in the water but if it rains hard while its in the water, it could go under. Not an ideal fix, but a good cheap fix would be to install a pair of in-line check valves, those flappers on the thru hulls do not work very well as you have noticed.
Boathaus, you seam pretty familiar with these boats, why does the back of the boat sit really low in water?? Is it an aquasort design problem? I only have a 90 horse on back. Im driving 4 hours tonite to check on boat because we've had some serious rain down in md. I'm hopin its still afloat !!! Thanks
I don't know why they sit low in the back. I think the bigger issue is that the cockpit is lower than the waterline. You could also install a second pair of bilge pumps and an on-board charger for peace of mind???
Ya ,mine handles great. I use it in the bay in Ocean City Md and handles the chop real good> I would definitely advise a whale tail on motor to help with cavitation. This boat flies, around 25 mph cruising, 34 WOT. I just had some problems with bilge pump not working and had to rewire entire boat. It wasn't easy said the mechanic and it cost me alot.
Thanks for the feedback. I'll be using it primarily on the Bay Side/Everglades NP in Key Largo and maybe to do some diving/snorkeling in Pennekamp. I just wanted a nice entry-level boat for the family!
Also, thanks to BoatHaus for the insight into the water drainage issues.
aquasport tournament cat 161 
