# Monochrome Green Shadowcast



## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Well I just picked up my Shadowcast last week and have only had time to take it out twice to do the motor break in. Mel and the crew did a nice job on the boat, I'm really happy with the way it came out. The color scheme is guide green monochrome.

It has lenco 9x9's, Ipilot with quick release bracket, 8gal aluminum fuel cell and a few other things.

I can't say enough about this little boat, I'm really excited about it. Having owned a Maverick, Mitzi, Gheenoe, and a small tri hull along with rides in half a dozen other technical skiffs I'm really happy with the way this boat handles in comparison. The idea was to go as simple as possible but still keep all the things I felt were necessary. I have yet to fish it on the lagoon, but it is pretty stable for what it is. I'm expecting it to perform really well based on the time I have spent on it so far.

Tonight was the first time I was able to open the motor full throttle and it has a ton of power. I'm guessing I topped out around 32 or 33. It's faster than my HPX 15 with the yami 40 4stroke. With the tabs I was able keep the shadowcast on plane right around 10-11mph which was nice. I'm guessing on that speed based on the speed reading on my autopilot remote which cuts of at 9.9mph. 

As for getting on plane the tabs really eliminate the majority of stern squat you normally get when throttling up. This will be a huge help getting up on plane shallow. I know some people don't feel the need for tabs on this boat but I couldn't imagine it without them. Being that it is a small boat they also allow you to balance out any uneven weight distribution as well as alter the attitude of the bow while under power.

As for the motor I went through Albert at AFA marine/ small outboards.com - He has been great to work with. He has a good thing going offering brand new 25hp two strokes. The motor weight is 114 lbs which is comparable to all the 20 hp 4 strokes currently being offered.

I still need to get a different prop, and a cavitation plate probably wouldn't hurt. I will post some more pics once I get a chance to fish the boat. The push pole holder, rod bungees and sea deck on the gunnels are being put on tomorrow.

Did I mention the Ipilot. The spot lock on that thing is incredible. It's going to change the way I'm able to fish!!!

Stoked ;D


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

The first few pictures were taken with really bright light. The color is really darker than what it looks. Check the last picture, that gives a better idea of the true color.
Guide green hull and deck


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## GTSRGTSR (Nov 10, 2009)

yeah, you can see the color in the last pic. Great boat, nice color, go catch some fisdh!!!!


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## TomFL (Oct 2, 2007)

Looks like a really nice skiff. I like the bow/entry design, looks like it'd cut through a decent chop and deflect the spray down.

Open floorplan for plenty of fishing room. 

Also having a real rubrail that sticks out past the hull like larger boats is a real plus, it lets the rubrail do what it's designed to do, and that's protect the hull. 

Looks like a great little package. Enjoy it.


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## anytide (Jul 30, 2009)

very nice...congrats [smiley=1-thumbsup3.gif]


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## tpasurf1 (Mar 25, 2011)

sick skiff, exactly what i want would like to upgrade too! love to see some running video!


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## Net 30 (Mar 24, 2012)

Great looking skiff!  Tyler at Castaway did my Whipray under gunnels in black SeaDek and it looks amazing....would look great with you other black accents.......


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I have some video on my cell phone. I will try and take some more and upload it here in the next week showing what it does with the trim tabs.

I did sea deck on the gunnels but I used ligh grey. I was afraid of putting too much more black coloring into the boat. I'm having some issues with the seadeck sticking at the moment on some of the surfaces that have curves. I have been using their products for a while and never had an issue till now.


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## Shadowcast (Feb 26, 2008)

Great looking skiff! I love the color!


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## boat123 (Apr 26, 2012)

Sweet rig!! lets see some pics with it slimed.


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## Delmer (Dec 26, 2009)

SWEEEEEET!!!! 

Nice color, what kind of tabs did you go with? 

I think I know that ramp.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Yeah that ramp looks familiar. It's the one I use to go run around when I want to get out on the boat for a quick evening.

Tabs are lenco 9x9's. With them down I can get on plane with almost no bow rise / stern squat. Hopefully I can get it slimed this coming weekend. 

As for the color setup I went in set on ordering a grey skiff. When he asked me what color I wanted I instantly replied to copy the color scheme of a finished tiller copperhead sitting outside. Apparently the "guide green" is the same color that Hells Bay has used.
I was also thinking a really light blue hull and deck would look cool. Maybe next time....


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

I'm so jelly 

I will have a SC soon....soon...


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## tpasurf1 (Mar 25, 2011)

> I'm so jelly
> 
> I will have a SC soon....soon...


ditto


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## jarededwards (Jan 27, 2011)

Great looking skiff thanks for posting! I can't wait to hear real GPS #'s from you as that motor is probably the ideal motor for the ShadowCast. Also looking forward to how you get it set up with prop, etc. I would guess a nice cupped 3 blade would be a great choice with your power-to-weight ratio.

I completely agree with your choice on trim tabs, but I have to ask... why no jack plate (manual or otherwise) to take advantage of that little tunnel and get some more efficiency while running? Keep the pic's and upgrade reviews coming!


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

The tunnel wasn't a huge selling point for me. I figured I would run it without the jackplate first to see how it did. If I do add one it would be the lightest manual one available. 

I just went out in the garage and measured from the bottom of the skeg to the to the bottom of the hull. 7 inches is the distance the lower unit hangs below the bottom of the hull. Not too sure I'm comfortable running shallower than that.


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

Honestly even with a Jp you won't be running much skinnier with a 25hp.


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## Guest (Aug 29, 2012)

The jack plate not only lets you run a bit shallower, but it helps you with a shallow hole shot. I am running the Bob's manual mini, with it set back 5in and up 2in. Together with a 10X9 cupped SS four blade. I can go just about any wear I want, and not worry. Nice color op on the boat, enjoy.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Thanks for the feedback skinny dippin.


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## blittle (Jun 3, 2012)

You might want to look into a CMC tilt trim unit. You get both "higher motor" and "tilt trim". 

It will take a prop with a lot of cup, but with tilt/trim you can tab down and trim your motor up to get your motor out of the water while running skinny.

My last skiff had both hydraulic Jp and tilt/trim and I could run just as shallow with either the motor jacked up or jacked down lower and trimmed out. 

I'm working on proping my new skiff out now but my prop runs about 2-3 inches above the hull as it's mounted on the cmc tilt/trim and trimmed down. I can trim it out some now with a prop with no cup, but havn't ran the new prop. I now have a new prop with factory cup and i'll shoot some numbers and stuff when I get it on the water after Isaac.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Not looking to add weight to the back of the boat so I'm going to keep it as simple as possible. The tiny tach should be here by the weekend and then I can figure out the prop.


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## jarededwards (Jan 27, 2011)

Cool I like your plan. Add the next logical thing that will help get your boat to perform how you want it to. I suggested a JP because it will increase your effeciency (less drag) which = less fuel, less likely to hit anything, and of course, more speed...

Just like what was said in your General Forum post


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Got it slimed this weekend. I was trying for tarpon but had to settle for redfish. I managed a picture from this morning that I will post up later.

After getting a chance to fish the boat this thing is very skinny and also easy to pole. I tried to get it stuck today to see what it's limit was but I couldn't find anything shallow enough. I guess I will have to wait a few months for our winter water levels.


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

Is the transom drain hole on the shadowcast plugged? Or is it 'always open' so water drains out when on plane?

Would you recommend a bilge?


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## Guest (Sep 6, 2012)

It has the same plug set up as a standard Gheenoe.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I have a bilge pump mounted in recessed resivoir where the plug is. You could probably pull the plug on plane to bail the cockpit but with the little hatch at the rear of the deck that might be a chore while running.

The bilge pump in my book is a necessity on any boat.


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

> I have a bilge pump mounted in recessed resivoir where the plug is. You could probably pull the plug on plane to bail the cockpit but with the little hatch at the rear of the deck that might be a chore while running.
> 
> The bilge pump in my book is a necessity on any boat.


Would you mind taking photos of where the pump is mounted and how it's mounted and where the bilge thru-hull was screwed in?


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## jeross (Jun 6, 2009)

Very nice looking skiff!. Any your pics make Mullet Lake Park look way nicer than it really is.


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## Guest (Sep 6, 2012)

You also have a motor that has a 17 1/2" shaft(SeaPro) vs. Bob or "Skinny Dippin's" 15" shaft(Mercury). You need to measure this as your motor will be sitting lower in the tunnel. That is just one of a few things that a jack plate will do as far as making your skiff perform better.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Man you guys are persistent about adding a jack plate. I took some pictures a few minutes ago, just got to add them.

I like the fact that mullet lake park has a little beach to pull the boat up on. Too bad they added a ton of rock a couple years ago. I emailed them to cover it back up but there is still a good amount in the beaching area.


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

Hurry up with the photos!!!


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

The thru hull bilge exit is the silver round hole.- Had I thought to mention the placement I would have had it going out the side but this also works.









As you can see the bilge pump is sunken in to the splash well area. I added a small battery to power the tabs and bilge pump. My home made battery bracket 4200'd to the floor









From the deck looking down into the bilge through the hatch.









And the transom so you can see where the thru hull for the plug is located.
Picture is decieving but the motor extends 7 inches from the bottom of the hull. 









hope this helps you answer some questions mattyvac


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

Cool that actually helps me plan really well, thanks.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

you ordering a shadowcast?


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## Dillusion (May 21, 2012)

> you ordering a shadowcast?


Buying a 'used' one 

Should have it by next weekend!


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Got the tiny tach on today. I started it up and it says it's idling around 4000 rpm's so I think I need to change a setting on it. 

Waiting on a tiller pillar and getting a center box put in soon. The decks are fairly low on the boat and it's been a challenge finding a cooler that isn't too tall.


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## [email protected] (Feb 16, 2012)

Very sweet set up! Congrats! Post the fish pics!


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Only have one pic of a little slot red to post. We caught more but didn't take pictures. Haven't had a lot of time to fish yet. Once these hurricane swells go away I will be back to fishing


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Took the boat out tonight, caught 4 bass on the St. Johns. Saw Mcfly out there on his copperhead and got some pictures of him running.

Headed out to the lagoon in the morning, hopefully will have some good pictures to post tomorrow.

Ran tonight with a GPS speedometer on my phone and topped out at 31-32 mph with a full tank of gas. Compared against my truck speedometer the phone is 1-2 mph slow.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Good trip to the lagoon, but no pictures. Too busy catching fish to take pictures 

Here is a cool photo taken by mcfly a fellow microskiffer. We ended up running across each other Friday evening on the St Johns.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Here are some fish pics. Been catching a ton of good fish but have been neglecting to take the time to take photos. Strangly I have photos of some of the smaller fish. Bottom pic was a red I landed on fly today. 

The white skitterwalk and zman shrimp have been my go to's over the past month. The reds have been knocking the snot out of the small skitterwalk. It's been a lot of fun. Also had good success with the fly rod the past 2 weeks.


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## ras78209 (Sep 18, 2012)

Nice fish, oh , great looking boat..


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

Got some new toys in the works for my boat. Will update with pics soon.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

*Re: Monochrome Guide Green Shadowcast*

Just for reference this is what "Guide Green" looks like both hull and deck.


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