# Willy Roberts custom skiffs



## The_Skiff_Shop (Oct 28, 2008)

Brett,

It's my understanding that Willy never built a 17 but he built 10 Slo Poke's, I have no idea how many 20's and one only 24.

Hopefully someone who knows more will chime in with more since this is a personal interest for me.

From what I understand, Fred Archibald pulled a mold off one of the original Willy Slo Pokes and built them glass over wood under the Shipoke label. I recently acquired what I believe to be a rather unique version on the Shipoke.

IMHO, this should be split between the 15 Slo Poke and the 20 Classic as two separate threads. Maybe we can add the 24 later when it pops back up for restoration.


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## costefishnt (Dec 11, 2006)

> Brett,
> 
> It's my understanding that Willy never built a 17 but he built 10 Slo Poke's, I have no idea how many 20's and one only 24.
> 
> ...


correct old man.


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## roto77777 (Jan 12, 2008)

who is that good lookin' dude on the Willy homepage ;D


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

1976 original wood 19' Willy Roberts skiff. Bright finished Brazilian cedar gunwale cap. Poles in less than 10 inches.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Isn't that skiff for sale right now on the FS site?


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## Brett (Jul 16, 2008)

Sure is Captain. I know of no better way to find pictures of old hulls,
than to search the on-line classifieds. Where else can you find pictures
of classics with so many views? And all gussied up for selling purposes.


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## aabess (Nov 22, 2009)

I have a 2001 20' I thought I would chime in. Great boat the nicest one I have ever owned! I was down at the Islamorda flea market and met the new owners. Mike Williams is good people, I am sure they will do well with the boats.


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## billhempel (Oct 9, 2008)

Very, very nice AA. When we goin' fishin'? After your trip?


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## iMacattack (Dec 11, 2006)

I believe I've seen your boat before. Did you have Shallow Water Customs working on it?


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## sfsurfr (Mar 16, 2009)

Damn that is one fine lookin rig AA!!! I love the teak! It makes it look just that much better!!!

Cheers!


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## aabess (Nov 22, 2009)

Imac,
Yes it was at Shallow Water. They do a great job over there.


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## iMacattack (Dec 11, 2006)

Yes they do! 

How does she run with that big yami?


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## aabess (Nov 22, 2009)

It runs great. The boat is not super fast, tops out around 50mph. Although I never run it that fast. It gets on plane instantly. I usually cruise comfortably around 30 +/-. Fuel mileage is great average 4.5 mpg.


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## franklin.howell (Aug 11, 2009)

I had a 2000 Willy with a Yamaha 130 that I had built in Ft. Lauderdale by Chris Wettberg. The workmanship was poor but I really loved that skiff. It floated in a about 10'' to 11'' of water which was remarkable given its size and weight and I caught lots of tailing bonefish out of it. Rode like a Cadillac. Did have some hull slap under certain conditions and wasn't easy to pole unless you had a tail wind. Had two beautiful teak chairs and a teak helm pod. Looked great from a few feet away but up close was not finished well.


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## billhempel (Oct 9, 2008)

A friend, Alan Abess of Ft. Laud now has two of the newer Willy's. The 20' and the Slow Poke models.


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## JBentley (Jan 4, 2012)

After weighing all the options, I decided to go old school.  I bought a 2002 Willy 17. The boat was in great condition structurally, but dirty beyond belief. I mean mullet boat dirty. Has a new Yamaha 70 on it - the only thing that wasn't filthy. Besides the guys at Willy, can't anyone point me in the right direction for some simple restoration advise.

For all the flash of the new boats, how can you not love the lines of a Willy?

See you on the flats.


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## sspeir82 (Jul 1, 2012)

Hey, sorry for chiming in on this thread but this is all great info, I was hoping to get a little direction on value for my boat. Here is the pictures and info... I will be considering selling this and upgrading to the 20.




Length 15' foot 

Model: "slo poke"

Year: 2003

Make: Willy Roberts

Carbon Fiber composite.

50hp Honda 4-stroke with estimated 175 Hours, yacht captain maintained with multiple upgrades including new Garmin unit in 2013. New Galvanized Trailer. New deck paint, faux teak deck. Will upload pics asap. I thought I had some on my phone but not there. Consider this boat in excellent shape.... THANKS in advance.


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## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

I just returned from a Merritt island vacation and a visit to the new Willy shop.
Great guys with a passion for the boat and take the time to talk w/ you.
They now have a new cap for the 17 which I understand has more options. 

Also, saw a completed 15' which is the most 15' I have ever seen. It is a lot of boat and wide.Sweet.

A new side console 20' w/ 135HO e-tec came back from the welding shop and boy is she beautiful.They have kept the vintage character to the boat but is definitely user friendly.

The side console is the way to go in IMHO.

I can taste it..........


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## Flattitude (Jun 30, 2016)

topnative2 said:


> I just returned from a Merritt island vacation and a visit to the new Willy shop.
> Great guys with a passion for the boat and take the time to talk w/ you.
> They now have a new cap for the 17 which I understand has more options.
> 
> ...


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## Flattitude (Jun 30, 2016)

I saw a beautiful light green one going down US1 this morning in Pompano Beach


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## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

I visited the shop earlier today and saw a new 17' ....... the boat is an absolute work of art. I went over it w/ a critical eye and could not find one thing wrong w/ it or that I would change. The attention to detail was unbelievable.

I even got my wife to say yes!!!!!!!!!

to be continued..


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## MooreMiller (Sep 10, 2016)

I live within walking distance of their shop. To echo everyone else, Mike and Marcus are great guys with good attention to detail and passion for their work. The wood work that comes out of the shop is absolutely beautiful as well! The boats are also cored and vacuum infused, if that tickles your fancy.


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## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

Just pulled the trigger on a 20' which I will name "Bucket List".


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## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

The hull has been pulled...........
There are some pics in the big boat section


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## Willy85 (Aug 24, 2018)

The_Skiff_Shop said:


> Brett,
> 
> It's my understanding that Willy never built a 17 but he built 10 Slo Poke's, I have no idea how many 20's and one only 24.
> 
> ...


Hello...I have a 1985 Willy Roberts 17' 6" "Bonefish" completed on 2/21/1985. My stepfather bought the boat in 1986 and we used it together until his passing in 2007. He sold it to me in the early 2000's and I did some upgrades and re-powered in 2005. This boat holds personal value and history, as well as the Willy Roberts history


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## flatzcrazy (Feb 5, 2013)

Brett said:


> Still in business building the same style hulls.
> Originals were built one at a time, to order, from wood.
> 
> Homepage:
> ...


Guy I use to fish with had one of the originals, all wood with teak decks & console with piston captains chairs! Think it was about 19’ maybe a little bigger, great ride & ran pretty skinny for a wood hull! Not sure what hull # but definitely one of the first! Wish I had a picture of it!


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## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

new renovation of a willy

http://www.floridasportsman.com/2018/09/25/project-dreamboat-willy-roberts-skiff/


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## Coconut1 (Oct 17, 2019)

Brett said:


> Still in business building the same style hulls.
> Originals were built one at a time, to order, from wood.
> 
> Homepage:
> ...


I have a 1967 version that has been properly glassed since late 1990's. Also a teak deck was added at that time which looks great but can get hot on a searing day. Also it does require oil every year or so, but that's a labor of love I doubt many would mind. AS you lift the hatches and peek inside you can see the simple, yet proper workmanship of a man, WR, who clearly loved his craft and took pride in doing things right. Unfortunately she has become a yard ornament (covered, of course) for me.


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