# 1990 Dolphin Super Skiff



## topnative2 (Feb 22, 2009)

google them--- located in the homestead, fl area---they can tell u what they used ---same ownership for years ---good boat


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## formerWAflyfisher (Sep 5, 2008)

The hull is great.  Look through the forum there are several threads regarding this hull.  I have owned a renegade (the flat bottomed version of the super skiff) and I recently purchased a 95 super skiff that I'm restoring.  I think they switched from wood to composite in the 80s but I'm not 100 percent sure.  As far as build quality I took my boat to Tom Gordon at Islamarine and he said if I wanted to sell the hull before I had anything done to it he knew several guys that would be happy to take it off my hands.  As far I'm concerned thats the best review I could have.  Although Tom did say sometimes the floors do flex/separate from the stringers and cause spider cracking and the same can happen on the decks.  Mine had flex/separation in the floor but he said it's fixable without removing the whole floor.  Either way it's a good design and it's going to have some issues after 20+ years.  Here is a before/after but its not finished yet.


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## alain_vallejo (Jun 24, 2010)

Nice!!! but I do have to be a hater because I had taken the day off of work to go get this boat and the guy sold it before I got there. I would have loved to do the whole restoration myself. Keep the pictures coming


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## cutrunner (Jun 8, 2010)

A buddy of mine just bought a dolphin. He basically stole it..
Says its all foam.
Which model is it?
Its a 16.
Looks more like a shipoke to me.


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## telltail (Mar 11, 2007)

Dolphin also made a 16 backcountry back then that is a completely different hull than the Renegade's/SSkiffs. Like MHP's Master Anglers to their Mirage/HPX's. Other guys can tell ya the hulls lineage, said to be from an old Sidewinder hull, I believe.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Cut Runner, the pic you show is the Backcountry model and it's a great riding boat... but it is completely different than the Super Skiff or the Renegade. The backcountry model was a great all around boat but no where near the shallow water capability of the Super or Renegade models...

By the way, they made that Backcountry in both 16 and 18 foot sizes. I always considered them to be tarpon boats as opposed to bonefish skiffs, like the Super or the Renegade. 

For anyone doing a restoration, I'd avoid the early Dolphins when all the deck, floor, and transom reinforcing was with wood (I think they changed in the mid to late eighties). There was a reason that when they quit using wood all of their ads repeatedly showed the phrase "no wood, no rot". I assisted in removing some of the floor in one of those wood reinforced models many years ago at Aman Plastics and I can't describe how badly rotted everything was just under the fiberglass.... We literally scooped it out by the handful with no tools at all once we got under the glass skin....


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## ek02 (May 8, 2012)

A 1990 Super Skiff has no wood in it. I had a 1994 that was built like a tank. Heavy, but unbreakable. It rode through a chop very smoothly with the tabs down. I never could trim it up very high without it porpoising. It had a slight hook in the hull at the stern which may have caused this. I fished the boat for 18 years with 2 different motors, a 70 and a 90. It looked as good as the day it was built when I sold it. The 1990 was built before Hurricane Andrew damaged the mold. I had mine built in the damaged mold. It had a lot of spidering in the gelcoat that had to be sanded out and buffed. I have a 2006 Super Skiff now that I believe was vacuum bagged and built from a new mold, and it will not porpoise until the prop almost blows out when trimmed up. It is lighter and floats much shallower. It rides on top of a chop instead of through it. I would still have the old boat if it were not so heavy. The cockpit floor was glassed to the sides and I have been told that a chopper gun was used to finish the inside, which added more weight. It was very strong, though. Also, the fuel tank came out very easily. My 2006 has a drop in cockpit and compartments. It floats 3" shallower, which is still not very shallow. You need 10-12" of water to pole a loaded Super Skiff with a 90 Yamaha 2 stroke. The lighter you can keep that 1990, the better.


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## TidewateR (Nov 11, 2009)

thanks for the insight, folks


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## formerWAflyfisher (Sep 5, 2008)

frontier05 sorry about the lost day of work. I'd be happy to take you out on it when its done.


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## jboriol (Jan 2, 2010)

Tide,
Maybe call Dolphin Skiffs in Miami with hull# and they can give you the hull details. There is a reason they have been around for such a long time


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## Sheremeta (Nov 29, 2010)

They have been in business since the 60's and are on their 2nd or 3rd owner. Wood construction stopped in the 80's. Very well made boats. The photo cut posted is an older super skiff with the angled transom. The new 17' super skiff pro and back country pros are extremely nice skiffs. 

http://www.dolphinboats.com/home.php


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## Captryandunn (Oct 8, 2013)

They stopped using wood in 84-85 according to the president of the company


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