# Shadowcast 18 vs SUV 17



## hapm23 (Apr 18, 2016)

Hi, I'm in the process of getting a skiff and I have narrowed it down to two the Ankona SC 18 (30HP) and the SUV 17 (40HP). I did a demo for the SC18, today and loved it. The one I demo had a tiller and I think I'll be happier with a mini center console. Both my wife and I went for the demo and her first reaction is "that's going to be an unstable boat" for me was "It's like kayak on steroids. I love it!" (I know it's nothing like a kayak but I've been doing nothing but kayak fishing, I don't mean to offend anyone with my comment). After Capt. Marcus Haralson, Ankona rep in Texas and customer, took me for a test drive it made me like it more. He allowed me to take it for a spin, which the tiller made it a whole different experience. It poled effortlessly even with nice strong winds. It took me a few minutes to get used to it but felt very comfortable. My wife stayed behind since we had our 6 month old baby with us. After we got back I asked the Capt to take my wife for a spin and she came back with a completely different attitude. Her comment was "WOW it's rally stable and fun". Capt Haralson was extremely helpful and when didn't know the answer to a question he straight out said that he would find out for me. I like to deal with honest people than with someone that will make stuff up just to make a sale.

Anyways, I got a bit side tracked, I live in the Corpus Christi area and I know the SC18 will be great for the area but I'm curious about how it will handle in big lakes as more of a freshwater boat since there's a big possibility that we will be moving to the San Antonio area in about a year or so. Also, i have two other small children (6 and 7) that love to fish and was wondering if the SUV17 would be a better boat for my needs. I don't see more than 3 people at any point in the boat but maybe a few times a year. 
I talked to Erin in FL and she was nothing short of extremely helpful but i wanted to ask this forum to get customers point of view.

Thank you!


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

The skiff should be US Coast Guard rated for three people max. Go ahead and demo the SUV 17 also if it is in your budget. Looks like you have a very young crew and you may not need a larger skiff at this time. You can go larger in a few years.


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## hapm23 (Apr 18, 2016)

Thank you, sjrobin! I really would like to demo the SUV17 but I don't know who would have one for a demo. The rep here doesn't have anything but the SC18. I've been thinking about what you mentioned and yes, the SC18 should work perfect for the size of my "crew" but I don't know if the SUV with that much more room to be worth the extra $. Also, if both boats would handle very similar I would stick with the SC18. Not knowing enough about the SUV makes it a bit though to make the decision. 

Thanks for the pointers!


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## Copperspoonfly (Oct 26, 2015)

Call the guys at Ankona. They could probably get you in touch with someone that has an SUV around Corpus.


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## rjackh90 (Jun 4, 2012)

My understanding is the SC18 is a better poling skiff but the suv can handle bigger water. And the SUV has some bow steer because of that sharp entry. It's just a trade off and depends what you plan to do the majority of the time.


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## rjackh90 (Jun 4, 2012)

And that is from a Microskiff review on the suv plus talking to a guy in tx that runs one.


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