# Mangrove Bay micro build



## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Well I pulled the trigger on a 16.6 x 58 Mangrove Bay kevlar Micro skiff formally Dorado 16.
The guys are new to the game but i figured if give them a shot. Abe is very accommodating and wants to do what it takes to make his customers happy. 
I'm gonna post the build process as he sends pics.
I'm going with a black hull ,whisper gray cap and two tone pan.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Floor liner mold taped for two tone gray and black gel coat


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

whisper gray cap and front hatch liner gel coated


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## commtrd (Aug 1, 2015)

Sweet! Post 'em as you get 'em!


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## firecat1981 (Nov 27, 2007)

Cool, but why is this in the for sale section?


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

firecat1981 said:


> Cool, but why is this in the for sale section?


My mistake. Hopfully a mod can move it.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Few new pics. Front hatch liner removed from mould, hull Gel coated and finished cockpit liner. She's coming together.


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## C_Wheeler (Jan 14, 2014)

The cap still has the Dorado logo imprinted in the bow even though its a new company?


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

C_Wheeler said:


> The cap still has the Dorado logo imprinted in the bow even though its a new company?


Lol Yea. He puts a custom cut seadek with the new logo on top of rhat area. Simple fix before they retool the cap. With the high demand he's having he doesn't want any downtime even though it's an easy fix. I brought up the fact that the seadek wont last forever and will need replacement. He says its lifetime transferable warranty .


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## Backcountry 16 (Mar 15, 2016)

Any new pics of the build?


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

We have some progress. Hull was removed from the mold last week and in the process of assembly . Alot of rigging I will do myself.





















More pics coming soon


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## Tonyskiff (Jan 7, 2018)

Amazing!


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Well I picked up the micro today. They did a really nice job. No complaints what so ever.
Now the fun part...Rigging!
Installed the micro jack this evening. Sweet jack plate. Never owned an atlas before, always had Bob's . We'll see how it works out.
Tomorrow morning the 25 gets hung. I did send the lower unit to Bob's Machine and had them do a low water pickup.
Ill post more as it happens.




























View attachment 29597


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Hitechdrifter said:


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Sorry for the double pics. Dont know what i did


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## Guest (May 27, 2018)

Looks great, do you know why they didn’t vacuum bag the hull? In the pics it looks like there are some dry spots in the lay up. This happens with kevlar because it’s so light it floats on the resin. With vacuum bag the bag pulls the material down into the resin matrix and holds it there until cured. Not knocking the skiff, she lols great and it’s probably just the pic.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Not sure if they did or didn't. Boat has a lifetime transferable warranty. The builders have 20yrs exp building boats. I'm confident if any issues arise they will take care of it


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## Guest (May 27, 2018)

Hitechdrifter said:


> Not sure if they did or didn't. Boat has a lifetime transferable warranty. The builders have 20yrs exp building boats. I'm confident if any issues arise they will take care of it


Sounds good, pic shows it wasn’t bagged but the warranty is good, the experience is nice also. They sound like stand up folks so that’s always a big plus too, congrats on the new ride!


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Got the motor hung, everything wired and fuel lines run. Ready for prop test. I'm waiting on the carbon marine extension so I can add the jack plate switch . Crossing my fingers that all the metal work comes back from powder coat this week.


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## Fritz (Jan 17, 2017)

Really cool boat, looking forward to seeing how she runs and drafts!


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## GoGataGo52__20 (Jun 26, 2016)

Cool little skiff man! I dig it


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## Guest (May 29, 2018)

Looking great!


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## GoGataGo52__20 (Jun 26, 2016)

How much did a low water pick up cost? Does it add significantly to it's ability to hold water in the lower unit the higher up it is?


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## Guest (May 29, 2018)

GoGataGo52__20 said:


> How much did a low water pick up cost? Does it add significantly to it's ability to hold water in the lower unit the higher up it is?


I’m not sure on cost these days for install but can tell you that it helps coolant flow tremendously when running with jack plate up!


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## GoGataGo52__20 (Jun 26, 2016)

That's good info man, I'm actually building a boat, without a tunnel but with a jackplate on it. I might have to look into the lower water pickup.


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## permitchaser (Aug 26, 2013)

That's a sharp looking boat. Let's see if on the water

So you had a Bob's JP now an Atlas ??


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

permitchaser said:


> That's a sharp looking boat. Let's see if on the water
> 
> So you had a Bob's JP now an Atlas ??


I have a Bob's JP on my Shearwater. Bought the atlas for the skiff since its lighter than Bobs


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

I put an OZ hydrofoil on the 25 with a 4 blade powertech. Man! What a deference. With the flat bottom skiff I can raise the jack plate almost an inch and a half higher. Very happy with it. I know I'll catch some slack for drilling holes in a new motor but that's part of doing business I guess. The pic shows the approximate max height on plane.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Skiff is finished! Water test went great. Low water pick up works fantastic with the jack plate and OZ hydrofoil. Was worried that I wouldn't be able to run the plate high without blowing out since its flat bottom. Killer set up.

Runs 28mph, didn't measure draft but fished tailing reds all weekend and never hit bottom. Tracks straight, stable and very easy to pole. Little choppy coming in this AM but stayed dry. Bumpy ride in chop was like any other flat bottom skiff.
Got a few pics of the finished skiff and some fishy pics of my son and I from this weekend. 
If someone wants some details or pics let me know. Time to make some memories.


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## Guest (Jun 30, 2018)

Awesome! No slack for drilling that new motor from me!


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## SOswald (Mar 30, 2013)

Nice job! Paint it Black should be proud of you!


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## crboggs (Mar 30, 2015)

Nice looking skiff. Welcome to the tiller gang.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

GoGataGo52__20 said:


> How much did a low water pick up cost? Does it add significantly to it's ability to hold water in the lower unit the higher up it is?


Helps tremendously. It was $550


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## GoGataGo52__20 (Jun 26, 2016)

Cool man, it's a nice skiff you got, I'm jealous.


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## devrep (Feb 22, 2009)

I really, really want one of those Bob's nosecones but it will totally trash the warranty on my motor.


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## Guest (Jul 2, 2018)

devrep said:


> I really, really want one of those Bob's nosecones but it will totally trash the warranty on my motor.


Have your checked on this? I’ve been out of the “dealer” end for a while, but we used to ship a lot of L/Us down to Bob’s right outta the box and never had any warranty claims denied because of them.


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## devrep (Feb 22, 2009)

if you had a lower unit failure or an overheat seizure I can guarantee you they would be all over this.


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## Guest (Jul 3, 2018)

devrep said:


> if you had a lower unit failure or an overheat seizure I can guarantee you they would be all over this.


In 20 yrs I have not had a lower unit failure that was warranty related lol! 99% were rock/log damaged= insurance, 1% were water in oil/ no oil= operator negligence. Never saw an overheat issue that was related to a low water pick up. The motors today typically will not allow themselves to get so hot they seize without an alarm and rpm reduction first. And if the tech support sees that the owner is continuously overheating the motor on the computer diagnostics the warranty is void anyway. The water here on the Nature coast is skinny and the bottom is hard, a jackplate and lwp is almost a necessity


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## Victor F (Jul 6, 2018)

Great post and a really nice skiff. Congrats!


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## Dave Neal (Nov 10, 2018)

Awesome build. Thinking I will be stealing much of your ideas, THANKS.


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## Hogjaw (Jan 16, 2019)

Rad ride and great storybook!


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## GoGataGo52__20 (Jun 26, 2016)

You been using that boat? Catching anymore fish?


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## Tbenson (Apr 17, 2016)

Beautiful rig. I have the Dorado version and love it.


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## jonny (May 1, 2007)

Nice ride man looks great


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## Sublime (Oct 9, 2015)

Awesome. What was the turnaround time with Bob’s?


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Sublime said:


> Awesome. What was the turnaround time with Bob’s?


I think its was 10 days


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

All the hype about Jack Forman props is no joke! Had a short conversation with him. He said raise your motor until you lose water pressure and drop it a half inch....check. Order a Trans fiberglass cavitation plate....check. Then put one of my custom 3 blades....check. HOLLY SMOKES! Unbelievable difference. Bob's nose cone runs an inch above the bottom of the hull,Jumps up shallow and Tops out about 26. Never thought I could set up a flat bottom skiff to run like a tunnel. Can't say it enough....Jack Forman is the pope of props.


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)




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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Hitechdrifter said:


> All the hype about Jack Forman props is no joke! Had a short conversation with him. He said raise your motor until you lose water pressure and drop it a half inch....check. Order a Trans fiberglass cavitation plate....check. Then put one of my custom 3 blades....check. HOLLY SMOKES! Unbelievable difference. Bob's nose cone runs an inch above the bottom of the hull,Jumps up shallow and Tops out about 26. Never thought I could set up a flat bottom skiff to run like a tunnel. Can't say it enough....Jack Forman is the pope of props.


Prop in pic was original 4 blade


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## Tbenson (Apr 17, 2016)

That is great. What was your top speed before the mods?


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## Hitechdrifter (May 31, 2016)

Tbenson said:


> That is great. What was your top speed before the mods?


24


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## georgiadrifter (Jan 14, 2009)

Hitechdrifter said:


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You’ve photography skills as well. Nice!


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## JonathanJ813 (Oct 19, 2019)

This is my 2019 MANGROVE BAY IBIS .
Build !!!
Abe was great the builder was awesome 
Boat is great its 16'6 skiff runs about 29mph with my Yamaha 25hp fourstroke


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## jtg (Oct 4, 2013)

How did you mount the fuse block? Is it on a piece of starboard with the wires coming thru it ?


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## tractortitan (Oct 21, 2020)

That black is sharp, nice rig


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