# IPB 16 vs ShadowCast 16



## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

I have narrowed my skiff choices down to two. The first is a 2010 IPB 16 with a 50 HP tiller Yammy. Comes with trim tabs, poling platform, fishing platform, trolling motor and push pole. I'm going to look at the boat tomorrow morning and I plan on taking it out for a sea trial. It seems to be in great shape.

The second is a ShadowCast 16. To get the price down to match what the IPB is, the SC is basically a bare minimum boat, which is fine of course. It would be a brand new hull, trailer and motor. It would be a tiller 20hp, basic hull and trailer. I would later want to add the items listed above on the IPB. Poling platform, fishing platform and trolling motor. For Ankona to add all that, the price would jump up a good bit.

I really like the idea of both and I would really like you guys to give me your thoughts on each, if you know about them. I've done plenty of reading and searching, which is why I have brought the choices down to these two boats. I like the idea of the IPB, because it has the bells and whistles that I want in a skiff. The SC would be brand new and there's always something special about owning a brand new boat (so I'm told at least). I just want a simple boat that I can fish in with a buddy or by myself and not spend a ton of money.

I'll be doing 90% of my fishing in Mobile, AL. I live by Fowl River and we have some great trout and red fishing spots. I currently have a 19' deep V that I've been using, and it's worked decent, but wont get into a few shallow inlets where I know some reds hide and I have a buddy with a 29' WA that we use for off shore. I "need" a skinny boat, or at least that's what I've been telling my new wife (only been married for about three weeks). I will occasionally drag the boat down to Dauphin Island and fish all the inlets and small islands north of the island on calm days. I've heard there's some great fishing down that way.

Would love to hear everyone's thoughts on each boat. Pros, cons, anything.


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## GatorFan321 (Jun 8, 2016)

I just picked up my new SC17 a couple weeks ago. I absolutely love it. I had Ankona add all the things i wanted like a Riptide, electrical stuff etc. I figured if i was gonna get it eventually I would just let them do it all. The boat is amazing. Very stable for its size. I can actually walk around the boat on the gunnels and there is still a lot of freeboard left. It poles great, it rides great. If its rough youre gonna get a little wet but you would with any small skiff. It is very well built. Rory and Erin are great to work with too. Getting a brand new boat was great because I ordered it EXACTLY how i wanted it. I wouldn't change anything about the boat. If you go witha SC, get the Float On trailer too. 

Ive never fished from an IPB or really even looked at one up close in person so I can't really comment on those. Thats my experience with Ankona and buying a brand new boat though. Hope it helps.


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## jfboothe (Dec 19, 2012)

Not that this is necessarily pertinent but isn't a 50 HP tiller on an IBP 16 over the rated horsepower? I actually don't care but I was wondering.


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## slowtyper16 (May 29, 2015)

ezb0012 said:


> I have narrowed my skiff choices down to two. The first is a 2010 IPB 16 with a 50 HP tiller Yammy. Comes with trim tabs, poling platform, fishing platform, trolling motor and push pole. I'm going to look at the boat tomorrow morning and I plan on taking it out for a sea trial. It seems to be in great shape.
> 
> The second is a ShadowCast 16. To get the price down to match what the IPB is, the SC is basically a bare minimum boat, which is fine of course. It would be a brand new hull, trailer and motor. It would be a tiller 20hp, basic hull and trailer. I would later want to add the items listed above on the IPB. Poling platform, fishing platform and trolling motor. For Ankona to add all that, the price would jump up a good bit.
> 
> ...


I had a SC 16 for a year and a half, great cost effective way to fish the shallows and for me learn a new body of water without worrying about damaging a 30k beavertail.
With that being said the SC was a micro and as such it slide out on wakes it did not have tabs so you can imagine when you stand up running the tiller your weight distribution did as much to steer the boat as the tiller. The SC was very sleek in the water which made it amazing at stalking fish, as if you were in a kayak pretty much.............however that same sleek low profile also left me vulnerable to getting swamped if I ventured out of the back country and wanted to go across an ICW or fish bigger bodies of water in Charlotte Harbor or Pine Island Sound. This can also be said for some other bigger skiffs like the lostmen etc. Good thing about these mirco's is you really don't need to be near bigger boats and can run backcountry to different spots because they run so shallow, I just know the few times I was by the ICW or the tip of bokeelia when it got choppy I was a little nervous about using a hand bilge  I'm not that skilled of an operator though and I understand this can happen in much bigger boats.
As for running dry, this is not a strong point of most micros, especially if there is any hint of a cross wind.

For your situation with a 19' already, which was exactly what I had I think either boat would be exactly what you are looking for. Affordable way to fish the shallow waters. My SC was did exactly what I needed it to do and served its purpose. I upgraded to a strike so I could fish three guys, more speed, live well, side console, stability, jack plate, trim tabs etc. But for starting I wanted the minimalist sled and the SC doesn't hide what it's good at and its obvious to see what it lacks at as well, but any micro is going to run into the same issues, just what name do you want the fish to see on the side of your hull when you're landing them

IMPORTANT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Either way you go, leave yourself $500 to invest in a power pole micro. When I put that on my SC it completely changed the way I fished and made it so much more enjoyable. I was tired of going to stake out and rattling around the stick-it, scaring the fishing, wasting time etc. I think bells and whistles (not including trolling motor and micro PP) are not needed on these mircos IMO. Poling platforms on these are only going to be used if you have two guys who are very comfortable on a boat and even more comfortable technical poling fishing. I made a bubbler bait well out of a cooler for shrimp but didn't look at plumbing in something permanent, if that's important I know there are options, but not cheap.

Lastly, these are in my opinion suppose to be skiffs for minimalists because you really can't put a whole lot of weight in them, even with two guys on my SC (180lbs and 200lbs.) we did not move fore and aft much, mostly one fished from the rear the other from the bow and controlled the trolling motor. I've seen SC and IPB's with jack plate, tabs, live well, center console, bench seat etc. and with such small boats it just doesn't seem worth it IMO. Even if you talk to the engine mfg they don't even have increase performance specs from 3 blade to 4 blade or anything since there just isn't enough hp to make much of a difference, I ran 20mph (20hp Tohatsu) max in my SC and that was all I wanted or expected. Put two guys and gear 17mph. Oh, one more thing. There are a lot of nice used SC's out there and if you check out the motor to be good I think they all will be worth it. The hull is so basic, it will come down to color and maybe console to tiller if you go new. Hatches will rattle unless you put some type of dampening around the openings 
Running Videos:
Video 1:

Video 2:

Link to my pictures of SC 16


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## slowtyper16 (May 29, 2015)

jfboothe said:


> Not that this is necessarily pertinent but isn't a 50 HP tiller on an IBP 16 over the rated horsepower? I actually don't care but I was wondering.


correct, and I would think would squat like a mother


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## pt448 (Mar 22, 2014)

ezb0012 said:


> I have narrowed my skiff choices down to two. The first is a 2010 IPB 16 with a 50 HP tiller Yammy. Comes with trim tabs, poling platform, fishing platform, trolling motor and push pole. I'm going to look at the boat tomorrow morning and I plan on taking it out for a sea trial. It seems to be in great shape.
> 
> The second is a ShadowCast 16. To get the price down to match what the IPB is, the SC is basically a bare minimum boat, which is fine of course. It would be a brand new hull, trailer and motor. It would be a tiller 20hp, basic hull and trailer. I would later want to add the items listed above on the IPB. Poling platform, fishing platform and trolling motor. For Ankona to add all that, the price would jump up a good bit.
> 
> ...


Those 2 boats are pretty different. The IPB is a good bit wider and can handle more hp than the sc. The older ones are simple bare bones, but when east cape was involved were good boats. The guy that built them after east cape didn't have as good of a reputation. Some one on here should be able to help you out with exactly when the switch happened. If the motor checks out and the hull doesn't have any problems I'd lean toward the ipb. Not that the shadowcast isn't a good boat, but you might as well get something that's got everything and fish it right away before you go through the long wait time of a custom build. You could always sell the ipb for hardly any loss and get a custom build when you know exactly what you want and can take full advantage of the custom build process. I also think 11,500 is a little high for that boat. I've seen others with consoles and tillers listed in the 9-10k range.


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## GatorFan321 (Jun 8, 2016)

I 100% agree with slowtyper16 on the micro power pole. I will NEVER own another boat without a power pole on it. Its worth every penny.


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## slowtyper16 (May 29, 2015)

pt448 said:


> Those 2 boats are pretty different. The IPB is a good bit wider and can handle more hp than the sc. The older ones are simple bare bones, but when east cape was involved were good boats. The guy that built them after east cape didn't have as good of a reputation. Some one on here should be able to help you out with exactly when the switch happened. If the motor checks out and the hull doesn't have any problems I'd lean toward the ipb. Not that the shadowcast isn't a good boat, but you might as well get something that's got everything and fish it right away before you go through the long wait time of a custom build. You could always sell the ipb for hardly any loss and get a custom build when you know exactly what you want and can take full advantage of the custom build process. I also think 11,500 is a little high for that boat. I've seen others with consoles and tillers listed in the 9-10k range.


yes, $11,500 was high I ended up selling for $9,500 if you want reference for your negotiations. And yes, that SC was very narrow beam at 58inches, like I said, not much fore and aft movement with two guys


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

jfboothe said:


> Not that this is necessarily pertinent but isn't a 50 HP tiller on an IBP 16 over the rated horsepower? I actually don't care but I was wondering.


I was kinda thinking the same thing.... I plan to test drive it tomorrow morning. Doing a little more research on this when I get some down time.


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## Pole Position (Apr 3, 2016)

"......I'd lean toward the ipb. Not that the shadowcast isn't a good boat, but you might as well get something that's got everything and fish it right away before you go through the long wait time of a custom build. You could always sell the ipb for hardly any loss and get a custom build when you know exactly what you want and can take full advantage of the custom build process......"
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This----good advice


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

I definitely plan to put some sort of pole anchor on it. Ive been looking at a few different options. I know there are some extremely nice ones and some manual ones that are extremely simple. I'll start some research on those once I lock down a boat. They can be added to basically any of them. 

I thought $11,500 was a little high, I'm definitely going to offer him less than that. Once I get my eyes on the boat, I'll be able to check for any defects or issues. 

I like the idea of a little wider boat. It'll be fishing me the majority of the time (220 pounds) and my buddy with me from time to time (200 pounds roughly). Normal gear, plan to lightning up our normal fishing gear to what we actually need... no more bs, like we accumulate with the bigger boat.


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## slowtyper16 (May 29, 2015)

ezb0012 said:


> I definitely plan to put some sort of pole anchor on it. Ive been looking at a few different options. I know there are some extremely nice ones and some manual ones that are extremely simple. I'll start some research on those once I lock down a boat. They can be added to basically any of them.
> 
> I thought $11,500 was a little high, I'm definitely going to offer him less than that. Once I get my eyes on the boat, I'll be able to check for any defects or issues.
> 
> I like the idea of a little wider boat. It'll be fishing me the majority of the time (220 pounds) and my buddy with me from time to time (200 pounds roughly). Normal gear, plan to lightning up our normal fishing gear to what we actually need... no more bs, like we accumulate with the bigger boat.


What is your draft requirement, Do you plan on poling or running the trolling motor into the shallows?


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

The 


slowtyper16 said:


> What is your draft requirement, Do you plan on poling or running the trolling motor into the shallows?


IPB comes with both. Some spots I will use the trolling motor and others the pole. Just depends on depth and where I'm at, really. If I go with the SC, I will probably put a trolling motor on it before the poling platform. I will probably end up using the trolling motor more.


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## slowtyper16 (May 29, 2015)

ezb0012 said:


> The
> 
> 
> IPB comes with both. Some spots I will use the trolling motor and others the pole. Just depends on depth and where I'm at, really. If I go with the SC, I will probably put a trolling motor on it before the poling platform. I will probably end up using the trolling motor more.


I would think you would like the IPB better for your purpose, the SC is so skinny that your trolling prop will hit bottom before the hull. I think the 6' beam of the IPB would fit better but as always you gotta get them both on the water in a sea trial.


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

I liked my sc16 it was very capable for being a micro I ran mine in all types of conditions and it handled chop pretty good for its size. Having tabs gives you options on how you run it in less than favorable conditions. 
Can't comment on the ipb, never been in one. From the ones I have seen they look ok, but given the choice I would rather run a 16 ft boat than a 14 ft boat.


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

el9surf said:


> I liked my sc16 it was very capable for being a micro I ran mine in all types of conditions and it handled chop pretty good for its size. Having tabs gives you options on how you run it in less than favorable conditions.
> Can't comment on the ipb, never been in one. From the ones I have seen they look ok, but given the choice I would rather run a 16 ft boat than a 14 ft boat.


Both boats are 16'. I guess the main reasons why I'm leaning more towards the IPB is the beam being a little wider, I wouldn't have to wait a month or two to get the boat (don't know how long the wait is for the SC16 right now, could be just build time or a 2-3 month wait), and the IPB comes with some of the bells and whistles I would later have to add to the SC. I'm planning a sea trial of the IPB tomorrow morning. It'll be my first time on a flats boat... Should be interesting...


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## el9surf (Dec 23, 2008)

My bad I was thinking of the ipb / skimmer skiff. Do some research on the ipb 16 they have had some issues.


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## BayStYat (Sep 12, 2012)

If East Cape built that IPB then consider it, If Brad built it then I would runnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn from it. 

You can guess who built the one I owned.

Also a 50 is not to heavy or over the rated horse power. I had a 50.


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

The hull is a 2010... Any issues with that year?


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## wesley76 (Jan 23, 2008)

ezb0012 said:


> The hull is a 2010... Any issues with that year?


sent you a pm


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## jfboothe (Dec 19, 2012)

BayStYat said:


> Also a 50 is not to heavy or over the rated horse power. I had a 50.


That is interesting. From the current IPB website it has a max of 40 and I know that a tiller steered 50 HP motor would exceed the USCG HP formula.


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

I noticed that too. I checked the website when that was posted. I wonder if the 2010 hull is different? I'm going to take a look at it in the morning and will be able to tell more.


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## wesley76 (Jan 23, 2008)

ezb0012 said:


> I noticed that too. I checked the website when that was posted. I wonder if the 2010 hull is different? I'm going to take a look at it in the morning and will be able to tell more.


It's rated for 50


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## BayStYat (Sep 12, 2012)

Published 2009

IPB now gives anglers the alternative of customizing a true fiberglass flats skiff hull somewhere between $9 and $20K. The IPB 16 that we tested rode well in a moderate chop with its shallow draft, had plenty of speed with a 50 hp Honda and allows anglers to completely customize the deck layout. Is it a Caimen, Maverick or Hell’s Bay? Honestly, it’s not, but it’s no johnboat or Carolina Skiff either. The best thing about this new offering is that it provides a completely new entry level for anglers.


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## ezb0012 (May 19, 2015)

I appreciate all the help and advise. Really looking forward to finally putting my hands on a skiff and putting one in the water. Hope she looks good and runs good. May be dragging a new boat home tomorrow evening.


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## CurtisWright (May 9, 2012)

14 Lasarge Tunnel V-Jon. To hell with those Florida Boats!


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