- How is the Prowler™ different from other cat boats?
- Why is a 3-piece design better than two?
- What makes your hull design better?
- Can the Prowler™ plane on one engine?
- Do I need a special cradle to dry-store the Prowler™?
- How can your boat be so much lighter?
- What is your suggested HP?
- Does your cat lean or dig or jar in the following sea?
- How can your cat have more storage and more room than the bigger fishing cats?
- How many fish boxes are there? What size?
- What kind of fuel tanks do you use? How are they installed?
1.
How is the Prowler™ different from other cat boats?
The Prowler™ is very different in every aspect of a boat. It is the only fishing cat
with a 3-piece CAP-HULL-DECK Design for strength and structural integrity of the cat.
It is the only cat of its size with the most storage space, even by comparison to other
cats of larger size. Storage is organized above and below deck to give you the most useable
cockpit space. It's dry weight is the lightest of its class. The 246 model weighs 2700lbs,
and the 306 model weighs around 3800lbs. They are even lighter than some cats of smaller
size. The Prowler™ features a unique PATENTED Turbulent Stabilizing Venturi System
Hull Design, or TSVS, that reduces the turbulence inside the tunnel to give you a smoother
ride as well as a quieter ride. It virtually eliminates "tunnel sneeze" for a
dryer ride.
The Prowler™ also has our PATENTED System of Lifting Strakes that provide additional
planning surface to the planing hull for better speed. The strakes funnel back to the keel
pads to straighten out the slicing through rough seas to deliver a smoother, more
predictable ride for an overall better performance and efficiency than other fishing cats.
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2.
Why is a 3-piece design better than two?
Because it is the most important aspect in the structural integrity of a catamaran. The
tunnel requires the most strength in order to support the two sponsons and tie the boat
together. Cats are more stable than monohulls because the tunnel cushions the boat from
the water's direct impact, but the tunnel also takes the most stress because of the immense
energy from water and air passing through it. That energy inside the tunnel causes the
torsional flexing (the pushing of the sponsons outward) that, after time, causes structural
failure in the tunnel, if it is not supported. By having the liner separate from the cap,
we are able to build the liner walls out beyond the gunwale to have the liner walls flushed
with the hull. This allows us to bond the liner walls directly to the hull as well as
directly onto the tunnel and to each one of the bulkheads, to tie the tunnel together
with the hull to create a truss-like support across the tunnel. We are also the only cat
with a forward bulkhead that goes from both sponsons and up and across the tunnel to
create another truss support. The cap is bonded to that raised forward bulkhead and
at the transom, screwed in place and then glassed in for an all around, complete truss
support in the boat. Imagine building a house with only four walls and a roof, without
the truss support to tie the four walls together and giving the roof something to tie
into.... Cat boats require the same support.
We can support the tunnel with our 3-piece design, while other cats cannot with their
2-piece, integrated cap-liner, because there are gaps of 6 to 8 inches under the gunwale
between the liner and cap making it impossible to tie the hull to the tunnel.
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3.
What makes your hull design better?
Our hull design is thoroughly thought out. The Prowler™ has combined all the aspects
that make a great catamaran hull. We took the Deep-V concept and applied it to the two
sponsons to allow the boat to slice through heavy seas with ease at high speed. We added
our patented Lifting System with full length Lifting Strakes into the sponsons to give
the boat extra planing surface for better speed with less horsepower. Keel pads were added
to the strakes in this patented design to straighten out the ride and to soften the
landing from the lifting strakes, to give the Prowler™ the smooth ride of a
displacement without sacrificing the speed and fuel economy. Reverse chines are built
in to the bottom to minimize the spray and full length splash guard are built into the
hull to make the Prowler™ the driest boat, even at the transom area, under normal
sea conditions. The Prowler™ has a wide entry at the bow to maximize the tunnel
benefit by allowing air to enter the tunnel with ease to lift the boat and cushion the
ride. The Prowler™ is light, so it sits higher out of the water and thus does not
bottom-out at the rear. This means that the Prowler™ has better handling than
other cats because air and water can enter freely at the bow and exit completely at
the stern. If the water and air energy cannot exit through the rear, this causes turbulence
inside the tunnel which results in poor handling. Our hull design gives you an overall
best performance, better handling in beam seas and following seas, better fuel economy,
the most storage and open-deck space, plus the eye-catching sleek Euro-styling.
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4.
Can the Prowler™ plane on one engine?
YES, because of our efficient hull design. As you may have heard, most 24-foot power cats
and even smaller cats have a hard time staying on plane even with twin Honda F130s, but
the Prowler™ 246 can plane on just one Honda F90 and run at 17 knots. Better yet,
with a single Merc Optimax 135, (with the other motor down), the Prowler™ 246 can
plane at 3500rpm and run 25mph. With the dead motor tilted up, the speed picks up about
3mph. (This statement is from a customer who unfortunately had an engine failure one day.)
On the Prowler™ 306 with twin Yamaha F225's, the boat will plane on one motor and run
at 15 knots.
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5.
Do I need a special cradle to dry-store the Prowler™?
NO. Due to the Prowler's efficient designed hull bottom, you can dry-store it without another
expense of buying a special cradle. It can go in a standard rack, like any monohull boat.
All you have to do is move the two wooden bunks, in or out, to sit under the sponsons, as
you would to fit the boat size and the marine fork operator can lift the Prowler™
easily without any special technique.
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6.
How can your boat be so much lighter?
The Prowler™ is 100% WOOD-FREE construction, GUARANTEED. It is constructed with
composites of high-tech, high-quality, lightweight materials. We use Mantex, a high
density fiberglass reinforced foam in our transom over PVC foam or divinycell foam and,
instead of wood, because resin adheres to foam far better than wood, and also because it
is much lighter than wood, but mainly because Mantex is stronger, does not corrode and
has a higher compression ratio than other cores on the market. We use PVC core in our
sides and hull bottoms to increase strength and rigidity without adding unnecessary weight.
Other companies may use inexpensive balsa material which will eventually rot. We use
Nida-Core, a polypropylene honeycomb material as the core for our deck and bulkheads for
its strength, resiliency, and it is lightweight, to again, save in unnecessary added weight.
The HULL is HAND LAID with FULL LENGTH MULTI-DIRECTIONAL fiberglass sections, which cover
all the axis to eliminate stress points, and possible seam separation, and to give the boat
its strength without the added weight. We vacuum bag the Nida-Core in the deck to
eliminate any voids and completely seal the resin into the fiberglass. This process
is time consuming, but it ensures a perfect lamination without unnecessary excess resin.
We custom build each boat, one at a time, with very high regards to glass-to-resin ratio,
and with this efficiency, this is another way how we have avoided the unnecessary added
weight to the boat.
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7.
What is your suggested HP?
On the 246 model, we like the 115 Yamaha 4-stroke motors as well as the Suzuki 140
4-strokes. The Yamaha motors will get 43mph at 5800rpm and cruise at 28-30mph at 4000rpm
and both motors will burn only 8.5gph. The Suzuki motors get 47mph at 6100rpm and cruises
at 31-33 at 4000 rpm burning only 9.1 gph. On the 306 model, with Yamaha F225's, you will
get 51mph at 5800rpm and cruise at 36mph at 4200rpm and both motors will burn only 19.5gph.
With the Honda 225 4-strokes we got a cruise of 39mph at 19.2 gph and a top end of 52-54mph.
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8.
Does your cat lean or dig or jar in the following sea?
NO. This is where the Prowler™ shines over other cats, even in the beam seas too.
Due to its patented Lifting System with keel pads incorporated with lifting strakes in the
Deep-V sponsons, the Prowler™ will stay on track in 3-4 foot seas, whether it's in
the beam sea or in the following seas. You can aim the boat in the direction where you
want to go and let go of the steering wheel, and the Prowler™ will remain steady
for a short time, without wandering. The Prowler™ will offer you a flat turn in
heavy seas because it is lightweight and more buoyant, while other cats will tend to
lean and dig into the seas.
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9.
How can your cat have more storage and more room than the bigger fishing cats?
By having the liner separate from the cap, you get the full use of the beam inside
your cockpit area. Whereas, you are losing about 6 to 8 inches of cockpit space under
each side of the gunwale with other cats. And by having the space under the gunwale
open, we are able to utilize it to install cockpit lighting and add rod racks for storage.
And also as a safety feature, you get the complete footing stability under the gunwale
rather than having only enough room for your toes like on other cats. And we have a lot
more storage because storage are well organized. We utilize every available space below
deck, where otherwise wasted, and organized above deck space efficiently as to not take
up useable open space. Just a couple of examples: The step-up platform serves as a stable
casting surface as well as a comfortable space for sunning, while under the platform, it
offers one large fish box and another large storage box. Under the deck are four
storage boxes. The two forward boxes can hold six large bumpers in each box and an
8-pack life vest and two throw cushions, plus a fire extinguisher, with room to spare.
Or, we can convert these boxes to store 4 9-foot fishing rods inside for out of the way
rod storage. The two aft boxes will hold a 128-quart Cooler in each box with room left
around the cooler.
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10.
How many fish boxes are there? What size?
On the 246 model, there is one 270-quart fish box at the bow that drains directly overboard.
At the aft, there are two storage boxes below deck that are made to hold a 128-quart
Igloo cooler in each box. On the 306 model, there is one 383-quart fish box at the bow
that drains directly overboard. Below deck aft, there are two 489-quart fish boxes that
pump out with a macerator. All fish boxes are fully insulated.
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11.
What kind of fuel tanks do you use? How are they installed?
We use a high-performance .125 aluminum #5052, manufactured to NMMA and USCG standards.
The tanks are tar coated for corrosion resistance, for long life. The tanks do not at
all touch the the hull. They are rested on foam platforms, between two bulkheads, and
then foamed in place to avoid any vibrations and hull-shock, an important factor if you
don't want to work on the fuel tanks during the life of the boat. All hose connections
are double clamped for a secure fit. There are no access for water to get to the tanks,
except through the deck plates. As long as you maintain a tight sea around those plates,
the tanks will stay dry. No problems. There are two separate tanks with separate fills.
As a standard feature, we added a convenient feature by giving you access to either tanks
with either engines by a simple turn of a valve.
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