THE GOOD: Take it anywhere you have more than 5 inches of water. Stable and maneuverable. Easy to handle, even with one person. Cheap to buy, zero maintenance to speak of. Comfortable for one person. Can mount a gas and trolling motor at the same time. Allows you to fish lakes and rivers where jet-skis and 200 hp pleasure boats cannot go.
THE BAD: It's small. Carrying two degrades the fun somewhat. Slow, even with an appropriate outboard. No storage to speak of. Could be at a huge disadvantage in open water.
THE VERDICT: I love this thing. And you will too, as long as you realize it's limitations.
I've been out of the boat game for many years now. I had a 14 foot aluminum boat that was nice, but kind of a pain to handle because of it's size and weight. Even though it had a trailer, it could be challenging to launch and recover. Without a dedicated boat launch, it wasn't practical to use by one person. I kept it for over 20 years and sold it at a profit when I finally got rid of it.
I tried a canoe for a while, but a canoe is just not fun to fish out of. It was low to the water, tippy, and hard to maneuver. Even with an electric motor, it's a long reach back to the motor mount. Granted, it was fast when under power, but it was also hard to get it to turn because of it's length. And, hit the power when you had the motor sideways and you were going swimming.
I had looked at these small plastic bass boats for a while. They seemed like a good solution to the obstacles that kept me from going fishing. I put the word out that I was looking for one, and one of my in-laws turned me on to this one which I picked up for $500. It was a 2016 model, and it looked to be in mostly good condition.
The particular model I ended up with was a SunDolphin Sportsman 8, but it hardly matters. There are tons of these boats sold under various trade names (Field and Stream Angler, Pond Prowler, Bass Buster, etc.) and they all follow the same formula...two piece plastic clam-shell design for the top and bottom, filled with foam, and a tunnel hull/mini pontoon configuration. Usually, they come in 8' or 12' foot configurations, and from the name, you can see mine is an 8. I haven't seen any functional difference between any of them...just minor cosmetic details.
Once I had the registration transferred, I began outfitting it. One of the seats was missing. I took the remaining seat to the local high school and had the welding shop kids use it as a pattern to fabricate a new one. Using an old plastic chair top, I mounted it to the base with a swivel I got from Amazon for $11. I was then up and running with a second swivel seat, which actually is more comfortable than the one from the factory.
As part of the deal, I got a 55 lb thrust Newport Vessels trolling motor, so that was taken care of. Let me say, 55lb thrust moves the little boat with authority, even on a windy day. This was into the wind on power level 2.
I also got a deep cycle battery in good condition. First order of business was to get a gas outboard for some of the larger lakes around here. And I also ended up getting a lithium ion battery to replace the deep cycle so that I would have more electric range and my payload would be lighter. Good part is, the Sportsman 8 has motor mounts front and back, so you can have a gas outboard and an electric. How cool is that?
So, am I happy with my purchase? Weather has kept me from testing extensively, but the little I have gotten to use it I have enjoyed. Let's look at several aspects of the boat in more detail.
Size - I thought this would be a major problem, but it isn't. The boat seems plenty spacious enough to be comfortable, even for being out on the water all day. You can only really put your feet up if you have your chair pointed straight ahead or on a 3/4 angle...if you turn it sideways, your feet might dangle over. Of course, I'm taller than the average person, so that might not be an issue for someone else.
I keep the battery/trolling motor up front and gas and oil in the back, just in case I need to refill either on the fly. Making the seat supports arched means you can keep stuff under them. I'm considering building a box and mounting it to the seat to add some extra storage...because there is none. No compartments, no boxes, no bins, etc. Just detents on the sides of the boat where you can put cups, cans, or bottles. I store fishing rods along one side and the paddle on the other, just because that seems to be the best place to put them. Adding permanent storage would involve drilling directly into the boat. Not sure what's behind the plastic, but this may be something I attempt at some point.
Two people in the 8 foot version approaches the limits of what I would want to do for an extended period of time. You really are close to the other person, but not enough to make fishing impossible. It does feel cramped and you have to be really careful that you do not end up tangling with the other person.
Durability - The thing is built like a tank. It weighs around 100 lbs, according to online sources...I'd say that's accurate. It doesn't feel floppy, wobbly, or twisty like a canoe. The bottom of mine has some scratches, but it doesn't appear to be anything close to damage that would cause a catastrophic failure. Something you will notice and perhaps become alarmed...some water does collect between the top and bottom clamshell parts. They are NOT sealed, nor do they really need to be, since the insides of the boat are foam. On mine, there's a plug at the front that allows the water that collects internally to drain. It's not necessary, because when you stand the boat on it's nose, the water seeps out of the seam around the front. Do this occasionally if the water inside bothers you, but thus far, I haven't noticed a large amount of water collecting and didn't notice that it affected performance when using the boat.
Ease of handling - One person can easily launch and land this boat. I carry it in a utility trailer without issues. On the water, it's very predictable and performs like you would expect. Don't enter any races with it. With a 2hp gas motor, expect about 4-5 mph, which means you'll be able to outrun most paddlers and trolling motor powered boats.
Versatility - About the only place you wouldn't want to go with this is on open water. Outside of that, ponds, rivers, and small lakes are all within reach. I even navigated some shoals with it without any problems. You literally can fish in places that other boats couldn't dream of going. Seasonally navigable small creeks are now on the table for fishing.
Cost - I'd never buy one of these new. I estimate I saved between $300-500 buying secondhand, and there's absolutely nothing wrong with mine. You might get lucky like I did and get the trolling motor and battery thrown in on the deal as well. That puts it well within the range of even someone on a limited income, provided they can save up for a while.
Final Word - You know you will have limitations in what amounts to basically an 8.5' by 3.5' space. But if you understand that going in and accept these boats for what they are, you will be very happy with what you can do with one of these. I don't mind tying up a few hundred in a boat/motor package that I can launch and recover myself and doesn't take up much space when it's not being used. And, at the price point, a cheap gas outboard greatly increases the range, making this a serious vessel for use on small rivers and medium sized lakes, especially those with horsepower limitations. The price point is reasonable enough that you could even use this as a second boat, just for small bodies of water when you didn't want to use a larger boat.
I plan to do a lot of testing this summer and of course I will report my experiences here. I'm excited to get started.
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