Porta Bote

[ryan]

I am thinking of buying a 12' Porta Bote for fishing in the smaller lakes.

They offer some distinct advantages that really appeal to me; light weight, strong, easy storage and transportation. Of course one of the obvious disadvantage is the assemply and disassembly

of the boat. i was wondering if anyone here have some experience with these boats and can possibly offer some advise. i am looking at a used one maybe from the US as well as a small outboard. This site offers some insight into the porta bote. Nice comments here so far especially from previous users. In addition to the stability, its supposed to be stronger thatn comparable aluminum boats in terms of handling waves and "hitting" rocks etc

 

Someone asked for pricing. I found these prices online from a dealer in Saskatoon. I would look at buying in the US. Too expensive here

14' Porta-Bote Price $3,700 (CAD)

12' Porta-Bote Price $2,950 (CAD)

10' Porta-Bote Price $2,850 (CAD)

 

US Pricing here

 

Thanks

Edited July 24, 2013 by ryan

[BillM]

I'd look into a Sportspal before that thing.

[NAW]

No advice, as I have never used one before..

 

But I did get a chuckle out of their website... Some co-op student had a blast on Photoshop!

Edited July 24, 2013 by N.A.W

[Ralph Field]

I've used them and I see no real advantage to them over a canoe. Storage wise you can suspend the canoe fron the roof of your garage, assuming that you have one. They are no more stable than a canoe and you still need a roof rack to carry them.

[irishfield]

They are no more stable than a canoe .

I seriously disagree with this statement. Mine was more stable than the identical sized aluminum tinny. I believe you are referring to the old canoe style portaboat and not the square transom version that is sold these days.

 

Picture of my old one...with wood framed seats.

 

 

..and the newer rotomolded seat version that I sold to Terry.

 

[Terry]

they are unbelievably stable

 

but the fold points on the transom are  cracking     on me....duct tape

Edited July 24, 2013 by Terry

[Rich]

I inquired on the site about pricing, no reply. What does one of these run for??

[bow slayer]

i found a few for sale state side ...prices range from about 500- 1000 used depending on size and age. they go for starting around 2000 up here. I talked to 2 owners last year and both had owned them for a few seasons and both loved them. I watched the one guy unfold his,took about 5 minutes to be ready and seemed fairly simple.They left them tied to the dock for the week,neither had a drop of water in them from leaking.

[Rich]

Awesome. When my inflatable bites the dust, im switching to one of those.

 

After car topping a canoe for 6 years ill say, it is NOT the same.

[irishfield]

Terry... go into Princess Auto and buy a roll of "Tarp Tape". It sticks very well and will last a long time. Stop drill just below the crack. Similar happened to my original one and I had it taped for at least 3 years before selling it and the crack never progressed any further.

[Ralph Field]

I seriously disagree with this statement. Mine was more stable than the identical sized aluminum tinny. I believe you are referring to the old canoe style portaboat and not the square transom version that is sold these days.

 

Picture of my old one...with wood framed seats.

 

 

..and the newer rotomolded seat version that I sold to Terry.

 

You are correct yours looks completely different than the one we owned.

[fish4me]

have a look at quickboats as an alternative

 

[ryan]

Fish4me, thanks for the post. The quickboats looks pretty cool as well. However they are pricey as well as relatively new in the market and have no history. A few people here in this forum have used the portabote and are giving honest opinions about them. That is why I posted here. The brochures and sales spiel are always very impressive but the true review will be from the end users. Also there are more affordable used porta botes out there, especially in the US.

[Fish Farmer]

At first looking at you post I thought you were talking about a Portable toilet 12'

I think in my book that boat would be safer for me because I can't swim and in a canoe, it's a must for me to wear a life jacket.

[pidge]

Hey Ryan I've gone and sent you a pm. Greg, aka Pidge.

[gogu392]

Forget about canoe and boats, stinky pots.

Now the trend is kayak, I mean fishing kayaks.

There are tons of type to chose and cheaper than PortaBote.

Easy to carry in top of the car and launch. I put mine on water in 5-10 min.

I can cruse on Simcoe with no problem using trolling motor.

Have you seen one of these:

 

 

 

Have fun.

Edited July 27, 2013 by gogan