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I have been looking at used Cougar FTDs over the last few months and have decided that I would rather buy new. I just cant come to terms with paying north of 50k for a used boat! With that being said, this Caracal has thrown a wrench into my decision making…..to the point that reading the forums confuses me even more. I am coming out of a P2 and going to either boat will be night and day Im sure. I know the speed factor is a good bit different and I really dont care for speed as the lakes I fish either have speed limits or I just dont care to push it much past 70. I also know the width of the decks is very much in favor of the Caracal but does anyone know the difference in deck length from the TM to the console? Also, which boat do you feel would do better in swirling 2-3ftrs at 40mph? The lake I spend the most time on has a 40mph speed limit and sees a high amount of recreation which creates the 2-3ft swirling mess that you cant time. It seems I get pounded pretty good in my P2 in these conditions compared to my partners Z21 that pretty much eats it up but you get soaked. I am guessing shear weight is what helps the most.
I had two CougarFTDs and a Baycat. The Baycat I didnt like all that much. However I really liked the two Cougars I had. I traded my 09 CougarFTD for a 2015 Caracal. For me, the Caracal is the perfect rig. Its not as fast as the Cougar. My Cougar was capable of 80mph, my Caracal in the low 70s. Ive outgrown the speed thing. I seldom ever run much over 50 mph anyway. I really dont think there is much difference in the length from the TM to the consoles. I never measured it, but I surely dont notice any difference. I think most of the length difference is in the cockpit. Any bassboat, with maybe the exception of the Jaguar, is going to pound you at 40mph in swirling 2-3 footers. The bigger the boat, in most cases, the pounding will be less. You will not get wet in any BassCat in rough water. Ive had all of my Cats in some very rough stuff and just havent gotten wet at all. Another plus, for me, in the Caracal is the width. Ive never had very good balance, so I always use the butt seat up front while fishing. With the Cougar, if I had rods down on the deck, I had so little room for me to move around up there. With the Caracal and the butt seat in, rods on the deck, I have tons of room to comfortably move around on the front deck. Storage is about the same in each boat, especially if you get underseat storage in the Caracal. Either rig, Cougar or Caracal are just plain fantastic boats.
I went through the same thing. Here are my thoughts, which one will suit you best really depends on what style of fishing you do. If you fish open water mostly then I would go with the Caracal for the extra width. I personally do a lot of flipping and fishing tight areas with Cypress trees. I fish shallow tight waters much more than open water applications. Therefore, I went with the Cougar FTD. I felt the extra width would actually hurt me in some of the areas I fish. If I mainly fished open water then I would have went with the Caracal. The Cougar FTD will have a slight edge in rough water but the Caracal has a more nose down design and you will be able to keep the nose down and cut through the waves. Both models are great rigs, it boils down to what type of waters you fish and what style of fishing you predominately do.
Im definitely more of an open water fisherman that also has 3 young boys and also fish partner tournaments. For whatever reason, maybe because my mind was set on a Cougar, I almost would have to own a Caracal to convince myself its the right choice. I feel like I wouldnt second guess myself if I bought the Cougar for some reason.
There may be folks around you with both models that might be willing to take you out for some time on the water so you can experience each first hand.
Knowone with a Caracal and Im familiar with the cougar.
You fish more open water, and you have three young boys that will be fishing with you. Sounds like a Caracal would be the better choice.
I ordered on Nov 1 a Caracal and sold my 2015 P2 to a buddy. I made the change mainly because of the width of the front deck and the center rod locker. I get the feeling that I am going to trip over the 10 rods on the deck in the P2. I had a Gambler for years before the P2 lots of room and the Caracal has even more. I ordered it with a 225SHO and rear 10 and 26 gal tanks so that I would get the underseat storage and still have room for the pole pumps. Hopefully I will get it in Florida by the end of January ( please BCB LOL) so that I can fish in Florida until April. Whichever choice you make its a Bass Cat. Excellent Plus.
cougar would be my choice if they would only redesign the back deck like the lynxPERFECTION
We think most will be more satisfied with the Cougar FTD simply for the 250 engine. The Caracal is an “awesome” floor plan and some do prefer the larger beam. If you fish team events that might be a thought. If you dont we would go with a core 20 12 foot model and enjoy the performance.
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