Marauder Generation 2 quickie

Today at Mendo, I picked up my second new Cobra Marauder... which is the second generation design.

My first boat had a chronic leak around the rectangular hatch that could not be repaired due to the frame apparently being a tad warped during installation.  Sean (GWKC) has been most gracious in helping me with this issue and going to bat for me to have the boat warranty replaced.  He spent a lot of his valuable time going over my boat, leak testing it, tweaking things like hatch cams and sealing leaky rivets, etc.  I can't say enough about Sean's willingness to go the extra mile for me to make it right.  As luck would have it, this means I get the new model of the boat as well. 

The newly revised design accomplishes a couple of significant improvements. Mainly, they moved the seat back about 3 or 4 inches.  It doesn't sound like a lot but it makes a TON of difference in a number of areas... 

- First of all, my legs now lay flat on the deck with my heels in the very front footwell which makes this feel like an entirely different boat.  I'm 6'4" with a 34" inseam and this boat now can legitimately claim "big man boat" status.  The extra length also makes the much talked-about shape of the front footwell pretty much a non-issue (they may have improved it slightly as well).

- Secondly, this has caused the center of gravity to be shifted slightly rearward so the bow rides higher in the water and IMO makes the boat track better.

- Thirdly, this allowed the center hatch to be placed a few inches farther toward the rear to make extra room in the front of the cockpit to mount things like fishfinders. 

- Fourthly, it puts the position of the front rodholders in a more optimal place for trolling and paddling with rods out since they are now slightly farther forward with relation to the seat than they once were. 

Other changes include additional surface area just behind the seat for more freedom in positioning the two rod holders that go there.

The only negative of this change is that the tankwell moved farther back so there is no longer room for the 10" round hatch in the very rear.  Sean thinks he might have a 6" bucketed hatch that will fit there.  Stay tuned.

Erik

Erik:

Here's hoping that the new boat works out.  Definitely lots of small improvements through out.  There is definitely a lot more room.  I used to be on the end of the foot wells too, now I am on the second or next to last.  There is also more room for rod holders behind the seat, which I had no idead they were going to address.  The original was a great boat, but tough for those over 6 feet.  This definitely opens up this platform to a bigger (pun intended) audience.  I am building one for myself, and look forward to trying it on the rockfish opener when we return.

Well this little guy can't wait to get his! Sounds like a lot of really nice little tweaks.

what are those black things right next to the round hatch? Pocket storage?

Yeah... they are little nylon pockets with velcro closure along the top.

I just got a Maruader too, and I love it. I was worried about not having a rudder, which supposedly wont be out untill next year, but after paddling it dont think I really need it as much as I thought. Tho it would be nice to have in windy conditions when you're dog tired and got a long way to go. It will be interesting to see if they actually come out with a rudder design for this thing.
I think my hatches are leaking, Im ending up with a little bit of water inside each time I go out. I hope thats where its coming from. Anyway the rubber gasket they put in for the hatches I dont think is  greatest so I just ordered some rubber off of a really cool website and Im going to redo the gaskets  around all of the hatches.
Man this boat is pretty heavy, I gotta say that. Especially after being spoiled by carrying around my 38 pound 14'8" kevlar closed deck kayak.

Definitely not 38#'s...but not as heavy as some either.  Definitely different tools for different jobs.  I have come to the conclusion that ALL hatches leak...some more than others.  Even some of the smarter hatches out there, like the one on the Hobie Quest I paddled in baja leaked quite a bit..in very mild water.  If your getting more than a few cups however, I would look into it.

That said hope your enjoying the utility of your new SOT, sounds like surf launching is at least a little easier.

Sean, Erik mentioned you were looking into a smallish Malibu bucket hatch (6-inches or so) that might fit in the rear of the Gen-2 Marauder. Any information on your exploration/experiments? I'd like to move the battery back there to open up the full hatch in front of the seat for gear.

I sill have not recieved a final product    I'll keep you guys posted.  FYI I put my battery under the footwell and its been great.

How much the Marauder weigh?


Doug

Doug,
It seems a little lighter than the Prowler 15 at 58 pounds and Cobra states it is 52 pounds though rotomoulded boats have some variation.
I am going with the Marauder for two key reasons: 1) increased and much more accessible in hull storage and 2) dry ride so my gear in the cockpit isn't continuously deluged and water-logged. I don't care that much about me getting wet--its the gear. Although in Fall winter and Spring, not being wet is an excellent way to avoid wind-chill since I'll be fishing year-round this year. December in the Forebay can be cold in air temperature but productive. The overall water temps stay in the high 50s to low 60s year-round because much of the water come from the base of the dam from the lake bottom like a typical tail water trout fishery. the top few feet can get warm in the Summer though.

On the subject fo the transducer mount: I am putting together a 10-battery 'New School' scwafish-inspired battery box using 10 2500-mAh AAs as well. It should be light enough to jaw in snuggly in a foot well as Sean suggests. A 4Ah 12-volt Gel Cell is too heavy for that--it made me worry it would end up a 'loose cannon'  in the hull in rougher seas, surf launches, or if I flipped the kayak for some unanticipated reason.

BTW, any tip on securing gear instead the 'hold' on the Marauder? To keep things from shifiting, I am thinking of a couple of loops of webbing half-hitched around the scupper wells and usign a carabiner to attach a few mesh stuff sacks whcih have the tackle boxes and other gear in them. I'd do this on the transducer/bettery dies leaving the other side clear for rods. Of course I can also find a way to tie down my Plano box in the tank well--that worked great for gear in the Prowler.

In my Marauder gen.1. I installed bungie cord connecting the scuppers front to back and side to side inside the hull forming a rectangle.Then I found a rectangular plastic tub that fit in between.I believe I used a litter box with the top flange cut off.It slides nicely front to back between the bungie on the sides,and travel is limited by the side to side bungie.This way I use bags or lock&lock containers that I can access from the round hatch.It's fast to access and every thing stays put unless you do the surf washing machine thing!Even then everything is still inside

In my Marauder gen.1. I installed bungie cord connecting the scuppers front to back and side to side inside the hull forming a rectangle.Then I found a rectangular plastic tub that fit in between.I believe I used a litter box with the top flange cut off.It slides nicely front to back between the bungie on the sides,and travel is limited by the side to side bungie.This way I use bags or lock&lock containers that I can access from the round hatch.It's fast to access and every thing stays put unless you do the surf washing machine thing!Even then everything is still inside

Mark....Excellent idea!

Hmmmm. Thanks Mark, you got me thinking on something similar. My Marauder is Gen 2 but I think genrally the same dimensions so that concept would work.