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Striking Value

THE SEA STRIKE 260B OFFERS THE FISHING FAMILY ALOT OF BOAT FOR THE MONEY

BY KARL ANDERSON

Thas been around for over 30 years, quietly delivering boats that meet customer needs. But these days the company is experiencing a major growth cycle—growing, not only as a company, but in the size of their models and their ability to reach and service customers through an everexpanding dealer network. We recently tested the new 260B on a breezy day out of Hillsboro Inlet, Florida and got a real feel for the boat as well as where the company is heading.

SeaStrike President Tom Thies is focused on new product development and building boats that his customers want. “The 260B was customer requested and driven as we looked to broaden our customer base and build the boats they want,” Thies said. “Our goal at SeaStrike is to build great boats at a great price, and the 260B offers a lot of value.”

Our test boat was powered with twin F150 Yamaha outboards, an economical power package. The 260B is a bracket boat, so the engines are mounted on the bracket, which is in turn, mounted to the transom. This setup puts the motors off the transom with a net effect of enhanced performance and safety— you end up with a square transom boat and full height transom.

She jumped on plane effortlessly with minimal bow rise and reacted well to trim tabs and engine trim. During our test, we carried 100 gallons of fuel in the 173-gallon tank, with three people aboard. The boat rode well in the crisp 15 to 18-knot southeasterly winds and sloppy seas outside the inlet.We loped along comfortably at 28 mph and feathered the throttles so we didn’t bang and slam—a considerable feat for a bottom that carries only 18-degrees of deadrise. The only spray we took came when I turned and came right into the head sea, throwing some water up that the wind caught and blew back on us.

For our speed test, we ran the 260B out to see what she’d do. At 3500 rpm she did 31mph burning 10.6 gph, and at 4000 rpm we reached 35.2 mph while burning 13.6 gph. Pushing up the throttles to 4500 rpm and burning 17.4 gph we ran a consistent 43.8mph, and turning 5300 rpm we reached 48 mph. She trolled nicely with a quiet wash in all directions, proved very stable in the trough, and was easy to steer into the wind with little push away from the wind. She also proved a capable drifter, with the bow falling off with the wind and the boat laying- to, making a nice, stable live bait or jigging platform.

Offering a generous layout, the 260B has a molded-in pulpit with anchor chute for easy storage and use. There is access to the anchor locker on the forward bulkhead of the bow cockpit. She has recessed cleats and a foredeck aluminum hand rail around the forward gunwale. With a raised foredeck there is ample room for the 21-gallon fish box all the way forward and a huge 70-gallon storage bin behind the fish box on the raised casting deck.

The new 260B has a large console that features a molded-in seat in front,with a large entrance in the front. Inside the console, there is a finished headliner, and great access to the back of the electronics dash and switch panels. SeaStrike offers a standard porta-potty or an optional electric head. On the business side of the console, the helm is to port and there is a nice dash that is capable of fitting the necessary electronics to rig this boat out right. Our test boat had an optional TTop with six rod holders across the aft end.

Aft of the console, a rocket launcher/leaning post had an optional Frigid Rigid cooler underneath. In the port and starboard side of the cockpit sole, there is a 26-gallon in-deck fish/storage box. There are four gunwale mounted rod holders in the cockpit and under-gunwale storage racks for mops, brushes and gaffs on each side of the boat. Along the transom there is a sink with bait station and cutting board on the port side and a 26-gallon livewell on the starboard side of the boat. Access to batteries and rigging is through the aft bulkhead at the transom with two large hatch doors making it very easy to get to those items.

The 260B is a clean and simple boat that offers ample storage, solid performance with a nice ride and superb value. It is certain to be at the top of the list for fishing families who want a lot of boat, with well thought-out and executed amenities, at a great price.

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