# Carolina Skiff JVX 18



## Splittine (Nov 24, 2007)

What's the good, bad and the ugly....other than the looks.


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## Splittine (Nov 24, 2007)

No one's fished, own or been on one of these?


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## cody&ryand (Oct 3, 2007)

They will beat you to death in any kind of chop but that's every flat bottom boat


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## Splittine (Nov 24, 2007)

Yeah I've owned those style boats in the past. Guess I'm wanting to know more about fit, finish and such. I haven't had time to lay my eyes on one yet.


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## weedline (Aug 20, 2011)

very well made boat never heard 1 bad thing about them outside of the ride i would look at the 21 or 23 the 18 is narrow where as the stlghtly longer hull is alot widder


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## Jason (Oct 2, 2007)

Chase, there was a good looking Sundance 17-18 ft'r (same hull as Carolina Skiff) at Avalon/90 but it disappeared overnight. If it comes back I'll let ya know...


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## NoMoSurf (Oct 2, 2007)

Weird! I posted a reply to this right after you posted it. But it is not there...

It went something like this:

The Good:
Great boats, well made but spartan interiors. EASY to clean. Very light and will run good speeds on small (for it's size) motors. Thus it is economical to operate. Fantastic ride and handling on smooth waters.

The Bad:
Spartan interior is not comfy for those that need comforts. Very little storage for it's size. The flat bottom will pound the hell out of you in rough/choppy water. Choppy water also makes for wet ride because they are known to "spit" spray out in front of the boat and then you drive right into it. Great on a summer afternoon, not so great on a winter morning...

I have one of the early 70's Kingfisher 16ft skiffs that Carolina may have copied. I've never seen official word that they copied them, but it sure looks similar and mine was made in 71. You do the math. haha Anyway, I love the boat and use it often. Just dont put anyone in the front when choppy.


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## wmflyfisher (Jan 17, 2008)

I owned that exact CS back in 2011 for 2 years. Bought it new with a 70 Yamaha. Great little boat that served us well for the time we had it. The longer 20ft is the same width. If you want a wider boat you will have to move up to the DLV. 

It did ride better than the standard DLX hull due to the slight V that was incorporated into the JVX models. I had a custom removable t-top installed on mine and loved it. I'd buy the boat again for strictly inshore purposes.


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## NoMoSurf (Oct 2, 2007)

I've heard that the DVX gets rid of the spitting problem. Somehow I thought you were talking about the JLX or whatever it is called.

Those newer ones are alot nicer on the inside. But basicly the Carolinas are a love em or hate em kind of boat. They just are what they are. I happen to love em. I'm a no frills kinda guy. But hey, look at the boats in my sig and you can tell that! haha


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## wmflyfisher (Jan 17, 2008)

Yep, they are making the interiors a lot nicer now than they used to. The DLV has a lot of seat options with a front cushion option. I'm a no frills guy too and we really enjoyed ours. Simple and easy to clean/work on.


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## weedline (Aug 20, 2011)

wmflyfisher the hull has changed i havent kept up with that i was refering to the older flat bottom there are a few in the 21 to 24 ft range that are supper wide dont know the models but have fished on a few out 15 20 miles out and its a great boat for what it is lots of commercial guys use them so they can take a beating


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## wmflyfisher (Jan 17, 2008)

weedline said:


> wmflyfisher the hull has changed i havent kept up with that i was refering to the older flat bottom there are a few in the 21 to 24 ft range that are supper wide dont know the models but have fished on a few out 15 20 miles out and its a great boat for what it is lots of commercial guys use them so they can take a beating


Oh ok yeah they are tanks and like you said lots of commercial guys use them.


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## Skiffer (Jan 28, 2015)

I downsized from a larger boat last year to the JV15, which has a similar modified-V bow. It does ride rougher than a V hull, but I will live with it for the stability of the flat hull at the transom, great fuel economy and good speed with a smaller engine. It is the best flats boat I have ever owned. I have had no quality issues to this point and upkeep has been minimum, compared to previously owned boats (seven over 40 years). I have put over 500 inshore miles on it in the last year (as measured by my GPS), so it has been used heavily. Great fishing boat, just stay out of heavy chop.


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## kwfish (Aug 7, 2014)

I purchased this boat new about 17 months ago. It Has a 70 HP Suzuki. I like it . It does what I expected from it. 

The Bad: I don't like the flip back seat cooler. I am not sure what I would do here but I will do something different.
I don't like the way the front live well is set up, too awkward. I will fix this also,

The Good: I like the ride. Its stable and feels safe. Is a great skinny water boat. Easy to clean interior surface.

The Ugly: I don't think there is an ugly. I think it is what it is, a durable, no frills boat.

Overall I would buy it again. It does what I bought it to do.

I hope this helps.


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## stevenattsu (Apr 24, 2009)

I just bought a 21 DLX and I know some one with the DVX and the DLX is a dryer riding boat


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