Predator boats have been around for many years. Initially boats were made for personal use and then extended to friends we fished with who asked if we could make a boat for them.Even in those early days our boats were being made in fibreglass as opposed to moulded plastic as most other bait boats are today. ABS plastic is a weaker alternative to fibreglass.

 Everything gets dropped at some point in its life, and this proves an expensive outcome for plastic boats.Most bait boats of today use water pumps as their means of propulsion which can be unreliable and only delivers inefficient performance at slow displacement speeds (around 2 knots).

 Predator Bait Boats have always used propellers as they offer a highly effective delivery of power .i.e. there is not much wastage from the motor to the prop.In the early days Predator 1 was the boat in use, unmodified since its conception, with its deep v hull and its instant drop bait bucket, powered by a servo holding a rod through an aluminium hopper arrangement.

This boat, powered by a single prop with a gearbox sending the boat out at displacement speed, proved to be extremely reliable and quite a few are still in use today. The hopper was released rather crudely by using a servo to withdraw a retaining pin.

  Predator P I

This was the owner’s boat for many years.The hull was different from PI but had a top load bait hopper as opposed to the internal design of P1. It still had the pin servo bait drop mechanism which had to be reset manually once the boat was back at the swim. The motor and gearbox arrangement was the same as were the navigation lights and now, the headlight was remotely controlled from the handset.

                                                                                 Predator P II

This was a radical rethink of the boat in regards to the hull design.A friend thought it would be interesting to experiment with a bait boat that was designed to go faster than the normal displacement speed and still have the function of bait dropping; this would slash the time that was needed to set multiple rods at distance for French or other large water fishing.

On average we found placing 3 rods at 100 yards or more would take anything up to 30 minutes. By increasing the speed that the boat could deliver its load and return was drastically reduced. The boats speed relative to PI was around 500% faster...

 The hull was a shallow “v” and sat low in the water. It had a motorised bait drop “bucket” which would revolve though 360 degrees dispensing the payload as it rotated. This boat had super bright blue flashing leds to indicate bait drop activation which would extinguish once the rotation completed. These blue leds we found to be essential at distance and at night. Predator III had all the usual features but included higher power rated motors which proved to be high in maintenance and also battery hungry.

 A first for Predator, this boat was fitted with a very long range Humminbird Sonar. In trials we had a good depth signal over distances of 300 yards. This far exceeded our expectations and, indeed the range obtained by other bait boat manufacturers.

Predator  P III

This was the same design hull as PIII but with an integrated and fully controlled servo bait dropper as are the current predator boats. P IV was also fitted with sonar.

Predator P IV

This was a custom build for an angler who wanted a specific type of boat, this saw the return of the “Huntsman” deep V hull. This hull was designed from a full scale boat which needed to be able to “plane” in difficult conditions (up to force 6 weather) and was to compete in the round Britain offshore races. The Huntsman design went on to win many accolades and awards.

Predator V was the first of the twin prop boats. This bait boat had to be able to “plane” at speed and not sit too low in the water. Successful testing was carried out using this arrangement. The gearboxes were modified for the boat to be fast and economic with its battery use. A new system was developed using higher capacity batteries with conventional motors, this negated the need for expensive high maintenance motors.

Among the custom build requirements were a bright luxeon led headlight, visual bait drop indication (flashing blue leds), navigation lights, power on reminder light, twin props, long range sonar, a large bait hopper and a unique fairing incorporating red leds to aid with night loading of the hopper (red will not ruin your night vision).

Like its predecessor a powered  servo hopper, remotely operated from the handset in such a way that it would allow a controlled, gradual release of the bait, so you could lay a bait trail if you wanted to, or a full release in one go as normal. This then activated the flashing blue indicator lights. This was groundbreaking territory as no longer did we have a large mound of bait in one place but a well scattered circle of bait thereby being a much more attractive proposition to carp.  Again this boat was quick …. able to place a bait and return in less than 3 minutes!

                                                                       Predator P V

This boat was built on the successful style of Predator V but with some modifications. The same deep V hull was used with the fairing aft to aid with bait capacity. Wiring and hardware was now totally enclosed. 

A fan in the electronics box helps to cool the speed controllers as they work, and yes this boat was even faster due to an improved fibre glass hull. This build was complex in its development in order to give the all important reliability and be hardwearing.

                                                                       Predator VI

The latest build in the fleet has a complete overhaul of the hull. This hull will now incorparate the (v shape)  Huntsman hull. Retaining the trim angle of 7 degrees.

An improved deck incorporating watertight covers is included in the design. The aft fairing is retained as are all the other useful features from Predator VII’s ancestors, higher capacity battery, navigation lights, halogen or luxeon headlight , bait hopper illumination, this is to be the boat offered as standard.

Predator P VII

The long range Sonar system can be specified at the time of placing your order