Frequently Asked Questions

Questions and Answers-on a weekly basis we get numerous questions about our products. We have put together the most common questions and listed them below, along with our responses. We hope this will be a valuable resource when researching for your boat and we expect that it will grow over time with new questions that have not been asked yet.

Question-How long does it take to get my boat once the order is placed?

Answer-Probably the question we get asked the most from people. We build our boats one at a time, to the customer’s specifications once the order is placed. The order becomes “official” once the deposit is received. We generally schedule one boat per week on the calendar; once a boat is finished and shipped or picked up locally, we then move on to the next one. How long it takes to get your boat depends on how many boats are already scheduled when your order is made. It can be as little as one week or as long as six months, depending on how busy we are. As a general rule during our busiest time from February to September, six weeks is about average.

Question-What is the best way to place an order?

Answer-We generally like to review your boating needs first and go over the different models, designs, and options with you first, before the order is place. This is best done by phone or through email or even Facebook Messenger. Many opt to use our on-line order form found on our website. Once we go through these details, I will send you an itemized quote, showing all the features and the final cost for your boat. Once you have a chance to review all the details, you can then place your order by submitting a deposit which puts you on our build list. Once that is received, we will update the itemized quote and send it back to you, showing the deposit, the serial number, and the due date.

Question-How much is the deposit?

Answer-The deposit is generally 50% of the total cost of the boat but can vary with each individual. It represents our respective commitment to provide the boat you want in the time we promise it. Sometimes financial situations occur with customers between when they place their order and when we build it; we understand that and will refund your deposit if this situation arises.

Question-What is the best boat model for me?

Answer-We encourage a customer to first ask how many people they want to carry and then how they plan to transport it from home to water. Those two questions will quickly narrow down what your options are as each boat model is designed for a specific number of people (one to five with our current models) and are generally designed to fit in the back of a full-size truck, on top of a roof rack, on a trailer or flatbed truck, or some combination of deflating the raft/pontoons and/or partially or fully taking apart the frame. From there, how, where, and what you fish for is also important in determining the boat model best suited to your needs.

Question-Can I add an additional seat to one of your existing models?

Answer-If it can safely be done and falls within the original design of the raft or pontoon capabilities, chances are we already have that option available for you and is listed on our website. Often people want to overload or ask too much from their boats. Our job is to make sure the boat you get will properly work for needs and will provide you a safe platform to fish from or transport you down the river.

Question-Do you do any custom work?

Answer-People may have a different opinion of what custom is but generally speaking, because we build our boats one at a time, as ordered by the customer, we can often do specialized or custom work. It really just depends on what that entails. Ken has been building inflatable boat frames for over two decades and pretty well knows what can and cannot be done effectively. Where we get into trouble on occasion is when a customer wants to do something contrary to what Ken’s expertise and experience tells him. If you have a design or idea that he thinks can be done and is willing to build fine; if he says otherwise, it is best to take his advice.

Question-Do you offer any pro deals or guide, or military discounts?

Answer-Pro deals were a way to get products into the hands of industry professionals so they could use the products and provide valuable feedback and pass along reviews by word of mouth, with the hope that more product would be sold to the consumer by the producer. Having worked in a fly shop for a few years, I was fortunate to buy rods, reels, and other gear at discounted prices. Most of these products are from large business and companies that incorporate a very high markup rate, allowing discounts of up to 65% or so and still make a profit. The boating industry is not setup to have markups at anywhere near this level and we are a very small company. We feel our products are already competitively priced with other comparable products on the market. Compare some of the features we offer (oars, seats, frame components, anchor systems, etc.) and I think you will find that we offer many quality products hand made in the USA that are comparable to products made overseas…chances are even less. Therefore, we feel, in many ways, that the customer is already getting more value from a Catchercraft product that pro deals are not applicable to our business model. While in the past, we have offered discounts to guides and military personnel, for many of the same reasons, this is not part of our standard practice.

Question-how tough are the pontoons and rafts? Should I worry about puncturing them or repairing them while on the water?

Answer-The PVC material used on our products is not the same PVC material used to make inflatable pool toys that you buy at a big box store. Our products are made to withstand the rigors of outdoor use and fishing. These boats generally bounce off rocks, boulders, logs, etc. that are naturally found in rivers. You should avoid non-natural items in the rivers like car bodies, fence posts, barbed wire, and the like. Generally, these products never need repair from normal use and usually problems are encountered while transporting your boat to and from the river by not being tied down properly or a faulty trailer or the like. Generally, if they start to slowly lose air, it is often a matter of tightening a valve. Over time small pin holes may develop but many more people get many more years out of them than the original warranty than people that have failures before the warranty is up. When properly cared for, many customers have got 20 years out of these products or more.

Question-What is the warranty?

Answer-Either five or 10 years against manufacture defects to the original owner, depending on the model.

Question-how much air pressure should the rafts or pontoons be inflated to? Do I need a gauge?

Answer-3.6 PSI is the recommended pressure for our inflatable rafts and pontoons while the drop stitch floor can withstand up to 6.5 PSI. While you can get a pressure gage to measure the amount of air, I use the “common sense” approach in that I check the firmness of the boat with my hand and usually can tell whether it needs more or not. If you think it seems too soft, it probably is. If you think it feels too hard, it probably is. Also, pressure will vary with altitude and temperature. If you are using a K-pump or the foot pump, you will notice when it is getting too full as it will get more difficult to pump as it gets closer to the maximum pressure.

Question-Do I need a spare oar?

Answer-It depends if you plan on losing one or breaking one. I have never broken an oar but I could see how someone could do it. I have, however, lost two (different occasions) during daily trips. One time I have a spare and one time I did not. It was not fun floating down the Kenai with one oar! I generally carry a spare or at least, put my oars on tethers so if one does accidently slip out of the oar lock, it will not get away from me.

Question-What is the difference between a pontoon and a raft?

Answer-A pontoon boat has two separate inflatable pieces strapped to a frame and is generally open in the front and the back. The total width of the boat is determined by the diameter of each pontoon and the width of the frame. A raft is closed in the front and the back and the total width is determined on the raft itself and not the frame. In other words, the width of the raft will never change while the width of a pontoon can be as wide or narrow as you like because it is completely determined by the width of the frame.

Question-Which is better a pontoon boat or a raft?

Answer-While I can’t really say which is better because there are too many variables to consider I can provide the advantages of each and help you determine which might be better for your needs. A raft has more carrying capacity per foot because it has more floatation as the front and back are enclosed. In other words, a 9 foot raft will carry more than a 9 foot pontoon boat. A raft has a full floor, unless the floor is eliminated like our Freestone by design. A pontoon boat, while a full floor can be integrated into the design, generally to save weight or cost, floors are often only placed where a person may stand. A pontoon boat, if lightly loaded, can be very maneuverable and fast on the water while rafts, often are used with larger loads, are prone to be more sluggish on the water if more loaded to capacity. There is generally less frame on rafts and more frame on pontoon boats, which can make the total weight per foot of a raft lighter than a pontoon.

Question-What is the best floor for fishing?

Answer-I prefer a solid, rigid floor for fishing; these are generally found on pontoon boats. For years and still with many raft manufacturers, the I-beam floor was the only option. Over the last few years, a newer, more advanced technology and production process that allows for a more rigid, flat floor has emerged that dramatically increased the air pressure within the floor, creating a much harder, more rigid floor for standing. This floor type is called a drop-stitch floor. Unless I am specifically designing a raft with integrated standing floors into the frame, I will always choose a drop stitch floor over an I-beam floor. The only problem with standing floors integrated into the frame design, it adds weight and costs more. For a majority of anglers, a drop-stitch floor allows for plenty of stability and firmness to confidently fish without the added weight or expense of integrated, external floors.

Question-What class rapids are your boats rated for?

Answer-I get this question weekly…folks often ask what class rapids our boats are rated for because they hear tales about what other boat manufacturers claim they can handle, like that tells something special about the overall quality. Don’t let the claim of others fool you. It is the skill, experience, and scouting of the rower, in addition to boat quality, that determines what class rapids can be handled by a particular boat. Just because a sales person tells you their products will handle Class V rapids does not mean you should be taking down a Class V rapid if you are not qualified.

Question-What size and type of rope do you need for the Leelock anchor system?

Answer-The Leelock unit works great for anchor rope management but it does require a certain size and style of rope to work best. I would look for 1/2” rope in a solid core (not hollow) so there is enough substance within the rope to lock into place without slipping. The pulleys are rated for 7/16” but if you tape the ends of the rope with electrical tape, it will fit through the pulleys just fine.

Question-I bought a Catchercraft boat but now my circumstances have changed and I need to sell it. What is it worth?

Answer-This is nearly an impossible question for us to answer for you because only you know what you will accept and how motivated you are to sell it. Regardless of what the original price of an item was, it is only “worth” what someone else is willing to pay for it. That being said, because of our current situation worldwide (with products in limited quantities and long waiting periods to complete orders) the used market should be favorable for selling.