Possibly getting a new boat. Need to bounce some questions off the IDO family

Looking at a Skeeter Solera. It’s their fish and ski model. I like how the bow converts from a fishing platform to comfy seating.

1) Any Skeeter owners out there that have info good or bad to share?

2) The batteries and bank charger are under the rear jump seats. It does not have a factory external charge port (unlike the WX series). I was told this is due to battery placement and I would be best off just going under the jump seat, and open the storage compartment each time to access the charging cord. I was told they could add an external charge port but it may be best to just open the compartment each time due to heat/proximity concerns? This just seems weird to me. If there is weather and I want to charge overnight I’d rather not have that compartment propped open. Plus an external port just seems SO much easier. Any input on this???

BK has one still. Think he got it to sun bath on the front deck. My neighbor just got one late last fall. Haven’t been in it on the water but it was a nice rig. Not really my style but if you like that style I can see why you would want one.

lindyrig79 wrote:

The batteries and bank charger are under the rear jump seats. It does not have a factory external charge port (unlike the WX series).

Well, I not sure where that came from but Deano installed one for me. Unless they changed the design I haven’t had an issue and believe me when I say it’s left on the charger all the time! And thanks for posting about this, I normally check the battery water levels in the fall, but forgot last year.

I don’t know how you fish, so I’m not going to pretend to be a boat salesman.
I’ve caught (walleyes), cats and sturgeon out of it. I’ve had it on Pepin with 3 foot waves (although some that saw the video claim they were 4 footers). I went with a 150 hp as that’s all yammie offered at the time. It goes faster then I want to go (passing 40 mph via gps).

I’ve used it extensively for Bald Eagle guiding on the river. My clients love the comfort.

If there was one thing that I would change (and they may have already) is that the Bimini top doesn’t cover the driver by a few inches. That leads to getting wet in a down pour. The other issue with the top is that when it’s laying down, the motor won’t trim up far enough. But it’s so easy to take off, I rarely have it on except for when I’m expecting weather.

Oh yes, Skeeter needs to come out with a self wipe down feature to keep the water spots off!

I would highly recommend our old friend Dean Marshall to dial you into the boat that works the best for you. He’s a straight shooter.

I have a 2013 Ranger 2050 Reata which has the same battery/charger/jump seat situation. My low-tech solution was to just attach a 3′ extension cord to the charge cord and run it out under the jump seat and onto the back deck. With the cover on it sticks out a couple inches so I don’t have to lift that up to plug it in. On the very rare occasion anyone actually sits in that jump seat I just pull it into the compartment so there isn’t any excessive weight it.

Thanks for the replies!

Thank you BK. Good information there. Yes, one of the first things I would do is have Canvas Craft modify the Bimini to actually attach to the windshield using a clear vinyl. The main reason I would use it would be weather so I want it dry. Sounds like an easy fix though.

The guys at Boat Center did say they could do an external charging port so that’s probably what I’d do.

Thanks Bass Eyes. I would probably have people using the jump seat often so looking for a more permanent solution. Just didn’t seem right what I heard about proximity / heat issues from leaving the compartment closed but wanted to hear from others.