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Jones Bros. Cape Fisherman 23

Many refinements have been made to the Jones Bros. Cape Fisherman 23, but one fact remains: It's a great boat for fishing the mid-Atlantic - or anywhere else, for that matter...
0310jones_368

0310jones_368

Fly-fishermen from New England down through the Carolinas have long been familiar with Jones Brothers boats. For more than 20 years, Jones Brothers has earned a sound reputation for designing hulls that run shallow yet tackle rough water with ease, a combination that’s well-suited for the inshore and nearshore fisheries of these regions.

Over the last couple of years, Jones Brothers made the decision to completely overhaul its manufacturing processes in an effort to eliminate all wood from its hulls. It was an ambitious undertaking, but the results have been very positive, and they are visible in the new Cape Fisherman 23, an excellent fly-fishing craft for nearshore anglers.

Design and Construction
Jones Brothers took a methodical approach when converting to an all-composite construction. Working with some of the area’s top captains, the company took its time retooling the hulls, paying careful attention to maintaining – if not improving – hull integrity.

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It settled on a PVC-foam core, which bonds to the boat’s resins and fiberglass and does not soak up moisture. The fiberglass stringer grid, meanwhile, is glued and glassed into place, as are the floor and bulkheads. Jones Brothers uses a resin in its hulls that allows the various parts to melt together, which results in a solid one-piece design from the hull’s exterior to the floor. What’s more, with the exception of the center of the hull (where the glass is at its thickest), the widest unsupported span is only 8 inches. This results in an extremely durable hull and quiet ride.

The 23 features a nonskid cockpit and gunwales and a self-bailing cockpit. With upper and lower sport hatches, hydraulic steering and a 90-gallon fuel tank, it’s ready to rock.

Running and Fishing
The conversion to composite construction was certainly the biggest change made to the 23 over the last couple years – but it wasn’t the only one.

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Company engineers designed a new console and leaning post for the boat. Again, they took their time to get it right, tweaking the final design over a span of two years. The console can now be accessed from the side, exposing a huge storage area for gear and allowing access to the boat’s electrical systems. Flush-mounting electronics in the dash is also possible with the new console design.

Long noted for its clean interior with very few snags to catch wild fly lines, the Cape Fisherman is equipped with four stainless-steel rod holders, stainless-steel cleats and undergunwale poly rod racks. While the boat tackles rough seas with ease, it can also run quite shallow. Its 12-inch draft makes it a versatile craft for a wide variety of anglers.

Many refinements have been made to the Cape Fisherman 23, but one fact remains: It’s a great boat for fishing the mid-Atlantic – or anywhere else, for that matter.

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Specifications

LOA……22’8″
Beam……8′
Deadrise:……12 degrees
Draft……12″
Weight……2,350 lbs. (dry)
Fuel……90 gals.
Max HP……225
MSRP……$41,250
(w/ 150 hp four-stroke OB)

Jones Brothers Marine Inc. / Morehead City, North Carolina / 800-365-1581 / www.jonesbrothersmarine.com

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