Bought an OLD 23ft Bertram, Caribbean with 6.2L 300HP MerCruiser

[@stabifisho7576]

Congratulations Mark that’s more than a BEAST looking forward to seeing your make over on this weapon. Motor looks brand new under the engine box.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man! Yep she's brand new, barely been used. Plenty of work to do, but will be worth it

[@EvieK12]

Nice. Looking forward to the end product. If only we would have kept the old cars we once had. Classics.

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah totally hey!!!!

[@peterscott1758]

Yippee Kia yay. Legendary Caribbean. Me dad had a Caribbean ski/ fishing boat when I was a kid. Many great memories fishing at Lake Eildon. Well done 👍. Smash and tag a few tuna, looking forward to the stories and memories you will create.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks Peter, sounds awesome!

[@matty8438]

Absolute beast of a boat mate, she looks in great condition. Can't wait to see the journey.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks!

[@andrewc7369]

Great boat! In spite of flashy advertising by the modern brands. You just cant beat low down weight and waterline length for a smooth ride.

[@BaitBallin]

Exact right. Water tested and the ride is absolutely amazing for its size. More to come!

[@stevesizman8606]

Love the look and what a bonus with that motor. Good luck and can't wait to see the progress. Congrats!!

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks Steve!

[@catco01]

Great purchase mate. Caribbean sure do make an exceptionally good boat.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man, she's old but will turn into a nice rig for sure

[@shawnlewington3923]

Congratulations mate. Nothing like an amazing classic. Looking forward to seeing how it all progresses and the updates

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah it will be lots of fun and should come up well! Thanks

[@Albertastreet234]

Will be so fun to watch the build

[@MicheeeeeObiMrs]

Looks great and I cant wait to see it all finished. One thing I did notice and I personally think all hard top boats should come standard with it the rear vision mirror. BRILLIANT. I cannot tell you how many times I have been laughed at and put down for making the suggestion to put one it. Lol

[@BaitBallin]

Hahhaha yeah the rear view mirror is pretty funny! But practical

[@gearhigher2027]

Congrats Mate...The timing is perfect. I'm repowering my 22' Defiance Pilothouse with the 22' Suzuki DF200 you sold me. Thanks! 🇺🇸

[@BaitBallin]

No worries! Good decision

[@ozhunter2505]

Yeah that's real cool, congrats, can't wait to hear that V8.

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah she sounds bloody tough. Wholy crap it does

[@tomtucker00]

Your assessment of plate boat characteristics and market conditions are spot on. Looking forward to hearing how your fibreglass journey goes. In particular your fuel bills and finding competent people to work on your boat that can deliver a quality product on time and budget. I personally class marine tradies above new boat dealers in order of criminality.

[@BaitBallin]

Yep absolutely it's going to be a challenge! Boats just seem to be challenging ahhhaa

[@fishernick2447]

Congratulations She’s stunning ! I’m really looking forward to this ride Mark

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks Nick! Going to be a fun little journey

[@robbyt3242]

Congrats Mark. This is proof that marine ply in fibreglass boats can last a long time if looked after.

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah! Certainly looks solid so far

[@Charlie_E_]

Relatively new subscriber to your channel. Fishing action to date was great but I gotta say I loved the last episode about your experience with boat dealers and the state of the new boat market. Then so quickly after that we see the new beast. You are obviously a very pragmatic bloke. You deal with any hurdles as they come up and there is no procrastinating. Just straight onto the next move. I respect and admire that. 👍 Look forward to the next episode. Well done and good luck

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks Charlie, yeah I just made the decision not to except the options I was presented with. So let's go something totally different where no matter what, I get to control the outcome!

[@ChampagneRiccy]

Looking forward to watching the journey unfold mate!

[@stevecook7893]

Nice, looks fun looking fwd to the videos

[@21bodieandrew]

congrats, i have a 23 FB with 5.7lts v8, will stick around to pick some good mods to do in future!

[@BaitBallin]

Awesome! No worries man. Will be a good journey

[@travelangler]

Love it , congratulations bro , wait for your review soon

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks! Yeah can't wait to get it out and film it

[@eugenecassar2887]

Congrats on the new boat mate! Hanging to see the new content for it.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man! It's going to be a journey but will be worth it

[@eugenecassar2887]

@@BaitBallin are you going to do a full rebuild on it?

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks!!! Going to be a fun adventure

[@alexsadventures5034]

very nice buy mate

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man, she's a lovely old girl!

[@alexsadventures5034]

@@BaitBallin she definitely is

[@gypana]

Congratulations mate that's a great hull the old 23 footer.

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man!

[@dearSamuelSamuel1]

you certainly dont fk around mate, love it 🤙

[@BaitBallin]

Exactly! New, old, who cares! Wanted a beast, got one

[@dearSamuelSamuel1]

@@BaitBallin looking forward to seeing more videos of her

[@CaptDavesSportfishing]

You sure are young to own a Grandpa' boat! Them Tuna(?) may end up costing much more per pound.(kg) Can't wait to see all the EZ work. Show us the fish boxes, and fishing amenities, fuel tank(s) etc. Subscribers will be sending you Bowling Team Shirts, versus fishing shirts. I'm just messin' with ya❗ You would have needed a big Cat boat in alloy, to get that same ride of all that weight in big seas. Around here in N.E. Florida, there "used to be" many a boat like that. They were called John Almand's & T-Crafts to name a few. Heavy as hell and leaned a bit to the "gone camping" on the water unless re-fitted out.

[@BaitBallin]

Hey yep got an old mans pirate boat for sure! Yes it has design challenges regarding fuel, bait tanks, eskies etc so going to take some thought and good design etc before actually doing stuff. Will do a vid of all the issues and challenges next!

[@CaptDavesSportfishing]

@@BaitBallin ☠☠👍

[@dylanstalba-smith6935]

Absolute bloody ripper of a boat mate, much congrats!

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man!

[@imanenigma3348]

Pirate boat? Wash ya mouth out! Beautiful Caribbean Crusader, mate. Big heavy deep vee with stern drive power. Just what the doctor ordered. No wonder she rides smooth. Caribbean, Bertram all International marine, Savage etc have reputations for being good blue water hulls. Modern 6.2 sure performs a wee bit better than the old 228hp Mercruiser. Pretty sure it will be a Mercury marine version of a production GM V8 though.(LS?) Always have been from what I know.

[@BaitBallin]

Hey yeah she's a lovely old rig and the ride is nothing short of amazing for 7m. From the research I did these are purposes built marine engines from ground up, so no an actual LS2/3 or what ever. But I could be wrong

[@1super]

I have the same motor in a 24ft Trophy. I’ll follow the comments with great personal interest

[@BaitBallin]

Awesome no worries!

[@easemailboxes]

I'm doing up a carribean at the moment. Only a baby 5m. Just placed a new transom on it, need to replace the stringers on it. Stringers and transom are the main issues. A boat your size i hope yours are ok and don't need replacing. Given the age it is highly likely there is some rot in the transom (however visually it looks good in this video).That engine is incredible. These are amazing boats (and it was in my previous comments as one of my guesses you might get (along with dual hull & look at veitch). I imagine you have plenty of spare change from the previous sale to do it up with also. Looking fwd to the pimp out.

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah totally agree. I'm looking at it very closely, I actually think they have already been replaced somewhere along the way. But will keep investigating to unlock ALL its secrets! One crappy episode at a time 🤣🤣🤣

[@easemailboxes]

@@BaitBallin even if it has some rot in transom it won't matter that much as long as its not extensive as you are not supporting an outboard any more. Super job!

[@BaitBallin]

Yes true!

[@markj9024]

The beast 2.0 💪🏾 💪🏾

[@Massiverobsfishing]

Well didn't expect to see the new mercury wowza that's a score

[@BaitBallin]

Hahha thanks ! Exactly

[@jb243wp]

Nice pick up, looks like it has good bones and looked after by its previous owner.. Fueled up with gear under your maximum tow weight 3100kg 🥺🤔 you might need to look at your tow vehicle or swapping to an ally trailer with the money left over, an old 80 series cruiser just for towing will do the job. Downside you might be making more trips to the servo than running your BC/ zuki combo, but if you just cruising it should keep it a little more economical.. "One day you might buy one" Life's too short, you made the right choice 👍 Looking forward to seeing more..

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks man, yeah been looking for this boat for years. Yep fuel usage etc, I don't mind paying for it. Just need to ensure it holds enough etc. A few challenges I need to work through but will do

[@jb243wp]

@@BaitBallin Hey BB one thing to consider is potentially you cannot stand up while driving, as the hardtop is quite low? Yeah 🤔. I noticed you stood alot when you had you BC, maybe the high dash and pounding had something to do with that? As we all know being able to stand while going hard gives us the ability to use our knees for shock absorbers and balance. Potentially with any sort of injury like you've described about yourself and needing more comfort actually sitting down in hard going offshore sort sharp chop may cause some jarring grief to you body. Back in the day the avage rec boatie didn't experience sea's like we do now, travelling out to the shelf wasn't a consideration ,hence the smaller fuel tanks that were installed back then, 200lt tank back then would have been considered an extra large tank. Eventhough they are a great tough design and built like a tank, can potentially handle almost any you can throw at it. Not being able to stand while driving is something that you might want to consider changing in the future BTW what size tank is currently in that? Would have thought the original being around 250lt ? Can't wait to see how it goes, I reckon you'll be dam pleased with the hull performance without a doubt, distance of travel/ economy will be interesting. Cheers 🍻

[@douglasthompson2740]

Hope your water is clear of drift. Duo props are neat in theory but up here they were not popular because any stick of size will get between the props and do major damage whereas the same situation with the single prop would be a ding in a blade. My advice would be to run aluminum props if you have duo prop as that keeps the weak link at the prop and not in the expensive drive train.

[@BaitBallin]

Interesting facts! Il keep an eye on it....

[@sjsisdhdjdkssosjdhxnx]

I am in the market for a new boat. Looking at the Haines Hunter 675 or the new Caribbean 2300. Which one do you recommend and why?

[@BaitBallin]

Recommend both, I'd pick the 2300 for better offshore ride, better value for money, more composed on long days out to sea trolling etc. But you need to check wait times, they can be crazy long for the 2300! Years at times. And if so, the 675 is an awesome rig also.....

[@Maddfisher]

Beautiful boat What kind of vehicle would you need to tow that bad boy around ?

[@BaitBallin]

Anything that can tow 3T will do it. My little toy 4wd (Pajero Sport) actually did a very commendable job!

[@allaboutfishinghuntingvic6871]

Congratulations I’m currently doing a Bertram 23 fly bridge Looking forward to upcoming videos

[@BaitBallin]

Nice!!! Yep Il aim to upload at least one per week

[@allaboutfishinghuntingvic6871]

@@BaitBallin fuel capacity and fuel range I’ll love to know 👍🏽 Keep up the good work

[@BaitBallin]

No worries. All that data will come soon

[@trogdortheburninator8149]

Old boat that comes with a new motor = winner! What is the dead rise on these hulls? Congrats! Happy boating!

[@BaitBallin]

Hey yep 21 degrees and minimal chines, hence they need the weight down low for stability

[@Michael-gf2er]

Beast👍

[@nickking8317]

You got power steering on the crusader? Looks like a fun project

[@BaitBallin]

Yep not sure exactly what steering but it's very easy and smooth. Will check it out

[@JT-jy2sy]

Congrats mate! 14 hours drive where this beast is from?

[@BaitBallin]

Canberra to port Stephens, plus water testing and getting trailer lights working in a day

[@Cparker8]

Awesome 👌 congrats on the purchase, she's a beast!! Are planning to restore it back to original condition or pimp it up differently?

[@BaitBallin]

Looks and layout original, mechical and technology modern

[@Michael-gf2er]

Beast.👍

[@BaitBallin]

Totally, crazy good on the water. Vids to come. Flys

[@dantolo817]

How good cracker boat how much does she weigh

[@BaitBallin]

Thanks! 2500kg totally empty

[@thehardgrind9358]

Very heavy boat Big bank balance to run it

[@BaitBallin]

Yep that's all good. Weight and hull shape is what you need for a nice ride

[@thehardgrind9358]

@@BaitBallin yep that's true but thought there would be better hulls out there that where much lighter then that. Cat hull would have been better ride and stable factor in the water

[@BaitBallin]

Yeah no doubt. This is just a boat I've always wanted to own. Won't be my last boat, may not be my only boat will see.

[@thehardgrind9358]

@@BaitBallin wish you all success with your build mate

[@BaitBallin]

@@thehardgrind9358 thanks man!

[@DS-mz6hc]

Wanna compare launches lol. Nah well done bro.

[@BaitBallin]

Hahaha thanks man

[@DS-mz6hc]

@@BaitBallin when you coming fishing?

[@BaitBallin]

It needs a few minor things done for rego on trailer, but will basically be up and running weekend after next I'd say