1999 2100 Mako Bayshark

[chumandtheycome]

I have owned several older Mako's over the last 15 years and they are a great boat. I am now looking at a 1999 2100 Bayshark with a 1999 Mercury Opti 200 hp. I have not been able to find much info on this boat, is there anyone aou there that has any experience with these. I am interested in the ride, performance, etc and any info on the motor, I have always been a Yammy fan but this one has the Opti. Any input is appreciated.[]

[mark]

Welcome Chum

I don't know anything about the bayshark,but my father and i own a 2001 opti and really like it. About 2 mo. ago he and I made a round trip covering about 180 mi. and used 51 gal of fuel. We have the opti on a 23 ft kenner bay boat. About 130 of those mi were running offshore and back in a 2-3 ft chop at aprox. 3100-3400 rpm and 25 mph.(not the most comfortable ride in a bay boat) I think that is pretty efficent for those cond. The motor has given no problems and it has about 450 hrs. The only neg. comment is that you must have a fully charged 1000 amp battery to start it. If your battery is run down a little the motor sounds like it is spinning fast enough but it will not start.

Good Luck,[]

Mark

[Seadog]

Chum

I had that rig - 1999 Bayshark with the 200 opti. Ran it for a season then sold it for a bigger boat. The only troubles I had was one of the injectors went out at about 100 hours use. Took Mercury six weeks to send the replacement for the dealer for install. Loved the boat. Top end was near 50 mph. It's definately a bay boat and will pound your teeth out in any slop over 2 feet. Any thing specific you want to know?

[chumandtheycome]

Seadog,

Thanks for the reply. I have a chance to buy this boat with a 2004 Continental alum trailer for 14k with all electronics. The motor runs well, I like the deck layout too. I was planning to use the boat in Tampa Bay for snook, reds, and tarpon. Most time will be spent in tidal creeks and running out to Eggmont for Tarpon action. I do not like the baitwell setup, it has a raw water pickup on the step of the transom, this will not pick up water while running. I'll have to install a high speed pickup on the hull, no big deal with that though. I have not wet tested the boat and I wondered if your had trim tabs, did that help with the ride? Also, just how skinny were you able to run that rig? This boat has a Bob's jackplate already installed.

David.

[Capt. Andy]

Could be wrong but 99 was the year of "REcall" for some optis , i know they retro fitted a buddys 225 and the have run fine, I had a 2001 200 on a 23 sea-fox and loved the engine,sold it at 600 hrs, the only problem i had was the last injector sat low in engine and got alot of salt intrusion but it was covered under warranty quickly and no question..My buddys 225 have been abused (1999) and no problems after retrofit in 2000. He never even flushes them good and just runs the s--- out of them, hes one of those kind of guys...

[Seadog]

Chum

I didn't have trim tabs or a jack plate on mine but I wish I would have. Not that the ride was bad, it just would have helped on those heavy load days for a better ride. The Bayshark is by no means a flats boat. I did'nt run mine any shallower than about 2 feet but with the jack plate it will prabably run skinnier than that. The deck space behind the leaning post is pretty small but you can step up on the aft deck when ya need too. That gets a little hairy in rougher water though.

My Opti wasn't one of the re-calls but I did have two upgrades from Merc.

Best of luck with her! She should do you well in the fishin' you described.

[C-Fish]

I fish with a buddy who is a light tackle guide out of Pt. Pleasant, NJ. For the past three years he ran a 01 21 Bayshark with a 225 Opti and I've gotta say it was one of the most versatile boats I have ever fished. From shallow bay work to fishing along the beaches in moderately sloppy conditions the boat was a dream! I still can't figure out why they discontinued it. With the 225 it would top out at close to 60 and at a brisk cruise of 40 the engine wasn't even breathing hard and it got incredible fuel economy. The boat and captain were featured on George Poveromo's show last season (spring live lining stripers off north Jersey) and on Shaw Grigsby's show the season before (late fall stripers of poppers and flies). If you want to check it out go to www.flatsrat.com. Captain's name is Terry Sullivan. Loves to talk boats and fishing so drop him an email with your questions.

Things to remember with the Bayshark. It has very little freeboard so for some people it takes a little getting used to. It is not a boat that is happy at anchor in any kind of sea. It is a fast, stable platform to fish from and wonderful for fly fishing. With a trolling motor on the bow it is even more versatile. I love the boat for what it is and what it is capable of doing.

Oh, Terry still has the Bayshark, but he just took delivery of a 23T Contender so he can take clients who want to fish school tuna, false albacore and big bluefish further offshore.