After-Market Options for a Carolina Skiff Sea Chaser

Carolina Skiff builds a variety of fiberglass boats less than 24 feet in length. One series, the Sea Chaser, comes in five variations. The options available for each model are limited, meaning that aftermarket options in electronics, fishing and personal comfort are likely to add something to your boating experience on a Sea Chaser.

  1. Five Sea Chaser Models

    • The Sea Chaser comes in five models, the Offshore Center Console, the Offshore Walkaround, the Bay Runner and the Flats series and the Rolled Gunnel Series. The Offshore Center Console is a center console boat with higher than normal sides that allow it to operate in rougher waters than those found close to shore. The Offshore Walkaround has higher than normal sides, but it also has a foredeck that's level with those sides, offering a small accommodation in the space beneath that deck. The Bay Runner has lower sides and a center console, suitable for use inshore on bays and rivers. The Flats series boats are a smaller version of the Bay Runner, with lower sides suitable for fishing near-shore and inshore flats. The Rolled Gunnel series boats are the Sea Chaser's bowriders, with seating on the forward side of the center console.

    Aftermarket Comfort Equipment

    • Because of the limited size of the Sea Chaser boats and because only one model, the Offshore Walkaround, has an enclosed area, comfort options are limited. The Walkaround offers a toilet -- called a head -- connected to a Class 3 marine sanitation device, a holding tank. No other model offers this accommodation, meaning that any Coast Guard-approved marine sanitation device is an aftermarket option. The other "comfort equipment" that might be installed on any Sea Chaser will generally relate to fishing or electronics.

    Aftermarket Fishing Equipment

    • Sea Chasers offer a variety of fishing options, including seats that house coolers and a tackle center to corral fishing tackle in a central location. A live well is also offered, as are rod holders. What's missing are the pedestal seats for those fishing, who are relegated to the optional leaning post to take their ease as they fish, and things like downriggers. Pedestal seats might reduce the freedom of movement offered by a walk-around deck, but the tradeoff is comfort and stability while fishing. The boat's gunwales -- the top of the boat's sides -- are wide enough to mount downriggers, for either serious fishing or for fishing with unattended poles. While a live-well is an option, a larger live-well is a viable aftermarket option. You can also increase the number of rod holders with the addition of aftermarket flush mount rod holders, mounted in the gunwales.

    Aftermarket Electronics

    • The Sea Chaser boats are sadly lacking in electronic options; the only option available is an AM/FM radio with a CD changer. This makes any GPS receiver an aftermarket option and puts a GPS chart-plotter is at the top of the electronic navigation aftermarket option food chain. This might be followed by an AM/FM satellite radio or even the most rudimentary radar unit. None of the Sea Chaser boats offers an on-board battery charger as an option, making the silicone-controlled rectifier-type marine battery charger another viable aftermarket option. The addition of the SCR battery charger also means you can charge your battery, with the addition of an inverter. The inverter will convert the power from the boat's batteries from DC power to AC power, enabling you to bring aboard comfort-related equipment that requires household power, such as a television.