2018 Miami International Boat Show

Grady White Canyon 456   Grady White wowed the early crowds at the 2018 Miami Boat Show with the introduction of the new flagship Canyon 456. True to her heritage, the 456 is built for long range blue water fishing in safety and comfort. With quad 350 Yamaha’s, air conditioned sleeping quarters for two, flat screen TV below, massive refrigerated transom fishbox, this is Wicked Tuna and a five star resort weekend rolled into one. LOA is 45 feet, beam 14, fuel cap 616 gallons and starting price 1.275 mil.

Mercury’s 3.4 L V6 Four Stroke   Out for her first night on the town is Mercury’s brand new 3.4 liter V6 four stroke. Unveiled in Miami, this engine practically defines a new class in outboard power. At 475 pounds, she’s lighter than anything in the 175 to 225 hp range, and that includes both two and four strokes as well as 4 cylinder competitors. Fuel efficient edge of around 10 percent over the field, with exceptional midrange torque and pleasant sound at all rpm ranges. These babies will be a popular option in single and double installations on bay boats and trailerable CCs, as well as bass boats and pontoons. With DTS controls and 26 inch center mounting capability, repower on any Merc equipped boats will be a cinch. Traditional Phantom Black and three hues of gel coat- matching whites are available.

Travel in Style   Getting to and from the Miami Boat Show is fun and relaxing on the water taxis operating between the downtown parking lots and the key. We parked at American Airlines Arena for $25. The ferry was free, and a lot more satisfying than the bus! Our room at the Hampton Inn at SW 12th street in the Brickell area was quiet and comfortable. Just be patient with highway and local traffic. Give yourself plenty of time to get around.

Raymarine Axiom MFD   Some sort of crazy selfie here of FS Editor Jeff Weakley. Yes, that is definitely a drone, a DJI Spark in fact, and yes, it may be controlled and viewed over a Raymarine Axiom MFD. Same device you run sonar and GPS is being enlisted to integrate with all sorts of gear and applications. Miami Boat Show 2018 is an excellent place to see the latest advances in technology.

Jupiter 43SF   Stern view of the brand-new Jupiter 43SF (Sport Fish), with standard quad Yamaha F300 power and the popular Gem Outrigger Shade. This gorgeous boat in the Stone Gray Metallic hull color is a fine example of the company’s craftmanship and commitment to delivering the latest features for the offshore angler. Belowdecks highlights include SeaKeeper Gyro6 and Hooker livewell pumps. Console features berth with A/C and full standup wet head, triple Garmin 22-inch screens at the helm, and unparalleled visibility for the captain through a unique curved automotive glass windshield. And, she’s built to carry big loads of live bait offshore, and ice-cold boxes of fresh tuna and dolphin back to port, said Jupiter V.P. Craig Herndon. MSRP $921,495.

Cobia 240CC   Cobia’s new 24-foot center console on display in Miami is loaded with features, from the transom dive door and livewell, to the leaning post/tackle station upgrade, to the hardtop with glass windshield. At $94,900 with F300 outboard, this is versatile platform for the family boater looking to fish the bays offshore to the grouper grounds.

Dusky 33 With Suzuki DF350   Suzuki debuted its one-of-a-kind, dual-prop 350-horse four stroke last winter. Mike Brown of Dusky Marine in Dania Beach has since installed several of them—including this twin setup on the company’s long-popular 33 step hull. “You can back down quicker, and gain speed while fuel economy stays about same,” he said. “I gained about 8 mph on this boat, and found the fuel economy actually improved a lot at trolling speeds. We’ve also done a single on one of our 27-footers—unbelievable backing up; steers great, almost like you don’t need twins on that boat.”

Robalo R317   Robalo’s diverse product line occupied almost half the aisle in this tent, highlighted by the all-new R317 dual console. Show price of $227,793 included basically every option a fisherman could need, from Teleflex Optimus 360 steering, to retractable sunshade, to full Garmin electronics. The Kevlar-reinforced hull is 31 feet overall, 10 feet, 6 inches wide and built to run on a pair of F300 outboards.

NauticStar 2302LDC   Traditional look, modern features: NauticStar rolled out a new dual console model at 22 feet, powered by F200 Yamaha and set up with forward and aft seating for cruising and water sports. At just shy of 3,000 pounds, she’s in that sweet spot for trailering to the lake or the coast. Show price of $59,900 included about $5,000 worth of options: Lenco tabs, underwater lighting, top and more.

Piranha Raso P180 Poling Skiff   One of the great things about the boat show: You can be staring at a poster for a new hull design, when suddenly the designer himself appears. That’s Chris Morejohn explaining the plumb bow, optimized spray rail, reverse strakes, reserve buoyancy and other features of his Raso P180. Chris is a rock star among skiff-builders: Look up his blogspots by name and also by Hogfish Design. This new boat is in the conceptual stage; stay posted through Piranha, the builder.

See SeaVee   The in-water displays at the Miami Marine Stadium give builders such as SeaVee an excellent chance to showcase various models. On the right is the 390Z with quad 400s and a custom fade hull color, looking great in the afternoon sun; far left is the 270Z bay boat. Not shown in this frame, the SeaVee docks also harbor the company's brand-new 290, a twin-engine, trailerable marvel you'll be seeing a lot more of soon!

See SeaVee   The in-water displays at the Miami Marine Stadium give builders such as SeaVee an excellent chance to showcase various models. On the right is the 390Z with quad 400s and a custom fade hull color, looking great in the afternoon sun; far left is the 270Z bay boat. Not shown in this frame, the SeaVee docks also harbor the company’s brand-new 290, a twin-engine, trailerable marvel you’ll be seeing a lot more of soon!

Airmar Transducers   Want to know what transducer is best for your new rig? In the electronics tent, you can find out by talking to the experts with Airmar. Among the more popular options for thru-hull installation, from top left, are flush-pocket mount and keel-mount multi-frequency transducers, and flush pairs of narrow or wide, low or high frequency. Pete Braffit of distributor Gemeco said: “A good analogy is a stereo system: Higher frequency you get more detail, but you won’t ‘hear’ it as far away—like walk away from a tweeter. Medium band CHIRP, between the two, offers depth performance but also resolution. Low frequency is like your subwoofer—less resolution but reaching much deeper, like what you’d hear far away from a stereo.”

Boston Whaler 240 Dauntless Pro   Boston Whaler’s display at Miami may be best remembered for the stunning 380 Realm, a luxe cruise/picnic boat introduced this year. But the indoor selection included some nice touches for the hardcore fishermen, such as this well-designed upper/lower station for the 24-foot Dauntless Pro. This is the control center for a tarpon- and cobia-finding machine, with all the comfort and safety features that have distinguished Whaler over the last 60 years. Show special price of $128,635 is a savings of about $25K!

Sea Eagle Fishskiff 16   Among the smallest boats at the show was this 16-foot inflatable Sea Eagle weighing 104 pounds. It’s built to be shipped or hauled in a small package to exotic destinations (ideal for the RV!), or simply added to your collection of watercraft. With the 4-horse Honda, she makes about 12 knots with two anglers. Packages start at $1,999.

Blackwater 39 SF Tournament Edition   Quad 400-hp Merc Racing outboards on the stepped-hull 39-foot Blackwater. Note to self: Make more time for water-testing!

Stoner 23   This beautiful 23-footer is handcrafted in three pieces—old school dependable, with the floor glassed to the stringers, direct-to-sea self-bailing, leaning post livewell and insulated cooler forward. Key Biscayne’s own Josh Stoner builds it, along with a 26, 28 and 30-footer. This one at the boat show—hull number 6--goes for $85,000 with the 250 Tohatsu outboard; Josh says she’s a 60-mph boat.

Contender 39FA   Downtown Miami is visible, appropriately, over the locally built Contender 39 Fish Around. The crew here is on one of many water tests of the company’s fleet of popular fishing boats, of which the 39FA is the largest. She’s said to be a 70 mph boat with the trip 350 Yamahas. Down below is a queen berth, galley and enclosed head.

Prowler 36 by Renaissance Marine   Yet another Miami-area builder, Renaissance Marine added this 36-footer to its fleet of oceangoing power cats. The 42-footer is featured in this year’s Florida Sportsman Best Boat TV and magazine. Both models are built to accommodate either twin or quad power and custom configured to the owner’s needs. A snapper/grouper fisherman we spoke with at the Prowler dock in Miami said he runs a 42 to the Middle Ground off Madeira Beach—100-plus miles offshore--with quad 300 Suzukis at an impressive 42 mph and 1 mpg, loaded with ice and eager crew members.