Boat Test - Warrior Pro Angler
When you pull the first example of a brand new model of boat from its mould, you can never be quite sure exactly what you have until you take it out under test conditions. So for my money, it's a brave, a confident, or a stupid boat builder who hands out invitations to potential critics to be in the thing the first time it ever goes out on the water. But thats exactly what Paul Haynes and Phil Byrom from Warrior did with their new ProAngler. On a day promising testing conditions, which is just what you need to come away with a true and full appraisal, Paul and I took the ProAngler out on an uncomfortable River Mersey. Paul was certain there would be another Warrior out there fishing for me to take a few performance shots from. The truth was, everyone else had more sense, so the pictures here were taken from the shelter of New Brighton beach, even though we did actually negotiate some genuinely testing conditions. So, for the first time ever in print, this is how Warrior Boats new ProAngler performs.
Okay, so its built on the much tried, tested and loved Warrior 165 hull. But it terms of ride and handling, the slate is wiped completely clean when you are given the type and range of changes the ProAngler has received. Not only is this boat considerably heavier than the standard Warrior 165, the increase in weight is also distributed totally differently, with a lot more up front than their used to be, and quite a bit more below decks. To get the typically laden on the water balance right, the handling position has had to be shuffled back around 10 inches with a number of knock on changes which I'll come to in a moment. But until the first boat out of the mould hits the water, there is no way you can actually be sure your calculations are going to right, despite the fact that they should be. So a few anxious moments initially, though these were rapidly dispelled.
I actually became involved in the ProAngler project in the early part of last year when Phil Byrom asked me what sort of features I thought the ideal angling boat should have. I jotted a few of my own thoughts down, then asked the same question of the people I fish with. No doubt Phil quizzed a few others along the way. He quickly collated all the suggestions along with more of his own then brought the planned design together in his own mind and started the project up. I watched the plug take shape over many weeks. Each time I was at the factory some new structure formed from wood and filler paste was being painstakingly sculpted. Though I knew what the final outcome was going to be on paper, it's not until you finally see it in the flesh that the true value of all those hours invested into striving to produce a winning design are transformed into an accurate picture.
So how does the ProAngler differ from the standard Warrior 165. The weight aspect has already been mentioned. Many features have contributed to this, the three main ones being the totally moulded under floor support matrix, the fact that it is double skinned, and the windows. Yes the windows, which weigh in at a staggering 25 kg. These are specially made abroad from the same toughened glass used to make car windscreens, and bonded in place in exactly the same way. So unlike the more traditional poly-carbonate perspex, they can take windscreen wipers. The difference is that cars don't undergo the same constant hammering as a boat, bashing and crashing over waves. But no worries it seems on that particular score. One 'good' wave in particular with a curling top which we crashed down had sent us airborne. I can't see the windows getting a better test than that.
Speaking of windows, despite the state of the sea, particularly coming back into it where we were forced to throttle back from over 30 knots to a very comfortable 25 knots, they barely got wet, and would have been bone dry had it not been for some deliberate sharp maneuvering turns. I had expected the nose to bury itself occasionally, particularly when coming off a wave at speed, throwing some water over the top, but that simply didn't happen. The positioning of the steering console and seats gave the boat exceptionally good weight distribution and balance allowing an extremely dry and comfortable ride. The downside of this however has been to slightly increase the length of the cuddy which takes a bit of length off the fishing well making it very definitely a two man boat. On the plus side, the abundance of well thought out stowage options up front are a revelation, in addition to which you no longer have to get out of your seat to get your rod when you have a bite. So no complaints there.Stowage generally is a big feature of this boat. Both side buoyancy tanks have integral lockers. There are more under the seats and in the the steering console, plus an integral cool box at the end of the buoyancy tank on the passengers side. There is also open stowage on the top outside edge of the tanks to contain loose items which might otherwise find their way out of the shelter when underway. The Warrior 165 had steering console stowage too, but the ProAngler has more because they have designed it bigger to take all the instruments on top or to have the VHF flush mounted adjacent to the fitted as standard waterproof switches for the lights. For me there is more stowage space than I could see myself ever needing and I would prefer to have bucket seats on metal pedestals instead of supported on moulded stowage lockers, which is an available option.
Another option I think I would prefer that does not come as standard is a drain plug in the back. The floor well, which is big enough for two standard tanks or one of the larger 11 gallon tanks, has a small recess built in to it to take the fitted as standard bilge pump for getting rid of water on the day. A fully fitted cover is provided to prevent rainwater accumulations when standing between trips. I personally prefer rain water to get into the boat and flush out through the bilge plug. Imagine bait that has been washed into the floor well under the tanks, or even the occasional 'lost' fish stewing for weeks under a boil in the bag cover. The cover will also keep things damp inside. Good in theory but not for me in practice. Being double skinned, Phil and Paul don't want to fit a bilge plug as standard. But it's not beyond the realms of practical possibility, and something they have agreed they can do on request, which beats doing the job yourself.
A further innovation is the canopy. The one on our 165 folds away against the lip of the cuddy, though to be honest, it has never been down since the day we got the boat. How anyone can fish sat outside one in winter is beyond me, and it provides sun shelter in summer. Anyway, I digress. The Pro-Angler also has a canopy, though this one has a telescopic frame, and the whole lot folds away inside a moulded glass fibre lidded trough on the upper lip of the cuddy. Ingenious. And the upper moulding changes don't end there. The rear splash here well is re-designed to better accommodate big outboards (rated up to 80 hp), allowing them to be tilted fully up without making contact with the wall of the well. And to finish things off inside the fishing well, the floor has a moulded recess designed to take none slip floor matting which again is fitted as standard.
Comments were apparently made at the launch of the ProAngler at the London boat labeling it as a 'selfish boat' because it will only fish two people. How many small angling boats these days actually carry more than two people anyway?. If you are a Warrior fan and do want to fish three, then buy the standard 165. If on the other hand you feel like really indulging yourself, then at least check the ProAngler out before committing to anything else. A seriously well thought out small boat, seriously well made with the serious dinghy angler in mind.