Senator RH680 vs stabicraft 659super cab
Printed From: The Fishing Website
Category: General Forums
Forum Name: The Boat Shed
Forum Description: Discuss all things boating.
URL: https://www.fishing.net.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=23597
Printed Date: 08 Jun 2026 at 10:39pm
Topic: Senator RH680 vs stabicraft 659super cab
Posted By: sea walker
Subject: Senator RH680 vs stabicraft 659super cab
Date Posted: 05 Oct 2007 at 3:23am
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Hi all
I would like to ask you if you could tall me any good or bad thoughts regarding this two boats .
If you buying which one will you choose and why ?
I would like to know much as is possible from riding, stability, which one need les power, which one is better build ,better resale too etc.etc
i will use mainly for offshore fishing around 90klm one way to reef and trolling for bill fish
sea walker
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Replies:
Posted By: tugboat
Date Posted: 05 Oct 2007 at 8:34pm
| I would go the senator, have a look closely at the front hull design, senator pontoons sit alot higher at the bow giving it alot better ride in short steep chop and rough water using the vee to break the wave rather than the pontoon, stabis sit alot lower and tend to pound alot more in the bow, just my opinion, check em out youll see what i mean.. |
Posted By: sea walker
Date Posted: 06 Oct 2007 at 2:31am
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what I notes stabi got 3 years warranty and senator 2 years stabi got 20 degrees
dead rise and senator 680 17 degrees but 620 got 18 degrees got there bit confused
any how i would like to hear from any owner of this boat do they had any issues with cracking or oxidation etc
or some one who had chance to be on both of this boats
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Posted By: righthook
Date Posted: 07 Oct 2007 at 12:58am
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I've only had small pontoon boats, I've owned the 509W stabi and had a kiwicraft b4 that, never been in a senator but they look more like a kiwicraft which was a sweet hull and rode really well, quite a deep v seemed more like a senator....correct me if im wrong?, stabi was ok at rest but road like a brick in any chop, been told a lot of the stabis are like that, talking to other owners. all I can say is try them in crap weather, my personal choice would be a kiwi or senator or even the osprey look quite nice.
on other questions pontoons love big horsepower to work well, from what I know and have been told. I thought the kiwicraft had far better quality workmanship than the stabi, cant comment on the senator as never really looked round one.
thats my 10cents anyway
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Posted By: phinalea
Date Posted: 07 Oct 2007 at 1:22pm
| pontoon boats go osprey every time check out their web site http://www.osprey.co.nz - www.osprey.co.nz i have one and wouldnt really consider any thing else |
Posted By: sea walker
Date Posted: 09 Oct 2007 at 1:02am
Phinale i believe the osrey good boats
i just don't like thet is to much gap between me and fish
looks like the transom is to long on this boat
thanks any way for your replay
sea walker
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phinalea wrote:Posted By: Naki
Date Posted: 09 Oct 2007 at 7:54am
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sea walker.
I have a Senator 620.
What tugboats says is correct. Senators have a bigger & higher bow and therefore seem to handle the rough a little better.
Pontoon boats do require more horsepower than a standard deep "V" due to the fact that they tend to push the water rather than slice it.
Senators have more cockpit space than Stabis also.
Take both boats out in rough conditions and then compare.
------------- President of the "Pontoon Owners Club". I started off with nothing and now I still have most of it left!!! |
Posted By: Bushpig
Date Posted: 09 Oct 2007 at 8:18am
*cough*bull*****cough* ------------- I would rather laugh with the Sinners, than cry with the Saints |
Posted By: sea walker
Date Posted: 09 Oct 2007 at 2:57pm
 bushpig u mast have stabi |
Posted By: Bushpig
Date Posted: 09 Oct 2007 at 3:09pm
Nope I have a Surtees. But I did own a Stabi. Naki is a one eyed nutter from Taranaki, dont listen to him. His toes a webbed ------------- I would rather laugh with the Sinners, than cry with the Saints |
Posted By: Naki
Date Posted: 15 Oct 2007 at 7:23am
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[QUOTE=Dirty Oar]what ever you do stay well clear from a stabi , whilst they have a rep for being an awesome ride i went in one recently and just about broke my balls and the noise was horendous , it was a pretty mellow sea too , dont know why people love em so much ,
too true
 Nuff said. ------------- President of the "Pontoon Owners Club". I started off with nothing and now I still have most of it left!!! |
Posted By: livin4fish
Date Posted: 19 Oct 2007 at 7:44pm
| Do you really need a pontoon boat? There's plenty of none pontoon tinnies and glass hardtops doing what you want it to. There's a big range of 6.5 metre boats - trail a few and you might be surprised. |
Posted By: mmmm...
Date Posted: 08 Jan 2013 at 2:28pm
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if you are trolling in big seas then a pontoon boat is the way to go. the boat sits nice and level. and the arse doesnt drag in the water so you use alot less fuel. i have a stabi 509 which i have done some game fishing out of. it trolls awesome, done a whole day trolling and only used 65 70 litres with a 75 etec. the ride is very hard tho. i am looking to move up to a 5.8 or 6m pontoon boat but the stabis are too exspensive for me and i would like to see if the senators ride softer, then i will get a senator. the re sale on stabis is alot better tho. the is a 620ht senator with a 150 4 stroke yammie all 2007 250hrs for $55k. if it was a stabi 2050 or 589 it would be $65 to $75K. so if your boat is a stepping stone then maybe a stabi for resale or if your keeping if for 10yrs then maybe a sentor
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Posted By: Butcherman1
Date Posted: 11 Feb 2023 at 8:27am
| I bought new stabi 1850 in 2020 sold 2 months ago du to back breaking and loud noise from hull..I have bought the new rh580 senator and my life has changed..it is so smooth in chop no noise I am blown away by how smooth and quiet it is...my mistake was not taking stabi out for sea trail and went ahead with purchase based on public perseption..I won't go back to stabi even based on resale ..can go to work with no more sore legs or sore back and that groggy head headache from the bashing..owning both stabi and senator there is a huge comparison along a few sectors in savings and heartaches. |
Posted By: Pcj
Date Posted: 11 Feb 2023 at 2:13pm
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Haha is that not what we said from day one.fishing platform only ------------- "Times up" |
Posted By: Coutta
Date Posted: 18 Feb 2023 at 11:30am
| I've had a 490 and 530 Stabi and a 620 Senator HT. The 490 was a great little boat but with two men and half a dog it was full. The 530 was OK but thumped and was wet. The 620 Senator was a decent boat but still thumped in any sort of a decent head sea. I've now got a FC 535CC and the stabis and the senator just don't compare. If I was looking for a bigger hard top, I wouldn't go past an FC. |