Boat Test - Warrior 175
I remember doing a boat test on the Warrior 175 for Total Sea Fishing on a very lumpy day in the Mersey estuary some years ago when the first one pulled from the mould was complete. Dave Devine and myself gave it a thorough sounding out in the company of Warrior co-director Paul Haynes, as a north westerly force 5 sent some pretty impressive lumps of water through the narrow gap between New Brighton and Seaforth. Paul was particularly uncompromising when he was at the helm, wanting to push it to the absolute limit with the throttle as far forward at it would go heading into the waves, running with them, and in some very tight turns. I remember Dave and I chatting about it on the way home. Compared to our Warrior 165, it was like riding in a ship. Eighteen inches of extra length doesn't sound much. But the boats dimensions had expanded in every direction and it felt huge. Though the difference in height between the floor of the 165 and 175 is only half an inch more to give the 175 its self draining characteristics, it was something I noticed immediately, and while I am comfortable with it now, I was conscious of at first. Otherwise, both me and the boat felt completely at home in the conditions we had. It was in every respect in a different league. So much so that Dave wanted to do a part-ex immediately. But we were still self launching in those days, and weight on the back of the Landrover on the soft sand and shingle of Rossall beach had to be a consideration. Not so any more.
I recently became re-acquainted with the 175 when I volunteered to do some training video work for Blackpool Boat Angling Club, and again when I got an invite to do some bassing along the Mersey training walls. Dave Woods and John Bond provided the boat for the BBAC work, with Mick Duff in charge of the bass fishing. And while I had looked at the 175 on many previous occasions both on the water and at the Warrior factory, I never really gave owning one a second thought, happy with the boat we already have. That was until the filming sessions. Then, suddenly, it all came flooding back. The amount of room, the stowage, the self draining deck, the super soft ride and the feeling of total security. Fortunately, my boat partner Dave Devine wasn't present otherwise he would have been twisting my arm again which would have been harder to resist this time around with tractors doing all the launching for us now. Then several weeks later Dave and I were at the Warrior factory picking up our 165 after having some Teleflex low friction control cables fitted. It was lashing down outside, so we stood just inside the doorway waiting for it to ease. Coincidentally, the nearest boat to the door inside the workshop happened to be a 175, and after my singing its praises just a few weeks earlier, Dave started to give it a serious looking over. To cut a long story short, it looks like we may now finally be having one after all that time.
The 175 is a serious lump of boat. For anyone with any interest in combined ease of launching and handling with good sea keeping qualities for offshore as well as inshore work, then you should at least try to get a ride in one before you commit to anything else. Paul Haynes does take prospective customers out for test drives. Alternatively, try to bum a ride in one owned by someone nearer to home. But don't dismiss the boat before you try it. Okay, for some genuine reason such as weight or cost it may well not be the boat for you. But once you've tried one, it will hard to resist. Its been several years (probably even more) since it first hit the market, but we never forgot about it. Thats the level of impression this boat will make. As it's double skinned like the ProAngler, when standing between trips, water needs either to be got rid of quickly or prevented from entering in the first place. The ProAngler has a cover to prevent rain water ingress. Personally, I'm not too keen on covers keeping dampness and the smell of lost bait or fish under wraps between trips. I would far rather rainwater fall inside the boat and be passed through, either with a floor well bung, or a self draining deck. On a mooring, self draining capabilities are a Godsend. Its also nice to know that when, rather than if, you take a big wave inside the boat during launching, it will find its own way out leaving you to concentrate on not shipping another. But being double skinned, self draining and wonderful to handle due to the hull design with goes through the water easier than say the 165 are not the only attributes of the Warrior 175.
The 175 comes with a stainless steel 90 litre integral fuel tank fitted under the floor. This nestles nicely into a purpose made gap in the moulded under floor support matrix which give both the hull and the floor superb rigidity. The matrix is fully fixed to the inner hull and the under side of the floor/double skin moulding, creating two fully air tight pressure tested buoyancy compartments. On the upper 'stand on' side of the floor, small recess areas have been moulded in to take sections of non slip tread master floor covering. The floor also has one large lidded compartment which can be used for fenders, ropes, or even as a live well, as stowage elsewhere on the boat is well catered for. Unlike the 165, there is no forward bulkhead locker. But there are buoyancy tank lockers at either side with long stowage troughs above them. Great for dropping things like leads, terminal tackle or even safety gear into. Ample stowage is also available in the very attractive steering console, with plenty of room at the back for fish boxes, batteries and the like due to the absence of portable fuel tanks. The back has also been very carefully designed and styled for ease of getting into when launching with its cut down transom and grab rails at either side. Having the whole of the transom cut down to outboard fitting height is not a problem as its the inner fishing well bulk head that gives this boat its excellent sea keeping qualities.
If there is one thing Warrior Boats pride themselves on its quality going out of the door. Quality appearance, quality handling, and quality construction, particularly in the areas you can't normally see, unless like me, you pay regular visits to the factory. In all those respects, nothing is left to chance. The layup, loadings, strengtheners, and hull design all come from expert designers working to the very highest specifications. Quality is also available in terms of ride and pace, though in poor conditions these two do not always go together. The 175 is rated up to 150 hp, though the most regularly fitted engine size is around the 90 to 100 hp mark. Despite its being the heaviest boat in its size class on the market, it has been clocked at 48 mph with a 150 Honda on the back, though the number of times that sort of pace can be used will be weather limited. Currently, it is the best selling model in the Warrior range, which, unless you can find one at a dealers or are willing to look at the rather sparse secondhand market means going onto a waiting list. Not perhaps something you may want to do. On the other hand, bad boats don't have anglers queuing up to buy them
SEE THE VIDEO VAULT – Warrior 175