A careful consumer, Jay test-assembled his FoldCat 440fc in his dads converted garage before taking it out on the water. This practice run speeded up on-site assembly by 50%.
We recently received a very thoughtful and thorough hands-on review of our 4-man Sea Eagle FoldCat 440fc from Jay Adkins, of Valdosta, GA. Here are Jay’s candid observations after receiving, test-assembling, and taking the FoldCat out on the water.
“I saw the Sea Eagle FoldCat for the first time on one of the sportsman channels. I went on the internet, started researching the product, and eventually showed it to my dad. He thought the product was so unique that he purchased the 4-man FoldCat 440fc so we could try and do some fishing together. He was looking for something that we could store without having to trailer.
We set aside a day in his garage to assemble and get a feel for the FoldCat 440fc. It took about 35 minutes for the initial assembly, simply because we had no idea what we were doing, and he had bought some of the options! He bought a 55lb. Minn Kota hand controlled trolling motor and I got a blue Optima battery to power it.
Our maiden voyage was on a small river close to my house in Valdosta, Ga. We carried the un-inflated FoldCat on the back of my 4-wheeler to a sand bar above the shoals where we assembled and inflated it with no problem. This was the second time we put it together and It took us probably 15 minutes. Dad ran the trolling motor off the back and we traveled up river. We did catch fish!
User report:
1. The FoldCat rode high in the water and could be turned on a dime! Very solid foundation for moving around on and had very little drag in the water.
2. Back through the rapids down river with no problem. We passed other jon boats with serious problems on the rocks.
3. I could step off the front with a pair of water shoes on and pull the FoldCat over the shallow shoals with not much problem if needed.
4. Very transportable; the very reason for the purchase.
Overall Observations:
The FoldCat performed well. What a conversation piece when we took the boat out below the shoals at the public landing with eyes upon us! There was a question and answer period with the people coming by.
Another note: spend the money for an Optima battery! We ran it hard all day up river and when I put it on the Excaliber charger to recharge it, it was still showing a strong charge! Wow!”
— Jay Adkins, a Satisfied FoldCat customer
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My experience with the 440 is also a very positive one. But… based on SeaEagle’s advice, I purchased the Honda 2HP short shaft. Big mistake.
There is enough power to move the boat, but the propeller rides out of the water even with 4 grownups on it. Don’t make the same mistake, purchase the long shaft motor (20″) and it does what it is supposed to do.
I assembled the 440 once and now it lives on top of a converted lighty trailer.
Do you still have 2hp short shaft motor or have you changed out to the long shaft? I have just purchased the 440 and going with a 4hp but I have not decided on the shaft length yet.
We are very interested in purchasing the 440fc foldcat. There are good instructions on how to assemble the boat but there is nothing that addresses the actual take down. How many parts do you really have to take off before rolling it up for storage?
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