Fibrecraft

20/04/2026

Best part of the job....

Lake test with a new Falcon ASX Hybrid by powered by the F200 4Stroke... very happy with the overall performance of the rig!

Satisfied to hand over to the customer with everything working as it should!

The Falcon ASX Hybrid is the most practical, versatile and affordable option to be considered when looking for a family orientated fishing boat!

23/03/2026

Today we need to talk about something that honestly still blows my mind…

𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝗜𝗫 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝟯𝟬𝟬𝗵𝗽 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀.

Not one.
Not two.
Six.

Same badge… same 300hp sticker… completely different personalities.

It’s like rocking up at a braai and finding out there’s six different types of brandewyn… all 43%… but each one hits very differently

𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁… 𝟯𝟬𝟬𝗵𝗽 𝗜𝘀 𝟯𝟬𝟬𝗵𝗽
Let’s just appreciate this quickly.

300hp on the back of a boat…
That V8 sound…
That push when you hit the throttle…

There’s not a single oke reading this that hears a V8 fire up and goes: “Ja nee, not for me.”

Don't lie...

𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗜𝘁 𝗚𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴
Mercury didn’t just build one 300hp and call it a day.

No.

They built 𝘀𝗶𝘅 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗲𝘀 of the same motor.

Same 4.6L V8 platform…
Completely different attitudes.

It’s like:
• One is a gym oke
• One is a businessman
• One is a taxi driver
• One is a lunatic

All wearing the same shirt.

𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗼𝗸𝗲 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗡𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗹” 𝗢𝗸𝗲)
This is your everyday legend.

Light, reliable, does everything.

The oke that rocks up, braais, helps clean, and goes home.

No drama.

Perfect for:
• Offshore boats
• Family setups
• General “let’s go fishing” vibes

This is the one your dad would buy.

𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝗲𝗮𝗣𝗿𝗼 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲”)
This oke doesn’t care about top speed.

He’s there to work.

You can run this thing all day, every day, and it’ll still ask:
“Is that all?”

Heavy-duty gearcase.
Built for punishment.

Perfect for:
• Commercial fishing
• Water taxis
• The oke who doesn’t switch his motor off… ever

This is the Hilux of outboards.

𝟯. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼 𝗫𝗦 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗕𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗢𝗸𝗲”)
Now we’re getting spicy.

This one is for the okes who:
• Care about hole shot
• Care about acceleration
• Care about beating their buddy to the spot

Higher revs. More aggressive.

This is the oke with Oakleys and a sponsor sticker on his bakkie.

𝟰. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗩𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗥𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗢𝗸𝗲”)
This one…

This one doesn’t shout.

It hums.

Smooth. Quiet. Fancy.

You start it and you’re like:
“Wait… is it even on?”

Advanced MidSection = no vibration.
Built-in steering = no nonsense.

Perfect for:
• Big fancy boats
• People who say “let’s cruise” instead of “let’s send it”

This is the Mercedes S-Class on water.

𝟱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬𝟬𝗥 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗣𝘀𝘆𝗰𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗵”)
Now we’re talking.

This thing is not normal.

6400 RPM.
Sport Master gearcase.
Growl that makes people turn their heads.

This is for the okes who:
• Check GPS speed every 5 minutes
• Don’t believe in “fast enough”
• Think 127km/h is just a warm-up

This motor doesn’t ask questions.

It just goes.

𝟲. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬𝟬 𝗥𝗢𝗦 (𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗕𝗲 𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲” 𝗢𝗻𝗲)
This one…

Most of you will never even see one in real life.

Short shaft.
Race spec.
Built for absolute chaos.

This is for boats doing 160km/h+ over waves.

Not for:
• Your dam
• Your Sunday jol
• Your cousin’s pontoon

This is for people with helmets and no fear.

𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗶𝘀:
• That little “pop-top” hatch so you don’t look like a chop removing the whole cowl
• You can literally choose how loud your motor sounds
• They think for you when your battery is dying
• You can scan the motor like a barcode and get tutorials
• It’s basically a computer with a prop on it

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗻𝘆 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆
Now here’s the part that makes me laugh…

You get an oke walking into a dealership:
“Hi I want a 300hp.”

Salesman:
“Cool… which one?”

Oke:
“…what do you mean which one??”

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
Because now it actually matters.

Are you:

• A workhorse oke → SeaPro
• A weekend fisherman → FourStroke
• A bass tournament oke → Pro XS
• A luxury cruiser → Verado
• A speed addict → 300R
• Or a full-send lunatic → 300 ROS

𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀
I genuinely love this.

Because instead of forcing one motor to do everything…

Mercury said:
“Let’s build six… and let the people choose.”

𝗡𝗼𝘄 𝗜 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗧𝗼 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗙𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗬𝗼𝘂
Be honest…
Did you even know there were SIX different 300hp Mercs?

And more importantly…

Which one are you taking?

12/03/2026

Alright… I need to talk about something that popped into my head last night.

Yesterday I saw a video online... 𝗬𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗵𝗮 𝘃𝘀 𝗦𝘂𝘇𝘂𝗸𝗶.

You know the type.

Two okes arguing in the comments like they are personally employed by the brand.

One guy typing:
“Yamaha is the best motor ever built.”

Then the next oke arrives:
“No bru Suzuki is better.”

Then someone else comes in:
“Mercury destroys both.”

Next thing the comments look like a Hilux vs Ranger fight...

And it got me thinking…

𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲.

Times have changed.

And here’s the honest truth that some people don’t want to hear:
There is no such thing as a bad outboard anymore.

None.

Not Yamaha.
Not Suzuki.
Not Mercury.

These motors have evolved so much over the last 20 years it’s actually insane.

Fuel injection…
ECU management…
Better cooling systems…
Better metallurgy…
Better electronics…

Everything has improved.

All three of the big players make 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆, 𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀.

Full stop.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝗹𝗱 𝗗𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘃𝘀 𝗡𝗼𝘄
Back in the day things were different.

Some motors were actually problem children.

You had motors that drank fuel like a sailor.
Others that refused to start.
Some that smoked like a chimney.

But today?

A modern outboard is basically 𝗮 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝘂𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗮 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿.

They’re efficient.
They’re reliable.
And they’re built to last.

So this constant “𝗺𝘆 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗿” argument?

It’s honestly a bit outdated.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗕𝗼𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗼𝗳 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲
Let me paint you a picture.

A guy walks into a boat dealership.

He has 𝘇𝗲𝗿𝗼 𝗯𝗼𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆.

He didn’t grow up with boats.
His dad didn’t own a ski boat.

He’s just decided:
“Ja you know what… I want a boat.”

So he chooses a nice boat.
Now he looks at the motor.

Maybe it’s a Suzuki.

He thinks:
“Oh yes I know Suzuki… they make bikes.”

Or it’s a Yamaha.
“Oh yes Yamaha… they make bikes and pianos and everything.”

Or it’s a Mercury.
“Ja I’ve heard of that before.”

And that’s it.

He doesn’t care about the history of two-strokes vs four-strokes.

He doesn’t care about gear ratios.

He doesn’t care about what brand won some bass tournament in 2008.

He just wants to go boating.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘁𝗵 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟲
Here’s the big change nobody wants to admit.

𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲.

That era is slowly disappearing.

There are basically 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝘆𝗽𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗼𝘆𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁.

𝟭) 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗼𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗴𝗶𝗮 𝗢𝗸𝗲
This guy grew up with a certain motor.

Maybe his grandfather had a Mercury on a Miami Classic in 1970.
He knows that motor.

He trusts that motor.

So naturally he buys the same brand.

Not because the others are bad…

But because that’s what he knows.

𝟮) 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗕𝗼𝗮𝘁 𝗢𝗸𝗲
Now these guys are a different story.

Bass fishing is a very technical world.

There are reasons they pick certain motors.

Performance.
Weight.
Torque.
Setups.

But that’s a 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 we’ll talk about another day.

𝟯) 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗚𝗼𝗼𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁
You know this oke.

He spent five minutes on Google.

Now suddenly he’s an outboard engineer.

He’ll tell you exactly why one motor is better.

Meanwhile he’s never even owned a boat.

Classic internet behavior.

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗣𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗔𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗡𝗼𝘄
In 2026 the biggest factors are simple.

𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆.

And

𝗣𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗲.

That’s it.

Let’s say our new boater walks into the shop and sees three motors:
• 300hp – R350k
• 300hp – R450k
• 300hp – R550k

What do you think he’s doing?

He’s pointing at the 𝗥𝟯𝟱𝟬𝗸 𝗼𝗻𝗲.

Why?

Because to him:
300 horsepower is 300 horsepower.

He doesn’t care if one is a V6 and the other is a V8.

He doesn’t care about torque curves.

He sees the number on the sticker.

And he sees the price.

Decision made.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗕𝗶𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗲
The market will always revolve around three brands:

𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘆
𝗬𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗵𝗮
𝗦𝘂𝘇𝘂𝗸𝗶

And out of those three…

𝗦𝘂𝘇𝘂𝗸𝗶 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗬𝗮𝗺𝗮𝗵𝗮 currently have the biggest market share...

Just like the 𝗛𝗶𝗹𝘂𝘅 𝘃𝘀 𝗥𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝗿 argument.

Both are fantastic.
Both sell like crazy.
Both have their loyal fans.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘆 𝗦𝗶𝘁𝘂𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻
Now Mercury is still a fantastic motor.

But let’s be honest…

Pricing has made things a bit harder for them in some markets.
Especially when you start talking about 𝟮𝟱𝟬𝗵𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿.

The price gap can get pretty serious.

Although I must say…
I’ve recently seen pricing on some 𝟭𝟭𝟱𝗵𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝟭𝟱𝟬𝗵𝗽 𝗠𝗲𝗿𝗰𝘂𝗿𝘆𝘀 and it’s actually very competitive.

Sometimes only 𝗥𝟭𝟬𝗸 𝗱𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝗲 compared to Yamaha or Suzuki.

But once you get into the 𝗯𝗶𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀…

Then things get spicy.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗕𝘂𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀
Today most guys buy based on:

• Price
• What their buddy runs
• What their neighbor runs
• What the dealership recommends

That’s the reality.

Not some giant brand loyalty war.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗛𝗼𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻
Yamaha is excellent.
Suzuki is excellent.
Mercury is excellent.

All three make incredibly reliable motors.

So arguing endlessly about which one is better…

Is basically like arguing whether Klipdrift or Richelieu is better...

You’re still drinking brandewyn.

Now I’m curious.

What do you okes think?
Do you still have brand loyalty when it comes to outboards…
Or do you just buy whatever gives you the best price and reliability?

18/12/2025

Someone is about to have a very nice

Final build going out for the year, this Beautiful Falcon ASX by
Perfectly matched with this Yamaha 250SHO from .yamahazim and Garmin ForcePro with a EchoMAP 92UHD2 fitted in dash...

Ready to upgrade, Ready to expand... this one is sure to turn some heads when it hits the water!

16/12/2025

16/10/2025

Still some fun to be had setting this one up!
Excel Thunderbird, by Fibrecraft....

04/08/2025

Sunday morning at work!
Talon by

30/06/2025

Excel Thunderbird, by
[email protected]

06/06/2025

NEW EPISODE OUT NOW!!
Episode 5 kicks off at the start of day two, and the competition wastes no time heating up.

Young anglers are back on the water, fired up and ready to make their move—and one massive catch early in the session promises to shake up the leaderboard in a big way. This isn’t just a fishing comp—it’s a battle of nerve, skill, and national pride. 🎣🔥

Watch full episode and subscribe for more on YouTube.
https://youtu.be/aukFJnhs_Yc
All links in linktree in bio.

Marine Centre - Yamaha Keepnet Catch and Release Fishing Fibrecraft VitaCap Benefit Zimbabwe National Bass Federation