Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat. The “CE” stands for Carbon Elite. The boat I have nicknamed “The Critter”. This updated article is about my newest build from Yellowfin Yachts in 2025. Showcased at Miami International Boat Show in February of 2025.
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I May Have One For Sale
Often times I read reviews about this boat or that boat and then realize the reviewer has roughly one maybe two hours of runtime and probably never actually used the boat for what its intended purpose was. That’s not the case here, each one of my boats get used significantly for at least a year before I write about them. mostly because I think that’s the right way to do it.
I have owned Bay boats as they are called since 2005. Using them for my charter service here in Key West called Dream Catcher Charters. If there is a weak spot in a bay boat, we have found it. I’ve had many different brands, but mostly the Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat.
Experience With Yellowfin Bay Boats
I have owned many different versions of the yellow 24 Bay boat from the Classics. I’ve had a tower. I also have a Yellowfin spider classic bay boat version but mostly flat decks with no tea tops. I’m not one of those guys that says that any boat is perfect for everyone. It doesn’t exist, but I will say for my purposes and what I do with them in Key West Fishing, they have fit the bill perfectly for us. Almost replacing the use of a flats fishing skiff completely and adding more resume to a single boat. So since 2007 when I bought my first Yellowfin 24 classic red Bay boat, there have been many and each one was a bit more tune on perfection.
I’ll never forget that red boat. We named it the “Instigator” It was on display at the Miami international boat show of 07. I had that boat for over 10 years in daily service garnering over 5000 running hours and 19,000 hours on the water. – legend
CE or Classic? What's the Difference
First off the reason it is called a CE is for Carbon Elite. Yellowfin started building the CE version in 2015. I had the very first one. Switching over to carbon fiber for build material took a lot of weight out of an already pretty light Boat. If I recall, we actually weighed my first 2015 24 CE boat and it came out with a Mercury 300 Pro Xs V-8 outboard right at 2800 pounds.
The Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat hull is not a knock off of the traditional Yellowfin 24. It Is the same hull bottom, there are no differences in the shape or running surface, beam, length and lines are all the same as the original classic boat. The engineering is different. The deck is re-designed from the classic and is now the only option. Adding a small step up with a center compartment that I use for my critter well, drink cooler and fish box. The console was also redesigned shortening the classic console up just a bit to give more room and access to the back of the boat. Thats It…
My 2015 Yellowfin 24 bay boat console was originally made of Carbon Fiber. This did not prove safe as Carbon fiber conduct electricity and is hard to fasten to. I prefer the fiberglass version we have now.
Please Note: If you look at the console rod holders and one of the images above, you will see the black inlay. That was some custom work yellowfin finishing guys did for me on my boat and not really an option. – They asked me to specify that.
Why Is It Called "The Critter"
In my last several builds of the yellow 24 CE, I have asked for a small bait well to be put in that first step compartment up on the deck. Splitting up that compartment to three segments. The well is a small, maybe 7 gallon plumbed bait well that has aeration only. I just need to keep my critters cool. So.. I turned the right segment into my drink cooler and the left side is sort of a bait or fish box cooler. because I put ice on the right and left side of this bait well in that compartment it keeps my critters cold even on the hottest summer day. I have found my critter well water temps to be in the mid 60s keeping my shrimp and crabs super frisky and all I have to do is run the aerator to keep everything alive. I’ve kept as more than five dozen shrimp and eight or 10 crabs in there all day long it works great and I understand now Yellowfin has this as an option.
So, I nicknamed this version of the Yellowfin 24 CE Bay Boat “The Critter”
Bait and Release Wells
Speaking of Bait and Bait Wells my Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat currently has one center well in the back with a release well to the port side of Center. Personally, I don’t carry a lot of bait and have little use for a release well. Only when I’m tarpon fishing I will carry five dozen pinfish on a big day. The rest of my fishing is usually artificial or fly fishing however, the center rear well would probably be one of my only complaints about the yellowfin 24 since they were created. It’s kinda hard to get into and your baits can go to the other side where you have to get down and dig them out. Like I said no Boat is perfect.
As shown in the pictures above, I use dry deck from West Marine to keep the bottom of these release wells from getting scratched up by the junk that I throw in there. I also use the short Shurhold bucket to fit in there works out great. You will also see the hose that is attached to a raw water pump that I can use to rinse off my deck, which is now a standard option on the Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat.
My Set Up
For this section, let’s talk about gadgets how I set my boat up with the different pieces of equipment that help me get my job done. Then we will talk about power and set up and why I set my boats up the way I do for power applications so let’s get started.
Electronics
I’ve been using the same set up for electronics for many years always GARMIN and always the best of. So on this set up, I’ve got a pair of 8612xsv for my MFD’s. I use the XSV version so I can just bolt my transducer right into the back of the units without having to use a black box. Typically, I am not bottom fishing in deeper than 150 feet of water so I don’t need that extra power. I do, however, have the Airmar B175 transducer as well as well as the GT 51M for my side view purposes. I have found this set up to be very effective.
For my VHF radio I use just a handheld plugged into a black box that takes way less space on my dash and it is the ICOM M400 BB. I have units of ICOM on other boats that have lasted forever.
For my dash gauge from Mercury Marine I utilize the vessel view seven. This is a SIMRAD product that tells me everything I need to know on the fly talking to my Mercury Racing 400 R. In addition, I have an NMEA network that brings all of my information functions together and standard on the Yellowfin 24 CE is C-Zone. Some folks don’t care for C-Zone, but I have not had any issues with this product that I did not create…
Power Pole Total Boat Control
Because they make everything that makes shallow water fishing so much easier Power Pole gets their own heading in this article. Their products are amazing and their customer support is legendary. I’m one of their biggest fans.
For my boats. First off, I have the one pump 10 foot blades for my shallow water anchors. If you know boats and you finish the shallows, there’s really nothing I need to tell you about this fantastic product. They are on all of my shallow water boats and have been since 2000.
For my trolling motor, that’s easy the Power Pole Move. I’ve said it many times that Power Pole has fixed everything that was wrong with trolling motors in saltwater. I was astonished when a trolling motor company came out with a three-year warranty on all components. – crazy right?
– This is a buy once, cry once product. You’r wife may hate you but you will not regret it.
Last but not least is the Powerpole charge. A set it and forget it product that maintains and manages your batteries whether you are taking energy from your motors alternator or from the dock plugged in. A simple do it yourself app on your phone tells you where the charge is going and how much and basically takes away the headache that has always been associated with charging batteries for trolling motors.
Batteries
I have been working with Navico Group for a few years now we actually validated the Relion RB100 lithium batteries to get them approved for facilitating the starting of large Mercury outboards on one of my boats. Honestly, I think I still have that test set of batteries in that boat – 4 years later. So I use two of these one for my start and one for my house plenty of energy and they’re constantly being taken care of by the Powerpole charge.
In addition, I have 36 V needs for my trolling motor so there I used two Relion RB36V40 batteries For my trolling motor needs. Again remember I usually do things a little bit over the top and this has worked out really well. I have yet to find the bottom of these batteries in three days of fishing before a charge.
Why The Yellowfin 24 CE Bay Boat
Glad you asked. I will go over a few details of what I love about this boat first off let’s talk about how the boat runs. I have taken a yellow 24 pretty much everywhere around Key West. Shallow deep fast slow on the trolling motor on the flat in the backcountry on the reef Deep dropping in 700 feet of water dry Tortugas the upper keys the Everglades and run all the way to Fort Myers and back just for the hell of it.
People ask me all the time can I fish the flats and run 30 miles offshore and a 4 foot chop in that boat? No. Get a bigger boat and forget about the flats. Boat that is designed to float shallow is not going to be a wave buster. Typically 24 foot boats are not great wave busters, even when they are made to do it, length matters. Length does not make a great bay boat. Read my article “What is a bay boat“
The Ride
The Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat is a boat drivers boat at speed and a Cadillac at cruise. She responds perfectly well to the right input. Personally, I think trim tabs on this boat or a travesty, but that’s just me. The boat has such a balanced, running service, the slightest change in CG’s modifies the ride perfectly well.
When running along and perfectly trimmed, the boat is finger steer, and feels like a gazelle running through the windblown, bay chop. When he gets sloppy trim her down and let her eat. Every one of my Yellowfin 24s have felt solid under my feet and gained my trust and respect, knowing she will get me home. Both of us in one piece.
She has and will do everything I expect out of this bay boat hull. She floats, shallow and quiet enough for me to hunt, bonefish and permit effectively then run offshore to the reef on a decent day to catch whatever is running out there. She is super well behaved with trolling motor power and pretty quiet. I think she has a great balance between shallow water and light duty reef fishing. An awesome solution for my signature “All In Wonder” fishing charter. So much though that I prefer the Yellowfin 24CE bay boat over to Yellowfin 26 hybrid the 24 just does more for me and what I do.
The Performance
Since day, one of running, and Yellowfin 24, I have tried to wring out every drop of performance for the power application I was using. The Yellowfin 24 CE bay boat used to be one of the fastest bay boats on the market. Since then, other manufacturers have the rung the bell, much higher than this boat will ever be capable of without a complete bottom reconfiguration, tuning, diet and manufacturing process. Some of my Yellowfin 24 CE’s have reached into the high 80s with the right power and an extremely tuned set up.
Like I mentioned earlier in this article, everything has a cost when changing a boat to make it faster or ride better in big chop, or even to make it shallower. I love this boat for what it is today.
My current boat, 2025 Yellowfin CE bay boat runs a solid 73 miles an hour and gets roughly 4 to 4.25 miles per gallon at Cruise of about 44 mph. Powered by a Mercury, Racing 400R.
Is It Worth The Cost?
In 2026 a properly appointed Yellowfin 24 CE can cost between 200 and $240,000 brand new. Not the most expensive bay boat however, definitely not the cheapest. In many cases, you get what you pay for. In my experience, each one of my 24 yellowfins have been well worth the retail price compared to the other boats on the market.
I spend a lot of time consulting with people when they are trying to choose the right boat. I have learned most folks have three plans when buying a boat recreationally
- Keep it forever
- Sell it in three years
- Sell it next year
When talking in terms of the Yellowfin CE 24 bay boat, all three of these plans have been working very well for buyers.
In Closing
Like I mentioned, there is no perfect bay boat for everyone. All I can share is the experiences I have with the ones that I have owned and done some extensive testing on.
–I think at the end of the day when you can look at your boat on the lift or trailer in the backyard and Smile – that’s the right boat. – SPL
