Kingfisher Flex 1925 Review

Story by Craig Ritchie Dec. 18, 2015

Serious fishermen tend to be pretty hard on their equipment, and that’s especially true if you’re out there a couple of times each week. When you spend that much time on the water, durability and low maintenance trump everything else.

Those die-hard anglers who are out on the water from ice-out to freeze-up are exactly who Kingfisher Boats had in mind when the company unveiled its Flex 1925 – a heavy-duty, no-nonsense, multi-species fishing boat that’s truly built like a tank.

That’s really no exaggeration. The 1925’s sides are formed from heavy 0.125 gauge aluminum plate, while the hull bottom is a beefy 0.160 plate. That’s almost twice as thick as the aluminum skin on some other boats. Of course, the heavy hull rides on a full-length performance delta keel, with full-length reverse chines and performance lifting strakes for excellent handling and planing performance. The bow stem is fully welded, and the welded aluminum approach continues inside the cockpit, forming the bow deck, the helm console, and even the glove box.

With five seat bases in its floor, the Flex 1925 allows you to position the seats wherever they’re needed.

The Flex 1925 follows a proven multi-species foundation, with a raised front casting deck, raised rear deck, and open cockpit for maximum space while fishing. It comes with a Swivel Pro Angler seat on permanent pedestal mounted at helm, plus two additional seats that can mount in any of five in-floor bases for maximum versatility.

The no-nonsense interior features a durable speckle painted finish on aluminum components, over a tough, non-slip vinyl floor. The bow casting platform conceals large dry storage compartments below, with cargo nets along the gunnels providing additional convenient storage. There’s a trolling motor plug up front as well, compatible with bow-mount trolling motors of 12, 24 or 36 volts.

The electric trolling motor plug in the bow can handle motors of up to 36 volts.

Along the bow deck’s centerline, a large in-floor rod storage compartment with a lid supported by two gas rams accommodates 11 fishing rods of up to seven feet in length. If that’s not enough, there’s additional locking rod storage in the side gunnels.

With a lid supported by two gas rams, the in-floor rod storage locker handles up to 11 rods.

The welded aluminum helm console has the gauge cluster set to the left of the dash top, leaving a ton of room on the right-hand side for mounting large-screen aftermarket electronics like the Humminbird 999ci HD sonar/GPS mounted in our review boat. Anti-feedback steering and an aluminum sport steering wheel are standard, along with a convenient beverage holder, high-rise windshield and under-dash storage.

The large flat dash top lets the Flex 1925 easily accommodate large-screen aftermarket displays.

At the stern, a second elevated casting platform houses a 24-gallon re-circulating aerated live well with a timer. The wide, flat gunnels are reinforced for accommodating aftermarket rod holders or downriggers. The Flex 1925 even comes with a factory-matched, 3,100-pound EZ Loader single axle bunk trailer with custom tie down straps as standard equipment.

Concealed in the rear casting deck, the 24-gallon aerated, recirculating live well can be controlled with a timer for optimal convenience.

“This boat is like nothing else I’ve ever seen in my life,” says Winnipeg, Manitoba-based professional guide Todd Longley, better known as the Rock & Roll Fisherman for the colorful wrap applied to his rig. “It’s a great all-around boat that’s perfect for pulling skiers or just going for a ride. But as a fishing boat it’s really fantastic. It’s tough as nails, and has a very wide hull for extra interior space, greater stability, awesome handling and very fast planing times.”

Longley’s Flex 1925 was rigged with a 200-horsepower Mercury Verado. Time to plane was virtually instantaneous, and the boat quickly achieved a top speed of more than 50 mph while easily eating up the growing chop developing on eastern Manitoba’s Falcon Lake.

“I think the best thing about this boat is that it’s designed and built to be enjoyed,” says Longley. “It’s tough, and it’s very low maintenance. You can just go out and fish, or pull up on an island and have a picnic, and not have to worry about anything. It makes boating a totally carefree experience, which is exactly the way it should be.”