Duck Boat Question

[RustyArmadillo]

I'm wanting to get a boat for duck hunting in the near future. I've got a pup and want her to have as much opportunity as she can. Not looking to spend a whole lot and have been looking at 14-17ft jon boats. Does anybody run those on the duck waters? And what's a good price for a used one?

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[jdg13]

Pretty much everyone runs plain old jon boats for duck hunting. Coastal guys run bigger consoled ones, some run mud motors, etc. Where you hunt will determine what's best, but a 14-16 with a 25hp tiller will do just about anything the average guy needs and double as a good lake/river fishing rig. Mine's a 1548 Alweld. Small enough to get around marsh ditches but big enough for 2 guys/gear/dog. Used, for an older but decent shape rig, probably minimum around $5k would be my guess in this day and age. Boat prices even on the little tin cans are crazy right now.

[Texas Grown]

Lots of good ones out there. A lot depends on how much you want to spend. I run a 1648 G3 river Jon. I don't have anything bigger simply because I can't get it through my gate and in my back yard. I started with a basic hull I picked up here. And been building it out as a utility hunting/fishing rig since. Almost done with it to. You can read up on it in the DIY forum.

The fish are biting, and there's hogs to be kill-t. Gotta go!

[RustyArmadillo]

Pretty much everyone runs plain old jon boats for duck hunting. Coastal guys run bigger consoled ones, some run mud motors, etc. Where you hunt will determine what's best, but a 14-16 with a 25hp tiller will do just about anything the average guy needs and double as a good lake/river fishing rig. Mine's a 1548 Alweld. Small enough to get around marsh ditches but big enough for 2 guys/gear/dog. Used, for an older but decent shape rig, probably minimum around $5k would be my guess in this day and age. Boat prices even on the little tin cans are crazy right now.

That's what I was thinkin. Saw a 14fter with a 6hp Mercury foe $2,500. Wasn't sure if that was decent.

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[RustyArmadillo]

Lots of good ones out there. A lot depends on how much you want to spend. I run a 1648 G3 river Jon. I don't have anything bigger simply because I can't get it through my gate and in my back yard. I started with a basic hull I picked up here. And been building it out as a utility hunting/fishing rig since. Almost done with it to. You can read up on it in the DIY forum.

The fish are biting, and there's hogs to be kill-t. Gotta go!

How long is it?

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[gander]

I'm wanting to get a boat for duck hunting in the near future. I've got a pup and want her to have as much opportunity as she can. Not looking to spend a whole lot and have been looking at 14-17ft jon boats. Does anybody run those on the duck waters? And what's a good price for a used one?

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Mine is a 17'6" aluminum with a 35 gatortail. First thing you'd want to figure out is what type of motor you want on it. If you are just hunting lakes or deeper rivers, you should be fine with an outboard. If you are hunting marsh or even stump fields you should probably look into a surface drive motor that can take the beating. If you are running shallower rivers or sand/rock bottoms, then I'd also look at a jet drive. Figure that out and you can find used motors/entire boat setups all over the internet. There are several facebook groups that will have dozens at any time listed for sale. For a 16' aluminum with a 25 horse tiller outboard that is in good shape, you should be able to get for $4-6K, the same thing with a surface drive in the same size will probably cost you another $1500-2K additional. If you look around you can find some pretty good deals.

[Tex21]

Join the FB page Arkansas Tiller Handle Outlaws and Performance boats. There is always duck boats for sale on there.

In my opinion I wouldnt go smaller than 15ft. Decoys, gun, dog, you, etc takes up more room than you would thing.

[jdg13]

That's what I was thinkin. Saw a 14fter with a 6hp Mercury foe $2,500. Wasn't sure if that was decent.

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I'd want more than a 6hp on a 14, at least a 15hp if not more. I went with the 25hp on mine because that's as big as the feds let you have on their public stuff. Started hunting a stumpy area and bought a longtail mud motor not because I "needed" it, but I was tired of puttering around bumping stuff with the outboard. Surface drives are definitely more convenient but cost alot more. Here's the thing about mud motors of any type, they work great for the intended purpose, but are either so so or flat out suck in other conditions. Shallow water/mud, stumps, vegetation, they rock. Open/deeper water or hard bottom, the outboard wins in speed and load carrying. I swap the outboard on in the summer for fishing. Jets are the best of both worlds, unless you get into vegetation. Figure out exactly what you want to do with it and go from there.

[Wall_Hanger]

I have a 16' SeaArk Commercial series tunnel hull (center console) that I use for duck hunting on the coast and lake/river fishing. Its a heavier hull, no less than .125 anywhere on it and has reinforced transom and diamond plate floor. I have a 70 yamaha two stroke on a jack plate that I am putting on it now but previously has a 40 johnson. With the 40 it would run about 30 with two people but the gearing was wrong and the hole shot was poor to me. It was also very weight sensitive with the 40 and had a steep decline in performance if you loaded it down. I was originally a spill vessel for pulling boom and had a ton of torque but couldn't get the rpms up enough to spin up shallow.

I think the 70 which is a 3 cylinder but has a smaller diameter prop will remedy the holeshot issues (in fact I know it will). The boat is a great fit for me because with the heavier built hull I can run in stumpy areas or places with debris without worrying as much and with the tunnel and jackplate I can run in just a few inches of water no problem. I added power steering and low water pickup to make sure that its comfortable and reliable running in shallow water for long distances as well. I will not work well in just thick nasty mud but marsh areas with water and mud bottom and its great.

[RustyArmadillo]

I'd want more than a 6hp on a 14, at least a 15hp if not more. I went with the 25hp on mine because that's as big as the feds let you have on their public stuff. Started hunting a stumpy area and bought a longtail mud motor not because I "needed" it, but I was tired of puttering around bumping stuff with the outboard. Surface drives are definitely more convenient but cost alot more. Here's the thing about mud motors of any type, they work great for the intended purpose, but are either so so or flat out suck in other conditions. Shallow water/mud, stumps, vegetation, they rock. Open/deeper water or hard bottom, the outboard wins in speed and load carrying. I swap the outboard on in the summer for fishing. Jets are the best of both worlds, unless you get into vegetation. Figure out exactly what you want to do with it and go from there.

Yeah I definitely want more power. Just got my pup and want a boat to hunt with her more places, but she'll have plenty of good hunting in her so I have time to wait for the right one.

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[Uncle_Milty]

I run a 1548 Weldbuilt vented tunnel with float boxes. I have a 25hp Tohatsu Tiller with a 30hp carb and 4 blade prop. I can easily handle 3 people a dog and gear. I hunt brackish marsh and have no issues getting up in less than a foot of water.

Mudboats and motors are nice but I can't bring myself to spend the money on one. Like one of the guys said, even the little rigs are stupid expensive right now. Prior to Covid in SETX you could pick a solid rid like mine for 3k but now they around the 5k mark.

If your handy you can pick a boat and trailer that needs a little work then pair it with a motor. Seems like you can piece a rig together cheaper than buying one ready to roll.

[Texas Grown]

How long is it?

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16 foot by 48 inch bottom. 71" beam with 21" gunnel walls. 15" transom that I converted to a long shaft transom. Riveted hull, which for me is no problem tightening rivets. I've done ton of them. But haven't ever had to on this one. G3 makes a pretty good hull.

The fish are biting, and there's hogs to be kill-t. Gotta go!

[RustyArmadillo]

16 foot by 48 inch bottom. 71" beam with 21" gunnel walls. 15" transom that I converted to a long shaft transom. Riveted hull, which for me is no problem tightening rivets. I've done ton of them. But haven't ever had to on this one. G3 makes a pretty good hull.

The fish are biting, and there's hogs to be kill-t. Gotta go!

How HP do you like for your motor?

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[RustyArmadillo]

I run a 1548 Weldbuilt vented tunnel with float boxes. I have a 25hp Tohatsu Tiller with a 30hp carb and 4 blade prop. I can easily handle 3 people a dog and gear. I hunt brackish marsh and have no issues getting up in less than a foot of water.

Mudboats and motors are nice but I can't bring myself to spend the money on one. Like one of the guys said, even the little rigs are stupid expensive right now. Prior to Covid in SETX you could pick a solid rid like mine for 3k but now they around the 5k mark.

If your handy you can pick a boat and trailer that needs a little work then pair it with a motor. Seems like you can piece a rig together cheaper than buying one ready to roll.

Mhmm. I'm sure prices will go down a little. That sounds about what I'm looking for, just trying to find the right one. Can't decide if I want this 14 fter, it's only got a 6hp so I'd have to eventually upgrade it to something that can go faster than I can paddle.

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[RustyArmadillo]

Also I would add another question - never hunted ducks public and not sure if it's worth trying to race to spots every weekend or what. What's y'alls experience most of the time on public?

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