Jet Boat suggestions?

[I Da Man]

Being a newbie on FMN, please be patent with me...I'm just learning where everything's at. If this is in the wrong place...please direct me there.

I'm looking for a jet drive for catten...

I've been in a couple HiPro, River Pros, but I was wondering about Sea Arks and other tunnel hulls with a jet drive. Who has one...and what are the advantages/disadvantages.

Any thoughts would be appreciated!

[hanson]

Hey B-

I'm not the right guy to be discussing jet boats but have been doing a little studying, reading, and dreaming as well!

The one important factor I've come across if you are going with an outboard jet is to get a tunnel hull jon that is specifically designed for outboard jets. A tunnel jon built for an outboard prop will sacrifice performance when used with an outboard jet.

After that tidbit, thats about all I know!

I sure do like those RiverPro HiPros for catfishing though! I imagine you are looking for a little cheaper alternative, as am I when I scrounge up the cash. I've pretty much settled on finding one used when the time is right. Hopefully someone is willing to part.

The difficult part will be getting one with the forward center console. I know of 2 (Papa Grumps & Hoopers) and they are awesome with all the floor space they allow.

Lots of companies out there making regular tunnel jons. A little bit harder to find the jet tunnel jons though. Sea Ark does have a nice line up of boats. You can get their jons with the forward center console also giving you lots of floor space!!

Your Lund is pretty comfy for catfishing, especially on your stretch of river.

[Dennis Steele]

An out board jet will get you by, but some things to consider are how shallow the river you will be running is.

On an outboard jet the intake will hang 3 or 4" bellow the bottom of the boat and it will take a hit every now and again causing possible damage to not only the "shoe" (intake) but also to the lower end of the unit.

I used to run an outboard jet on the MN and allthough I never broke the shoe, it took some hits.

I also had an aluminum impellar which is standard for outboard jets. THese can wear out quickly and you frequently have to adjust the placement of the immpellar.

Weight distribution is critical in outbaord jets as well.

Often you need to move things around, such as people and gear to get performance. Also rember that you will also loose about 25 to 30% of the power head rating.

One other thing to look at when considering a jon boat with a jet is the hull design. The best performance will come from a hull that has fewer strakes or ribs running along the bottom of the boat. These can force air toward the intake and also cause drag reducing the performance of the jet.

The best design would be a 6 degree vee with a flat spot or "delta pad" in front of the jet intake.

Some jons are built with tunnel hulls to help prevent the intake shoe from taking a hit. Not all tunnels are designed for jets however. A tunnel designed for a prop will not work with a jet. The tunnel will actually force air to the intake and the impellar will cavitate.

There are a few manufacturers that make tunnels specifically designed for jets. I looked into a few of these when I decided to upgrade my jet/jon boat a few years ago. I found that even they may have performance problems. One factory rep advised that I would not be happy with the performance of their tunnel and suggested I try a prop tunnel instead. That was not an option for me due to the shallow stretches I fished.

I also checked into a few custom outboard manufacturers from out east and they do have a tunnel design that performs well. I decided against these as they did not compare to the performance of my RP and load capacity and the weight distribution problem was still a concern. Their prices were also only "pocket change" less than the River Pro I ended up with.

You also have the option of going with an inboard jet. Boats like Duckworth, Alumaweld and other west coast manufacturers. These are VERY nice rigs. They do cost a pretty penny though. Expect paying upwards of 35 grand.

They do a great job on the fast rivers they are designed to run. Deeper vee hull designs split off air before it reaches the intake. The disadvantage is they don't run quite shallow enough for the rivers that we have here in MN. They are also quite heavy and the big big V8's that power them use a lot of gas.

Then you have River Pro which is the boat I chose. These baots are built for going into the shallowest water. They are not designed and do not perform well in large waves or on larger lakes. I do however use mine on some metro area lakes and it does work OK, allthough I do have to slow down when it gets a little rough.

River Pro uses a shallow 6 degree delta pad hull to split of air before it reaches the intake for best performance. They also have a reverse chine that actually grabs water to force it under the hull creating extra lift. This alows the boat to plane on only a few inches of water.

Add the extra thick .190 gauge aluminum that can take a good hit and you have a very durable boat.

Last spring I was goofing around and was thrown from my boat. The boat hit a 45 degree rocky bank at 30mph and went up into the to trees. After the major job of pulling the boat out of the trees and back down the bank into the water, it only suffered a couple minor dents and I was using it the very next day. Needless to say they can take a few hits.

River Pro also uses Mercury Sport Jets to reduce the boats weight allowing the boats to run very shallow. THe Sport jets are a fraction of the weight of the large V8's that other jet manufacturers use. They are also pretty snappy.

There are lots of different type of jet boats to choose from. I would suggest deciding what type of water you intend to use it on the most and then decide on the best boat for that purpose.

[Aquaman01]

Oh my word, fishhead! I never heard about that little adventure! I'm glad yer okay! Trees.....holy cats. Yer friggin' nuts, dude.

Jets? The RP is the ticket, man.

[Guest]

Well.. I dont think Dennis left anything out that anyone could possibly add..

Is a jet really neccessary for most of us? I know I have my days where I should have one where I am going.. but I dont know if it would be justifiable for my purposes.. plus, I like the fuel economy of a prop driven boat. I am not *knocking* RP here.. they are awesome boats... I have also been in large jet driven jon boats in Alaska and seen the obvious advantages.. including jumping sand bars.

I did see a tunnel hull jon boat years ago that really intrigued me. It was roughly 20 long.. maybe a bit longer, it had a forward counsel and was drivin by a 55 hp evinrude. The tunnel design on the hull left the lower unit above the bottom of the transom.. it was a deep tunnel. I have no doubt that boat would have run very shallow on plane, and although not impossible, it would have been tough to run that prop into anything. That rig was sitting there for $5000.. which makes it much more economical than a jet rig and it had enough room for 6 people, 10000 decoys, 4 dogs, 36 rod holders, a living room set.. and one could probably still squeeze in a fridge.

I dont know who the manufacturer was of the boat.. it looked like a military boat... It was impressive.

I will admit.. that lund is pretty comfortable when running around on pool 3 there I DA man.

[Big G]

Hey I Da Man!!!

I would prefer you get a jet boat, so I can use your lund for MUSHY fishing!!!!!!

[I Da Man]

Thanks for the input guys..I didn't see the post was moved, wondering why there wasn't any responses!

If I let you use my Lund for Mushy fishing Big G...I would have to sink it afterwards!

In 80% of my fishing a prop boat like my Lund with the 90 merc will get me there and back safely. Trim up, slow, shifting in and out of gear will work.

Of course there was the day that I spent three hours in loon stuff using my trolling motor and a paddle to get back to water deeper than 8 inches. I'm now very experianced at cleaning out the "telltail" on my beloved Merc. I know if I would have been in a jet...it would have been a nice, uneventful ride across the lake.

There are a number of places on P3, that I wouldn't take my boat with a guest along...just because of the above. I go to alternitive spots...for safety and sanity reasons. A jet would set me free...so to speak.

One piece of the puzzle I haven't figured out is the part that would make my wife happy... a full windshield. (?)

[I Da Man]

PS Aquaman01...I don't think that he mentioned that he was "o.k."!

Seriously that could have been a disaster and I'm glad it ended up with just a couple bruises on the Pro.

[Guest]

Wife wants a windshield.. going to have to let her drive!

I dont know how that works although.. the steriotype of *woman driver* mixed with River Pro....

Remind me to put brighter lighting on my boat if you let your wife drive I Da Man...

[Wiskers]

Yeppers Dennis pretty much covered it. However I use mine all over the place. LOW, Devils Lake, Lake Milacs, local lakes.. I have had mine in 5 foot rollers. works just fine.. You get a bit wet at times and it is a bit more rough on waves but it can take it.

My newest RP I got has a 9 degree hull.. I like it much better than the 6 degree. Turns much better.

One plus that I can think of vs a tunnel boat is the room and stabability vs a john boat.

Happy fishing and good luck.

[I Da Man]

Thanks again guys!

Anyone know who to contact about a River Pro? Seems like there isn't any dealers around the St Croix River area....

[Ralph Wiggum]

Leave a post in the Mississippi North forum for Kevin Turner. He's the guy that makes them.

[I Da Man]

Thanks!