I've been looking at the Excel F4, gatortrax hybrid, and express bayou series all in a 1754. I was thinking about putting a mudbuddy black death 5500 or a HD7000 on one of these. I know that there are a lot of opinions out there, but I'm interested in hearing which of these boats has the fastest hull, would be the best at breaking ice, and that would provide the most bang for the buck. The Mudbuddy motor seemed to provide the best speed and torque to me, but I may be wrong. Please let me know if there are better options on this as well.

Just so you know how I use the boat and motor... I make a 3 mile run on a deep river and then I go another 1.5miles in swamp and stumps. I often have 3 or 4 guys. My blind wont hold anything larger than the 1754. Your advice is appreciated in advance!

What do you mean by GatorTrax hybrid?

The gator-trax hybrid is a mod-v bow that tapers to a slickbottom Owen.

Don't let MB sucker you into a motor just because of the mods they have on them.
You can get the same engine on any frame you choose.