I am new to the forum and currently in need of a new boat before October. I have a 24hp mud Buddy longtail. I want to be able to swing the motor into the boat, therefore either has to have no rear seat or split seats. The confusing part is the seating arrangement with a blind up. If I have a pedestal seat in the floor for me, my buddy on the deck will be pretty uncomfortable with 1 leg always falling asleep. I want to be able to face the decoys without being on an angle. What do you guys do for seating? I noticed beavertail has an all open style with pedestal seats, but pricing is way too high for me. i am looking to spend between 4-5 grand on boat and trailer. Any reputable custom boat makers or commercial makers are ok. Am looking for a mud hull made of the 5086 .125 aluminum. Thanks for any advice!

If your gonna spend that much on a boat then you need
To get you a bigger motor. That 24 longtails will be a slug on a bigger mud hull. If your getting the hull built and plan on puttin something bigger later, the tail should still swing into the boat, you can get a nice custom boat built in your price range and it can have whatever layout you'd like. Go to reviews and look at all the different custom boats in there to give yourself a better idea of whats out there.

A 24 longtail will be perfect for 2 hunters and your gear.

The biggest mistake you could make is going too wide or too short, nothing less than 16' or more than 44" wide.
I do exactly like you and my next rig will be a CUSTOM 17x42 with no gun-boxes or seats in it at all, you can sit on Ice-Chests or those portable seats like Gator-Tail sells that way you can accomadate different loads or hunters.

Steer clear of Beavertail boats if you can.