just picked up a 16 horse go devil longtail, and have never driven one. i think i've driven every outboard ever made, just not a mud motor...

can you gurus give a newbie some tips on driving a longtail? it's gonna be on a 1546 jon, and i'm gonna install a grab bar (still figuring that out).

Turn key. Put trottle wide open hold on. Good luck

Wear kill switch and life vest. And hold on. Get some driving time. Take the turns carefully. My long tail I can make sharp right turns, but left turns suck cause I can't pull the handle far enough while standing in the way but I don't have room to move out the way. 16x42 with 27hp

Absolutely most important is the Kill Switch followed closely by the life jacket as stayed above

They have a tendency to throw u if u not careful
Also never let go of the handle when running, see the statement above
If by chance u do let go see the first statement

All of the above has been learned from experience

make sure you can fit your body between your grab handle and end of tiller.

all the lts i have driven 13hp and up, I have never been able to hold onto a grab bar, both hands were on tiller.....get some tiller time in on it, you may not need it....i find they get in my way.....kill switch and life preserver are a must.

These things won't buck you off , the worst thing is when you hit something with the tail / prop it will pull the handle out of you hand and can violently turn the boat in another direction. IE the kill switch and life preserver. Get some time running it and you'll be fine.

Ask yourself how fast do you really want to be going when you hit that submerged log,stump, or other obstacle? I slip on that kill switch lanyard even before I turn the key. Plenty of stick time, but just like flying don't get too overconfident. Grab bar for sure.

Running a longtail in a narrow, winding, shallow stream is probably the most fun I can have with all my clothes on. The longer the boat the more challenging it becomes. Going upstream is always easier than going down. Going down, be sure to keep power in so you have steerage. the faster the stream the more power you need to negotiate the turns. Without some power .that stream is going to take you places you may not want to go. Plan your route as far ahead as you can see. Trying to make a hard turn at the last minute takes a lot of muscle and it's easy to overcorrect. If you are running where there are no obstructions the longtail is a piece of cake, but if you get into stumps, trees or narrow switchbacks you can't sightsee. Concentrate on where you are going and set up your turns ahead of time. It's kind of like trying to seduce an inexperienced lady. Plan your moves ahead. Make your moves gently and don't get impatient. If you don't think ahead and plan your moves there is a good chance you aren't going to reach your goal without a lot of difficulty and you might just get the crap beat out of you. You older guys should understand what i'm saying.

When in doubt, pull out!

Just take it easy until you get the hang of it. I remember my very first time driving my long tail, scared the shit outa me and I dont think I went faster than half throttle. but the more you drive it the more comfortable you'll get with it. and dont forget to slow down when your coming in to dock, aint no reverse on these suckers.

Get you a stout push pole- reverse gear. The next investment is a good paddle. You need plenty of leg room to do the LT dance.

I just got my first longtail also .Do you let the tail go as deep as it wants to go ? I live in utah and we have man made marsh no tree or logs the water go from about 5 feet next to the dikes to 8 inch of water with 8 inch of mud. I have a 16x48 boat a 16 hp motor i am only getting maybe 5 to 8 mph it has a 9 inch prop i don't know the pitch on it what would be a good pitch size to put on it thanks for your info

9x3 or 9x4. I have a 14x42 with a16gdlt and get 14mph loaded till it looks like it wants to sink. 17mph with just me. I let it dig to the depth it wants.


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I've been driving my 16 GDLT for 2 years now. I feel like I'm riding a horse sometimes. I can kick it to go left, but if it wants to go to the right it will. Not really......just take it slow and you'll get it. When you get in thick mud, I have found that sometimes you have to move the tiller side to side to get it to start pushing you forward. Also watch for too hard of a bottom. Around here we have some hard oyster shell bottoms and you will get stuck because there is nothing for the prop to dig into. Its moments like these that I regret not wearing waders anymore.

[quote="swamprat26"]9x3 or 9x4. I have a 14x42 with a16gdlt and get 14mph loaded till it looks like it wants to sink. 17mph with just me. I let it dig to the depth it wants.


Swamprat26, sounds like you know what your talking about so ill ask. I have 13hp honda with a 9x5 prop and if I let it dig itll kill the motor. Am I running too big of a prop?

^yes look into an 8x4

Go to go devil's website. They list the props they use. Somewhere between the 9hp and 16hp. You are def. running to big of wheel.


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shift load weight left to right till tiller torque disappears. shift your weight to help with turns.

don't panic, push the handle down and surface the prop when things get hairy.

no death grips on the handle, or the first log will dislocate your shoulder. let it go and catch it on the way up.

it's all stick time from there.

Turns to port are usually the easiest and give the best swing because the tiller is on the port side of the engine. When making sharp turns, especially 180's I try to set them up to port, if possible.

X2 on Stu

Brandon MacDonald

You will go places you never could with an outboard, just wear kill switch and be careful in slow turns until you learn it. When it bites it is gonna torgue

Pads for your left leg!

The hell with long tails. They nice for shallow hard bottoms and areas with alot of logs but dam i just hate em now. Just last week i got thrown out of the boat with mine(thank God for killswitch) but i just sold it and looking at what surface drive to get

But when driving make sure you wear your dam killswitch and make sure it works and hold on for dear life haha

Check the date. I bet the OP is gone or has figured it out by now. The spammer didn't even post about a longtail, he's just trying to sell seats in his defensive driving course. He didn't check the date or read the post either.