Hey guys, getting ready to make the jump from siting and hoping they come to going after em.

Situation: 60% of the time it will just be me and a buddy, 30% me and my 10 year old, and 10% me and two buddies or me, boy, and buddy. I will be hunting in and out of the boat.

Where: Normal size rivers, hoping to get back up in the slews. Area where the river pools up with numerous islands. A couple of refuges with flooded fields. Occasionally a smaller lake. We have no timber to speak of.

Need help on legth and width. I do not have any dealers of any kind close to me. Have looked online at Gator Trax, Go-devil, and Excel(really like those). Having the boy with me a lot of the time has made me feel like I need a boat with floatation. I want a boat I can manage by myself when I have the boy. Thanks in advance for any help.

Look at the reviews section. Most of them have speeds with and without loads. You can look at the different sizes of boats, long and narrow, short and wide, etc. That would be the best help I could give you since you say you don't have anywhere to test drive.

We have 2 1648's, they work fine, but get really bogged down with a load. Next time I will probably go 1848. This seems to be a popularly recommended size.

I would say a 1648 would suit you pretty well. You can stick watever size motor you prefer on it. Godevil offers full flotation and is built a little stronger than excel IMO.

My 1860 pushes me at around 29 MPH and will run 25-26 with full load and 3 guys. Check my review below in my signature...

I was looking at Gator-Trax but then decided to get everything from Gator-Tail.

I'm thinkin 51" or 54" wide, due to hunting out of the blind.

Don't go less than 18'.

i'm partial to a 18x48 boat. they plane off easy in the skinny water and hold a load well, and they are still skinny enough to run the pig trails.

when there is a chop theyride alot better than a shorter boat as well.


u don't hear of many people saying rhey wish they would of bought a smaller boat, but u hear people everyday wanting a bigger boat.


good luck, go demo as many as u can. their is no bad choice if it makes u happy.

My brother has a 1760 with a 35 van LT and works great. We hunt 4 guys and a dog out of it with ease. My opinion is the 1760 is perfect for hunting and fishing and just playing around in. He wanted the 1656 but they didn't have it in stock at the time and the 1760 way cheaper. The 1760 is still small enough to manage by yourself pretty easily.

One of my buddies has a 1660 with 35 van from beavertail and says its the best rig he has ever had.

So it is just a matter of testing out different rigs to find the one that you like best, each model has its own pros and cons. Everyone has their own opinions on what they like best and why.

I would test as many as you can to find the one you like best, no matter what we all say you are one that is going to be using it. My .02

17 is about the max for where I hunt with getting around in tight ditches and flooded timber!You just have to figure out what works best for you!Good Luck!

Phowler is the only way to go. Nice boat made like a tank. I have a 18 x 52 with stock 36 FPR and it does about 25 to 28 with 2 men, a dog and full gear. Planes off quick and is great in deep water or shallow mud.

First of all, thanks for a decent post where you laid everything out and then asked your questions... (as opposed to "hey I want a boat-what should I get)

X2 on what most of these guys said.... If there is any way to drive some, that would be the best.. maybe make a trip down to LA as I think there are a couple of places down there and you could spend a few days and try the different ones out.. Or just try posting your location and asking for some rides.. never know who is in your area that may be lurking on here.

You didn't mention your budget, that would be the other critical question... what are you looking to spend? That may dictate what you do or have to do as much as anything else...

If I had unlimited funds, I would order up a custom boat with my preferred brand of motor that had reverse/trim and center console -the works and have it shipped to me and call it a day...

If I was buying used and looking for a deal, I would watch here, craigslist (for mulitiple areas) and maybe a state site or two that list boats... and then be willing to sacrifice a thing or two to get the best deal and live with it. Make sure you get a good welded boat....


If you can go the custom route (and phowler as the one guy mentioned is good. So are a number of the different boats that the guys on here have-sportsman, aucoin, brothers and the PD and GT boats as well) then you describe exactly what you want to the builder and they can build you what you need and match the motor up to your boat for you....

Either way, good luck! You will enjoy it!

I'd like to buy a used one and not take that roll off the lot hit. If I have to buy new, I'll prolly break the purchase up and buy the boat this spring, then the motor a few months later. I've looked at so many online that they are all running together. I really like the gator trax 1750 with the hunt deck, but wow Thats a high dollar rig. The Excel seems to be the best bang for the buck. If I go the Excel route, then it's do I upgrade to .125, khaki or camo paint, super liner, gun boxes. Then I'm within $1800 of the gator trax if I add all hat stuff. Decisions decisions decisions

I got a buddy lookin to sell his 1750 HuntDeck with 35 MB for $14k. It's about a year old and like brand new.

I am totally satisfied with my 1750 gator trax. Has 21" sides and I am totally comfortable with my 6 yr old daughter in it. It may not be as fast as some of the other rigs on here, but its roomy and I love it. Does everything I want or need it to do. From what I have seen you cant go wrong with most of the brands you see guys on here talking about.

Am I making a too big of deal out of floatation? It's seems like there are no used boats out there with it. Just going to be using it for hunting and maybe an occasional fishing adventure with the boy. I've heard the horror stories about a boat getting swamped and almost sinking.

They'll float with a lot of water in em. Don't ask how i know. I wouldn't worry bout the flotation too much. Wear a life jacket, and get insurance.

I was a mud motor and boat dealer and I have personally now owned five different mud boats. We sometimes use a blind and hunt in the boat, whereas other times we simply use the boat for transport and we break out the layout blinds.

I am with DA in suggesting you go 18 feet. I currently run a Phowler 1852 and it was a tough decision between that and an 1848. When we hunt three guys and have a dog or two in the boat I am happy that I have an 18 footer. I am also glad to have that long of a hull when we load up mega spreads consisting of four or five dozen duck decoys and a couple or few dozen goose decoys plus layout blinds, two guys and a dog or two. When you want to get the boat on plane with a load, it is very nice to have more hull on the water.

As regards flotation, I have always run with it. I occasionally run big water that can get quite angry. I have had a couple of butt-puckering experiences in the big water. The last thing I want to do is have to ride a decoy bag to shore because the boat has gone to the bottom. I also equip all of my boats with a 2000 GPM bilge pump. I want to have a good shot at clearing that rogue wave that came into the boat, before the next one hits.

With every new boat I have gotten, I have added less and less in the accessory department. It is tempting to fill your first boat up with all kind of boxes, but they are heavy. I have one gun box on my current boat (which I debate on removing) and one of those Cordura gun sleeves you mount to the gunwale. It is also nice to have a totally open boat that does not have center benches to have to step over.

My .02...hope it helps.

Send Muddoctor a pm with what you want and he'll hook you up with a quote. (for a phowler) I have never had floatation in any of my rigs but now that my son is getting to the age he can hunt with me, I will have to get it. I don't know where you are, but it gets dam cold here and a half sunk boat is alot better than no boat!!! as far as size, go big or don't go!

Alright, Kind of narrowing it down. Looking hard at the Excel 1854F4, Gator Trax 1750, and the Phowlers(I don't know much about them, but they look like tanks in pics). The Excel looks awesome on the website(almost too nice for a duckboat).

Got a bro that runs a exel, nice sturdy boat, but very heavy. Runs low in the front.

Deadbird, How's the new rig? If I buy new, I'm really leaning toward the 1854F4. The standard options on the excels are unbelievable. I think I've narrowed it down to the Phowler or Excel. Is the Excel going to be as tough as the rest with the .100 hull? I'm not going stump huntin ( well not intentially) 

Bump

All the boats you are considering are great boats but if you are going to run a surface drive, regardless of if you intend to hit stuff or not, you will hit stuff and you will hit some stuff really hard (those little hidden stumps just under the water, etc). A surface drive on a .100 5052 hull is the equiv of having a Corvette engine in a Yugo, motor will do everything you want but the boat will not hold up for the long haul. Get a .125 5086 hull with only longitudinal stringers. It will extend the life of your boat. Pretty comes at a price also, that nice bedliner and all the interior parts of some of the boats adds lots of weight, lots of weight = performance loss.

I have run both commercial and floatation boats over the years, as was said in another post when I started taking my two youngest kids with me years ago I decide to start running floatation. I have never swamped a boat and if I did I could probably make it to shallower water in Nov up north by myself, but could I get myself and two kids to safety? Was a no brainer at that point. At least with a properly made floatation hull we would be standing in knee deep cold water while waiting for help, it would increase the odds of getting my kids home safe. Hope I never need it, but I would never forgive myself if something happened to my kids that might have been prevented.

You are doing all the right stuff in looking for your new boat, keep asking questions, talk with folks who run the hulls you are looking at and get honest opinions, not sales talk, then you will end up with the hull that best meets your needs.

PW