TALKING BOATS

[gator]

so, i ain't gonna lie......i'm seriously, i mean red lettered, 4 fire alarmed seriously wanting a boat...i need something i can put in big BIG water (think ocean and great lakes for fun) to the river to some marsh type environments......

reason for such is that with my schedule, i can plan some trips to various areas of the country, getting proper use out of such a boat......so, i need something that can handle most anything.

i know nothing at present about boats, so i'm having a hard time getting my head around what's needed.....

i've been watching a boat company kinda start coming of age and they are "miking" the specs for an all welded 18' boat....this thing is built like a tank.

in any case, someone asked the owner/designer about the weight and draft they are shooting for to which he replied - 2000 to 2200 lbs and a draft of 6-8". granted, as of now, its just a computer layout but they have 20, 22 and 24 fters so i figure his estimates are gonna be pretty close.......boats design is a deep V (guy is on the upper east coast, so most up there are).

here's a link to the design page:

http://www.bonesboats.com/design.html

18' boat not listed as it's not being produced, but you get the picture.

any use for such a boat down here, say on the river and down south?

just curious, gator

[Beaudog1]

I've always wanted a "do all," cabin enclosed river boat. I've always liked these: http://www.theboatmakers.com/default.asp?pg=models.

[LODI QUACKER]

LINK NO WORK!

no search results for bones boats.

[gator]

me too beaudog....

problem is, as in everything i guess, you have to give some up here and there in order to get that.........and, i don't want too much compromise either way to make it unusable in any situation....

i wish i knew more about this stuff.

gator

[gator]

LINK NO WORK!

no search results for bones boats.

seriously? still works for me....try this:

www.bonesboats.com, then hit the design page.

gator

[Beaudog1]

Link worked for me fine. WTF?

[LODI QUACKER]

Hell I dont know. this is all I get.


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Gator I had the same ideas a you and had one built a few years ago 26 feet, removable cabin and such.

I can give you some insight on a few things.

1. Big boats dont need to go in extremely shallow water, get enough V in the front to REALLY cut the waves and bring that v back a pretty good ways on the boat. This will not be your limiting factor when navigating shallow water. The motor will be that limiting factor on a a AL boat.
2. Get 2 motors, run a dual set up. If I had it to do over again I would but 2 140 nissans instead of one big motor. The feelings of reliability and secureness of two motors far outweighs the cost and maintenance, in my opinion. You will most likely be in some of the worst places at some of the worst times. Peace of mind and confidence in your rig is paramount to your enjoyment and probably safety.
3. If you do a cabin by all means TILT THE FRONT WINSHIELD forward!!!
Most of the "delta" boats are tilted back which is great for visibility in daylight hours and for air flow. But when it gets dark your lights will blind the helll out of you and there is nothing you can do about it.


still cant see your link.

[eyeinthesky]

gator sent you a pm

[cwink]

As a child of the coast I will say that if your thinking ocean as like "miles" off shore you would be better off with a 22 or 24 than with an 18'. You can do it in 18 but only on really really calm days....

As far a draft. The best for shallow draft is what they call a tunnel drive these are great for red and speck fishing in the back bays and should work well for rivers and such to.


It is hard to fine a "do it all" boat,but companies are getting better at it.. You might want to look at some of the new Center Console bigger Aluminum boats that the companies are making.

Also, get the biggest engine the boat is rated for.. You will be dissapointed if you don't

[jdbuckshot]

You need to go no further than the great state of Louisana.

They got a few thing right.

1. Good Food
2. Good fishing
3. World Class boat builders.


Call Tim's Marine, he built my buddy two fishing boats that i absolutly love.

one is an 2296 tunnel hull with a 100 hp. i have personal ran it in 4" of water. and we have taken them pretty far out as well, its a little rough in the chop. but if you added a modified V-hull to the design it could be very capable.

[MudHog]

to add to cwink about the ocean, I would mention having dual motors.


There is no such thing as a do all boat. A true "offshore" as we call it boat would be a deep vee with atleast two motors. Deep Vee to cut the water and two motors for safety. There's nothing like going out 40-60 miles and having motor problems with only one motor. Atleast with two, the other can get you back slowly. The down side to a very steep deep vee boat is their instability sitting in the water, hence a catamaran style hull. A cat will cut the water like a deep vee, but is the most stable sitting in the water, which is why most divers use a cat style hull.

That being said, you don't need a very deep vee hull for inland waters, hence a bay boat.


Instantly when I read the original post I thought of the Tracker Deep Vee style boats. These boats are used alot up north on the Great Lakes and I would think on rivers.

[Hays Creek]

buddy of mine bought an old lobster boat, muffled the engine, line-x'd the whole cockpit and put a fighting chair in the stern. it's about as close to a "do all" as I've seen - can comfortably go off shore fishing or putter around creeks (draws very little water) or booze cruise pretty much anywhere.

[stang67]

You need to go no further than the great state of Louisana.

x2. Go pick up an issue of Louisiana Sportsman. It will have ads for all the well-respected custom aluminum boat makers in LA. Gravois, etc. These folks will build you anything, and they are made to last.

[torch]

www.fandfboats.com

[MudHog]

You need to go no further than the great state of Louisana.

x2. Go pick up an issue of Louisiana Sportsman. It will have ads for all the well-respected custom aluminum boat makers in LA. Gravois, etc. These folks will build you anything, and they are made to last.

Sadly to say Gravois isn't building boats anymore for the general public. Ever since they started with the gov't contract boats, they aren't building public boats. Their new name is also Metal Shark Boats now.

www.metalsharkboats.com



Hanko would be a good place to start with.