who owns a mud boat?

T

Tom L

Active member
I am in the market for a new boat next season. need something that does good in the mud.
have been looking at a bunch of hulls and long tails and
surface drives.
if you own one , please chime in and let me know what you like or dislike and what you think the best bet for the northeast would be.
 
I have a Phowler 2066 with a Prodrive E5 custom surface drive outboard. It has been a game changer for me. After a lifetime of dragging jon boats in and out of my favorite hunting spots, this monster just motors right up to the door of my blinds. The only limiting factor is whether or not there is enough water to float the decoys. You must take a ride in one to believe it.
Likes: travels in mud, ice, and grass with near impunity. Boat is an absolute tank. Sliding over or through laps, tangles, etc. not a big deal.
Dislikes: Slow, noisy...Oh and Slow and noisy!
Other: Very heavily built all welded 1/8" hull weighs a ton. If you leave it on a bank and the tide goes out (leaving it high and dry), or you miss a turn and run it into the woods, you must have a winch to move it. Fortunately, they can be set up for easy winching.
 
Been running mud motors for (25) twenty-five years & currently own (2) rigs.

If you're running a lot of mud, the most important feature you want on a hull is as slick bottom.

No keel, no chimes, no welds of any kind.

Many mud boat manufacturers ARE NOT building boats this way and yes, they are lighter & faster but you give up performance in "the weeds" for what many forget these rigs were built for.

There's advantages & disadvantages to the LT & SD motors.

SD's will give you speed & torque in open water. If you get one stuck in the crap, once you blow a hole around the prop & still don't move forward, you're either pushing or poling out.

LT's lack the speed but when stuck in the crap, you're able to move the prop into different locations to power yourself forward.

One other though, there's a lot of aftermarket parts & add ons for the SD motors. Just remember as you add these high performance parts, you're reducing the life a the motor significantly. Don't believe me, ask your local small engine mechanic that works on these engines for a living & not the salesman trying to sell you a souped up motor or parts.

K.I.S.S.

One of my 25hp LT's is (16) sixteen years old & other than PM, I've only had to replace the head gaskets. In that same time, one of my guides is on his third SD motor.

My preference if a slick bottom hull & LT motor.
 
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Been running mud motors for (25) twenty-five years & currently own (2) rigs.

If you're running a lot of mud, the most important feature you want on a hull is as slick bottom.

No keel, no chimes, no welds of any kind.

Many mud boat manufacturers ARE NOT building boats this way and yes, they are lighter & faster but you give up performance in "the weeds" for what many forget these rigs were built for.

There's advantages & disadvantages to the LT & SD motors.

SD's will give you speed & torque in open water. If you get one stuck in the crap, once you blow a hole around the prop & still don't move forward, you're either pushing or poling out.

LT's lack the speed but when stuck in the crap, you're able to move the prop into different locations to power yourself forward.

One other though, there's a lot of aftermarket parts & add ons for the SD motors. Just remember as you add these high performance parts, you're reducing the life a the motor significantly. Don't believe me, ask your local small engine mechanic that works on these engines for a living & not the salesman trying to sell you a souped up motor or parts.

K.I.S.S.

One of my 25hp LT's is (16) sixteen years old & other than PM, I've only had to replace the head gaskets. In that same time, one of my guides is on his third SD motor.

My preference if a slick bottom hull & LT motor.
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so with a 25 lt
how long and wide of a bottom do you run with that hp
I understand that you want to spread the load out in the mud
would you be able to push a 16x56 with that motor
or do you have to move up to a 35hp
or is a 16 too short and will have more weight unbalanced on the stern?

I think a 2066 sounds like too much boat for a couple of guys and gear, some of the spots I want to use it in are small creeks and ditches.
 
The 2066 will go places conventional 16' or 18' jon boats won't. However, I agree that the size isn't useful for everyone. Turning it around in tight places can be a problem. I'd still recommend getting the biggest boat that you think will fit where you want to go. The stability and comfort is worth a little compromise in speed.
Capt. Jeff's remarks are spot on. I'm on my second modified motor since 2011. Unfortunately, the mods are a big help on a large boat, and a better alternative than dual engines, but they add a unique set of problems.
 
Rule of Thumb for all the mud motors:

Long & Skinny on LT's

Medium & Wide on SD's

My boats are;

18x44 GD hull 25hp GD LT
16x44 GD hull 25hp GD LT

What's interesting is the 18 out ran the 16 till we fabricated floatation pods for the transom.

The hulls then performed evenly.

I then fabricated a flotation pod for the 18 & its now about 1/2 mph faster than the 16.

We've since made pods for (3) three other 16 GD hulls.

Also, we run Frog Spit/Steel Flex/Slick on the bottom of all our hulls. Per the GPS, gains between (1) one to (1 1/2) one & a half mph are consistently seen.
 
I have a 1644 gatortrax. I have 21" sides and a 21" transom and a totally open floor plan. I run a 25hp mud buddy longtail. I like the size of the boat a lot. Gets good speed for the longtail and is built like a tank. The customer service from gatortrax is the best in the business. Its big enough I can hunt 3 guys out of it and if I get stuck still small enough to get it out by myself. The cookie cutter jons don't hold a candle to a true slick bottom mud hull.
 
We hunted out my buddies godevil 1650 with a 25 hp LT for years. Slow? Yes. 15 mph tops. Faster is about 10" water than it is in 2'.
But we could go just about anywhere. Hunted it in 2" of water on top of bottomless slop. Running in solid hydrilla and milfoil? No problem. Even ran over gator once felt like a speed bump.
One note is that these hulls are not rough water hulls. Get in a big chop and you will get beat up.
 
I have a Go Devil 15X30 Duck Skiff with a 16 hp GD LT. I use it to go places that we couldn't get canoes and kayaks in. Getting through tight spots over and around lots of down trees and stumps. If I have a foot or more of mud, I only need 1-2" of water. I would buy another GD Hull or motor if I needed another rig. Customer service is great and the equipment is tough.
 
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I've hunted with a mud motor for 20 years. The best advice I can offer is to try before you buy.

Capt Jeff is correct about the LT vs SD setups. I'd add that hunt decks improve performance on both SD and LT boats. Square, tapered and round chine boats perform differently as well.

Your location says NJ, are you hunting saltwater marsh? Having to travel across big water?
 
I have a gator trax 17 x 54 with a hunt deck, another 18 inches powered with a mud buddy 4500 sd. I stongly recommed a hunt deck,it makes getting in and out of the boat easy.
I use this boat on Lake Okeechobee and its great, I also have it set up for fishing with a trolling motor, bass seats etc. I have 18 inch sides on it so it's low profile.
We sit on the floor of the boat with a low profile blind and it works good, no as good as a sneak boat though.
 
I've hunted with a mud motor for 20 years. The best advice I can offer is to try before you buy.

Capt Jeff is correct about the LT vs SD setups. I'd add that hunt decks improve performance on both SD and LT boats. Square, tapered and round chine boats perform differently as well.

Your location says NJ, are you hunting saltwater marsh? Having to travel across big water?
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yup in NJ
and I do have to run over some open water 99% of the time to get to a spot. does this make a difference with hull and motor design ??
I used to have a 17'-6" open carolina skiff, flat bottom glass boat. it did ok in the open water, just wet.
do these mud hulls compare to that or are they only for sheltered water??
 
Mud boats have evolved into a multipurpose hunting / fishing / work boat. If you're traveling large open water consider getting one with a tall transom (20") and high sides (21") as well as a wider boat 48" or more.

Unfortunately, even with larger mud boats, some operators will take chances on water in conditions that warrant a more seaworthy vessel. Three mud boats went down on opening weekend in the area I hunt due to folks overestimating their mud boats ability as well as underestimating the power of wind and water.


 
Almost all mud-motor hulls will be as rough and wet as the Carolina skiff.
They just simply aren't designed for rough open water.
Plus, especially with a LT, you just don't have any of the reserve HP you may need in a bad situation.
 
The issue is that most mud boats rely on flat bottom designs in order to get on plane with (relatively) low power motors. As a result they will really slam in a chop. You can run a modified V with a longtail without too much loss of speed to get a smoother ride. However users of surface drives find a V bottom really spoils the water flow around the prop and speed suffers.
 
What fool keeps their dog in a crate on a BOAT???? I will tell you .. STUPID people that can not train their dog... What a good way to kill your best friend!
 
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Phil, I was thinking the same thing!!

I have had a mud boat for approximately 7 years.
I started with a 13 hp LT with a 14x36 john boat (college). It was adequate could definitely go more places with it than with my old outboard.

This past year I upgraded to a 23 hp LT with a 16x36. It will plane 2 men and gear easily. The upgrade in boat is amazing with the true smooth bottom i can go places the jon boat would not.

I hunt by my self a lot so keeping the rig light weight and simple (no SD clutches / neutral / belts etc) was essential to me. I second Go-Devil as well. Super knowledgeable staff and friendly.
 
What fool keeps their dog in a crate on a BOAT???? I will tell you .. STUPID people that can not train their dog... What a good way to kill your best friend!
Click to expand...

Folks take their crates to have a place for their pup to stay while tent camping.

Dogs don't ride in the crate running the river, at least I hope they don't, they wouldn't stand a chance if the boat went down.
 
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