What is the shallowest running jet boat?

[Scuba559]

I need some help and opinions about the shallowest running jet boats.

I have been running a 1448 Tracker with a 25 hp jet tiller for 2 years now. I am need of a jet boat that can haul 2-3 people, has a center forward console/standing to see obstacles, mainly set up for bass fishing and runs in 3-6" of water all day. Here is a video of my river: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSXN0IoLhwU&feature=share&list=UUhsb-7HwAgW3sM7v50q-Rxw&index=3

My buddy has an Alweld 1652 with a tunnel, center console, and honda 50/35. This thing seems to be the ticket but I live in CA and can't find a dealer anywhere remotely close. He met someone half way across the US to pick it up. I like this because the hull is 390 lbs i can't imagine his setup without engine weights more than 500lbs.

It seems like the G3 ccj 1656 or 1860 would fit the bill but the dry weight on the hull is 830lbs, seems real heavy when compared to the Alweld. I am afraid that if i spend 22K on a G3 and i am hitting bottom everywhere i might flip out. The seaark seems like an option however again no dealer and they are really expensive.

Lastly i like the idea of a jet tunnel, my current boat does not have one and the only time i hit something it is on the foot, I think the tunnel would help out a lot!

Does anyone have an experience with the g3? or have any other manufactures/ setups? Max i can spend is 20K and i need the shallowest running boat period.

Thanks!

 

[Ranchero50]

Have you considered doing a stick steer conversion on your tiller setup? I think the cost would be a lot cheaper and you already know how your hull handles your water. Maybe add some pods down the road if you still need to get the rear up a bit.

 

[Scuba559]

Thanks for the suggestion. I have not thought of that. I just want something larger, hauls 3 and want to go faster! also preform better.

 

[reedjj]

You have the smallest welded jon available now. And from your videos the 25/18 merc jet seems to push it nicely. It probably is one of the shallowest running combos out there. If you are looking for bigger its gonna come with more weight. But that doesn't necessarily mean it will draft more. More suface area (lenght and width) will mean a shallower draft. The G3 boats are heavier cause they come with floors, side panels, consoles, fuel tanks etc which all add weight. But you may have to add weight to any hull when rigging it out.

You could go with a riveted 1648 ncs from alumacraft but in my opinion its not enough of a size increase from your 1448 to be worth it. Then you have the Lowe riveted 1652 & 1852. But they have the benches that wont allow you to have the fwd center console. And they are riveted and not welded.
If you are liking the G3 1656 ccj Then you could probably get a bare bones SeaArk 1660 with a fwd console at a cheaper price. It wont have all the built in luxuries but it would def fit the bill and they do make it with a jet tunnel. Cause its a 1660 it SHOULD run a little more shallow than the G3 1656.

Not sure what your looking to spend but once you get into factory Lowe and G3 1860 jets you are around $23 k For a
bout $2k more you can get a Rockproof Riverjett. Of you are not dead set on a tunnel an 1860 or 1754 tracker or a 1860-1756 G3 would work




verjett

Ypu may wanna think about a Tracker 1860 with a jet or even a 1754 tracker or a G3 1756

 

[Wood_Duck]

I love the G3s, but I will say they are heavy boats and you can tell when you try to hop up on pad. But it's my favorite factory design out there. SeaArks are very nice, although they seem to be abit heavy too. But they are a tank of a boat and if I remember right have lifetime hull puncture warranty. Biggest thing you'll want is width to displace more water. Also for standing/visibility, maybe a standup bar?

 

[Scuba559]

The g3 would be a first pick because I really like the design as well. The dry hull weight on the 1860 is 830lbs where as the seaark is 515-600lbs. That is like carrying around and extra person. If the g3 ran as shallow as the seaark (I don't know) I would go with the g3. I have heard from a few owners on the forum and one says he can run in 3" by himself but would not want to run in less than 6" with 2-3 people. The less weight in the seaark might make the difference in hauling a 3 buddy through 4-5" Anyone else have a g3 that can chime in?

 

[openseat]

G3 is unconventional in regard to jet tunnel hulls. They only offer the jet tunnel in a completely flat bottom. Everybody else uses a hull with some deadrise, consistent with the information on the pump manufacturer's website.

One of the better dealers in my area sells G3, but they only rarely rig jets (land of 10,000 lakes). So the dealer gave me the number to call his factory rep to clear up the above issue. The factory rep told me that I would be better off running a jet on a non-tunnel G3, because in his opinion none of the tunnel hulls really perform regardless of deadrise.

 

[openseat]

...and nice vid btw.

 

[liplifter]

my blazer 17/52 with a 65/45 tiller merc,I'm convinced it will go over dirt.light boat, I have a removable floor for late summer to reduce weight.

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

I own a G3 1656 CCJ. I'm not sure what openseat is talking about when it comes to performance of the tunnel hull. The tunnell hull is meant to protect the foot...that's it and it comes with a very, very slight decrease in performance because it effects the hydrodynamics of the hull. But me, I'm not looking for speed, I'm looking for as shallow as I can get...and the tunnel hull will operate shallower than a non-tunnel hull for outboard jets. May only be an inch or two....but that might be the difference in making it or tearing your foot off.

The boat will run shallow...and I mean shallow...this is where the tunnel shines. The hull is heavy..I tried pushing mine off the trailer by myself and couldn't do it. If you're looking to consistently hall 3 or more guys, I would recommend the 1860...both for more HP and room. For two guys, 1656 is great. With two guys the boat gets on plane pretty quickly.

Open water, no current with just me, full tank and 3 batteries.....it will top out at 27...but consistently runs about 26.5. I've gone 40 miles on a tank and still had fuel left.

 

[Scuba559]

RiverBottomOutdoors » Today, 11:29[/url]"]I own a G3 1656 CCJ. I'm not sure what openseat is talking about when it comes to performance of the tunnel hull. The tunnell hull is meant to protect the foot...that's it and it comes with a very, very slight decrease in performance because it effects the hydrodynamics of the hull. But me, I'm not looking for speed, I'm looking for as shallow as I can get...and the tunnel hull will operate shallower than a non-tunnel hull for outboard jets. May only be an inch or two....but that might be the difference in making it or tearing your foot off.

The boat will run shallow...and I mean shallow...this is where the tunnel shines. The hull is heavy..I tried pushing mine off the trailer by myself and couldn't do it. If you're looking to consistently hall 3 or more guys, I would recommend the 1860...both for more HP and room. For two guys, 1656 is great. With two guys the boat gets on plane pretty quickly.

Open water, no current with just me, full tank and 3 batteries.....it will top out at 27...but consistently runs about 26.5. I've gone 40 miles on a tank and still had fuel left.

Yea, i wasn't paying to much attention to that comment, G3 has a whole line dedicated to the tunnel hull, so does most other manufacturers. I want the tunnel because that single inch that it raises the foot is huge when you are running in 4" water. Did you watch the first part of my video? would you say with two people and some gear you would have no problem running through just over ankle deep water?

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

I think my boat will run that. One thing you might want to consider because it looked like in some of those shots you were in some tight places is losing some maneuverability going from a tiller to console/steering wheel.

 

[Scuba559]

RiverBottomOutdoors » Yesterday, 18:50[/url]"]I think my boat will run that. One thing you might want to consider because it looked like in some of those shots you were in some tight places is losing some maneuverability going from a tiller to console/steering wheel.

"Think"

The SeaArk has an extreme steering option that shortens the amount of turns you have to make on the wheel, do you find yourself cranking that a lot to turn on the g3? Three of my friends have steering wheels that run the same river and i can see them spinning the crap out of it to make the turns.

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

Scuba559 » Today, 1:29 pm[/url]"]

RiverBottomOutdoors » Yesterday, 18:50[/url]"]I think my boat will run that. One thing you might want to consider because it looked like in some of those shots you were in some tight places is losing some maneuverability going from a tiller to console/steering wheel.

"Think"

The SeaArk has an extreme steering option that shortens the amount of turns you have to make on the wheel, do you find yourself cranking that a lot to turn on the g3? Three of my friends have steering wheels that run the same river and i can see them spinning the crap out of it to make the turns.

If your boat will run it...my boat will run it. I run a couple of tight rivers just fine with the steering wheel and haven't had any issues. But, tiller steer responds quicker than a wheel....even if you have the hydraulic steering option.

 

[Ranchero50]

Or go stick steer and ditch the whole console idea. Stick steer is as quick as a tiller. Just be sure to install a seat belt for those sudden stops.

 

[openseat]

To clarify my post above, I think jet tunnels are a good idea. If there was a seaark dealer near me, I would probably have bought a jet tunnel hull by now, and I wouldn’t be missing a big chunk of aluminum from my intake. My anecdotal experience with the G3 rep dismissing all tunnels was just a function of him trying to avoid a discussion on the pros and cons of their tunnel hull compared to other brand tunnel hulls.

A flat bottom tends to cavitate a little more in hard turns or chop than the mod-v tracker in your video. A flat bottom with a tunnel will tend to cavitate even somewhat more yet still. That’s why the pump builder recommends only using the tunnel with a mod-v. Perhaps that also is why every jet tunnel I’ve happened to see, other than a G3, has been on a mod-v (seaark, alumacraft, xtreme, james river, rockproof, snyder, wooldridge). However, I certainly haven't seen every jet tunnel hull. There could well be some on flat bottoms other than G3.

Since the cavitation issue is just a tendency, the G3 could still be a good choice for your application. The river in your video looked reasonably sheltered from chop. There certainly are guys on here that are happy with their G3 tunnel for their particular application; and a flat-bottom tunnel should drift a little shallower than a mod-V tunnel of the same size and weight.

Best of luck with your decision.

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

A boat with no dead rise will cavitate the pump a little more ....doesn't have anything to do with being a tunnel. The reason a boat with more deadrise or more V doesn't cavitate as much in chop or turns is because it drafts more water...meaning it sits in the water lower...which is contrary to wanting to go as shallow as possible.

 

[Ranchero50]

Meh, no deadrise and the strakes are catching more air which the pump then ingests. That's one of the reasons I had to install the spoon on my I/B jet. I have a 3` deadrise on my Alumacraft but at speed it wasn't enough.

I think O/B jets benefit from being off the back of the hull a bit as it gives the water a chance to jump up into the intake. I'd still love to build the back of a spoon on an O/B jet to see how it would feed the pump and see how high I could mount the pump before it would cavitate.

 

[RiverBottomOutdoors]

Haha....yea Jamie...but your boat runs 60mph!!!

Would you say there is little difference between a 0° and a 3° deadrise?

All things being equal the one with the most deadrise will draft deeper.

 

[SPACECOWBOY]

My Riverpro will go anywhere, it will go where my friends 12' with a 20 hp jet wont go.