Help me help myself

Hi to all and thanks in advance for any answers or input.

My name is nick, and me my brother and dad are looking into customizing a Jon boat. Me and my dad are 220lb on the dot and my brother maybe 160lb. We are looking to buy a 15ft boat with no consol. We want to add a wood flooring with 1/2" to 3/4" plywood, using 2x2's for the framing. We were looking into the 20hp mercury engine, tiller style that weighs about 130lb. The boat we are looking at says capacity of 775, and person weight limit of 445.

I guess my question is, how accurate is the suggested weight limit, and which can i go by?

Personally and legally I would stay under the limit. With the 3 of you, all your equipment(trolling motor, battery, rods, tackle, cooler...just to name a few) you would be way over. It is a disaster waiting to happen. My suggestion?..........save a little longer and get a bigger boat if you can.

I agree with Jim - you can get away with going over - but only on limited bodies of water - save up and get a larger boat - you will be happy that way

I'd think about a 1648 with 21" sides. That will give you enough capacity to be safe and still not be too big. My 1640 is rated at 920 lbs, but I plan on fishing some bigger lakes (with bigger waves). I also will be fishing with 2 other sub-200 buddies and gear. After fishing 2 in a 10 footer for 2 years, I would always error on the side of BIGGER than scratch by with one that is a little small.