Build a jet boat

[Lil' Blue Rude]

Don't think it makes a diffrence either way. a factory jet motor isn't going to run any diffrent then a prop motor that's been converted to a jet. You might have to do a little bit of modifing to a prop motor depending on the model of motor you go with but it isn't anything big, probably just drill a hole or 2.
No one around here runs sponsons that I know of. For the most part around here if it doesn't help performance you won't see it on our boats.

 

[JohnT]

Well just when you think you got your ducks in a row , One steps out . I got my information from WV DNR , they are telling me that I'm only aloud to run a motor that is rate for the boat . Like I whats on the motor tag ,( like on a 16x48 jon is only rated for a 30hp ) how do I beat this or is there a law out there that trumps this ?

I'm sorry for all these crazy question , But if you don't know what's guy to do !

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

Order a 16' 48" blazer and you wil be at least legal for 40hp. You can probably get them beefed up even more with long gussets or something like that. Buy a motor titled for as 40hp and then you put 50hp carbs on it and no one will know any better that it's a 50hp.

 

[JohnT]

But will they cut you a break , Because you loose 30% of your horsepower through a jet ? Or does it matter ?

How much does a Blazer 16x48 weight ?Is this a hand built boat ? Can you buy just the boat and build it yourself , like a jon boat ?

That really sucks with DNR rules . :x

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

I don't know if they will or not. We have a 40hp limit on the Current river and we can run a 60hp with a jet becase it's 40hp at the pump. We don't deal with the boat hp limit though, or atleast they haven't been checking.
Blazer makes some of the best boats for outboardjets. I love mine and I probably won't own anything but a blazer. There a solid .080 gauge all welded boat. You can order them about any way you want and I'm sure they're one of the lightest all welded boat besides an exterminator gt but they're more of a race/ riding boat then a fishing boat. Blazer offers a couple diffrent models like the blazer which is a straight rake boat, the blazer sport which has a little bit of a raised rake and the blazer ss which has more odf a raised rake. Like I said you can order them any way you want, I ordered mine witha 48" deck, bench seat , long gussets an a all aluminium transom. You can even buy them polished now. The blazer sport would probbly be a good boat for what you want. Get the alumnium transom, it cost about a hundred more but it save 30lb-40lbs and it won't rot like wood. if your wondering about the raised rake it is lik moelkhuner's boat. Check out there site www.blazerjetboats.com
I own a 16'42" Blazer SS witha a 40/28 evinrude on it and 3 people could pick it up pretty easy, I think 2 could pic it up if they had to.
The rules suck but that's why we got to figure out a way to get around them. :mrgreen:

 

[JohnT]

Well , thats what I started doing yesterday , I found a war eagle boats make a couple 15 an 16 footers that has a 40 hp rating on them ,that weight is under 400lbs , the only reason I'm trying to find a boat in that range is so I can keep the performance of the jet at it optimum . I ask for a brochure to be sent to me . I thought if I could find one or I'll check out the Blazer line of boat and see how I can beat the system .

Where there a will theres a way !

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

I'd come real close to betting a blazer will perform alot better then a war eagle. We run 2 boats around here. Blazers and exterminators, if it's anything but those 2 brands you can bet it won't run 40mph. ( I'm talking about the end of the river that has the 40hp limit.) You can look at some other boats on www.jetdoctor.net

 

[Scottinva]

For what its worth, if you are running 40 mph in a .080 hull on the Susquehanna during the summer, you will be shopping for a new hull again in a few months.

Scott

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

Probably not gonna get 40mph out of the stock 40hp but those are the hulls we use to do it, second maybe you guys need some driving lessons. :lol:

 

[RPjet]

Lil' Blue.....no disrespect but you obviously don't know much about the rivers on the Eastern side of the US. What may work for you on the Midwestern rivers won't cut it on our rivers out here. There is a reason there are manufacturers making boats out of .125 and .190 aluminum and bolting on up to 3/4" UHMW. They are built this way to survive! This area will eat anything less than .100 with regularity, thus you don't see any Blazers and other thin skinned boats that can survive an impact with the famous Susquehanna "ledges".

And as far as the comment about the driving styles.....I would put any seasoned river runner from any of the area rivers up against the best from the Midwest. These guys know how to read the river....they have to if they want to make their boat survive!



I am off the soap box for now.



Dave

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

I've seen pic of the rivers you guys run and I'll say you guy do have some bad spots. Still think it could be run if you had a good driver with a light boat that could turn on a dime. meant that as a joke more so then anything, JohnT been asking about a lighter boats to keep good perfromance from his jet so I was telling him about the best perfomance hulls made for jets. As for your .125 .190 alumnium boats not everyone can afford to buy one of those and then buy the motor it's gonna take to push that hunk of lead.

 

[Scottinva]

It just depends on what you are looking for out of the hunk of lead. If you want speed - which is obvious you do - then it is an issue. If you want to fish a river in a boat and not have to worry about your hull, then you can get a heavier boat with a 60/40 motor or less. It may only run 25 mph, but you will not be at the shop having your boat welded either. Our boats are not built for speed. We fish out of our boats. You may run the big motor only 30 minutes a day.

Scott

 

[Lil' Blue Rude]

Yep you got me, I'm a speed freak. :mrgreen: Like I said JohnT was asking about a boat that would keep some performance with the jets the reason I was talking about the blazers.

 

[JohnT]

You guys make some very good points . And that's what I was talking about , If you add weight of the boat you need to add more hp to go with it . I'm not afraid of tearing up a boat , I'll bring it home I can weld it back together , not a biggie for me . Anyways , I'm just trying to beat the horsepower limits and get out on the rivers and streams to fish , and by the way I also run white water in my kayak and fish from there on the Yough . But a pain in the but if your trying paddle back up a section if you missed a really good hole .

With all this being said could you not add some aluminum to areas that likely to have any damage occur to them ahead of time ? Just asking ?

 

[Ranchero50]

Speed is pretty pointless around here, HP is used to dodge the demons. At low flow the ridges and big rocks don't show up by ripples so you need to be able to see them. Forward console and shallow draft.

Check out my 'Thank God for plastic worms' videos on Youtube of a 20mph hit when I didn't even see the dang thing that got me.

Locally I don't know of too many spots to really run hard for long unless you know exactly where to run. Of course the old timers don't need a jet, just a 5hp tiller on a ten foot jon boat...

Jamie

 

[JohnT]

I have watched all your videos ,Jamie . And many more , Way cool ! Just riding on the river . Well I found a boat company that fit my needs . Alweld makes a couple different boats a 14x48 with a 40 hp rating and a 16x48 with a 50 hp rating . =D> Now I can work within the state laws and have a good time . I think that 14x48 would be a one hell of a ride with a 40 hp on it . But I'm probably going to go with the 16x48 or a 15x52 . I can't wait

 

[Ranchero50]

A 1448 should be a good fit. Mine fishes two comfortably but isn't as much fun with 3 in it. I think the bare hulls are all around 650-700lbs. My hull is rated at 25hp with a tiller outboard. If you read the CG boat builder manuals the rating is higher if you run a console since thw eight distribution is better (less likely to get backwash swamped if you stop suddenly).

Jamie

 

[JohnT]

I was think long and hard about the 14x48 because it's just me and my son most of time and wife don't fish she just rides along and reads a book in the back of boat .
I couldn't believe that it was rated for , when most of the boats that size are only rated for 25 hp . I don't sounds likea good deal either way .
Jamie what kind of Litho press is that in your pictures ?

 

[Ranchero50]

Totally OT but... It's a panoramic pic of one of the big 12 color Cerutti's during the install someone took. 108" wide web, gravure process, 3000ft/min. Vertical folders on the left, electronics in the mezz on the right, robotic print cylinder delivery in front. This one is was the backup manufacturing horsepower behind National Geographic magazine and one of the job we do that I'm really proud of. Newpaper flyers on the other hand...

Jamie

 

[JohnT]

Very Nice ,I would love to see that puppy run . We don't have anything that big we run on a Harris press and a couple of Hoes , the company looking to buy a new White Star . We Litho on steel , we do a lot of work for Bumble Bee , and a lot of private labels .