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Boat question

2K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  T Man 
#1 ·
I have a 16ft 1998 polar kraft semi v or mod v with tall transom. I have been looking into getting a mud motor and I talked to the owner of a place near me who sells mud motors and he said my boat isn't really equipped for a mud motor. Just the way it is built. He said in order for you to get the boat moving you would need a 29+ hp mud motor to even get you going. I have been looking for a SD, he had a 35 hp SD with 60hrs on it for $5500 seems like way to much since you can get one brand new for 6k this was a mud buddy. Just wanted your guys thoughts on if this guy is right.
 
#4 ·
Semi v boats usually dont work as well with a long tail. They tend to draft a little more water, making them a bit less effective with a long tail. You certainly dont need a 30hp to get moving, but more power will always be better when you get into the sloppy stuff. Im an OB guy. When the water gets shallow I just trim it high and let it fly.
 
#5 ·
Yea the guy said a 23hp will push your boat but once I get all the gear and ur dog and buddies it is hard for that motor to push ur boat. Yea ob are nice but where we went for middle zone opener a ob motor would of been hectic with all the stumps that were out there. Luckily we took my buddies boat which he has a mud motor. It worked out great.
 
#7 ·
Your dealer is on crack...$5500 for a stock 35 motor with 60 hours is robbery. But he is right that you would need a motor large enough to get the hull up and moving out. I would suggest a 35 at the least. But that is not your problem. Your problem is that semi V bottom hull you wanna hang a SD on. NOt he best setup I hate to tell you. The vee bottom will not feed enough water to the prop. It will struggle. A longtail would work better being that it is a sub surface prop motor. But a short tail is a surface running prop setup and you need good, "clean" water to the prop for best performance.
 
#11 ·
One, you don't need big power to "get the boat moving". You can get the boat moving by pushing it with your hand. What he should have said is you need about 20hp to get the boat up on plane. That's lightly loaded.

You actually need a different boat for what you're wanting to do with it. I wouldn't even try putting a LT on the hull you have. For shallow running, you need a boat with a shallow draft. That means flat bottom. Sorry.
 
#12 ·
You guys are full of it. The semi v will do just fine IF you don't have a really heavy load as in 4 people and 6 bags of dekes and a dog. It is not an optimal mud hull but how much mud do you really run, I mean really? The semi v will be an advantage in rough or big water and just a small hindrance in shallow water. I have had PDs on both and to tell you the truth the custom made flat bottom mud boat is NOT worth the extra money for most hunters circumstances. Really they are just a status symbol in the duck world.
 
#14 ·
I think things are getting a little confused here. Different boats do different jobs.

If you really run lots of VERY shallow water or little to no water and mud and grass, then a mud boat hull and motor would be a big benefit. If you just run lots of hard obstructions such as logs, stumps, and rocks, but you are in skinny water with no grass, then a jet drive on the boat you have, or a tunnel hull, could be the ticket. For general purpose, sometimes shallow, sometimes grass, and a few obstructions your outboard is the way to go. Jets and mud motors have their fair share of issues that can be annoying if that sort of power isn't absolutely necessary for your use.

You can use a mud motor on your boat, but it is not built for it. That is not to say it won't work, it is just that you will not get optimal performance AND the motor can take the hull places that will subject it to more abuse than it was designed for. A good mud boat hull is designed to take just about all the abuse the mud motor can dish out.
 
#15 ·
I run a mod v 15' DuraCraft hull (with pods) and a long tail. It has the short transom (15"). I currently run a 23 hp. Backwater Long Tail. It is the 59" model. We generally run in cattail marshes with 3" to a foot of water, and occasionally submerged logs and branches, and lots of vegetation. This set up is OK and works well for us. It is not the fastest boat out there, but we aren't racing it either. Our normal hunting load is 2 guys and 2-3 sacks of deeks, 1 battery, 3-5 gallons of gas, guns, ammo, dog, blind etc. Like I said, it does the job. Keep in mind that a long tail is a simple as it gets, and dependable. Right now with that load we are doing about 12 mph, but I believe we have a wrong sized prop on it. I have been told (by Backwater) that with the right prop we should expect 15-18 mph.

The point of all of this is that yes, you can run a LT on a mod v boat. One point, if you have the tall transom (20") be sure to get the Long Long tail (72"). Anything less will result in a loss of performance, due to the less than optimal point of entry of the prop into the water. Also, go over to mudmotortalk.com for more info than you will ever need.

Lastly, find another dealer. That is too much for a used LT, and way too much for the short tail.

Hope this helps.

Mndukhntr
 
#16 ·
petrel said:
I think things are getting a little confused here. Different boats do different jobs.

If you really run lots of VERY shallow water or little to no water and mud and grass, then a mud boat hull and motor would be a big benefit. If you just run lots of hard obstructions such as logs, stumps, and rocks, but you are in skinny water with no grass, then a jet drive on the boat you have, or a tunnel hull, could be the ticket. For general purpose, sometimes shallow, sometimes grass, and a few obstructions your outboard is the way to go. Jets and mud motors have their fair share of issues that can be annoying if that sort of power isn't absolutely necessary for your use.

You can use a mud motor on your boat, but it is not built for it. That is not to say it won't work, it is just that you will not get optimal performance AND the motor can take the hull places that will subject it to more abuse than it was designed for. A good mud boat hull is designed to take just about all the abuse the mud motor can dish out.
Excellent post. There are about 2 times a year I could really use a mud motor, but when it gets to that point, I am fortunate enough to be able to get out and push my boat.
 
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