BigBendFishing.Net

I may have the opportunity to acquire a 16' welded aluminum tunnel hull boat. It has hydraulic jackplate w/ 40 hp Yammy 4 stroke. A good poling platform, with aft stick steering. It's a perfect design boat for me.

How will this kind of boat do fishing the rocky areas from St Marks over to Ecofina, including the dreaded ROCK GARDEN?

Will this boat be damage free as far as the motor?

Sounds great. But no outboard can be considered "damage free" in the rock Garden.

Sounds like a great setup!

Depends on whether it has a tunnel that allows adequate engine elevation - example would be a Maverick HPX-T it's has a large tunnel that will allow the engine to be above the bottom of the boat or close to it.....a tunnel that is only 1 or 2 inches deep will not allow the engine to be lifted too high and subject to being removed by a rock...

Take some pics and post it....

I will get a camera at Wallymart, I am past due for that hi-tech upgrade.

I will then post a picture. It appears it has a 6"-8" or so ht.
on the tunnel.

birddog wrote:Sounds great. But no outboard can be considered "damage free" in the rock Garden.

Very true, so don't let the tunnel fool you. However you will have an advantage over conventional boats w/o a tunnel.

Has anyone seen that hyperdrive flats rig out on hwy 27 where the guy sells East Cape Canoes? Now that's a "rock garden special"!

I almost want to go back to a mudmotor, but I wonder how one would hold up.

Redbelly wrote:Has anyone seen that hyperdrive flats rig out on hwy 27 where the guy sells East Cape Canoes? Now that's a "rock garden special"!

I almost want to go back to a mudmotor, but I wonder how one would hold up.

Awesome motor but heavy....I got a buddy that sells them (Mud Buddy) in jawja

Redbelly, The guy is a good friend of mine. He's selling the pro drive motors.

Go here wnd watch the video.

http://www.prodriveoutboards.com/

The motor is very good in mud and vegitation, but is not immuned to rocks and oyster bars.

If your not used to driving a surface drive motor, they can be cumbersome. However they are not hard to get used to. When I bought my first one from Paul Dixon, he told me I would hate him the first times I drove it. He was right, but after getting used to it, it was a piece of cake.

HEY REDBELLY, I HAD A SEA ARK TUNNEL WITH A JACK PLATE, YOU CAN RUN THAT BOAT WITH THE SKEG OF THE KICKER ABOVE THE BOTTOM OF THE BOAT WITH THE JACK PLATE. IT WAS A GREAT BOAT BUT SOMEONE WANTED IT MORE THAN I DID. DISAPPEARED ONE NIGHT DOWN IN TAMPA.
PA THE OLD MAN OF THE SEA

If I were to take that tunnel out a few miles and it got choppy, how would it run in the chop?

What do you give up with a tunnel hull? And if they be so good, why ain't all flats fishermen got one?

tin can wrote:Redbelly, The guy is a good friend of mine. He's selling the pro drive motors.

Go here wnd watch the video.

http://www.prodriveoutboards.com/

The motor is very good in mud and vegitation, but is not immuned to rocks and oyster bars.

Then you probably know Rigsby, who I do work for.

Redbelly wrote:

tin can wrote:Redbelly, The guy is a good friend of mine. He's selling the pro drive motors.

Go here wnd watch the video.

http://www.prodriveoutboards.com/

The motor is very good in mud and vegitation, but is not immuned to rocks and oyster bars.

Then you probably know Rigsby, who I do work for.

I do know Rigsby. Don't know him well, but I do know him.

Redbelly wrote:If I were to take that tunnel out a few miles and it got choppy, how would it run in the chop?

What do you give up with a tunnel hull? And if they be so good, why ain't all flats fishermen got one?

You would be prone to pitch poling the boat, elevated motor loses grip, looses momentum on a wave and stuffs the bow, worst case is the boat will flip around....

Hull displacement, give up some draft because you give up surface area for the tunnel, it doesn't pole well because of less deadrise (flat bottom), tunnels are not efficent, it is a very turbulent environment, vacuums can cause trouble with a tunnel if designed poorly.....motor elevated prone to over heating....I could probably come up with a few more but it's late and the silver bullets are kicking in

But.....The key but is my next boat will probably be a HPX tunnel, the ability to run really skinny is worth any disadvantage to me