I’m looking for a jet boat…
I’ve been in a couple HiPro, River Pros, but I was wondering about Sea Arks and other tunnel hulls with a jet drive. Who has one…and what are the advantages/disadvantages.
Any thoughts would be appreciated!
Uncle Chet is gonna blow some coin on a jet boat….ya a kick 
jet boat….. Sorry the movie junkie in me came out…
I’m looking for functionality and value.
I hope that explains it… 
Mike…you have mail
Brian,
I have a friend that has a tunnel hull or should I say had a tunnel hull. He would say go jet over tunnel. I looked at them too and found I got a lot more bang for my buck with a mod v flat bottom. What are you running now?
I would love to own one of these. Looks like the perfect ticket for running a jet drive outboard. This is why I keep buying lottery tickets. http://www.alumacraft.com/mv1756.html
gator jetboats Yee-Haw
Brian, I’m a little biased, but I’d be happy to answer any type of jet questions you might have. Over the last 25 years, I’ve run most every type of jet available. Kevin 636-797-2628 Office
Anyone have one of these? Or know of them?
Tom Snyder at Snyder Jet boats
An out board jet will get you by, but some things to consider are how shallow the river you will be running is.
On an outboard jet the intake will hang 3 or 4″ bellow the bottom of the boat and it will take a hit every now and again causing possible damage to not only the “shoe” (intake) but also to the lower end of the unit.
I used to run an outboard jet on the MN and allthough I never broke the shoe, it took some hits.
I also had an aluminum impellar which is standard for outboard jets. THese can wear out quickly and you frequently have to adjust the placement of the immpellar.
Weight distribution is critical in outbaord jets as well.
Often you need to move things around, such as people and gear to get performance. Also rember that you will also loose about 25 to 30% of the power head rating.
One other thing to look at when considering a jon boat with a jet is the hull design. The best performance will come from a hull that has fewer strakes or ribs running along the bottom of the boat. These can force air toward the intake and also cause drag reducing the performance of the jet.
The best design would be a 6 degree vee with a flat spot or “delta pad” in front of the jet intake.
Some jons are built with tunnel hulls to help prevent the intake shoe from taking a hit.
Not all tunnels are designed for jets however. A tunnel designed for a prop will not work with a jet. The tunnel will actually force air to the intake and the impellar will cavitate.
There are a few manufacturers that make tunnels specifically designed for jets.
Snyder boats, like you mentioned is one of them.
I looked into a few of these when I decided to upgrade my jet/jon boat a few years ago. I found that even they may have performance problems. One factory rep advised that I would not be happy with the performance of their tunnel and suggested I try a prop tunnel instead. That was not an option for me due to the shallow stretches I fished.
I also checked into a few custom outboard manufacturers from out east and they do have a tunnel design that performs well. I decided against these as they did not compare to the performance of my RP and load capacity and the weight distribution problem was still a concern. Their prices were also only “pocket change” less than the River Pro I ended up with.
You also have the option of going with an inboard jet. Boats like Duckworth, Alumaweld and other west coast manufacturers. These are VERY nice rigs. They do cost a pretty penny though. Expect paying upwards of 35 grand.
They do a great job on the fast rivers they are designed to run. Deeper vee hull designs split off air before it reaches the intake. The disadvantage is they don’t run quite shallow enough for the rivers that we have here in MN. They are also quite heavy and the big big V8’s that power them use a lot of gas.
Then you have River Pro which is the boat I chose. These baots are built for going into the shallowest water. They are not designed and do not perform well in large waves or on larger lakes. I do however use mine on some metro area lakes and it does work OK, allthough I do have to slow down when it gets a little rough.
River Pro uses a shallow 6 degree delta pad hull to split of air before it reaches the intake for best performance. They also have a reverse chine that actually grabs water to force it under the hull creating extra lift. This alows the boat to plane on only a few inches of water.
Add the extra thick .190 gauge aluminum that can take a good hit and you have a very durable boat.
Last spring I was goofing around and was thrown from my boat. The boat hit a 45 degree rocky bank at 30mph and went up into the to trees. After the major job of pulling the boat out of the trees and back down the bank into the water, it only suffered a couple minor dents and I was using it the very next day. Needless to say they can take a few hits. 
River Pro also uses Mercury Sport Jets to reduce the boats weight allowing the boats to run very shallow. THe Sport jets are a fraction of the weight of the large V8’s that other jet manufacturers use. They are also pretty snappy.
There are lots of different type of jet boats to choose from. I would suggest deciding what type of water you intend to use it on the most and then decide on the best boat for that purpose.
I bought my first jet boat in 1997. A roughneck, it has served me well, now looking for another and considering a Sea Ark 16′ with a 75/55 Johnson. There are a couple of issues for me with the Sea Ark and the Roughneck. They place both the center and side console behind the center. “Aft of midships” as my navy friend says. I run a shallow river and want the console forward. My dealer tell’s me he can’t move move the Center console forward but can put the side up against the forward deck and this will be my choice.
The 60″ bottom on the Sea Ark is a plus and the tunnel for me is the only way. Just be sure you get the Jet tunnel not the one designed for props.
Looking at the boats shown on Sea Arks website and brochure my reaction is a one man boat. It needs some modifications for a passenger. I want two side by side seats behind the side console. Also as I see it the boat lacks storage so will need to add a lockable storage box. A lockable rod box would be nice. If you are looking at something 18′ or larger these issues are easier to accomodate.
I do see the brochure for the Sea Ark states a lifetime warranty against punctures. Sounds great but I still wonder what the catch is.
Good luck!
Bill ([email protected])
http://www.harbercraft.com/jet-boats/ Brian check these out.
I just noticed this is from 2005. Ever find a jet boat bk?
After checking in to this, I found the way I fish a stainless prop, a trimmed up motor and slow speeds in certain areas will do the trick with a better ride in choppy water.
If my boat drafts too much water, well I just don’t fish there.
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