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Jet Outboard?

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landman

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Joined
Nov 15, 2009
Messages
5,200
Location
TN & Western KY
Anyone had one or still use one?
I'm looking to set one up for fishing behind the house on Red River, would love to find one setup, 12 or 14'.
Know a couple with them here but they won't part was with them, I'd like to be able to come home and run up river a few miles quickly and fish back.
 
Not familiar with the red, but I've run and ridden them in the duck, buffalo, and caney fork. They are a specialty motor for rocky or gravelly bottoms. They suck (literally) in muddy, sandy, and weedy-bottomed rivers. Set up right, you can run wide open in 6" or a little less. 12' probably won't be enough boat, especially if you ever plan to take someone with you. I would look at a 1448 riveted boat unless you plan on beating the crap out of it. Lighter and wider is better. You can buy the aftermarket pump and add it to any outboard over 20 horse or so. A 14' jon boat would pair nicely with a 25 hp powerhead. You give up 25 - 30% efficiency when you convert to a jet vs a prop. Have you considered a prop tunnel hull rig? I know several folks running these on the duck. They have to pick their days, but can easily run in 10" if set up properly.
 
like you said they suck :D ran 1 on the caney. had great luck wide open in shallows. one draw back is lots of wade fishermen in those shallows frowned upon that. another problem was leaves in the fall. clogged intake. the loss of power was also a negative. sold mine after 4 years. definitely a special purpose motor
 
waterman":3fdtv7s2 said:
like you said they suck :D ran 1 on the caney. had great luck wide open in shallows. one draw back is lots of wade fishermen in those shallows frowned upon that. another problem was leaves in the fall. clogged intake. the loss of power was also a negative. sold mine after 4 years. definitely a special purpose motor
Click to expand...

Change Waterman to Biglures and I could have made the exact same post. Shoreman fabricated an old stand up jetski to power a little aluminum boat that we use on the Caney during low water. A little nerve racking running wide open in such shallow water but it gets the job done. And yea, we have been more than frowned upon by people standing in the water as we scoot on by. Not trying to be rude and we give as much space as possible but you can't let off the throttle or you will hit bottom.
 
I've seen guys running mud motors on the river before, and the problem is they are designed to kick up when you hit something, and if that happens crossing a shoal, you will come to a stop, sometimes very abruptly.
 
Landman- this is a copy and paste of a friend on facebooks status-

$1000 FIRM. 40hp jet boat 14'... Selling my jet boat because I just don't have the time to use it like I want to. I am an avid fisherman and fish skinny rivers almost exclusively. This boat will get you were you want to go fast(26mph) and you won't have to float or paddle to the next hole from now on. There's a few dings and a small leak that could be fixed if you want but boat runs and rides fine. Boat has a bilge pump and a board on the bow for a trolling motor. No trailer but I'll help you load it when you come over or I could drop it off if it's close to the Rochester area. It's quite light, 2 stonger guys could easily lift it. This boat has much more than $1000 invested in it so don't try to offer a lower price. If it sells before the weekend I'll throw in a deep cycle starting/trolling battery. Here's a YouTube video with the boat in action. https://youtu.be/M9VoK3Ou7Bs. I've also included a few fish caught from the boat. Please PM me anytime. Thanks. Ian

I can put you in touch if you want---
 
varmint1111":1xj4b22s said:
I have ran one for year's, wouldn't own a prop boat for river fishing.
Click to expand...
This^^^^
Keep in mind that most people who have a bad experience with a jet are in boats that are
Underpowered
Dull impeller
Worn liner
Impeller improperly shimmed
Wrong motor height
Weight within the boat not distributed correctly. I know it sounds like alot...but really it's not once you educate yourself.
There is lots of information online. Find a forum online for outboard jets to get good info on REAL problems and solutions other than just reading that they suck.
When set up correctly and maintained properly a jet performs fine and is great for shallow rivers. I have several years off experience with outboard jets although my current rig is an inboard jet.
Feel free to pm me with any questions.
 
dang...1000 buks for a 40 hp jet with the boat..thats cheap....i haven't seen the vid (too lazy to click :mrgreen: haaa)......just the motor cost double that..if its outboard.
but bar none ...a jet drive is the king of shallow rivers
 
Good luck finding just the jet lower unit for under $1000. They're about $1800 new for the jet lower. The boat for sale a few posts up sounds like a deal. I own a jet and love it. If your on plane, 6" of water is plenty deep enough to navigate. I used to have a 20' Blazer bass boat that would run 80 all day long. I will never have a prop boat again.
 

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