My son has taken a liking to fishing....

Hank

Old Mossy Horns
so I have entertained the idea of buying a Jon Boat for us to Modify. He is getting his license in a few months and I am working on finishing rebuilding the engine for his 96 Tahoe. So he will have a Truck/SUV to pull the Boat. My question is how many of y'all have modified Jon Boats and is it a good way to get him started fishing? I am as green about this as you can be. I have never owned a boat, and probably only been out on the water in a boat a dozen or so times. I would like some advise so I do not make any money wasting mistakes. If anyone has any pictures to share, that would be great. Also, I am no fisherman, so I know as little about the water scene as one could. Any help would be great. I have taken a look on craigslist, but it seems everyone wants 2 or 3 prices too much for used Jon Boats. So, what is the best way to get a Jon Boat project started, and what should I be looking for, and what should I be looking to stay away from?

Thanks a lot guys, I look forward to checking in from time to time hoping for some great advise on what to do and what not to do.

Hank
 
gobbler

gobbler

Eight Pointer
number one is to get one with a good motor, a bad used motor is just what it sounds like, compression check is a good place to start cylinders should be within 5lbs of each other, a wide 14' is a great little boat but a 16' is a bit better, marine plywood is your friend, and like anything you can make is as simple or as complicated as you like but remember keep,it fun,

i had 12' aluminum i fished out of with my dad when i was young and when i got to drive a carried it in the bed of the truck, later i bought a trailer, a foot controled trolling motor made a front deck and added a 6 hp motor, then a fish finder, there were tens of thousand of fish that came over the side of that boat, and i had maybe $750 dollars in it, just shop around, i sold it two years ago and miss it from time to time, those small aluminums are fun
 
nccatfisher

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Hank if he is wanting to bass fish I know where a 15' Bass Tracker is that is in good condition with a 40 HP on it. It has been under a shelter and other than just needing some cosmetic touch ups inside it is ready to fish. It is mechanically sound and the guy will take you to the water with it. He is in Churchland and wants $1500. I started to buy it myself a while back. Let me know if that is something your interested in.
 
buckshooter

buckshooter

Old Mossy Horns
Might be a really good idea to make a few ( more than a couple ) trips wih an experienced john boat fisherman Hank. Buying one getting it ready to fish out of is only a fraction of what you need to be safe on the water. Flat bottom boats handle different than keel boats. Just a suggestion.
 

Hank

Old Mossy Horns
Oh, I never intended to jump in with both feet just yet, I have some good friends that are avid fisherman and have owned many boats. I would for sure do some talking with them folks before we attempted to do anything, I don't have disposable income like our buddy Stutts!!!!

Thanks for the link Bailey Boat, I'll check it out.

Nccatfisher, that sounds like a great starter boat, just not that ready yet, but if it's around come that time, I'll be in touch.

Thanks a lot guys.
 

Hank

Old Mossy Horns
Wow, that tinboats.net is a God send. I have been on it since I made my last post and it has opened my eyes a lot. For instance, I never had a clue that pressure treated wood was a big no-no to use on an aluminum boat. One build thread I was on had a fella using pressure treated wood, and over and over he was told not to do it as it is corrosive to the aluminum. Instead of taking their advice and redoing it, he kept saying he was going to wrap it in carpet and that it would not touch the aluminum. Again, they advised him that the stuff that they pressure treat wood with will soak through the carpet and corrode the aluminum. He still did not change anything and I think they finally figured out that their advice was falling on deaf ears. These guys know their stuff, I believe I would take their advice and redo what they are saying to redo.

Anyway, thanks for the link to the website, I am having a good time reading and learning from the pictures.

On another note, my wifes Stepfather has a Jon Boat that has been behind his house for years. My son spoke to my wife's mother telling her that we were thinking about starting a Jon Boat project, and she said we were more than welcome to take that one, as they had been talking about taking it to the scrap yard anyway.

I guess if we get it, the first order of business is to see if it has any leaks. I'm guessing the best way to figure that out is to make sure the plugs are in it and fill it up with water to see if water seeps out anywhere. Would that be correct? Thanks
 
nccatfisher

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Hank said:
Wow, that tinboats.net is a God send. I have been on it since I made my last post and it has opened my eyes a lot. For instance, I never had a clue that pressure treated wood was a big no-no to use on an aluminum boat. One build thread I was on had a fella using pressure treated wood, and over and over he was told not to do it as it is corrosive to the aluminum. Instead of taking their advice and redoing it, he kept saying he was going to wrap it in carpet and that it would not touch the aluminum. Again, they advised him that the stuff that they pressure treat wood with will soak through the carpet and corrode the aluminum. He still did not change anything and I think they finally figured out that their advice was falling on deaf ears. These guys know their stuff, I believe I would take their advice and redo what they are saying to redo.

Anyway, thanks for the link to the website, I am having a good time reading and learning from the pictures.

On another note, my wifes Stepfather has a Jon Boat that has been behind his house for years. My son spoke to my wife's mother telling her that we were thinking about starting a Jon Boat project, and she said we were more than welcome to take that one, as they had been talking about taking it to the scrap yard anyway.

I guess if we get it, the first order of business is to see if it has any leaks. I'm guessing the best way to figure that out is to make sure the plugs are in it and fill it up with water to see if water seeps out anywhere. Would that be correct? Thanks
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Yep, if it is on a trailer block it up though. You can ruin a set of springs or bust tires quick, water is heavy.
 

Hank

Old Mossy Horns
My son just called my Wife's Stepfather and asked him about his boat. He said it was a V Hull Boat, but was not a long one, said it was 10 to 14 feet long, but 14 feet would be pushing it. The V Hull boats are more stable, correct? What would be the down side to having a V Hull verses a Flat Bottom Boat? Thanks
 
buckshooter

buckshooter

Old Mossy Horns
I'm no expert , but maybe the only potential downside would be a v hull boat couldn't go thru as shallow an area as a flat bottom boat could.
 
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nccatfisher

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Hank said:
My son just called my Wife's Stepfather and asked him about his boat. He said it was a V Hull Boat, but was not a long one, said it was 10 to 14 feet long, but 14 feet would be pushing it. The V Hull boats are more stable, correct? What would be the down side to having a V Hull verses a Flat Bottom Boat? Thanks
Click to expand...
No, the Vhull are not more stable. The older ones, narrow ones are much like a canoe. They will wet your butt if you aren't careful. They do ride better and take rougher water better.

That being said, the old narrow low sided jon boats weren't a whole lot better.
 
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Mack in N.C.

Old Mossy Horns
Hank said:
Wow, that tinboats.net is a God send. I have been on it since I made my last post and it has opened my eyes a lot. For instance, I never had a clue that pressure treated wood was a big no-no to use on an aluminum boat. One build thread I was on had a fella using pressure treated wood, and over and over he was told not to do it as it is corrosive to the aluminum. Instead of taking their advice and redoing it, he kept saying he was going to wrap it in carpet and that it would not touch the aluminum. Again, they advised him that the stuff that they pressure treat wood with will soak through the carpet and corrode the aluminum. He still did not change anything and I think they finally figured out that their advice was falling on deaf ears. These guys know their stuff, I believe I would take their advice and redo what they are saying to redo.

Anyway, thanks for the link to the website, I am having a good time reading and learning from the pictures.

On another note, my wifes Stepfather has a Jon Boat that has been behind his house for years. My son spoke to my wife's mother telling her that we were thinking about starting a Jon Boat project, and she said we were more than welcome to take that one, as they had been talking about taking it to the scrap yard anyway.

I guess if we get it, the first order of business is to see if it has any leaks. I'm guessing the best way to figure that out is to make sure the plugs are in it and fill it up with water to see if water seeps out anywhere. Would that be correct? Thanks
Click to expand...

Tinboats is really good and so is bassjons.com guys on bassjons usually have several small jon boats on htere from time to time trying to sell....those lakes in the tidewater region are mostly restricted to 10hp or less so the avg boat up there is smaller.
 

Hank

Old Mossy Horns
Thanks for the info fellas. Bare with me on the Rookie questions, but I am a Rookie.
 
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