Small jon boat

I just got a 6.5 hp Longtail mud motor, want a small jon boat to explore some creeks that are accessible this year due to high water, creeks are narrow and tight, 1240 or 1040 jon boat? Hoping someone may know how the small Jon's handle and if 10 or 12 foot is better for tight creeks.

How much does the mud motor weigh. They tend to be heavy. Personally I'd go with a 14 foot boat.

X2

^^^This^^^
10s and 12s are like sitting in a washtub. Pond boats.

A 10 is for pulling behind you, lol , a 12 is ok for sheltered water but you don't want too much weight on the transom. A 14 starts getting to the range of a real boat but might be too big for what you want. That said, I had a 14 with only a 30 or 36" bottom that would be perfect for you.

Thank you all. I have a lead on a 12 foot Vbow aluminum boat for $150, I'm leaning towards that now. The motor weighs 60 lbs and I'm 225. It would be about max for a 10'. I was mostly unsure how a 12 or 14 may turn in some of the tight areas.

Save yourself grief and not even consider a v-bottom boat - they're not stable. I run our small rivers with a 14 ft with a 48" bottom and a high-thrust stern mounted electric motor - quiet and pushes the boat just fine. Get a good trolling battery and an extra prop and enjoy a good day on the water.

So . . . 300 lbs plus in the back of a 12' V-bow. You might want to "test drive" that set up if the seller goes along with it.

My smaller mud motor rig is a 14' V-bow with a 9 horse long tail. Now that's a great combination for small areas. Also allows me to get up on plane easily.

You may want to think on this one before pulling the trigger. I've been running Go Devil long tails since '87 or so and have experimented with many boat/long tail combinations. I'll be surprised if you're entirely happy with a 12' V-bow and that motor.

Really. Please explain.

Thanks guys, my dad has a 14' laying in the weeds, with a piece of plywood over the transom and a new plug I can probably get that going good enough for a shallow water test run. Boats just a bit heavy and I'm not sure I can pull it over the dams myself

Do you know what brand it is? Riveted or welded? Year made?

I've never found a 14' Jon to be unstable. They're work horse boats for me.

I have used both v-hull and flat bottom over the years. Most of the time I use a1430 Jon Boat. Nice thing is lf I have motor trouble l can row back if need be. Tried a longtail on it but with no neutral or reverse, I went back to an outboard for trapping. Works best for me.

I've got a 14x36 I run 6.5hp longtail. don't think a 12ftr would like the weight of motor. I chose to go with a 60in shaft instead of the 80in. works great but I have to stand on the seat to run motor. lil unsafe but can see much better ahead than sitting.

Suggestion: wear a helmet and a life jacket. Sooner or later you're going to need one or both.

X-2 !

Slapped it together and test drove it. 12' boat with me in it goes about 13 mph. It's reasonably stable, to small for 2 people but it should get me up the creek. I'll probably search for a used 1448 jon boat.

Interesting looking little V-bow. Can't tell what make it is from the pic, though it looks like the brand name might have been rubbed off near the transom. Has the number 22 on it. Was it a rental somewhere at one time? The rounded hull at the transom is similar to my Alumacraft V-bows. That's real nice when you get into the shallows and you need to push the rear end around in mud. The rounded side allows the boat to swing sideways, whereas a sharp chine (found on most flats) digs into the substrate. But it sure doesn't look like it has much storage area up front. Was that a deck installed later?

Anyway, don't forget to play with that cavitation plate when you bolt it onto the longer jon boat. It will ride differently.

The boat is a Crestliner, I don't know the history of it. I'm building a new transom for it and replacing a few missing bolts. The deck was added later, it's kind of nice but I think I'll remove it, it probably weighs 20+ lbs (guess).

Longer is better for johns. And 40 is the minimum width (sometimes you need to add front weight). I have a few john boats with mud motors. The one I use the most is the 1442. I personally wouldn't do the 12 ft again and 10 is out of the question.

I had a 1236. About worthless. Too narrow to be stable and too short to get weighted correctly.

DS . . might be interesting to peek around if you have some free time . . love them old boat.

https://www.retrocrestliner.net/crestliner-catalogs.html

Those older small v-bottom boats most generally have a rounded bottom all the way back to the transom. Not stable enough to be doing any moving around in while trapping or doing much else. Get yourself a 14' long - 48" wide" flat-bottom and you would feel/be much safer.

Well . . . my folks used the one I have now for many years mostly for fishing. They moved around in it and never fell out or rolled it. After Dad's stroke I bolted the 9 horse Go Devil onto it primarily for trapping pre-ice/post-ice conditions, small marshes, back sloughs, creeks. Up and over logs and beaver dams. Never fell out or rolled it.

So, each to his own I 'spose. It's probably what you get used to. The wider jon boats are indeed more stable. And it's fair to say the term stable is defined differently by most any boater.

Try 4' swells in each and get back to us.
No small flats for me, and no bass boats on Erie.
Newt used to argue me till the cows came home.
And that's fine.

Lighten up, Francis. The OP shouldn't expect 4' swells in creeks.

That's exactly how it starts.
"I'm geared up, I'm legal, I'm setting it"

I'm lightened. If you have no big water,,,
or wind, or barges,,,

I miss it lol.
I've not boated youns area and will shut up.
Have fun and be safe.

Replaced the transome today and smashed it up a creek until we had to walk, when that quit being fun we spun around and went home.

Any 4' swells?

Any RR crossings?

No but we brought life jackets just incase the creek really kicked up.

LOL