Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: scruffy on January 25, 2007, 01:50:41 PM
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i was wondering how shallow of water can a jet boat run in.
thanks
scruffy
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Ive been into 6"
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I've taken mine prowling into about 2 feet of water. When at plane you can be in really shallow water.
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Who says you need water... this was us in Alberta between Christmas and Newyears..
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e359/eppweld/IMGP1441.jpg)
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e359/eppweld/IMGP1442.jpg)
My Wooldrige will run in 4 inches.
:)
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ive been in only a couple inches of water and have slid across gravel bars, teflon is a must
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Johnny: ;D your wooldridge as in your FRL boat? lol the nice thing about that boat is that you don't need to chuck those buckets out of the back of the boat eh? due to that big leg on er'. I've personally have been in shallower water than 4" I think it was with a co-worker of Johhny too.....
Mike <")))))><
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Johnny: ;D your wooldridge as in your FRL boat? lol the nice thing about that boat is that you don't need to chuck those buckets out of the back of the boat eh? due to that big leg on er'. I've personally have been in shallower water than 4" I think it was with a co-worker of Johhny too.....
Mike <")))))><
Ahh yes, that's her BUT the jet is coming! ;) I just bought it, so once it's payed off(should be mid season) new power is following SOOn after...
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Wow scruffy you thinking about getting a jet boat? Ya wooo dont forget about me lol
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thanks for the feedback fellas,don't worry DH i won't forget about you buddy ;) but I'm just looking into it and trying to get as much info as i can to make my decision on which boat to buy i doubt I'll get it this season as i just bought my house but next season watch out.
Can anyone give me some feedback on which boat is better,I'm leaning towards a thunder jet 19-22 feet not interested in the smaller ones as i find they don't have as much room for my needs.I've been on my buddy's north river and i must say they are crap even he said it himself, their handling is not as responsive as he'd like it to be I've taken a woolridge out and eh.
thanks
scruffy
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scruffy, send an email to TNT on the forum, he should answer all your questions. As I recall, Bwi Bwi was out test driving them with him before he decided to get one last year. He'll also be at the Fraser Valley Boat Sportsmen's Show this year.
thomasr@t-n-tmarine.com
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scruffy come see me and we will work out a time for a test drive, if you want to try a couple boats let me know.
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thanks Rodney and as for TNT I'll definitely give you a jingle soon ;)
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The Thunder Jets I've been in are also cheap boats. They look nice outside, but that's about it, same with jetcraft and hewescraft. NW Jet, Duckworth/Weldcraft, are good options. I love my 18' weldcraft with the outback bracket. It's a 4-stroke outboard, so that means I can't go in too shallow of water, 1 foot or so on plane, but I get twice the mileage. It's also easier to add a link to my kicker to steer it from the steering wheel.
It took me a good year to research and test drive boats until I found one that fits me. good luck.
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I've been in very deep water where perfermance certainly isnt as good as the thin shallow stuff. I've also been on dry land too having to push the boat back into the water. Good thing for helmets etc when on the job.
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bentrod dont be offended by my coments that I am going to say but if you think a weldcraft is a better boat than a t-jet you are mistaken, ffirst of thunder jet uses formed sides alot stronger than flat sides
secondly they use a full reverse chine, which means no corrective steering on jet boats
compared to a butt welded bottom and side where you are constantly corrective steering.
third thunder jet brings their stringers right to the bow of the boat unlike hewescraft jet craft weldcraft not only that thunder jet uses 5 stringers in their hull design unlike weldcrafts 3 stringer hull design,
thunder jet also does not bolt on cleats rails and other stainless conponents which will create corrosion due to dissimilar metals
I would love to see your boat travel in one foot of water in fact I will put the gas in for the day but you can bring the spare props that you willl need.
dont forget a 19ft inboard witha 305 will get 4.5 GPH at cruising speeds.
unless your weldcraft was a pre 98 I dont think you can even put them is the same group as a traditional weldcraft boat.
for the record I have driven 28 different river boat companies boats from their bottom of the line to their top of the line so I fell like I have an honest opinion with which we decided to carry.
There was a reason all the dealers were after thunder jet when we started our company.
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North Rivers are beutiful boats but are really expensive!
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TNT,
Maybe you got the WELDCRAFT confused with WELLCRAFT, or were looking at the entry level Weldcrafts, but Weldcraft's Maverick was the first boat to have a continuous reverse chine's with double continuous internal welds. Unlike most other boats with reverse chines that are spot welded. The Weldcraft also tends to have thicker hulls or the same thickness as Thunderjet. The cleats are also welded on (you said they weren't). It also has a towable top, which many other makes don't have. Check your facts again, I'm looking at one in my driveway right now. By the way, I didn't see you slamming Duck's, but Weldcrafts are made in the same factory by the same people. Every boat show you'll go to try this one thing. Ask other dealers what boat make is selling for pricepoint, the most two frequent answers you'll get are...You guessed it, Thunderjet and Hewes craft.
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I forgot to mention that Weldcraft's are about as wide as they get.
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TNT, Are you kidding, I should have read the rest of your email. I have a 4-stroke 115 HP Yamaha and it gets at least twice if not 3 times the mileage of your jet. Any 4-stroke outboard should. I'm not talking about trolling in a foot of water, but I can easily do it on plane. An 18' boat with an outback bracket and a 14 degree hull will do this.
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Its all about personal opinion....just like when you pick your vehicles, FORDS Suck, Dodge Rams ford off the road...every single jet boat company is different......by the way, you cannot compare a prop to a jet...just like comparing a sport jet to a V8...totally different classes....weldcraft= as wide as they get? ya right, every boat company is as wide as they get, thats why its called "custom options" upgrade that 7' beam to a nice wide 8.5' beam etc....I myself think Thunder Jets are the nicest all around boats on the river, they don't take the whole river with them like a Custom Weld or North River, and they are sharp....I know I will be getting one sometime in the next 3 years :D This is almost like the Flossing debate for heavens sake....also I think those weld crafts look like a well fare hewes craft! Now thats bad.
Mike <"))))))><
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bentrod join us this morning we are going to yale , there isnt one part of the river that is less than a foot deep. so you can follow all the thunder jets up ;D
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Point taken guys. Just a bit edgy last night. I agree, each to their own. TNT, I said I could and have gone in that kind of water. I don't make a habit of it. In no way am I going to say that I can run with the jets. If I wanted to, I would have bought a jet. I prefer my outboard for the places I fish and ski (Columbia & Snake Rivers, Lake Chelan, Lake Coeur d Alene). Plus, I don't like to spend $100 in gas every time I go out fishing or hauling the kids around on tubes.
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THUNDER JETS SUCK!!!!!!! ;) Kidding, I have a few buddies that own Tjets and they are finished very nice. But there's no substitute for THE MIGHTY NORTH RIVER!!!!!!!!!!!!
Scruffy, it all depends what you'll be using the boat for. For an "all round" boat that you can use to waterski, fish in both river and salt you may concider the 20' Hews craft with a Yamaha prop. Just keep your eye on the sounder in the Fraser and you should be ok.
If you can get your hands on a wescan explorer grab it. Almost indestructable! Outlaw marine makes some bullet proof boats as well.
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I saw one of those outlaw marine boats the other day. It was pretty good looking. Kind of reminded me of the North River Commander X that I was going to buy just bought before I found my Weldcraft.
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Does it really matter ??? He likes Thunder Jets you like something else, everyone has there opinion , personally I like the Thunder Jets also, my old land lord has one and it was one sweet ride, and hauled some serious *** even in shallow water. no need to argue about which boat is better, what ever you guys have and you like it thats great keep it at that. There just boats as long as they float and move forwards and backwards what more do you want ??? If i was given the choice to have my land lords TJ or a North River i would take the Thunder Jet.
Also while Sturgeon fishing some guy came up to us in a brandnew Thunder Jet and it was decked out with everything on it. It was Really Nice..
Boaters Politics...... Just be lucky you guys can afford to even have one .....
My Dad can beat up you're dad Freak !!!!!!
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Monday » January 29 » 2007
Trio make it to shore after boat capsizes
Vancouver Sun
Monday, January 29, 2007
FRASER CANYON - Three people are safe after being thrown into the Fraser
River Sunday when their boat overturned between Hope and Boston Bar. RCMP Const. Bert Paquet said police received a report that a boat had overturned on the river around 1 p.m.
Two of the boaters made it to shore, but the third was missing, he said. Local search and rescue workers were called, and they eventually found the third boater, who had managed to swim to shore within a few minutes of the accident.
None of the three were hurt.
Paquet did not have any further details about the incident, including what type of boat the three were travelling in or how it overturned.
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I wonder if it was a Thunder Jet? Was thinking of getting one, :-\ was, but now I don't know. Sounds pretty scary, think I'll stick with the kayak it's got real shallow draft. Glad everyone is OK.
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It was a north river. As far as the article, once again it's proven that the media can't just report the "facts". It wasn't a race but they made it sound like the "cannonball run" not a friendly get together of jet boat enthusiasts.
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It was a north river. As far as the article, once again it's proven that the media can't just report the "facts". It wasn't a race but they made it sound like the "cannonball run" not a friendly get together of jet boat enthusiasts.
Agreed, stupid media makes this incident sound like jet boats are horrible or w.e.....but I must say there is no better boat than a SIDEWINDER :-* so johnny, what kind of boat did you buy?
Mike <")))))><
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It was a north river. As far as the article, once again it's proven that the media can't just report the "facts". It wasn't a race but they made it sound like the "cannonball run" not a friendly get together of jet boat enthusiasts.
Agreed, stupid media makes this incident sound like jet boats are horrible or w.e.....but I must say there is no better boat than a SIDEWINDER :-* so johnny, what kind of boat did you buy?
Mike <")))))><
Wooldridge xtra plus. As I said earlier in the thread, I just need new power for it. It's a great roomy boat and very "functional". I'm a wooldridge fan, so I'm happy with my purchase.
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yes where is tnt for comment on this issue as to what had happened out there,i'm curiuos how do you flip a jet boat,glad to hear know one was hurt or killed but i'm sure after this incident that people will be on the ball a little more.
cheers
scruffy
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I wonder if it was a Thunder Jet? Was thinking of getting one, :-\ was, but now I don't know. Sounds pretty scary, think I'll stick with the kayak it's got real shallow draft. Glad everyone is OK.
i know how you feel as I'm trying to get as much info as possible about all the types of boats out there and of course to find out what really happened on the river was it human error or the boat, cause when your gonna spend 50 large you want to know everything possible.
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links .......................
http://www.huntingbc.ca/forum/showthread.php?t=9572
http://www.riverjetmagazine.com/fusetalk/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=58&threadid=13276&enterthread=y&STARTPAGE=1
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Scruffy, I was in your same shoes last year. I finally narrowed things down on the internet and then went to a couple boat shows. You can arrange test drives, climb inside boats, compare prices, etc. At one show I was at, the Thunder jets were right next to the Weldcrafts. I went back and forth between the two boats a million times. the Thunderjet had the really cheap price point, and the Weldcraft was selling on construction. Both booths had deconstructed boats to look at welds and hull construction. Taking all that into consideration and driving both, I finally chose the Weldcraft. I am still giddy with my purchase and love the boat. Good luck on your search and have fun.
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unfortunatley I did have to stay out of the limelight for a little while until I composed myself after reading what the reporter had said. as for no comments from TNT marine, well its hard to give a comment when they contact my business at 9PM on a sunday.
we have been constantly trying to contact the province to get this matter resolved,
as for the boat that had the mishap, I cannot go into to deep of details because I was not there, it was a grim day on the water when the call came through. the boat was actually with us sturgeon fishing, after running up river to have a look at the rapids they began to turn around and a wave took over the bow.pulling the nose under,
the fellow is extremely educated in boating and one of the fellows instructs the power squadron
as for the help they recieved, their mustang life vest saved their lives,the two men climbed up onto the highway trying to flag down vehicles when finally a police officer driving his route found them, the other man was resqued by one of the boats in the group.
We really have to thank the people who were involved on this run to help the guys out, boats can be replaced but lives cant, is ity a wake up call for sure, do we always practice safe and courteous boating?? of course we do. will we offer this run to anyone with little experience from now on , no way
we definatly have to change what happens on the water and how we look out for each other,
could this have happened to any boat out there of course it can,
if anyone would like to talk to any member of run you can contact me directly at 604-857-5387
will we go up the canyon again? of course we will, we got back up on our bikes when we wiped out when we were younger, we get back in our cars after accidents.
we do have to be very grateful that someone was looking out for the people that were in the accident.
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Fishfreak, even when looking at the whitewater from below sometimes a rouge wave rolls past you that be 4-5 feet high, its pretty common, I think they probably turned right when a wave like that was coming, its really hard to say what happened, you have to be on the ball when dealing with that sort of current.
A lot of boats get lost each year on the fraser and on the smaller tributaries in the valley, you just dont hear about them, look at how many boats the upper pitt takes each year.
All we can be grateful for is that everyone helped each other out, and no one was seriosly injured.
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Just read the article in river jet magazine ,if the water looked to scary to go up why would anyone attempt it, in my opinion if some people (experienced) wouldn't try it there must be a reason and something should of been said at that point, being a group thing i realized there were guys from various experience levels to teach new boaters the ways on the river from that point it's about the safety and not who can get there first but for some it's an ego thing i guess.Either that or these people who did attempt that part of the run must have lots of money because they didn't care about their safety then until it was to late.
cheers scruffy
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Same with wading a treacherous piece of water. Common sense says you shouldn't do it but unfortunately there is a small percentage who is willing to try. Some make it, some don't.
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Intresting to hear the reaction of some people regarding boy's and there toy,s, no differance in sinking a 50K jet on the Fraser than flipping a 50K truck up some mountain where there aint been a road for 10 years(and I would bet there are a lot more of those then swamped jet boats) , we all learn from ours and others mistakes.