.

Will be watching this thread. Hope to get a boat when truck is paid for.

That's a good question. My rat trapping rig isn't big enough, but If I power up my 1648 jon it might be, and stable too.

I have a 1670 modified v., Fancy name for a slightly pointed flat bottom for the river.

I can load it down and it's still stable. Getting in and out, i can sit/stand on the gunwale and it doesn't think about tipping.

Be me, no decks to keep load low.

(I'd go longer for commercial fishing, no experience but having seen Jones's set-up, that's what i'd do.)

19' or 21' commercail ( no junk aboard like seets) Carolina Skiff

I'll be watching this, maybe someone will throw in some photos of there rigs for you.

B

Newt would know. He does both.

I have the alumacraft 16' v-bow Jon boat as well. Tiller steering with a 25 hp merc. According to my gps it will do 28 mph running upstream in the Mississippi River here. It is clear, I leveled up the bottom inside and added 3/4" non skid laminated dock plywood to the main floor so all walking surfaces are smooth and clear. Stand or lean anywhere in that boat as it doesn't even begin to tip.
It will run in 12" of water or a bit less on plane empty. Make sure your motor is mounted up at the proper transom height.

Osky

I run a 14 ft Stanley.

I used a 1648 Alumacraft Jon with a 25HP Yamaha for a few years. It was a decent set-up, but if I were to do it again, I would go with a deeper boat, or maybe an 18' boat and a larger motor. The rig I had would do about 28 mph, similar to what Osky is saying, but loaded with 10 beaver, 80 rats and some odds and ends traps/stakes/drowning rods, I wanted more motor. I'd go with at least a 35 hp motor and it would, absolutely, have power tilt/trim! This rig would be for larger river use like the Mississippi or Missouri.

x2 on the stanley Dave. I run an 18' Kemp, made by The Ironworker here in PAB. Very similar to a Stanley. One of their main competitors. 3/16 all welded plate aluminum. Can handle 4 foot waves easy, you can drop a concrete block on the floor and nothing happens, break ice, and can get sixteen beavers up on plane with trapping stuff. The motor pictured has been upgraded to a 50 four stroke yamaha (the first picture) and will put a 70 on it as soon as I can afford one. A bit wet if its windy, about its only flaw.

No commercial fishing, but it is a great beaver boat. I generally drive it right up on top of a beaver house and step out on the house to set it. These boats are designed as work boats, and are very popular with contractors up here because they can take a serious beating and aside from a few marks and scuffs are totally unaffected structurally. A true lifetime boat because there is absolutely nothing that can go wrong with them.

As to the width of the boat, i had it made for me and the flat floor is just over four feet wide, and the sides flair out further than that. Makes for a boat that planes easily, and can do a lot for its size. I can get into a lot of narrow rocky places, and it makes for a long boat that can carry a lot, yet handle like a smaller boat. A lot can be said for wider boats too, but for me this works perfectly.

Nice rig, Hutchy.

Thanks muskrat. At times I wish it was bigger however for what I do, I would only want it to be bigger for 5-10% of the time I use it. The other 90 percent of the time being bigger would be a hinderance.

Ditto, nice boat.

Nice rig Hutch!

For my area Axi, I'd say an older Jones brothers skiff with a 50-75 horse yammy. It's wide, solid, and drafts very little.

Hutchy, Is that a 25" transom?
Nice looking rig.

It actually started with a 30 hp yamaha two stroke with a 16" transom. You use what you got, motor was cheap. Then went to a merc four stroke which required a 20" transom. I had a setback splashwell made for it, bringing it to 20". A splashwell solved some problems i would have had just bringing the existing transom higher.

A feller could pile up three or four beavers in one of these puppies

Just FYI. I toured the Alumacraft plant years ago and asked them the difference between the mod V and the flat nose jons. They said they consider them the same in house as the part that meets the water is both pretty flat. The only difference is up top as the flat nose has more deck space.

No more outboards for me when it comes to trapping beaver. Replace a lower unit of two and you go out and buy a mud motor. Probably doesn't work well for commercial fishing, however.

I can’t post photos from my phone, but I’m running an 1854 boat. It’s an all 1/8” thick true flat bottom. I have a gatortail mudmotor on it. I like that size, and for what is listed here I’d consider a 2048 as well. My boat has 24” sides and I find that this boat has plenty of room, is very stable and can carry a load fairly well. I really have enjoyed my boat for hunting, trapping, and fishing on the rivers here. If anybody wants a pic or would like to post a photo of my boat just feel free to send me a PM.