jet boats, looking to buy one,

[dirtydodge]

Ok so After looking from the banks sitting in my RZR for the last few summers. Watching people have a pile of fun going up n down while all I can do is watch . I am thinking it is time to get a jet boat to enjoy the river (s) . I would like some input from those who have em .
Like which ones to stay away from ?
which ones are better , reliable , going to take the sand bars and gravel bars that are going to get met i am sure .
Power , ? which brands work the best ?
The jet drive ?
the deg of the bottom ? Which is the best for the all around , rivers, lakes , and just messing around ?
And which dealers to stay away from and buy from ?

Thanks ahead of time

 

[mur190]

Run a marthon hull with old old chevy power to a berkley pump.
Stay away from sport jet. its like driving a two stroke car.
ours is 17ft long 8 degree hull. its pretty slippery but at WOT we can run
about 4inches of water,
You probably want a 12 degree hull and at least 18-20ft.

 

[POWDERCHOWDER]

yah you could run an old chevy if you want a floating gas tank the old berks are very in efficent jet drives compared to new tech.
check explorer industries we have 166 with 4.3 l vortec american turbine jet the thing hauls
it is the 8 deg as well 8 ft wide teflon bottom. we also have a marathon sport jet very good boat for lake/river as it has the 12 deg go with the high output v-6 two stroke 240 hp the thing has lots of power. i have ran piles of jet boats my whole life they are one of my favorite pass times, other then sledding.

 

[Puba]

No matter what you get, make sure you have a 10k bill in your bank account so when something goes wrong you can get the damage fixed and have the boat on the water not the trailer... It's not a question of if it a question of when?

 

[Polarblu]

Funnest one i have been in was a Harbour Craft Extreme. tough tough tough boat and the 200hp sport jet was enough to do any dumb channel we wanted to try.

 

[gotboost]

well i run a 2010 eagle jet boat with a 309 american turbine and a zz4 350 chevy its been an awesome boat all summer and my dad has a harbour craft with a 200 sport jet its a fun boat too the 2 boats are totally different my eagle is a better handling boat and flies along at 65mph as compared to 47mph in the sport jet the sport jet runs 5.5 gallons per hour at 30mph on the mercury smart craft computer its a little better on fuel then mine but who cares i like the 65mph so if i was buying another jet boat it would be an eagle hands down the best boat period...... go on Outlaw Eagle Manufacturing Ltd. we are all on there go on the fourms and the guys will help u out here is a pic of my jet boat :d

 

[Polarblu]

well i run a 2010 eagle jet boat with a 309 american turbine and a zz4 350 chevy its been an awesome boat all summer and my dad has a harbour craft with a 200 sport jet its a fun boat too the 2 boats are totally different my eagle is a better handling boat and flies along at 65mph as compared to 47mph in the sport jet the sport jet runs 5.5 gallons per hour at 30mph on the mercury smart craft computer its a little better on fuel then mine but who cares i like the 65mph so if i was buying another jet boat it would be an eagle hands down the best boat period...... go on Outlaw Eagle Manufacturing Ltd. we are all on there go on the fourms and the guys will help u out here is a pic of my jet boat :d

I hear ya apples and oranges and the difference in price is another 30 grand. thats enough to buy another good used boat. Eagle is the top dog in hull design BUT that like telling a new sledder to buy a turbo nitro as a first sled!

 

[Bogger]

I hear ya apples and oranges and the difference in price is another 30 grand. thats enough to buy another good used boat. Eagle is the top dog in hull design BUT that like telling a new sledder to buy a turbo nitro as a first sled!

https://www.snowandmud.com/forum/f14/hey-boys-get-line-36173.html

 

[Polarblu]

LOL Jebus Bogger dont bring LHF in this conversation its just getting good!!

 

[mur190]

yah you could run an old chevy if you want a floating gas tank the old berks are very in efficent jet drives compared to new tech.
check explorer industries we have 166 with 4.3 l vortec american turbine jet the thing hauls
it is the 8 deg as well 8 ft wide teflon bottom. we also have a marathon sport jet very good boat for lake/river as it has the 12 deg go with the high output v-6 two stroke 240 hp the thing has lots of power. i have ran piles of jet boats my whole life they are one of my favorite pass times, other then sledding.

its not really an old chevy.... its a 385 fast burn GM crate... american turbine pumps work well. the whole V-6 two stroke thing is just a turn off... plus the 240 sport jet package was alot less effient fuel wise then our set up... we run on avg 7-9 Gallons a hour. best we could get on the 240 was 13...
not a fan of the teflon bottem....

 

[Polarblu]

Actually the newest and most efficient and lightest is the new Weber, not yet sold in North America unless you order 3000 of them. This will change the sport jet world drastically!!

 

[Polarblu]

its not really an old chevy.... its a 385 fast burn GM crate... american turbine pumps work well. the whole V-6 two stroke thing is just a turn off... plus the 240 sport jet package was alot less effient fuel wise then our set up... we run on avg 7-9 Gallons a hour. best we could get on the 240 was 13...
not a fan of the teflon bottem....

cant run rivers up here without teflon or 500 horsepower and a pilot who can use it!!

i havnt seen anybody take an 85 grand eagle through tight trees over a beaver dam and park it on a gravel bar while laughing and 2 guys push it off to do it again. Harbour craft can do that all day and all summer long

 

[OVERKILL 19]

cant run rivers up here without teflon or 500 horsepower and a pilot who can use it!!

i havnt seen anybody take an 85 grand eagle through tight trees over a beaver dam and park it on a gravel bar while laughing and 2 guys push it off to do it again.

Accually I was in one and left 1/2 my ear on the tree over hangs! Then bleed all over the pump pushing her off the gravel!

 

[Polarblu]

cant run rivers up here without teflon or 500 horsepower and a pilot who can use it!!

i havnt seen anybody take an 85 grand eagle through tight trees over a beaver dam and park it on a gravel bar while laughing and 2 guys push it off to do it again.

Accually I was in one and left 1/2 my ear on the tree over hangs! Then bleed all over the pump pushing her off the gravel!

LMAO Awsome!!!!!! an semi-oops? or holy heck in a basket oops?

 

[dirtydodge]

Hey thanks guys , all good info , too many choices , i see there are good and bad things to be said about all of em , ya the ones i like always seem to be the most expensive , go figure . And the wife gave the ok so there will be some pics to post come spring .
Thanks again guys,

 

[mtnluvr]

Have a look at firefish in Red Deer. I had them build me a 17' 8 degree full teflon with 200 sport jet last winter and it was a blast all summer. Skinny water, no water, beaver dams.... great way to go. I had !2 degree eagle small block boat that was great but that was like driving a cadillac while my new boat is like driving a rhino! I do agree that small block is nicer than sport jet until you end up pushing, which you will do with a shallow water boat. You will find that with river boats there is no universal so figure out what you will use it for most and go with it

 

[chadwik74]

It was said once already, but hands down OUTLAW EAGLE build the best boats there is out there. They have many models to choose from and have tonnes of experiance in boating. You can buy a 17' sport with a SBC and a delta bottom and do lots of shallow water. You can buy a longer step tech hull with a high windshield and have a sweet family boat. I have a 21' Eagle and it's awesome. 383/425HP and it hauls. Properly set up I saw 74mph down river. It's a blast, but costly!

 

[teeroy]

I have ridden in all kinds of jet boats over the years, but hands down the funnest river boat I have been in is a flat bottom Muskrat. not the fastest, or the best handling but man....rocks, trees, beaver dams....I giggled like a little kid in that thing. it will run on a wet floor....lol

 

[gotboost]

here is a nice looking boat eagle is building for 2011 its a 16 foot lynx with a 4000 pound winch looks awesome :d:d

 

[highmarkdude]

Firefish in Redeer makes a great boat !

of your not wanting to wait to have them build one , Harbercraft has some nice jet boats too