Aluminum vs. Fiberglass Hulls

[Jeff_NHBA]

I'm looking for my first boat and I'm curious to know what are some of the pros and cons of a fiberglass boat compared to one of aluminum.  Seems to me like the Al boats are lighter so you should see some savings in gas economy plus the hulls should be more durable and possibly easier to repair.  Does a fiberglass boat ride that much better?

I'm interested in your thoughts and opinions.  

[Ben]

Hull design has as much to do with ride as the weight.  A flat glass boat is going to beat up on you almost as much as a tin can.   The extra weight does help it ride a little better.  

Personally, in a small boat (12' - 16'), I prefer the heavy guage aluminum jon, flat bottom, square nose and tail.  They are light, easy to tow, can get in and out of many more places and work in shallow water best.  

When it comes to fishing big lakes where you may have to go several miles, I like my V-hull, fiberglass barge of a bass boat that rides a smooth as silk.  Pretty much takes a full size truck to tow 3,200 lbs of boat/trailer down the road, a tanker truck to keep both supplied with gas to feed all them ponies and ain't no way you're gonna drag it anywhere.

For economics and a much more versitle boat, go with the aluminum.   For comfort and more storage room go with the glass, unless you speeking similar style small boats, the go tin can all the way.

 

[Muddpuppy]

Ben made a good point on the design. I have an aluminum hulled Ranger and it's designed more for shallow water use. It is't really a rough water boat. It bounces around pretty good in waves. On windy days with 15 to 20 mi. gusts I really prefer to find somewhere in a cove if possible. I am sure that would vary from boat to boat. I fish alot of smaller lakes 1,000 - 30,000 acres most with large areas of shallow water, stumps and large weed beds. I don't have to worry (within reason) about stumps, sticks, or brush. I can go over sand bars (carefully in about 14" of water less if I pole), I can some what beach where I want as long as there are no sharp rocks. There isn't alot of maintenance with the alum. hull. When the water is low in the summer I can usually still use the ramps that I normally use when some of the heavier boats have gone to the larger ramps. For the motor size that I am running it runs right along with a decent ride. Compared to some of the guys I fish with it does ride quite abit rougher than their fiberglass Skeeters and Champions, it's not as stable fishing in rough water either. They do make aluminum hulls that are a alot closer match to theirs then mine is, of course so is the cost. Mine is also only a 16'. Some of these alum. boats are running at speeds of 70+, and they are sweet. I would look at what type of water I intended of fishing, have good access to fishing areas, fishing mostly shallower waters, brush I would consider an aluminum. If you run large bodies of water with heavy winds and waves I would probably go with a fiberglass. If I did intend on fishing on open water much I would consider very seriously at least an 18' or larger no matter what I got.

[Rattlinrogue]

I have a glass boat now.I had always assumed that I wouldn't be able to get in the really shallow areas like I did with my old Al,but I'm fishing in the same skinny water that I did with the aluminum.The glass boat is a much smoother,solid ride down the lake.What I like best about my glass boat is boat control in heavy wind.With my aluminum I was always riding that TM just to stay in one spot,but the heavier glas boat just doesn't get blown around like the ole aluminum.

[Jeff_NHBA]

Thanks for the insight.  I've been looking at either a Tracker Tournament V-18 or one of the 19' Stratos boats.  There's a big price difference between the two but hopefully I can offset the cost a bit once I sell my motorcycle.

[Ben]

In that size boat, personnaly I would go with the Stratos.   Just remember, that's about 3,200 lbs of towing weight so you realy need a full size truck with a V-8 to tow it.  A mid size with a V-8 will do ok but anything less and it's very tough on the vehicle.  If you live or tow through hills (even small ones), you'd better have a full size.

[DDbasser]

My first boat was an 18 foot alumaweld bass boat

kind of a modified v-hull, it beat the crap out of you in rough water.

The boat I have now is a Triton TR-186 18' 6"

it's the smoothest riding boat I've ever been in and takes rough water extremely well.

I had a 17" 6' Javelin before that, the same design as the Stratos very fast boat but it did'nt take rough water that well, it was kind of squirrely.

But it really boils down to what you intend to use the boat for.

Are you going to fish tournaments on big lakes or are you just going to fish for fun and dinner?

[Jeff_NHBA]

I plan on fishing tournaments in lakes (Lake Anna, Kerr Resevoir, Lake Gaston) and the Potomac River and anything else I can find in the VA area.

I'm limited to boat size because it still has to fit in my half of the garage so 19 to 19.5 ft is about the max.

[DDbasser]

Shellback,

19ft is a pretty good size boat. Any of the more prominent brands will make you a good boat.

I've been in a few aluminum boats and none of them ride like a fiberglass boat in rough water.

What ever you decide get a test drive first.

Or by from a reputable dealer, I bought my

first boat a Javelin from a reputable dealer and they warrantied the boat for 30 days and I'm glad they did because the Javelin lost the motor 3rd time on the water, they fixed it then I lost the motor agian about a week later. They told me they would put a new power head on the motor or let me buy a different one, so I bought a Triton.

It's a 2000, looks like it was never in the water, and I got it for $14,000 with a 150 Johnson on it.