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Aluminum V-Hull Stability?

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I'm planning on buying an aluminum 16ft long 6ft wide V-Hull boat. I have fished a lot for bass off of shore and smaller bass in waders. I was wondering for all expirianced boaters how stable you think this type of boat is. I am planning on fishing with my dad who is over 200 pounds and myself, I am slightly under 200 pounds. Will this be a good fit for standing comfortably or will I need a different size or hull shape. 

 

Thanks

  • Super User

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~

Detailing stability specs is a little tough without some more info.

Perhaps offering a few of the Brand, Make & Models you're considering would help.

Generally a 16ft V  loaded with two 200 lb humans & their gear is a fairly full boat. 

Staying within the recommended load limits and out of waters that go beyond the vessels limitations & drivers ability allows one to get the most out of the stability any hull offers.

Good Luck with your search & purchase.

A-Jay

What he said ^^^ 

A 16ft for two grown anglers bass fishing from what I've seen will be leaning toward uncomfortable.

 I have wished my 18ft was a 20 at times. :dontknow: 

I have a tracker pt165 which I believe is close to 17 feet long and always mostly fish with two adults. Have been doing it comfortably for many years. 

  • Super User

If you are concerned about the boat being "tippy", if you are buying a bare bones aluminum hull, than yes it will be. If you are buying a boat set up with storage and flotation, a lot is going to depend on the brand. A boat with a wide underwater footprint will be less tippy than one with a narrow footprint. The wider footprint will draft shallower and top end will be slower.

  • Author
4 hours ago, A-Jay said:

Hello and Welcome to Bass Resource ~

Detailing stability specs is a little tough without some more info.

Perhaps offering a few of the Brand, Make & Models you're considering would help.

Generally a 16ft V  loaded with two 200 lb humans & their gear is a fairly full boat. 

Staying within the recommended load limits and out of waters that go beyond the vessels limitations & drivers ability allows one to get the most out of the stability any hull offers.

Good Luck with your search & purchase.

A-Jay

It would be a project boat as well. Right now if I bought it it's just a barebones boat but we will be adding a small front deck with storage underneath and foam to help with stability and buoyancy. Also the hull is fairly flat for what I've seen I think we'll be ok in this. 

 

Thanks for your replies everyone :)

Hmmm I have to disagree with most of these guys. I fish off a 12 ft v hull flat bottom. I built casting decks and storage and have no problems with stability with two grown guys fishing. Sure the space is a bit limited and I don't bring 100 lbs of tackle and 15 rods but it works great! Sorry pics keep posting sideways lol

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  • Super User
Just now, Fish4bigfish said:

Hmmm I have to disagree with most of these guys. I fish off a 12 ft v hull flat bottom. I built casting decks and storage and have no problems with stability with two grown guys fishing. Sure the space is a bit limited and I don't bring 100 lbs of tackle and 15 rods but it works great! Sorry pics keep posting sideways lol

Your boat doesn't have a pronounced keel so it is not a deep v. It's more or less a modified v

1 minute ago, slonezp said:

Your boat doesn't have a pronounced keel so it is not a deep v. It's more or less a modified v

I see! 

On 2016-07-17 at 2:00 AM, evand.13 said:

I'm planning on buying an aluminum 16ft long 6ft wide V-Hull boat. I have fished a lot for bass off of shore and smaller bass in waders. I was wondering for all expirianced boaters how stable you think this type of boat is. I am planning on fishing with my dad who is over 200 pounds and myself, I am slightly under 200 pounds. Will this be a good fit for standing comfortably or will I need a different size or hull shape. 

 

Thanks

Something a quick test drive would answer.  Not all boats are created equal and you won't really know until you get it on the water.

  • 2 weeks later...

I have a 14 ft modified v jon boat.  I have no problems with myself and another experienced fisherman, gear (2 batteries, bow mounted tm, cooler, etc...) and about 3 rods each on the water.  You just have to pay attention to where the other person's line is.  Now if its myself and another inexperienced fisherman.....that's a different story.  Ive lost a few lures to line breakage due to being caught on a cast from my inexperienced friends.  But no real stability issues unless you got tweedle dee and tweedle dumb getting too close to you with their giant wake boats.

My buddy has a 14ft deep v decked aluminum jon boat. We fish 2 guys in it all the time. Never had a problem. The boat is pretty stable, as long as you aren't leaning over to one side too much, jumping around, etc. 

My 17' bass boat is very shallow draft and almost no "v" but is very stable with people moving around the boat (88" beam). One of us can stand on the gunnel without worrying about tipping it. It bob's up and down more than roll when in the waves. 

My new v-hull (95" beam) has a bit more "roll" to it when someone is standing at the very edge. It also has a more pronounced roll in the waves but not to the extreme. My legs have had to adjust to different "feel" of the boat. 

IMO both boats are stable without worry of tipping or tossing you out. 

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