What do you think is the biggest motor you can put on a jon boat. You think a 40 H.P is to much

There should be a spec plate mounted somewhere in the boat (probably the transom) that shows weight limits and max HP ratings.

From a personal opinion, YES....40hp is too much for a 14ft jon boat.

Wayne

For reference, I have a 16ft bass tracker jon w/ a max HP rating of 30HP

1. The plate that shows your capacity and max. hp.

2. If it is a v-hull I would say AT MOST a 15 hp.

    If it is a flat bottom I would say a 10.

tin2win musta never been in a 14 foot vee, with a 25.  I would say about 20 - 25 at the max for a 14 foot vee.  I know plenty of folks who have 14 foot vees, rated for 25, that have 25s on them.  No problem there whatsoever.

If it is a true jon, it is probably rated for about 15, unless it has a 32 inch bottom, in which case it may be 10.  Other than a 1432, I would say 15 would be fine.  If it is a mod vee, go back to the 20 - 25 rating.  Been there, no problem.  

I would say what ever the plate says the max HP should be.

I have never had a true" Jon" boat, but I have had a 12 foot V-hull starcraft. It was rated for 15hp max, but a friend of mine has a 12 V-hull sears boat and its only rated for 8hp max. the sears boat was wider than the starcraft, but the starcraft was heavier.

I now have a 14 foot V-hull starcraft and its rated for 35HP max, its a short shaft transom, if it was a long shaft it would be rated for 45HP. Right now I am running a 15HP (because of HP restricked lakes), but I will be moving up to a 35HP soon.

I don't think Texas regulates HP on a water craft.  I think that if the GW's see that your craft is being operated unsafe they will ask you follow them back to the ramp and that you leave the that body of water but no ticket if you do as you are told.

As long as you can operate the boat in a safe mannor put as much HP as you want on it. Just understand no insurance compay will cover you and if their is an accident and your at fault it will cost you plenty.

Me.... Alumweld 1448 Jon Boat Deck front and rear rated for a 30hp and I run a 50 on it. Only issue i have is when i come off plane i have to either make a quick turn or give the throtle a quick trottle up to escape the wave that will form behind the boat.

This is an Alweld 14' with a 40 flat bottom & it's rated for a 25; that is a stock Suzuki which is a 3 cylinder, 2 stroke, oil injected, 3 carb, & is 33.3 cu. in.

The ol' motor cover switch  ;D

Not  

Those 25 hp Suzuki's were the fastest 25s ever built; I switched to a modified V hull with trim it would run 32-34 mph (GPS).

The only thing that wasn't stock was the trim & the stainless prop  

my mistake, I thought you said it was a 40hp.  Re-vamping motor covers is a full time business around here,lol.

I have a v bottom that I am working on right now and I run a 7.5 hp on it now and it runs good but with the wieght I am adding I am going to half to up the horse power and I found a 40 hp that is about the size of the 25 hp in the picture with the boy and I can get it at the right price but I dont want to buy it if its to big the boat is about a 4 ft bottom and like I siad before 14 ft v bottom

I bought a new Crestliner last year. It is a 14 footer with a 36 inch bottom and rivited. The guy at the boat shop said if it was rated for 20 horse power. He also said if I put a 40 horse or something like that on it that the extra torque would have the rivits worked loose and leaking in about six months.

Jim

Yeah thats the one thing that i was worried about. I found a 20 hp that i think i am going to go with thanks for everyones input

 thanks

     dave

Yeah thats the one thing that i was worried about. I found a 20 hp that i think i am going to go with thanks for everyones input

thanks

     dave

If the forty is a better deal you can always buy it and run it at half speed. I would rather have a 40 that i only use as a 20 rather than have a 20 that i will have to run at WOT to get the same speed and proformance as the 40. And i woud dare say that you will get better gas milage withe the 40 at 1/2 to 3/4 speed than with the 20 at wot

Just my 2cents

CGH

Could be big trouble if you ever have an accident with an over powered boat ie a 40 on a boat rated for a twenty .  $$$

Last year I bought a brand new Crestliner Sportsman 14. It's actually 14'7" and is rated for 35 HP. I've got a 15 HP Yamaha on it now and wish I'd have gone to the 25 HP.

The boat was built in 67 and its only rated for 10 hp but I know it will handle alot more than that. I dont under stand how 5 different companies can build the same boat and rate them for 5 different rateings you know what I mean.

how do yall get those bigger pics on here if I down size mine to fit you will never see what I am trying to show you

I had a mariner 9.9 on my 1448 jon boat and it ran sluggish. Got it up on plane when by myself but couldn't with an extra passenger. I've done a lot of modifications with a plywood deck, two livewells in addition to 2 deep cycle batteries to run all my electronics and a 6 gal fuel tank.

I just upgraded to a Merc 20hp short shaft and this boat will absolutely fly! Planes right out of the gate. I'm a happy man!

My 1448 is rated for a 25 hp and my 1436 is rated for a 15 hp. A 40 on a 14' would be hazardous to your health IMO.

This thread is old enough to have a driver's license. 

 

(I also have a 25 hp on my "decked out" 14' V)

30 minutes ago, PourMyOwn said:

This thread is old enough to have a driver's license. 

 

(I also have a 25 hp on my "decked out" 14' V)

Same here - hull is rated to 30hp, but the 25hp I have on it pushes Bass Trek to over 20mph...plenty fast enough.

I have a 14-48 Jon in NE PA I use mostly on the Susquehanna. I have a Suzuki 20 on it and it handles the river without any problems. I do run a prop guard and the prop guard does reduce the top end but top end on the river is never something I use. 

 

Fwiw, very little deadrise and skidding through turns is what I was told.

 

My '14 Grizzly 1648 has a 3-degree deadrise and is rated for 25hp. Looking from the stern the bottom almost flat.

The current Grizzly 1648 has a 7-degree deadrise and is rated for 40hp.

 

 

https://forums.iboats.com/threads/jon-boat-flip.360759/

 

His boat: A 12' tracker boat with a 1998 Johnson 4stroke 8hp. But rated for 6.

 

"I decided to take a spin solo for the first time with the motor trimmed all the way in. At full throttle I felt I was barely touching the water at all, and was screaming along. As I was trying to make a high speed left turn though, I felt that it was not turning/handling very well, felt like it was almost skidding instead. Then WHAM, I think the right edge caught, and I roll 45 degrees to starboard, take on 30-40 gallons of water over the side in an instant and almost fall out. I would have sunk if I hadn't given it full throttle and made my way to shore at 5mp with the bow 6 feet in the air and the back full of water to beach the boat.

Am I just an idiot for thinking that a flat bottomed boat should be able to turn at high speed? Or do you guys think this is a symptom of a my trim setup/too much motor. Suffice it to say I will NOT be making any high speed turns in a flat-bottomed boat ever again."