Hey everyone, I am currently in the market for my first boat. I've had a kayak for a little over 2 years now and am at the stage where I'm ready to upgrade to a boat.

I have been looking at 14 foot jon boats, have been trying to look at used options, but haven't had a ton of luck there. Either they are too old, or the price is way too high. Due to this, I am thinking about going new, and have a few questions.

My first question is, due to not trying to a blow a huge amount of money, would a trolling motor suffice as my only motor?

My second question is, does anyone have experience with the Alumacraft jon boats that academy sells?

Any advice is welcome, thanks guys!

 

I had a 14’ flat bottom for years and only used a trolling motor and had zero issues. I didn’t go on any giant lakes but that was my choice. 

Only concerns with just a trolling motor are the size of waters you fish and how big the lakes are. I fished a 2 man boat with only trolling motor for a couple years myself and had a blast. Alumacraft makes a nice jon boat id venture to say id on par with any other manufacturer. Good luck

Yeah, depends on your water. If a top speed of about 3mph will get it done, then you're aces.

 

For years, I used to fish out of a tin boat that only had oars and did fine.

2 hours ago, Shimano_1 said:

Only concerns with just a trolling motor are the size of waters you fish and how big the lakes are. I fished a 2 man boat with only trolling motor for a couple years myself and had a blast. Alumacraft makes a nice jon boat id venture to say id on par with any other manufacturer. Good luck

Gotcha, yeah from what I've seen the fastest MPH I could wish for is like 5 with a trolling motor, but I'm also fortunate to have a lot of smaller lakes near me, I don't think I would take it on a big lake.

Just now, JoshFromBolo said:

Gotcha, yeah from what I've seen the fastest MPH I could wish for is like 5 with a trolling motor, but I'm also fortunate to have a lot of smaller lakes near me, I don't think I would take it on a big lake.

Going against the wind/current cuts your speed down, that's why I said 3mph. ?

 Yes if your not on big water that is all you need.

Now to wait for a good deal to pop up, people around me want a unreasonable amount of money for a 20-40 year old boat. The jon boats at academy are out of stock, and having a hard time finding them anywhere else. 

I own a 1436 LT Alumacraft from Academy. I'm in the process of building it but the build quality seems to be fine for my use. If you're going TM only I'd go with a 24 volt. I went from a 40lb to 80 lb on my 1448 Lowe and the performance and battery life difference is night & day.

On 11/28/2020 at 8:29 PM, JoshFromBolo said:

Gotcha, yeah from what I've seen the fastest MPH I could wish for is like 5 with a trolling motor, but I'm also fortunate to have a lot of smaller lakes near me, I don't think I would take it on a big lake.

 

I only get a little over 5 mi/hr with my 9.9 kicker but it is still better than using a TM only on our HP-restricted lakes. ?

 

Josh- it just depends on the lakes you fish.  We have several lakes here that are TM-only that a boat that you are thinking about would be great on.  I had a 14'er for years with a 9.9 HP and caught a lot out of fish out of that boat.  While a 24-volt TM would be best, getting a 55 lb thrust is plenty.  The Maximizer feature on the Minn Kota motors allow for a lot of use on a charge.  This is what I had on a 17' tin boat and I fished all sorts of TM-only lakes.  I never completely ran it down and my heaviest days it went from the green to the yellow on charge.  My 14'er had an old school 27 lb thrust motor.  Are you getting a trailer?  If so, you can keep your eye out for a used motor later on.  Good luck.  

 

 

If  you use TM only just make sure you have a way to get back (oars) if the battery drains while you're out there. 

I've seen several Jon boats with smaller outboard motors that weren't too terribly expensive. You might have to wait a bit and actively check listings or even check listings outside your area as the good ones that are priced reasonably will sell quickly.

12 minutes ago, Boomstick said:

I've seen several Jon boats with smaller outboard motors that weren't too terribly expensive. You might have to wait a bit and actively check listings or even check listings outside your area as the good ones that are priced reasonably will sell quickly.

Determine the price you are willing to pay and shop around the internet to get a good feel for

what you might get at your pricing point. When you find it, BUY IT!  Procrastinating is the biggest

mistake serious buyers make. If it's a great deal it will be gone quickly.

On 11/29/2020 at 9:41 AM, JoshFromBolo said:

Now to wait for a good deal to pop up, people around me want a unreasonable amount of money for a 20-40 year old boat. The jon boats at academy are out of stock, and having a hard time finding them anywhere else. 

Well, you are entering a 2020 market that has produced a very high demand with diminished supply for various reasons. So, you'll have to be patient and yet ready to pounce at a moments notice. And you'll probably pay more than other years due to the more readily available cash from stimulus money allowing for more purchases than the market can handle. Supply and demand. Capitalism at it's finest. Again, be patient and let the market level itself out while piling up funds to make a quick decision when the opportunity arises. 

On 12/2/2020 at 6:42 AM, Junk Fisherman said:

 

I only get a little over 5 mi/hr with my 9.9 kicker but it is still better than using a TM only on our HP-restricted lakes. ?

 

Josh- it just depends on the lakes you fish.  We have several lakes here that are TM-only that a boat that you are thinking about would be great on.  I had a 14'er for years with a 9.9 HP and caught a lot out of fish out of that boat.  While a 24-volt TM would be best, getting a 55 lb thrust is plenty.  The Maximizer feature on the Minn Kota motors allow for a lot of use on a charge.  This is what I had on a 17' tin boat and I fished all sorts of TM-only lakes.  I never completely ran it down and my heaviest days it went from the green to the yellow on charge.  My 14'er had an old school 27 lb thrust motor.  Are you getting a trailer?  If so, you can keep your eye out for a used motor later on.  Good luck.  

 

 

Ended up just upgrading to a better kayak. Thanks for your input though!

Decided that waiting for a boat is best, as I am on the verge of graduating college and have more things to figure out than worrying about storing, maintenance and other such things for a boat.

I will revisit buying a boat in another year or two, but I determined that I always want to have a kayak as well and the one I currently I have is a cheap 150 dollar pelican. I found a really good deal on a Feel free yak, that I believe will be awesome to paddle, and potentially may put a trolling motor on it. When the time is right, hopefully I can find a pretty good deal on a jon boat or even bass boat, who knows, give it a couple years and I might even have enough money to buy a new bass boat!

Thanks everyone for yalls inputs