jon boat questions

[h1x71]

I am looking into buying a jon boat and have a questions about them. what is the most stable width for a jon boat for being able to stand and fish and building a deck on later.

what would you say the is the least wide but still stable enough to fish while standing?

do plywood decks help stable because of weight?

on the seats is it better to use lower or highr seats in a narrow boat?

this will only fish the back waters where i live at, it will not have a motor but will be run off a trolling motor only for now.

stability is what i am after for either 1-2 persons in ths boat.

thanks don

[NEBassMan]

I can speak from experience of narrow boats.  I use an 11' jon boat that is 36" wide at the bottom.  with 2 people, it is stable enough to stand to fish.  When i go by myself, i put 2 70lb sand tubes in the front to help stabilize it.  I will not however be putting decks on it.  It would be waaaaay to unstable for that.  Standing in the bottom of the boat is unstable at first, but i have grown comfortable with it.  I would look for a boat that is at least 42" wide at the bottom.  Each little bit will help tremendously with stabilization.  Also, i will be mounting seats that sit directly on the benches, with no pedestals.  I think even a 7" pedestal will be too high and unstable.

Jason

[PeterF]

Don,

I would go with a 48" width. I've got a 1448 and I think it's the perfect size for fishing the lake behind my house. I've got it rigged with decks on both ends (aluminum). It's very stable and my buddy and I are able to move around the boat. Here are a couple of pictures of the finished product, hope it helps.

[Grey Wolf]

If you are going to put decks on it later , I would not get anything less than 48 " wide. A 1448 would be just right.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

Biggest question between a 12 and 14 is how will you be launching it?  A 12 can be handled alone w/ no ramp.

THIS IS MINE

[roddy]

hey LBH, nice boat that one of yours, i have one very similar how did you fasten the floor in your boat, and what to? would like to do the same to mine, but how?...cheers Rod.....

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

No fastening, no need.

They lift right out for easy cleaning and winter storage.  

[Way2slow]

LBH,

You need to get a second job or fish more, you have way to much idle time on your hands.