jon boat

[ptomacbass]

I really want a jon boat.  my dad says that it would be hard to carry and transport it to where we fish. I was thinking a ten footer could hold us both.  All that the boat would need to hold is a trolling motor and depth finder since we will only be fishing the deep structure of small lakes.  how would we make a ford focus station wagon or subaru forrester transport it? what type of jonboat would you guys reccomend?

[teh_bass]

10' foot jon boat. or a little bass pontoon boat thing.

i think the lightest jon boats are the trackers i have a 12' and i can easily drag it across my yard. or carry it around with a battery and trolling motor with my friend. ive heard good about alumnacrafts too but don't know how much they weigh

[ptomacbass]

how much do you think a ten foot tracker would cost?

[Wayne P.]

The 10' Tracker jon boats are $499 in the BPS catalog.

[armesjr]

Look on craigslist

[ptomacbass]

do you guys think I would need a trailer to transport it?

[Bassn Blvd]

you can find 10' jons all day for 100-200 bucks here in S. Florida, used. In fact, I have one I'll sell ya. I don't need 3 boats.

When I was 16, I used to transport a 10' jon on the roof of my 1969 Mustang. I put a blanket on the roof and tied the boat down. Tie it tight. Expect some scratches on the roof though.

If you get a boat trailer or a truck with a full size bed then I would strongly suggest a 12' - 14' jon instead of the 10'.

[ptomacbass]

i hope I can get the boat sometime like my birthday.  I wonder if I could fish the lower potomac with it?  Its good to know that i won't need a trailer.

[c17Lat]

i hope I can get the boat sometime like my birthday. I wonder if I could fish the lower potomac with it? Its good to know that i won't need a trailer.

You might want to consider getting a good kayak. Mine is an ocean kayak ambush. 2 people can stand in it and fish and not fall overboard, has a batter compartment and place for a trolling motor (which i always use) to fit. you can car top it but it's a little on the heavy side and is a struggle to get it up there. but over the summer, i had a lotta fun in it on the lower and upper potomac

[Maloverde]

i hope I can get the boat sometime like my birthday. I wonder if I could fish the lower potomac with it? Its good to know that i won't need a trailer.

I fish the Willow Landing harbour in a 12 ft, Jon boat.  I carry two batteries to deal with the tides and it does great.

[SinDale]

You can put a hitch on ANY car and pull an empty aluminum boat on a single axle trailer all day long. Launching could be difficult without the right amount of power -vs- weight, but a boat that size without the goodies (Floorboards, outboard, etc.) is carryable from the parking lot anyways even if your car didn't have the bollucks to pull it out of the water. As an example, Tracker's 16' deep V is only 350lbs... which sounds bigger than you have in mind anyways.

I have a weighty 15' deep V Lowe with ALL the toys and I pull it without any issues with a front wheel, 4 cylinder, 13 yr. old minivan. (wife's ride that we take camping BTW, I own a truck ;D)

Anyways, my point is that putting a class II hitch on a station wagon will pull a small Jon boat, no problems. You can call the dealer for weight specs, but if I were in the situation, I wouldn't want to roof-ride when I could pull.

Just my opinions....

Good luck!

[moloch16]

I agree with SinDale - putting a hitch on the car and towing the boat would be a lot easier.  If you bought a 10' you could still tow it to the lake and then carry/drag it to the launch point (if there is no ramp).

[Grey Wolf]

I've pulled a 14 ' jon boat with my 96 escort for over 5 years with no problems.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

I personally won't fish in less than a 12.  Not being a snob or anything, I just don't like snorkeling for tackle boxes and rods,lol.

10's are very tippy.  For the slight money, I prefer the room and stability of a 12 a whole lot more, especially if I were taking my dad out with me.

Check out the Lunkerville show we did here in RI (link HERE), at the very end, you can see how we launch pondside with our home made "roller" system.  Works like a charm and Eric does it all the time with his dad who is in his 60's.  My boat (the one on the show) is a 1964 and weighs almost double what a new 12' G3 weighs.  

As for towing a 12 (or a 10 for that matter), your car won't even notice it.  Tongue weight is extremely light, It's like having another person in the car.  I've always pulled mine with VW Jetta's.  Totally no issues

[Daniel My Brother]

I'll echo what others are saying. I tow a jon with a mini-van and it's a non-issue. It's so much easier to launch a boat from a trailer than it is to lift and carry.

Get the widest jon boat you can afford. My is a 1436 (14ft x 36inches at the base) and it gets a little tippy with 2 people standing.

Good luck!

[atrocity]

a 10' jon boat, trailer, battery, trolling motor, and gear is about 300 lbs if that, like others said youd probably not even feel it driving your car. But putting a hitch on a car is about 120 bucks and then wiring? Roofing it is gonna be alot more hassle and if you go by yourself its gonna be even more trouble. If the wheel wells are wide enough in the forester id try putting it in there, but then the interior would get wet/ dirty.

my friends 12 jon boat in my 6ft truck bed