mikefink

I have both 32" and 36" alum river John boats that I purchased at Sutherlands in Lebanon Mo. They are voyager rivited river john boats that are made like lowe river johns. I believe Voyager(rivited) and Blazer(welded) are the only companies that are making alum. river Johns. Sutherlands stocks both brands. As far as what width is best. If I plan on paddling most of the time and not motoring I like my 32" voyager the best. When I plan on using a motor most of the time I opt for the 36" BOAT. I have been happy with the stability of both widths. I just saw the blazer river John they stock. It is 18' long and 36" bottom with a 54" beam. It would be ideal for small rivers but would work well on the white river. Good luck, I hope when you get through building your boat you will post a picture.

If you are just looking for a fishing boat, you can't beat a 21' supreme (fiberglass). It is great for lakes like Taney Como or any where current is present. It also works well on the white river below Bull shoals dam. Shawnee is another good boat of this type. These boats work great with various size motors (9.9 - 25hp seem to work best). I recently saw an aluminum boat made by blazer boat company. It was 18' long John boat. All welded construction heavy guage alum. It had a 40" front deck, a 18" rear deck and a 56" beam . The rest of the boat was open for spider chairs. It looked like it would work great on Taney Como. It was about half the price of a supreme. I haven't gotten to fish out of one of these but hope to some day. Thanks, Mikefink

Last year I met my brother in Cotter to fish the white just above Calico Rock. He has a 21' Supreme fiberglass john boat with a 15 hp Mercury. On the second day the fitting on his fuel hose broke. I had my 5 hp Briggs outboard with me. We were only going to fish a half day so we didn't have time to get a new hose. We put the Briggs on his Supreme. They were running several generators. We were surprised how well the 5hp Briggs moved his boat up stream. It should move a 14' fairly well. I believe the 5hp Briggs weighs about 56 pounds so it shouldn't take up all of your useful load. Hope this helps. Thanks, Mikefink

I purchased a short shaft Briggs and Stratton 5 hp. outboard and put it on a 18' voyager paddle John. I purchased it because I could buy it new for less than a used major brand outboard. New they sell for $699.00. I have been very happy with it. The main reason is that it always starts. I have owned low hp major brand outboards in the past that were very hard to start. You can purchase them new on ebay or locally at Sutherlands in Lebanon. I wouldn't be afraid of a used one either if you can find one. Thanks, Mikefink