Double XX Boats

[JamiePatterson]

1 minute ago, snagged in outlet 3 said:

1752 flat bottom with 90 etech jet.  2” running water line.  I know it’s been shallower because I heard the gravel.  I also have Wetlander slick coat on the bottom.  It appears less than 2” because the slope of the hull is going away from the camera at the bottom.  
 

How does the wetlander hold up? I put steel flex on the bottom of a mud boat once, but rocks ate it’s lunch pretty quickly.

 

Thats shallow!!!

[snagged in outlet 3]

4 minutes ago, JamiePatterson said:

How does the wetlander hold up? I put steel flex on the bottom of a mud boat once, but rocks ate it’s lunch pretty quickly.

 

Thats shallow!!!

Two years in and even the front where I beach it all the time is in good shape.  One good gouge from a boat wake washing it up on a pointed rock is all really.  

[snagged in outlet 3]

3 hours ago, netboy said:

Probably more like 2 hours per trip as we lived in a large subdivision on the Laguna. I had about a 1.5 mile trip through the neighborhood canals at idle speed before I got into the Laguna and then usually around a 8 to 10 mile trip each way to the better fishing/hunting areas. Not to mention the frequent "grass is always greener over there" moves to new locations where the redfish will be stacked up like chord wood (usually didn't pan out).

Probably averaged 5 to 6 days a week fishing or running to my duck blinds during the season. Wife loves to quilt so she kept busy. I would usually go out early and be back for lunch. Pretty much on the same schedule up here. Just got back from a wade at Roundhouse shoals a couple of hours ago, fished the Narrows yesterday and Wildcat the day before. 

Also we had LOTS of company come to Corpus for the fishing and hunting and the kids would come use the house and boat when we went on vacation.

Sounds like most of my trips here locally or when I'm at Taney.  I plan to less driving in retirement.  The hard part to that is actually retiring...😁

[netboy]

17 minutes ago, snagged in outlet 3 said:

Sounds like most of my trips here locally or when I'm at Taney.  I plan to less driving in retirement.  The hard part to that is actually retiring...😁

Actually I had no problem adjusting...

[netboy]

Oh I forgot to mention that some of our trips down on the Laguna were much longer engine time. During late summer and fall the redfish school up on the flats and the best way to find them was a method we called "reconnaissance under power" or RUP as the locals called it. Basically you would run the boat on slow plane and stand on the center console and hang on to what was called a "burn bar" on top of the console. You could then see the schools of reds as they pushed a large wake in the shallow water. You make a wide circle around them and shut down and when they came everyone on the boat got hooked up. On those days you may well be running 4 or 5 hours.

That was 10 or 15 years ago. Now they make custom tower boats (with tunnels much to Wrench's dismay) to get higher sight advantage and run the shallows.  

Here is a video...

Running up on a school of redfish in the Lower Laguna Madre - Bing video

Also a pic of the new breed of tower/tunnel boats down there and these things are crazy fast.

 

[netboy]

53 minutes ago, JamiePatterson said:

I’ve had several airboats and loved how tough the stuff is, so I incorporated it into this boat. It’s heavy and slows the rig down though 😩

 

I’ve jumped/skidded it over a couple gravel bar humps, just to see how it’d do -and ‘cause, you know, refreshments... 🤷‍♂️ 😂😂😂

Well with the power you have I bet it doesn't slow you down much.

Reminds of a guy I talked to at the ramp before a redfish tournament that had a 300HP on a flats boat. 

He said "I don't know where the hell we are going, but I want to be the first one there".😁 

[snagged in outlet 3]

2 hours ago, netboy said:

Actually I had no problem adjusting...

It’s deciding when we feel comfortable to retire.  I’m only 60 so private health insurance is in the mix.  Do you have any experience with that?   PM if you do.  

[fishinwrench]

3 hours ago, JamiePatterson said:

This is flat out truth.  It works and is fairly amazing. If you choose not to believe me that’s fine

I'm not accusing you of lying.  We used to enter and exit Duroc bay by dumping the throttle.....then riding the wake over the hump.   I'm 100% hip to the concept, but "running" the shallows and "zipping quickly over a high spot" are 2 different things.   Especially when you're merely playing over silt/sand vs. gravel and rock.    This ain't St.Padre Anglers forum.....This is Ozark Anglers forum.   We know not of SAND.  Our streambeds hurt, and if your tunnel hull can't safely run 9" over gravel and rock (which it can't unless you have 1/8 mile to get it wound up) then it isn't any more useful than a flat bottom jon that can easily do 9-10" at any speed you choose to go.     

[netboy]

20 minutes ago, snagged in outlet 3 said:

It’s deciding when we feel comfortable to retire.  I’m only 60 so private health insurance is in the mix.  Do you have any experience with that?   PM if you do.  

Well I was pretty fortunate that I worked for a major oil company that got gobbled up by a bigger oil company. That bigger oil company had tried a hostile takeover of our oil company a couple of years earlier that didn't work out. So our board of directors put sort of a "poison pill" into any takeover deal.

Worked out great, I retired at 54 1/2 with healthcare and got a really nice offer to stay with the new guys but with the :"poison pill" package deal decided to just leave.  

[netboy]

Guys, this has turned out to be a great thread. Not just the tunnel discussion but all the great input. 

Lots of great experience on this one.