Tunnel Hull

[slimeyslab]

Anybody on here have a tunnel hull? I am looking at a new boat with one and I have no idea of the pro's and con's. Any info would be great. Thanks for your time.

[paw paw perch]

I have seaark 2072 bayfisher w/tunnel and their great if you need to run real shallow, but if that is not the case the cons outweigh the pros. They are not as stable in tight turns and sometimes its a bit tricky to find the sweet spot on the height of the motor to make it perform properly. I bought mine 2nd hand and the rest of the rig was too good to pass up, but given the choice I would not take the tunnel again. Hope this helps and does not confuse you. ppp

[Darryl Morris]

PPP nailed it on the head on all points. My Kenner center console bay boat is great for real shallow water but will jar your teeth out on rough water. The tunnel rises withing a flat bottom thus making for the rough ride. Not all of them are that way though. Jerry Blake has a Blue Wave with a partial tunnel, he can get just a skinny as I can and it rides real smooth. I think the key is the size or extent of the keel under the bow of the boat. Find what you think you might like and then test her out on the water, rough water preferably so you can see what it's like in the extreme.

[Marshrat]

I have a homemade tunnel hull for running the marsh here in SW La. and love it. There are some varibles as others have said. For optimum performance of the tunnel, you need to vent it to break the suction from the water, which will raise the rear of the boat. This is not a boat you want to run on big lakes or rivers, it is made for shallow water.


Warren

[rockmike]

I have a 1860 ALWELD tunnel with a jet, and a 1752 F&F that I'm about to sell. Thet're great if you need to run real shallow, but there are a lot of downsides to running a tunnel. Just depends on the water you need to run.

[TnRidge]

I considered a tunnel hull before I bought my standard rig with a jet drive . I'm very happy with the performance of the jet drive . I went through 6" of water in the river yesterday and never hit bottom .