Gentleman

new to this forum so go easy on me. I am currently looking at purchasing a mud motor and have a few questions. Here is what I currently own

18x60 Grizzly and estimate weight is about 800-1000 lbs (what the dealer told me)
run a 25 horse yamaha right now- works great- can push two grown men and gear pretty good)

I have been looking at the Prodrive and Mud Buddy Motors

Applications would be shallow water duck hunting on Lake Texoma in water and mud anywhere from 1-2 ft deep and running jug lines in the river in water anywhere from 2- 20ft.

I keep hearing that the I need to get rid of the grizzly and buy a boat specifically made for mud motors. I like the wide beam as I have more space.

Can it be done with the 36-37 horse mud motors out there or do i need to sell the whole rig and start over.

I dont have the need to go 30 miles an hour however I do need to get it up on a plane when it is loaded so I can shimmy across shallow spots

Thanks for the help

I happen to like mudbuddy more than prodrive but alot of others here will disagree. But as long as youslap a 35 or 36 vanaguard on the back you can do upgrades in steps all the way to 70hp. You stated the shallowest water you would be in is 2 ft this boat will be more than fine.

You don't need to get a new boat, however you need to understand up front that the boat you have will not perform as well in the shallows or with a load vs. anyone of the good shallow water boats out there. Second, the boat will not hold up as well over time, it will dent easier, which will cost more performance over time.

Again, it will work, but you will not carry big loads. It is not about 30 mph in my opinion, it is about how the boat does loaded down in hunting conditions. Will the boat get on plane, that is the difference between running safetly in the cold and wind.

If you can, find a dealer that will put a motor on your boat and take you out for a demo to make sure you understand how your boat will perform. You might need to drive a ways to find a good dealer who will take the time to demo a motor on your boat, but it will be the best investment you make in determining if the combo you have will meet your expectations.

PW

I have found that, because you can, you will go into places you shouldn't. I would ask if the transom of that boat can handle the mud motor and inevitable impacts?

It seems like many guys are in the position you are in. I see alot of guys running grizzly boats with mud motors. As others have said not the ideal set up, and I can agree as i run my mm on a none mm hull an alumacraft. So that way you should be fine especially since it does sonds like you will be running pure mud. As far as hp is concerned. if you were happy with a 25 hp outboard on that boat, I wouldnt be and most on here wouldnt be, then you should be happy with a 36 hp mm on the back I would think. as stated you can always mod it down the road for better load carrying and better speed.

Thanks Brooks- really don't know much about the Grizzly's. I brought it up because I recently had to to reinforce my hull after 55 hours of hard running and bouncing off rocks. It's a mud boat and designed for these things but the "flop" can be severe at times especially if you are hitting rocks, old cypress knees, and just about anything else at 25mph!