Hey guys, Trying to narrow it down a bit more. Have kind of decided between a 17' with a huntdeck or 18' without. Everybody that has the decks, say they wouldn't have a boat without them. Opinions?

What I meant was, if I get a huntdeck, I will get 17' of boat and then the huntdeck in addition.

if you are going to get a GTR it is definitely worth it to the the hunt deck. It keeps alot of mud and water out of the boat when reversing hard. if you are getting a motor with out reverse then I would just get a tall transom.

Huntdeck is the only way to go!

I didn't realize that GT included the 18" drop deck in their over all boat measurement...

That is what Excel does as well...

Gator Trax does not...their hunt deck is a 20" addition to the actual length of the boat...

Definitely go with the hunt deck.

Hunt deck is a must! Check my rig review, see my signature. Yes 18' overall overall length with ~ 17 inside the hull & ~ 1' sticks out for huntdeck.

Hunt deck or step deck as some boat builders call it is great.

If you are getting a boat with flotation a hunt deck will increase the usable, open floor space inside of the boat because the flotation for the rear of the boat is out in the deck instead of inside two large boxes inside the transom that rob interior space. I have owned GT boats with and without huntdecks and have measured them both to confirm.

My last huntdeck boat had a Hyperdrive hung on it at first, and then later a Prodrive. I do not like the Prodrive on the back of a huntdeck boat so I sold the boat so that I could keep the Prodrive.

If I was still running Mudbuddy I would own nothing other than a Huntdeck boat.

I have an 1860 Excel with the huntdeck and I love it! It is actually 18 feet long including the deck leaving a good 17 feet of floorspace.

Just my opinion, but if you purchase a normal hull and don't like the setup just cut a notch along the side the length of deck you want, put a false transom in and enclose the top. Any competent welder should be able to do this reasonably for ya, just bring some photos.

I have 2 ft of hunt deck and love it.

Gary i was told you were a nice guy...I'm starting to have my doubts...if you ever make it over this way i'd like to buy you a beer...that way we could really get to know each other...at that point if you still feel the same way we can settle it the old fashioned way..until then let's not make it personal...no need for name calling...

Yea deadbird, that's what I was trying to say. You just put it in better terms.

Real tough Internet guy...impressive...like I sai Gary we can settle this the old fashioned way...just let me know when your in the area...

Man yall done took dis fella's thread bout huntdecks and turned it into an Academy parkin lot meetin and we still on da first page.

I'm inviting you to an ass whooping...either take me up on it or stfu...your sounding like a phag...

what the hell are yall talkin bout on this topic? hunt decks or hunting dicks?

Oh Gary has got his panties in a wad because I told him to stfu on the other site...he ran his mouth because I was considering other boats and because I don't like the lack of open floor space in the excel line...now he is acting like a phag...

I like the huntdeck as well...Sorry for the interruption...

After I got my Excel F4, I wouldn't have another boat for duck hunting unless it had the hunt deck. I have more than enough open floor space in my 1860, and we hunt 5 people most of the time with about 3 dozen decoys or more, a mojo box with 3 mojos, dog, guns, bags, the works! You will just about have to find a barge if you want more floor space.

No way your hunting five out of that boat comfortably unless hunters are hunting off of the front deck...3 would be tight...there is only 11' of open floor space...physically impossible to hunt 5 comfortably within an 11' space...

The best hunt deck is the gator Trax because it's hunt deck is not included in the boat measurement...it's also the original hunt deck

I'm glad you are so smart ducaholic. I'm sure you have a boat like mine so you know right? I bet not. Next duck season, come hunt with me and the guys. You will see us hunt 5 out of the boat-- 1 sitting on the front deck seat, 1 on the gun box, 2 sitting in the middle row seats, and one sitting in the driver's seat, and the dog is never in the way cause she sits on the hunt deck. It is tight huntin with 5, but we get it done. Three of the guys who hunt with me don't weigh but 150 and ain't big as a tomato stake anyway. We can hunt 4 and be perfectly comfortable, but will hunt 5 if we have to. Most of the time I sit back and call ducks until they get their limits then I will start cuttin loose on some black clouds.

Just curious, what kind of boat do you have?

Duramax I presently hunt 4 comfortably out of a 16X44 alweld with a very short front deck that does not take up much room at all...I have 13' of open floor space length in that boat...

The major draw back for me with the 18' Excel F4 like I said is that you only get 11' of open floor space from which to hunt and that gets reduced some by the pods in the read of the boat...also if you opt for the V front that space gets reduced even more...

I did see that you had them give you the 60" wide bottom which is not a standard feature on the Excel F4 Shallow Water Edition...that gives you extra room over the smaller versions but it does not give you more open floor length...

Glad to hear your pleased with your rig...and thanks for the hunting invite but I'll pass...good luck going forward..I'm sorry you got dragged in to this mess...it was not my intention when I first commented on your boat...

Duc, I will not disagree with you that you hunt 4 out of your boat as I don't have one like it and wouldn't know. I will take your word for it, and not argue against your word. I will measure it this afternoon when I get to the house and see how much floor space I have. I am sure it is 11 foot like you said.

I did take a close look at the gator trax and gator tail boats, but, IMO, they didn't measure up to the excel. I had intentions of buying a gator trax with hunt deck until I became aware of all the qualities that excel has. True, the gator trax will have more floor space than the excel, but the fit and finish on both boats isn't comparable. Excel utilizes every inch of space on the boat and puts it to use. The amount of storage space in my boat is great! The battery and bilge pump are both enclosed in the rear storage compartment, and, on my boat, another battery under the front deck along with a 12 gallon gas tank. And, my boat is a custom 1860 so there is more floor space than normal. It already was equipped with almost everything needed to hunt. I might be bias, but I think this is the duck hunter's dream. It doesn't get much better. I'm hooked.

Duramax the 11' measurement comes from Gary...I've seen the Excel and I'm glad you like it...I personally would want something a little different if I could get it but it does not appear that Excel is looking to create anything different from what they are offering now...I'm actually surprised that you got them to do what they did for you in terms of boat width...

Good luck going forward...

I talked to an Excel rep in person when I ordered mine at the Memphis Boat Show. He was very nice and told me he would have it built to all the specs I was looking for. I received the boat and it was everything I wanted.

Good luck to you too.

I would go with the huntdeck on a boat if I was running anything other than my PD. If I had the hydro FPR I might consider a short (1ft) huntdeck but I would have to demo one first.

For the record--I can hunt 5 guys side by side in my Phowler 1848 with an Avery Quickset blind and its not too cramped. But it is a slow ride to the hole.