New to this forum and to these topics altogether.

Trying to make a good decision on boat/motor, and there are so many options it's easy to get paralyzed trying to decide.

I duck hunt in the White River bottoms in AR, and I will use this new boat for fishing as well.

My first consideration is to get a highly functional boat with plenty of room for gear and to hunt from. I want it safe and built like a tank. I'd rather buy once and cry once.

I've been seeing lots of Havoc, Edge, and Excel boats around my hunting areas, and they all look good...I really like the Havocs...and I realize that the same guy designed all three. Express looks really good also. Then you get into the whole thing of "if I'm putting a mm on it, shouldn't I get a boat purpose built for a mm like a Gatortrax/ProDrive/Go-Devil, etc...?" Then I get on this site, and see lots of guys having rigs custom built.

All that said, I'm here because y'all know more than me...so let the education, recommendations, and opinions begin. Thanks.

If you go custom you can get one built exactly to your likings and will probably be better built than an excel / havoc / express.

Prodigy, Gatortrax, WC Custom, Phowler, Gatortail, Prodrive...... lots of options out there for custom boats and getting exactly what you want. For hunting timber with a mud hull look at 1.25 5086 AL bottom at a minimum, as many longitudal braces you can fit in there, and pointed bow or hybrid rake. An 18' is the sweet spot for performance and load carrying and hulls for timber hulls are usually not as wide (ex Gatortrax 17x44 w/ huntdeck = 18.5' long). Tell the builder what you are planning to do with the boat and they can probably point you to a model they have built for those conditions.

I have a 1553 MST Havoc with a yammie 40 on it and it handles like a dream, but if youre looking to go mm def go with a custom setup boat to fit your needs. Keep in mind how your built on storage in the boat will affect room inside the boat itself. my 1553 has 0 room with a fastgrass blind, decoys, and what not. gun boxes and trays seem like a great idea but can get in the way when hunting is the biggest lesson ive learned with this boat. Sometimes waiting on a custom rig pays off instead of buying off the lot the next day.

Give us a call at Phowler, we have many, many different types and styles of hulls we can customize to meet your specific needs.

PW

Cottonmouth customs....

Very happy with my hull both in level of quality and performance

When I was looking for a boat I called Phowler and spoke at length with Paul. I told him what I wanted the boat to do and carry. I remember that phone call was near an hour long. He took the time to talk to me and helped me make my decision. I ended up with an 1850 Phowler Prowler. I appreciated the time he took to talk with me and to share his knowledge/experience. I love the boat.

pdk

I run my Prodigy in arkansas timber every year. love it and handles well. Also fish out of my boat almost every weekend in spring and summer. Prodigy will get you what you need/want without a problem.

Seen a Gator Trax and a Prodigy running timber around here. Stump jumper is another good brand that is built like a tank, has a ton of options, and it won't rape your pocket like a gtrax or a Prodigy. Look around and find what best suits you and your needs

One thing that I believe is important in green timber is a hull that will turn on plane. Not a fan of a square chine for the woods. I would look at a taper chine or a round chine boat.

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I'm very happy with my WC custom ! Like ta of good builders out there. Just find one you like. Do a little research on each builder.

Only thing I can say about Havoc is they use 5052 AL you can get .125 gauge but still only 5052. This was when I was buying a new boat in Oct things may have changed. There MST has an inverted rib which will help it track and the hull should turn but I don't know from experience only what I know from trying to get one built. I do know that they are narrow at the top rail too

Give rj a call with deadfowl custom boats. He's just across the AR line in Texas. You won't meet a better dude and he builds a fine boat that will last in AR stump fields.

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I hunt timber in west TN and have an 1848 prodigy. I love the boat and Chad at Prodigy was great to deal with. He answered all my questions and built me exactly what I wanted. 3/16 alum. bottom. No dents in 2 years of hunting. Get the biggest motor you can afford.

A round chine GoDevil boat will do everything you need to do, and then some... Just get whatever size you want and have fun. The tapered chine boats do slide but carry a heavy load a bit better. The round chine boats handle like nobody's business and will still carry what you want within reason.