i am in the process of adding a gdsd to my boat i need some good info on how this rig will perform

why dont you rig it out and tell us?

Im guessin mid-low 20s unloaded. Is it a flatbottom or semi-v?

The hull i have is a 16 foot rig true flat john, .100 gage 16x48. I want too put a 23hp gdsd on it next week. I want too make sure the surface drive will plane the boat and run atleast 20mph 2 guys and a few dozen blocks. we hunt Lake Cooper in Texas, stumps out the ..... I have enough money to get a 27hp. What kind of performance gain would 4hp make and does anyone else have A 1650 aw rigged............................................

Get all the HP you can...

The 27 has a longer shaft - 20% taller gear ratio - lots more torque....

In short it will unblock more load and go 3 to 5 mph faster too...

Unless you wanted to hunt a WMA with 25 hp limit - there are
no good reasons to go small....

My 27 GDSD came near 30mph solo and easily ran 25 with 3 guys
in a light 17x42 Weldbilt mudhull...

My 35 GDSD on a GDSD 16x48 runs over 30mph...

get the 27 and get a 25 sticker or spraypaint it.

i dont think there ia a hp limit on Cooper, im sure my huntin partner hasa 27 pd, ill have too check. I carry a big load back so im gonna try too get the 27, what do yall think about mounting a seat and a grab bar? Whats the best way too operate these rigs satnding sitting or both......

Gigafowl Thats sounds fast, Trinity Bay any big gar in your country?

speaking of spraypaint i need a bad ass idea on a good paint job my boat is a light tan i want too go mosyly black we hunt alot of timber i need a pattern

Gar - heck yeah - we have been chasin shark recently with good success
too - over normal hi tides have brought in a ton of bait and fish to the
back of the Bay and marshes....


As to driving - the GD website has a pretty universal grab bar mount - the
standing position is much better when the going gets tough - long runs
in the river or across the bay can be done sitting - so instead of a mounted
seat I sit on a small ice chest till it gets interesting and then stand up and
kick it off to the side and drive standing - if it gets boring then pop a cold one
and catch a seat again.... But having a poling platform or grab bar to brace
with adds safety and maneuverability - I have both left and right hand grab
bars and the poling platform....

Check out some old threads with SEARCH on "rattle can camo" - like this one
done by DB....

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=8103&hilit=rattle+can

Too damn cool Dukbro, i appreciate the info gonna mount a right side grab bar and i got a bench seat already there for the long run. Gonna check out the camo ideas. Wish me luck gonna pick up my motor the 16th, might pull the trigger on the 27 but probably go with the 23 and add some mods after i get used too it....................As duck season approaches hold on my friends,

Here's another idea....

Some of the GD owners have the elevated fishing deck which they drive
from - I kinda like the elevated view on the bigger hulls which slide a bit
as it gives you a really good view for anticipating turns in a bayou....

Anyway with a sheet of plywood and a few 2x4s you could install a 4 foot
by 60 wide elevated deck at the height of your rear bench seat to drive from...

This eliminates any issue with the seat getting in the way using the 180 degree
turning arc of the GDSD - a very usefull feature - and gives you the type of
standing room to really use the setup to it's fullest....

Your hull is light and with battery and fuel relocated up front the rig will
balance well - the elevated deck should add no more than 50 lbs in wood
and if you really like it only 20 to 30 lbs done right in aluminum....

Gigafowl,,Thanks for the info sounds like a good idea. Im sure my hull will work out good, if not i will buy another one.lol


i dont think cooper is anybig secret, if so you dont hunt much anyway let me worry about what i post and dont post commens like that deserve no response rowlett i bet your one of those guys who knows everything about nothin #####

Hey, I take offense to that. I know a little bit about some things... And one of those things is, that lake is brutal. A .100 gauge hull, and I'm guessing horizontal bracing? You gonna tear that thing up out there if you get off the beaten path, which is pretty much everywhere.

Yeah, yeah, yeah... I always call it horizontal, it's easier for this window licker from rowlett to remember.

ok ok i get it, chill duckbuddys! sounds like my hull wont hold up. If i tear it up, and im gonna try i will look at something else, let me sink the damn thing first. I hunt with a veteran of the lake, he will show me the best way too the hole. Rowlett, good point on the hull man........................ducks must die

Well did you strap that bad boy on yet ?

gigafowl, whats happenin.....................get my motor saturday gonna take for a look sunday. cant wait.........................whats up in trinity bay i saw a du show there the other day,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,work time shit i hate work later

I like my 23 because ya can pull start-Idon't think the 27 has pull start...
Giga??

nope mine dont

you can pull start a 23 pretty easy as long as its warm. cold can be a bitch. during the duck months you probally woun get it.

My GD23LT was harder to start in the winter, course it did start. But that motor was so reliable, i wished i would have never sold it, if i new they were gong to go to a 25hp or less restriction in the Refuges that boat would have been freaking perfect for that. I did snap a pull string at Dam-B one time and battery was dad and christmas eve, yeah we were stranded for 6 hrs. till someone cam eand got us. Only other time was i blew a head gasket, but one more can you ask from a motor with 300 hrs. on it

I have a 23 hp on a 15 x 42 it runs good pull start and electric. carb and exhaust really complimented the motor with more response and more speed. Havent really messed with a bigger prop to see what that dose. but all in all it has been a great motor and has done everything I have needed it to do.