I know there are a few around but does anybody know a good custom boat builder in Minnesota ,Iowa, or Wisconsin? Looking at a new custom rig for this year. Help me out

Phowler is somewhere up there but that's about all that's up there.

You can always get one build down here somewhere and ship it up there. Few guys on here have done that.


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I have a phowler. They dont last.

I went and got a gatortail. I know there are a few people here in MN that have Geaux Customs, not sure where they are from.

Spend the extra money on shipping and get a custom built one from down south.

What did it cost you?

I drove down to Southern Louisiana and picked mine up witch ran me about $1000 dollars and I could have had it shipped for cheaper. I think the one quote I got off of uship was $800. It was worth the drive though. Great scenery on the way down and back plus being -15 out it was nice to see some wormer weather.

Phowler is about it up here. I had mine made by a builder in LA and drove to pick it up and still saved on what phowler quoted me.

I've got a Phowler and have friends with Phowler boats. Never had a problem and customer service is excellent.

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There is nothing wrong with Phowler. The 1756 my brother has now isn't a bad boat but the bottom is getting pretty beat up now and there prices are pretty high. It was cheaper for me to have a custom boat built down south with a 3/16 bottom and picking it up then to go through phowler. Granted I did all the paint and rigging myself.

I struggled with the same dilemma. Had a boat ordered from a company down south that was going nowhere fast. After 14 weeks they hadn't started on my boat after a 6 week quote. I called Chad at Prodigy and the rest is history. He answered or called back and responded to all emails, top notch customer service. I paid $575 for shipping to Madison, WI on Uship. Would highly recommend getting the boat you want and not compromising because of location. This boat is a tank!!

I think phowler has a lifetime warranty on their hulls. Have you called them about it?

I have a phowler. It has been a good boat. I've put it through hell and like sas819 said my next one will be from down south. I think you can get a tougher boat at a cheaper price.

Arc kings is I'm MN

Do not get a boat from arc kings. From what I have seen they do not have the experience to build a true mud hull. If your going with an outboard no problem but I talked to a guy that had a gen 3 pro-drive on an 1860 that would only do 17 mph.

Someone should start another custom boat company up here....

Screw that there are already too many mud rigs up here. The less the better.

The majority of mud hulls are built in a similar manner be it from the North or the South, it is the bracing and welder that makes the difference.

BoRob, two years ago you had a Phowler boat for sale and said "Boat is in excellent shape with no hooks or dents." You also previously said Phowler built a decent boat. When did your opinion of Phowler so drastically change? You only live a half an hour away from Phowler, did you give up on getting warranty coverage after just speaking with one guy named Bill or Bob?

Sounds like ol BoRob has an axe to grind. I'm guessing he's full of shit, he's "heard" stories from a lot of guys and hasn't backed any of it up with facts. I've had nothing but positive experiences with Phowler from my boat build to them installing efi, they'll continue to get my business.

As for their hulls toughness, they seem to hold up just fine. Last fall I was crawling along a narrow channel up on plane going about 10mph when an idiot running a standard Jon and a long tail came running wide open from the other direction. We hit head on, my bow eye center punched his front end and pushed it back damn near 2 feet. My entire boat slid all the way on top of his until it finally slid off the side. His boat was screwed, mine took it well though. All I have is a small dent in the rake about the size of a basketball that maybe is pushed in 1/2" at its deepest point in the center of the dent. Once I fix the gatorglide the dickheads boat scratched off the dent won't even be noticeable.

Could also be a guy repping another brand pming people about it....


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All I can say is that I question the whole thing. If I had a boat and someone told me that they would not warranty it I surely would have asked to speak with the owner about the issue. I surely did not speak with this yahoo.

As for the other boats he "fixed" for folks, that was awful nice of him to tear into a boat that would have been warranty covered and VOID the warranty for the customer by not sending them back to the manufacturer!!!

What a great guy

You are correct, this guy has interests beyond Phowler Boats to promote.

Peace,

PW