Posts: 32926
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | The width of the bottom and the hull design incorporated with weight distributuion determines the stability of the hull. Sponsoned hulls, like the Tuffy Esox, are the most stable, but not the best ride in very rough water. Wide bottomed John boats are pretty stable too, but not as stable as a sponsoned hull. Tri Hull designs are SUPER stable, but a wetter ride in anything over 2' waves, but Tuffy still sells quite a few of the 15' Esox Models, which was the original Tuffy Roustabout BECAUSE of the great two fisherman stability at rest; fine on smaller waters. Most of the smaller aluminums are modified v bottoms, pretty flat in the back, which for stability isn't a bad thing. That should be just fine for you if you don't intend to get out on really big water often.
If you can, look into smaller off brand 'saltwater' boats, designed for fishing the bays and areas close to the coast. There are quite a few brands on the East Coast to Florida, and a 15' to 17' model in great shape used can really be easy to afford. |
