Advice needed on 12'-14' jon boat purchase.

[MtnHaul]

Hello, I am new here, new to boating in general, and looking for some advice on a new jon boat purchase. I am only looking at the basic, bare bones 12-14 foot jon boats without a trailer. I want/need a boat that can be loaded either into the bed of a pickup truck or thrown up on a rack. I intend to mostly fish small bodies of freshwater and preferably getting by with just a trolling motor. Typically I buy used to save some money but I am thinking this time I'd like to start factory fresh. Within a few hours drive from my location there are Tracker, Lund, and Lowe dealers and they all seem to offer very similar boats at similar prices. What, if any, significant differences are there between those three manufacturers? I have read some older posts related to my question but sometimes quality can change abruptly so I am specifically asking about the current "new" offerings. However, if some of the older models were more robust I am interested to know about that as well.

 

[DeepCMark58A]

I would not buy a Jon boat that is not at least 48" wide, stability.

 

[MtnHaul]

The models I am looking at all advertise overall width over 48" so I should be good there. 56" on some models.

 

[Texasmark]

You are probably good with any of these mfgrs. They have stood the test of time. Welded boats have become popular and I have had a couple for years/decades and the welds are good as gold.

 

[mr 88]

Lund has the best reputation, probably cost more as well . The upside is the resale value is much higher than the other two brands and will be easier to sell when it comes to that . That hull would be my first choice , would not buy either the Lowe or Tracker , have not read anything good about them , especially the Tracker .

 

[MtnHaul]

Prices are basically identical. Lund 1240 starts at $1700, Lowe 1240 starts at $1750, and Tracker 1236 starts at $1600--and the Tracker is the narrowest by 4 inches, 52" beam vs. 56" beam on the other two. Some other reviews pointed towards Lund as being better but you never know if it's just one person's experience or an overall trend. A lot of people say a 7.3 IDI diesel engine sucks but that's all I've driven for the last decade and have no complaints.

 

[FunInDuhSun]

Well FWIW, I’ve used a riveted 1448 Lowe on the Chesapeake for the last 15 years. Never had a leak but, then again, I don’t abuse it either.
I think they're great boats.

 

[roscoe]

FYI : Not all manufacturers measure their hulls the same way, or select model numbers the same. Example: a 1448 model from one company may be 48" wide at the floor and 54 or 60" wide at the top of the hull.

While another company's 1448 model might only be 36 or 40" wide at the floor, and 48" wide at the top.

That makes a big difference in stability.

 

[MtnHaul]

FYI : Not all manufacturers measure their hulls the same way, or select model numbers the same. Example: a 1448 model from one company may be 48" wide at the floor and 54 or 60" wide at the top of the hull.

While another company's 1448 model might only be 36 or 40" wide at the floor, and 48" wide at the top.

That makes a big difference in stability.

Yeah the model numbers don't seem to match any specs I can locate. For instance the Lund 1240 measures a bit under 12 feet but no other listed data corresponds to the 40.

 

[airshot]

At the price of new ones, I would look carefully at used ones. Bottom line is...go with the widest and deepest you can find !! Many years back I had what was called a "River Jon boat" ....extra wide and extra deep in a 12' model with a 10 ho rating. Awesome boat, very stabil. Owned riveted aluminum boats for 60 years, easy to fix a leaking rivet.

 

[cyclops222]

The 1980 ? Lowe 16' Aluminum has some rivets in the framing attachments. But never a wet rivet.
I have never allowed winter to freeze up any water. I also have never transported it. While off of a trailer anywhere. Sliding around steel pickups will remove some Aluminum each time.

 

[airshot]

Take a tape measure with you when you look. Length can vary by 6 inches, width is normally measured at the bottom, or it has been for most of my 60 years in aluminum boats. I am sure there are some exceptions with some oddball Myers jumping in from time to time. My old river Jon was 48" wide at the widest point on the bottom and was extremely stable. Or you can call the dealer or owner and ask them to measure their boats !!

 

[MtnHaul]

At the price of new ones, I would look carefully at used ones. Bottom line is...go with the widest and deepest you can find !! Many years back I had what was called a "River Jon boat" ....extra wide and extra deep in a 12' model with a 10 ho rating. Awesome boat, very stabil. Owned riveted aluminum boats for 60 years, easy to fix a leaking rivet.

In my area there have not been any decent looking used ones for sale and they usually have no paperwork to go with them as far as registration goes. I live near the coast so there are plenty of saltwater oriented craft but not so much for ponds and small lakes.

 

[MtnHaul]

The 1980 ? Lowe 16' Aluminum has some rivets in the framing attachments. But never a wet rivet.
I have never allowed winter to freeze up any water. I also have never transported it. While off of a trailer anywhere. Sliding around steel pickups will remove some Aluminum each time.

Good point about aluminum being softer than steel. At the moment I have a full length rubber mat installed in the truck bed so metal to metal contact will be minimized. I'll probably make some foam pads for the wheel wells or possibly just go full bed liner at some point.

 

[Texasmark]

Lund has the best reputation, probably cost more as well . The upside is the resale value is much higher than the other two brands and will be easier to sell when it comes to that . That hull would be my first choice , would not buy either the Lowe or Tracker , have not read anything good about them , especially the Tracker .

My last John was a Lowe Lake John model. I built a top rack for my Toyota PU so that I could slide it up on the rack over the top of the PU working alone and could go places where a trailer wouldn't be convenient.

It got banged around and this and that. Looked like new when I gave it to one of the guys who built my 30x50 shop. Had a little 7 1/2 Merc that pushed it right along with me....usually fished alone. Sometimes in rivers with rapids, I'd get it out and drag it across the rocks, or trees that fell over the waterway, get back in, crank her up and be on my way. Great sport.

 

[airshot]

In my area there have not been any decent looking used ones for sale and they usually have no paperwork to go with them as far as registration goes. I live near the coast so there are plenty of saltwater oriented craft but not so much for ponds and small lakes.

They are scarce no matter where you live ! Once people have a nice Jon boat, they never get rid of it ! Wish I still had my River Jon boat ! Because folks use them in ponds and other private areas, they often fail to get required paperwork. My current small 12' Jon boat was laying under weeds in a farm field, the land owner did not know it was even there. Gave him a hundred bucks and dragged it home. Ribs were worn completely thru from dragging over sand and rocks. Fixed it all up for use in my pond and my neighbors. No paperwork needed as they are on private property. Boat has no serial, hull or any other numbers on it nowhere......

 

[Texasmark]

Well FWIW, I’ve used a riveted 1448 Lowe on the Chesapeake for the last 15 years. Never had a leak but, then again, I don’t abuse it either.
I think they're great boats.
View attachment 404665

That rig looks like my Lake John, wide and high sides.....great boat. Being aluminum and wide and flat bottomed, that 25 ought to push her along at 30 or so. Nice rig.