Adding Pods are building a Tunnel for shallow water

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Diamond101

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Feb 28, 2021
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South Bend, Indiana
Gentlemen,
I'm looking for a little input and suggestions here as I want to build a Shallow Water Running Jon Boat. First I plan on fishing Local inland lakes no Big Water with my new SmokerCraft 1648 Jon Boat along with a couple of local rivers that can get shallow.

The river bottom is sand, gravel and small rock along with some dead fall but most of it is wide with open no real tight issues.

Now the Smokercraft Jon boat is a 1648 with a 20 inch transom and I have added a front casting deck with dry storage which will have three batteries and fishing tackle in that area along with a bow mounted trolling motor and seat.

I tip the scales at 212 pounds and will have a 6 gallon portable fuel tank and 48 quart cooler live well in the rear of the boat and powered by a 15 horsepower Nissans 4 stroke long handle tiller.

Option #1.
Now here is my question do I modify the transom and add a 6 inch high prop tunnel and a jack plate to try to get skinny when running, as I have access to a great aluminum welding shop.

Option #2.
Are can I get the same effect if I were to add a pair of Beaver Flotation Pods, a hydraulic Jack plate that is on a 4 inch aluminum set back from the transom and adding a wing Cavitation Plate to the motor to help keep water in the water pickup area.

I'm I wrong in thinking the pods will develop a tunnel effect especially as I move the engine back off the transom by 6 to 8 inches with the Hydraulic Jack plate and then trap the water with the Wing Style Cavitation plate. As I really hate the idea of cutting up a new boat when the items in option #2 can be bolted on and my over all cost will be close to the same.
 
How shallow are you thinking? From what I've read a tunnel(done right)would get you the "shallowest". Pods help as well, sometimes used with the tunnel.
I have no first hand experience other than running a small tunnel(jet) and wrecking a few props. I see videos where guys are getting their skeg close to the bottom of their hull now.
 
From an engineering perspective, and from my experience modifying Boats, pods do nothing when a boat is under power other than slow the boat. Designed correctly, they add buoyancy when the boat is at rest. I have built one prop tunnel boat and tested it extensively. It worked, with the prop completely above the bottom of the boat. But it required a 60" tunnel, manual jackplate plus an hydraulic jackplate to get proper setback. And a $700 propeller. It went fine in a straight line but turns had to be gradual. That's hard to do on a river. I spent all my time tinkering with the motor rather than fishing. I eventually filled in the tunnel converting it to a jet tunnel boat and sold it.
 

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