Anyone ran a 1436 hull with an OB jet?

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Wood_Duck

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About 3 months ago, I bought a brand new 1436 Alumacraft with plans to do a jet jon swap with a Polaris jetski I had. Just before starting the chopping process though I learned that two of the main places I bought the boat to use are electric only so that kinda shot that plan in the foot. Since then, I have cut the rear seat in half to make it more tiller steer friendly and I'm planning on some perforated aluminum to floor it while keeping weight down. I'm also gonna get a Motorguide wireless 45 at some point for it but right now its pretty bare hull. I have a mid-80s Mercury 20hp short shaft pull start tiller missing the lower unit that has a good powerhead on it so I'm planning on getting a jet pump for it. I know the 36" bottom isn't exactly the best choice, but it was cheap and its already in play so thats what I have to work with. Likely gonna make some small custom float pods to help abit but I'm just curious if anyones ran a similar setup with such a narrow hull. It'll be just myself or me and my 4yo about 90% of the time so no heavy loads. Then doing this route, I can switch back and forth between jet and electric.
 
It might work ok, but not sure that make a jet for that 20hp mercury. you would have to call outboard jets to find out what model of jet if there is one that will fit it. But a 20hp with a jet will be really weak not sure that it would plane out, it might being that's a really light boat and you don't plan on loading it much. A new jet unit is kind of expensive, and used ones can be hard to find. It took me a good 2-3 months of searching high and low to find a used jet for my 60hp mercury that I run now. What's making you want a jet anyways do you have rivers or creeks you want to run or something? If you don't have a real need for a jet jon I wouldn't suggest spending the time and money on it.
 
My first jet was a 2003 25/20 Mercury 2 stroke jet. I ran it on a 70's model 1836 Alumaweld. I ran it because I got the boat for $300 bucks. I could do 17-19 mph down stream and 13-15 upstream by myself. It would get on plain with me (150 lbs.), dad (275 lbs.), gear, fuel and a battery. Never tested the speed with that set up. I also would run two people on the deck when gigging. This was NOT the most ideal set up. If you have the need for a jet and find you want to keep fishing out of one, I would suggest saving for a wider boat. A wider boat will plain and draft much shallower and have more stability. At the time I spent all of my money on the jet and couldn't afford a bigger boat. I ran it for 10 years through high school and college until the hull was not worth fixing and I had been out of college long enough to afford something else. I couldn't keep up with my buddies who had the wider boats with bigger motors but it didn't mean I had to catch less fish :) If that's the boat you have to work with, it can be done. Not sure on whether you can put a jet on your motor or not. Hope this helps.
 
The places I want the jet for I do need the jet. And outboard jets has a pump for 1980+ Mercury 2stroke 18-25hp. Lots of 25/20 jets out there and it's basically the same motor which is why I'm hoping to find used. Otherwise it's $1700ish.
 
good luck on finding a used one, not trying to discourage you I've been there. It took me 2-3 months to find my AG model jet used and it was one of the more commonly made outboard jets. I wound up finding my jet in Pennsylvania on craigslist called the guy and talked to him so we both new we weren't trying to scam each other. He was nice enough to deal with shipping it got a shipping quote and I mailed him a check to include money for shipping it. My advice is to keep a eye out on craigslist everywhere jets are popular, ebay, and call around to outboard jet dealers everywhere, you never know some dealer or shop might have what you need lying around that isn't advertising it.
 
If you haven't yet, call Outboard Jets and make sure that it will fit. I think the 18-25 hp you are looking at actually means 25/18. The 25 hp at the head, I think, is the smallest they make. A 20 hp is going to be roughly 14 hp at the pump if everthing is in excellent condition. I don't want you to spend the time and money to find/get one and it not work.

I ran a 87 Mercury 25 xd with a pump for about a year on a 1536. It ran ok with 2 people, took awhile to plane out and needed 6-8"s to run in. You will need to build the transom up and do something to keep water from coming over the rear corners in turns. I used 2" aluminum angle bolted to the outside to deflect the water away from the boat.

Good luck, hope it works, but I think you will need to find a 25 hp.
 
amazingly they list a pump for 2009+ fourstroke 15-20hp. the 18-25 covers those range of powerheads and even if not, the 20 and 25hp will interchange many parts including the foot. The one thing helping with weight is my 1436 is the lightweight model, I think its roughly 120lbs bare hull. So with me mostly by myself or with my 4yo I think it should do okay. If I can run around 6" itll get me through most anything I need to get through. I have to keep it light anyways as there are a couple streams that require dragging the boat to the water.
 
I see lots of young folks running 1436 hulls with 20-25 hp jets here in mid missouri. They run what they own and don't worry too much about details. Maybe these creeks are where old boats and motors go to die but they provide their owners with the ability to get on the river and catch some dinner. Some of them run great and others not so much. If that is what you have and what you can afford, go for it....maybe next season you can trade up to something bigger and better.
 

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