What happened to duck invader boats?

Tom - I'd be curious to know what the thought was behind re-designing the 13 with a broader bow. I find those sorts of design evolutions to be interesting to follow. I picked up a DB13 from my uncle this year, and it's been just about perfect. It's taken me from striper fishing in the summer, through duck season, chasing everything from mallards in skinny marshes to sea ducks on the sound. It has even carried a deer. All along it hasn't once given me pause. IMG_2498.jpgIMG_3018.jpgIMG_3429.jpg
 
Tim,

I'll let Tom be the final word but I believe it was to more comfortably accommodate the hunter in the bow when 2 men are gunning.
 
I feel the original Duck Boss 13 is a well designed boat though I wanted to make some improvements. That's why I didn't buy those molds back. The 15 molds were very old and not in real good shape and were due for some design changes so I didn't buy them either. The current 13 design has more bow flair providing a dryer ride and allowing for a wider cockpit opening at the front providing more room for a second hunter. Lastly the strakes on the bottom of the hull are taller and angle down improving how well the boat turns. The 16 design addressed the changes I felt the 15 needed. I made the boat a foot longer, five inches wider at the transom reducing draft and made the bow area a foot shorter. This let me make the cockpit 10ft. long instead of 8ft. I also removed the flat walk on in the bow. Some owners of the 15ft said when the boat takes a big wave in the bow the water would hit the vertical surface of the walk on and then spray into the boat. I rounded the deck and molded in nonskid greatly reducing spray. I've always felt that designs can always be improved.
 
Ok a little history lesson. I established Duck Boss Boats around 2007. I built a 10, 13, 15, and 17.5 ft. boats. I built all the molds myself. Six or seven years ago I sold the molds with the intent of getting out of building boats. The individual that i sold them to never really built any boats. My long time dealer Rich Young talked me into getting back into building boats. I bought back the 10ft. marsh boat molds and the 17ft. molds but not the 13 or 15. I redesigned the 13ft.boat and designed a 16ft. similar to my old 15. I produced these four models under the Duck Invader name until summer of 2022. I made the decision to sell all my duck boat molds at that time as I would be turning 70 in December 2022. Building boats by yourself is tough work made easier by Rich Young who sold 99 percent of the boats I made. The previous owner of Four Rivers Boats is a good friend of mine and I knew he sold his molds to Broc. I contacted Broc about buying my molds and the sale was completed fall 2022 . He decided he wanted to build them under the Duck Boss name and aquired the name . I wouldn't have sold the molds to him if I wasn't confident that they would build a quality product which i told him was very important. So that;s the deal. Again I want to thank Rich Young. Without him I would not have sold very many boats and thank you to those who purchased my boats. I hope everyone will give the new owners the support I was given. Thank You. Tom Ayers.
Tom I have an older 1989 duck wrangler and wondered if this was one of your older boats?
 

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