New - Boat build advice

H

HenryHawthorne

New member
Thrilled to find this forum. I'm a lifelong duck hunter whose career got in the way, and a long-time hobbiest woodworker. I've long thought of building a boat, and having recently retired now have time to do so (and hopefully to spend more time chasing ducks in the years to come).

A sneakbox-style boat is attractive to me, and I've reached out to Devlin for more information on their options and plans. What other options would you encourage me to consider? Also eager for any advice, tips, etc.

Primary use will be for me and my 50lb black lab. I'm in coastal NC, so access to both salt marsh and rivers/swamps. Ideally, the boat could also be used for poling and fly fishing in salt marshes during warmer weather. Stability will be important, and optimal would be the ability to stand on the front or rear deck to fish. A bonus would be a boat light enough for me to portage across dykes from river to swamp.

I suspect I'm going to need to power it, as there will generally be decent runs from ramps/docks to hunting/fishing spots and I'll have tides/currents to deal with, but not worried about high speed. Minimal draft would be ideal, but balanced against getting swamped as runs down/across waterways will be subject to boat wakes in summer and wind/chop in winter.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts, and for having me on the forum.
 
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Honestly that's to many requirements for one boat.

Anything that's small enough and light weight enough to be portaged over dykes. Is to small and unstable to, stand on decks and fish.

Anything that's long enough and wide enough to be stable and shallow drafting and powered by a motor for hunting and fly fishing while standing on a deck area. Is to heavy to portage over a dyke and will need a trailer to get it from place to place.

Anything that's designed for sneak type duck hunting isn't suited very well to fishing. And anything suited to fly fish well, is going to be not to great for hunting ducks.

What I suggest is too choose what's more important at the moment. Hunting or fishing? And build the first boat to best fill those needs. Then build a second boat for the other needs.

Hope this helps.
 
Yeah, I had basically reached the same conclusion - I asked Devlin whether I just need to build 2! That said, I was hoping there might be a hybrid something I hadn't seen.

How stable are the sneakbox-style boats? I'm wondering if a removable flat deck could be designed for the front or midsection.
 
Devlin boats are very stable. Well the ones I have been around were at least.

The few boats I have built were a different design because of my hunting needs but they too are very stable and due to their flat and wide bottom very shallow drafting. I wouldn't stand on their decks to fish, but I have done a good bit of cast and blast down in the marsh during teal season. Catching reds after shooting a limit of teal, standing on the interior floor section.

I think Devlin has a design that can be built with a casting deck. Cackler 🤔. But then it wouldn't be well suited for duck hunting sneak boat style.

You also have to take into account the water conditions you will see on a day to day basis getting to the areas you want to hunt or fish.
 
Clinton John said:
Devlin boats are very stable. Well the ones I have been around were at least.

The few boats I have built were a different design because of my hunting needs but they too are very stable and due to their flat and wide bottom very shallow drafting. I wouldn't stand on their decks to fish, but I have done a good bit of cast and blast down in the marsh during teal season. Catching reds after shooting a limit of teal, standing on the interior floor section.

I think Devlin has a design that can be built with a casting deck. Cackler 🤔. But then it wouldn't be well suited for duck hunting sneak boat style.

You also have to take into account the water conditions you will see on a day to day basis getting to the areas you want to hunt or fish.
Click to expand...
Thanks John. Any recommendations other than Devlin?
 
HenryHawthorne said:
Thanks John. Any recommendations other than Devlin?
Click to expand...
I have been building a boat called "duckhunter".

Plans use to be sold by a company called Gator duck boats. But they have long been out of business. However on this forum under the duck boat spec section you can see some pretty detailed pics of the boat in question. And I still have my set of plans.
 
Clinton John said:
I have been building a boat called "duckhunter".

Plans use to be sold by a company called Gator duck boats. But they have long been out of business. However on this forum under the duck boat spec section you can see some pretty detailed pics of the boat in question. And I still have my set of plans.
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Thanks, will check that out.
 
First off... I am not a boat builder. But I fish, I hunt, and I go shallow.

I agree with a lot of what said, you are asking for miracles with one boat. I use a havoc big boat with a mudmotor to get me far, fairly quickly and decently shallow. I have built a rack that sits above the decoys but that holds my kayak. It works to transport on the hwy and also while running down the lake. I will haul that sucker out to real shallow stuff by hand. It only weights 70 lbs and it drags really good. It has a blind on it and I can hunt right out of it if need be. Thats how I kind of concur the needs you are asking to concur. My havoc has a high deck and I fished out if it for years, and it did well, but windy days and aluminum suck. When I had my havoc custom built, i even had them install a tm tray on the deck. So I bit the bullet and bought a bass boat a couple years ago.

Moral of the story... I could get by with 1, maybe 2, but I now have 3.
 

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What size boat are you thinking? In my mind I'm seeing Devlin's Brant or Scaup series with add-on removeable fishing decks. For the rear deck you might want to omit the motor well and shorten the back of the cockpit yielding a bigger rear deck, or have your add-on deck extend over and into the cockpit. Stability will not be an issue in either of these.
 
Eric Patterson said:
What size boat are you thinking? In my mind I'm seeing Devlin's Brant or Scaup series with add-on removeable fishing decks. For the rear deck you might want to omit the motor well and shorten the back of the cockpit yielding a bigger rear deck, or have your add-on deck extend over and into the cockpit. Stability will not be an issue in either of these.
Click to expand...
I'm leaning towards the brant3, I think. My initial thinking was to start with a smaller boat (maybe broadbill or bluebill), and if I enjoyed the process as much as I think I will then do something a little more versatile. But the more I look at basic plans and designs I suspect I could get a lot of use out of a brant-sized boat (including taking another hunter)... then consider something smaller if I find a niche need it can't fill reasonably well.

It's been a while since I looked at smaller motors (last was a 9hp Tohatsu on a Gheenoe some years ago) - what are the best options for power these days? Any viable electric options, and are they truly viable in the cold?
 
William Reinicke said:
First off... I am not a boat builder. But I fish, I hunt, and I go shallow.

I agree with a lot of what said, you are asking for miracles with one boat. I use a havoc big boat with a mudmotor to get me far, fairly quickly and decently shallow. I have built a rack that sits above the decoys but that holds my kayak. It works to transport on the hwy and also while running down the lake. I will haul that sucker out to real shallow stuff by hand. It only weights 70 lbs and it drags really good. It has a blind on it and I can hunt right out of it if need be. Thats how I kind of concur the needs you are asking to concur. My havoc has a high deck and I fished out if it for years, and it did well, but windy days and aluminum suck. When I had my havoc custom built, i even had them install a tm tray on the deck. So I bit the bullet and bought a bass boat a couple years ago.

Moral of the story... I could get by with 1, maybe 2, but I now have 3.
Click to expand...
Thanks! I have a 19' Whaler for general use in sounds and nearshore, and have taken a paddleboard for getting into marsh creeks... but a smaller boat that would get me to and in would be an improvement and a lot less effort.
 
HenryHawthorne said:
I'm leaning towards the brant3, I think. My initial thinking was to start with a smaller boat (maybe broadbill or bluebill), and if I enjoyed the process as much as I think I will then do something a little more versatile. But the more I look at basic plans and designs I suspect I could get a lot of use out of a brant-sized boat (including taking another hunter)... then consider something smaller if I find a niche need it can't fill reasonably well.

It's been a while since I looked at smaller motors (last was a 9hp Tohatsu on a Gheenoe some years ago) - what are the best options for power these days? Any viable electric options, and are they truly viable in the cold?
Click to expand...
Brant III pairs well with a 25-30hp. I like the Tohatsu four strokes. Light and feel almost as zippy as two strokes.
 
I've ordered Devlin's book, and downloaded BB2, BB3, and Cackler study plans to think over while waiting on the book. I've enjoyed Paul W's Broadbill and DaveE's Cackler build threads... any others you'd point me to for study?
 
Henry

You can mine old builds with the search tool. There have been many over the years but you have to dig.

Have you found the Resources section? These may interest you. Plus there are a ton of designs to look at for ideas.

Devlin's Scaup

The project that launched duckboats.net! Eric Patterson's step-by-step documentation of how he built his first duckboat.
duckboats.net duckboats.net

Zac Taylor's Widgeon

The construction of Zac Talyor's Widgeon Barnegat Bay Sneak Box by Richard Lathrop.
duckboats.net duckboats.net
 
Eric Patterson said:
Henry

You can mine old builds with the search tool. There have been many over the years but you have to dig.

Have you found the Resources section? These may interest you. Plus there are a ton of designs to look at for ideas.

Devlin's Scaup

The project that launched duckboats.net! Eric Patterson's step-by-step documentation of how he built his first duckboat.
duckboats.net duckboats.net

Zac Taylor's Widgeon

The construction of Zac Talyor's Widgeon Barnegat Bay Sneak Box by Richard Lathrop.
duckboats.net duckboats.net
Click to expand...
thanks!
 
Studying the BB2, BB3 and Cackler plans, the BB3 and Cackler look like similar boats except the Cackler has higher sides. Both 7.5" draft, guessing the BB3 is a bit more stable for the concept of fishing from the deck since lower on the water. Has anyone here had both that can comment on pros and cons? Similarly anyone with experience with both BB2 and BB3? Would BB2 design be more stable, a tradeoff for more draft?

Any BBs or Cacklers in the Carolinas? I'd love to go see a few boats before making a decision.

I'm most of the way through a pdf of the Gougeon/WEST book on boatbuilding, and awaiting Devlin's book by mail. Any other must-read resources you'd recommend?
 
I've been pouring through the last 5 or so years of posts - so much good stuff here. As I've looked at various builds and experiences with them, I've reflected further on my goals and the reality that I'd need 2 boats to cover 98% of them. While a BB or Cackler may handle 70-80% of them, the more I study the more I realize they occupy the middle ground. As such, I shifted my thinking towards the Snow Goose and Scaup, with a potential Bluebill or Boradbill in the future. Then I noticed the Snow Goose drafts less than BB, Cackler and Scaup - so think that is likely my direction.

A couple questions:

1 - given no boatbuilding experience, would I be better advised to start with a Bluebill or Broadbill to gain building experience before tackling a Snow Goose?

2 - my only personal concerns about building a SG are managing the size/weight during the build process - flipping, etc. I'm sure I can enlist a hand or two at those stages, but how hard are they to manhandle?

Thanks,
Henry
 
Ordered plans for the Snow Goose this afternoon. Will start a build thread once I get them and get myself organized. I have a few questions for the SG owners out there, but will hold those to open that thread. Appreciate all the guidance so far.
 
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