Brad Taylor (NC)
Well-known member
Well I was really trying to hold out until the NFZ (No Fly Zone) edition was completed before I posted any pics but along with some prodding and the simple fact its been killing me not to post any I thought I'd go ahead. Please don't give me too hard of a time on the name, I know its not traditional like scaup, brant, etc...however, most of those are taken and NFZ is what we've always called our camp down at the coast! 
I'm about 7 working days from being done, which with the newborn is a bare minimum of a month :lol: There will be grass rails on the sides and front deck, much like those on the Hellcat. She still needs her final coats of epoxy as well as glassing the coaming. It will have to be flipped one more time for the final coating of the bottom in graphite-thickened epoxy (super slick after sanding with 220grit). Lastly some finish work and painting will remain. As you can probably tell, this boat takes design cues from both the Hellcat and the Duckhunter.
A little history on the thoughts behind the NFZ. To ease many of your minds, I have been running a 21 hp Mudbuddy Hyperdrive on my original Duckhunter for almost 3.5 years. This boat was built of exterior ply and only sheathed in 6oz glass, with that being said I have only experienced a few minor scrapes in the glass over that time, nothing that wasn’t an easy fix. While I don't baby the boat, I'm not out trying to see exactly how large of dike I can clear or how much air I can get. There are no normal hunting circumstances that are in my neck of the woods that I shy away from. However, the Duckhunter design, with all of its’ rocker, was not optimal use of a mudmotor, while fine in the skinny water the narrow transom really kept her from getting up on plane. So in designing the NFZ, I wanted a tough boat with a relatively low profile that could get you not only back in the skinny but hide well at the same time!
Lets start with the basics. The NFZ is 17' on the floor and close to 17.5' on the deck. It is 48" wide on the floor and about 60" on the rail. It is constructed entirely from Okoume BS1088 marine plywood. The hull is sheathed in 6oz fiberglass and epoxy. While the bottom has a layer of 6oz glass, 5oz of kevlar, and another 6oz of glass. I am unsure of the weight at this point, my guess is around 450-500lbs, but I’ll take it to a set of scales once completed. All wiring is marine grade and professionally installed using fuses, bus blocks and heat shrink. Also, the interior floor is covered with Rattleguard spray-in liner. It should comfortably hunt 3-4 hunters. The rest I will describe as the pictures are posted.
From the front: You'll notice built in recessed fogs. You can also see the permanent 12 gallon tank in the compartment forward of the front bulkhead. This compartment is sectioned off with emergency foam on each side and the tank positioned in the middle. There will be a semi-permanent cover over the tank with the fuel fill and vent, allowing access to the sending unit if it ever needs to be replaced or in the unlikely need that the tank be replaced. The bow light will be a low profile position on top of the recessed light area.
The cockpit of the boat is about 13' feet long and the opening at the coaming is 36". While I'm at the floor is 1/2" with another 30" wide strip of 1/2" ply that runs the center length of the boat. When its done, there will be a pretty ingenious way of push pole, paddle and gun storage along the interior knees/under the decking. There are 2 bench seats that not only provide totally dry storage but also lateral strength to the floor. I need to get a good overhead shot because you can't tell from the photo how open the cockpit is and how unobtrusive the small bench seats are.
In order to create dry storage in the bench seats there is a short halved section of 2" pvc that is glued and glassed into place on the interior of each side of the bench. You can somewhat tell of the setup by this picture...
There is a small amount of covered storage just behind the bow bulkhead and at the front of the cockpit. Great place to toss a gear bag to keep it out of the rain or while under way.
Cont...
I'm about 7 working days from being done, which with the newborn is a bare minimum of a month :lol: There will be grass rails on the sides and front deck, much like those on the Hellcat. She still needs her final coats of epoxy as well as glassing the coaming. It will have to be flipped one more time for the final coating of the bottom in graphite-thickened epoxy (super slick after sanding with 220grit). Lastly some finish work and painting will remain. As you can probably tell, this boat takes design cues from both the Hellcat and the Duckhunter.
A little history on the thoughts behind the NFZ. To ease many of your minds, I have been running a 21 hp Mudbuddy Hyperdrive on my original Duckhunter for almost 3.5 years. This boat was built of exterior ply and only sheathed in 6oz glass, with that being said I have only experienced a few minor scrapes in the glass over that time, nothing that wasn’t an easy fix. While I don't baby the boat, I'm not out trying to see exactly how large of dike I can clear or how much air I can get. There are no normal hunting circumstances that are in my neck of the woods that I shy away from. However, the Duckhunter design, with all of its’ rocker, was not optimal use of a mudmotor, while fine in the skinny water the narrow transom really kept her from getting up on plane. So in designing the NFZ, I wanted a tough boat with a relatively low profile that could get you not only back in the skinny but hide well at the same time!
Lets start with the basics. The NFZ is 17' on the floor and close to 17.5' on the deck. It is 48" wide on the floor and about 60" on the rail. It is constructed entirely from Okoume BS1088 marine plywood. The hull is sheathed in 6oz fiberglass and epoxy. While the bottom has a layer of 6oz glass, 5oz of kevlar, and another 6oz of glass. I am unsure of the weight at this point, my guess is around 450-500lbs, but I’ll take it to a set of scales once completed. All wiring is marine grade and professionally installed using fuses, bus blocks and heat shrink. Also, the interior floor is covered with Rattleguard spray-in liner. It should comfortably hunt 3-4 hunters. The rest I will describe as the pictures are posted.
From the front: You'll notice built in recessed fogs. You can also see the permanent 12 gallon tank in the compartment forward of the front bulkhead. This compartment is sectioned off with emergency foam on each side and the tank positioned in the middle. There will be a semi-permanent cover over the tank with the fuel fill and vent, allowing access to the sending unit if it ever needs to be replaced or in the unlikely need that the tank be replaced. The bow light will be a low profile position on top of the recessed light area.
The cockpit of the boat is about 13' feet long and the opening at the coaming is 36". While I'm at the floor is 1/2" with another 30" wide strip of 1/2" ply that runs the center length of the boat. When its done, there will be a pretty ingenious way of push pole, paddle and gun storage along the interior knees/under the decking. There are 2 bench seats that not only provide totally dry storage but also lateral strength to the floor. I need to get a good overhead shot because you can't tell from the photo how open the cockpit is and how unobtrusive the small bench seats are.
In order to create dry storage in the bench seats there is a short halved section of 2" pvc that is glued and glassed into place on the interior of each side of the bench. You can somewhat tell of the setup by this picture...
There is a small amount of covered storage just behind the bow bulkhead and at the front of the cockpit. Great place to toss a gear bag to keep it out of the rain or while under way.
Cont...
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