TDB17 or Alaskan lund 18ft

B

BCenic

New member
Looking for some input from duck hunters that have both boats, TDB17 or Alaskan Lund 18ft. Majority of my hunting is on lake Erie by Long Point (Inner and outer bay), Ontario. Typical hunt would be 2 to 3 hunters with dog and gear, area is mostly sand and mud bottom, no rocks. It can get rough out there quickly going through 2 to 3 foot waves. Out of the two options which one and why?

Thank you
 
Welcome to the DHBP! I am sure some of the guys who hunt big water will jump in soon.
There used a to a regular here who hunted Long Point, but its been years since he posted.
Are you mainly hunting divers? Offshore or tucked against the banK?
Would love to see some photos!
 
TDB isn't real dog friendly. No real flat surfaces for the dog to sit outside the cockpit, dog can't see over the blind in the cockpit and you will have to rig some type of ladder (probably need to drill holes in the boat). The Alaskan can use a standard hang on dog ladder and dog can usually sit on the platform in the bow.
 
Last edited:
Carl, I hunt both puddlers and divers, puddle ducks tucked into the bay, divers more on the outside of the bay. The TDBs come with dog ladders, I have seen guys put a small platform (momarsh short stand) in the TDB so the dog can look out. I will dig out some pictures
Bosko
 
I have seen pictures of repurposed deer stands (the postage stamp size) hung from the stern, used as a dog ladder. RM
 
Carl said:
Welcome to the DHBP! I am sure some of the guys who hunt big water will jump in soon.
There used a to a regular here who hunted Long Point, but its been years since he posted.
Are you mainly hunting divers? Offshore or tucked against the banK?
Would love to see some photos!
Click to expand...
Here is a picture at a shooting point at the Long Point Waterfowl unit (rent a blind for puddle ducks or shooting point for divers), or you can hunt the inner bay or outer bay pick any spot you like, but just don't trespass into Long Point Company property signs posted
 
BCenic said:
Here is a picture at a shooting point at the Long Point Waterfowl unit (rent a blind for puddle ducks or shooting point for divers), or you can hunt the inner bay or outer bay pick any spot you like, but just don't trespass into Long Point Company property signs posted
Click to expand...
BCenic,
What model of boat are you using in this photo? Looks Ideal. RM
 
Its an old 16ft Starcaft with a 50 hp, would like something a little bigger to fit more decoys, gear etc and too handle rough conditions, last season I was out in some nasty stuff and when I slowed the boat down water came into the stern (TDBs stern built different and lund has the well where water goes back out) a couple of gallons came in had to turn on the bilge pump. I just purchased a 17 TDB classic but second guessing the purchase reading on this forum with mixed reviews that it doesn't take waves well. Want to make sure its a safe boat to get be back to the dock when things get rough.
 
BCenic said:
Its an old 16ft Starcaft with a 50 hp, would like something a little bigger to fit more decoys, gear etc and too handle rough conditions, last season I was out in some nasty stuff and when I slowed the boat down water came into the stern (TDBs stern built different and lund has the well where water goes back out) a couple of gallons came in had to turn on the bilge pump. I just purchased a 17 TDB classic but second guessing the purchase reading on this forum with mixed reviews that it doesn't take waves well. Want to make sure its a safe boat to get be back to the dock when things get rough.
Click to expand...
I have hunted at Long Point in the outer bay with a guide a few times who used 16' to 18' Lunds. I have a 14' TDB Classic and a 20'Lund Alaskan (older version with flat bottom) which I use on shallow water.
I envy you having secured a TDB 17'Classic north of the border. I would feel much safer in a 17' TDB Classic than in an open tinny in the open waters of Long Point. Not sure what safety issue concerns you about the TDB 17' -I recall hearing of some issues with the 14' Classic bow 'submarining' that may have been related to exceeding the HP limit for the boat and going too fast for the conditions.
The newer Alaskans with a V bottom hull might pound less in rough conditions than the flat-bottomed TDB.
Folks here have given you good suggestions on rigging your TDB for a dog - on my 14' I have the TDB dog ramp and I use a Plano storage box as a platform at the rear of the cockpit so my Toller can see the action by peeking between the stern and side blind curtains.
 
BCenic said:
Here is a picture at a shooting point at the Long Point Waterfowl unit (rent a blind for puddle ducks or shooting point for divers), or you can hunt the inner bay or outer bay pick any spot you like, but just don't trespass into Long Point Company property signs posted
Click to expand...
a few more pictures from Long Point, hunting the outer bay with my dog Duke, you can see the no tresspass signs along the shore from the Long Point Company or Millionaires Club. Then picture of the Cottages of the Long Point Company taken from Big Rice Bay. I also attached picture of the map for the blinds and shooting points you can rent from the Waterfowl unit (red # are shooting stakes white are blind #)
@Kim Ross, thanks for your feedback
 

Attachments

  • Dukeouterbay.jpg
    Dukeouterbay.jpg
    214.4 KB · Views: 32
  • LPcompany.jpg
    LPcompany.jpg
    116.2 KB · Views: 32
  • LPblinds.jpg
    LPblinds.jpg
    141 KB · Views: 32
Welcome to Duckboats.

Very interesting that people have to be told not to shoot all those other birds on the poster.
 
My only aversion to using the 17 TDB would be thicker ice just because of it being fiberglass. Simply due to the ease in which ice can chew up bows on a fiberglass boat if not driven correctly. A heavy duty aluminum boat would fare better in those conditions. Maybe you don,t hunt those conditions or maybe you do. In sea worthiness the TDB will come out on top in normal conditions and is a great shooting platform. Now if simply a transport boat maybe the 18 aluminum boat would suffice but is better at fishing than duck hunting.
 
If it's largely a duck hunting boat you seek, for up to 3 people, dog and gear, I would take the 17' TDB over a 16-18' Lund every day. I ran a 20' Alaskan years ago and have friends who have run 17' TDB's. They all get small once loaded up. I also owned a 16' Devlin Scaup and often said that Scaup stretched to 20' would be hard to beat as a one boat, do it all. Good luck with your choice, always fun getting the boat of your choice ready.
 
@Troy, yes I mostly duck hunt, and usually it 2 hunters plus a dog. My concern is the TDB17 a big open water craft that can handle some rough water/waves, as would a Lund can do. I have never hunted out of a TDB17, but have out of a friends 18ft Alaskan Lund with a custom made blind and it can handle some rough stuff
Thanks
 
Classic TDB or Sea Class? Our waves are different here on the ocean, the bays can get tight, but I Imagine yours are tighter still. That aside though, If the TDB is a Sea Class, that would be my personal choice. Kind of ironic because all my boats have been aluminum. My 20' Alaskan, 18' Bailey Bridge Boat and my current 23' Duck Water. (oops, forgot my Devlin Scaup). The other thing I would say is this, the person driving the boat is equally or more important than the boat itself.
 
Its a classic, I have read that the bottom hull on the classics are identical to SC but the top sections on the are a little different
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top