# Advice on mod v alum boats



## austie (Apr 14, 2010)

Hello all, and thanks in advance for any tip or opinions on these boat types im looking to get a new or newer mod v bass boat. ive been looking at a lot of the trackers, crestliners and tritons in the 16-17 ft range at 6-14 grand. now I was all set one of these boats, me and my buddies mostly fish for bass but we will go after cats and crappie from time to time and I figured a boats of this type would do the trick. but then today I talked to guy from work who I hold to be a great fisherman and has owned and worked on a lot of boats. to keep it short the guy has experience. and he told me to stay away from what he called tri haul/mod v boats because that can't hold their own in bad weather or busy lakes like a deep v type fishing boat can. does anyone have any say on this matter? im still pretty set on the mod v type boats. but if they have a serious downfall then I might be swayed to another type. I have a little 14 foot v bottom that I turned into a bass boat that I will have for sale soon as well ; ). but this will be my first what I would call big boy boat. any advice on the matter would be greatly appreciated. thanks


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## Seaturd (Apr 14, 2004)

I don't think anyone makes a trihull anymore.... the modified vee will be a bit more stable when casting but the trade-off is a rougher ride in any kind of a chop. If you fish smaller lakes & reservoirs that rarely see a 2' wave the modified vee will be fine. If you regularly fish larger waters, like Mosquito Res., that can get rough I'd go with the deep vee.


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## pdtroup08 (Apr 24, 2014)

I have an 02 tracker pro team and love it. Alot of people will talk bad about tracker boats but I've never had an issue. That being said I fish mainly reservoirs and smaller lakes like Austie said. It will hold its own on the Inland bays of erie and I fish Presque isle every year but I won't venture far on to the main lake because it doesn't like the big waves.


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## Bassbme (Mar 11, 2012)

As everyone has said so far, the mod v hulls have a rough ride in rough water. True 1' waves for a deep v hull isn't considered rough water, but I would consider it rough water for a mod v. Not that a mod v won't handle 1' waves, but you're going to know you're running in 1' waves, because of the ride quality, and ride dryness, or the lack there of. A mod v will definitely have a wetter ride, simply because their sides are lower. 

And while there are certainly some water conditions that I would avoid with a mod v hull, from a safety aspect, that I wouldn't necessarily avoid with a deep v hull, I think a lot comes down to your experience in handling a boat in rough conditions. There are definite do's and don'ts that you're really only going to learn through experience. 

While the low sides (less free board) of a mod v will make your rough water ride wetter, it's going to help you in actually fishing. A boat with low sides doesn't get blown around as easily in the wind. The shorter inside depth of boats with lower sides also makes certain types of casting presentations much easier than a deep boat. 

I realize there are times that weather conditions can limit where you may want to run a mod v hull boat, but if you pay attention to weather forecasts and possible up coming weather while on the lake, I think a mod v hull would be much better for the bass fishing and crappie fishing that you speak of.


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## Marshall (Apr 11, 2004)

if bass fishing is your main goal then go with the mod v. Fishes shallower, doesn't blow around as much, and is more stable. On days where the wind blows up to 20 mph will be challenging and u will get wet but most bass boats can get u wet in those conditions.


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## JignPig Guide (Aug 3, 2007)

I own a Triton VT-16 aluminum. Triton no longer makes the VT-16. The Triton VT-17 and the equivalent Ranger are examples of the smallest fully laid out rigs on the market that I am aware of. The Triton and Ranger aluminum structures are formed in the same facility. 

Pro - It is a very stable platform to fish off of. It is a fully laid-out bass rig with many of the amenities the $80,000 bass boats have at one-quarter the price tag.

Con - I does not cut through choppy water well at all. I can get a little over 30mph under normal conditions. When water gets choppy, or there is a lot of traffic, the ride is incredibly coarse. And sometimes I've had to slow down to a crawl to keep from damaging my equipment on board.

I'm sure you already understand that a deep V-bottom will cut the water much better. But it will not get you into the tight shallows as well. And typically, they are not as stable of a platform to fish out of because of the footprint in the water being different than the bottom of a bass rig.


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## Dovans (Nov 15, 2011)

Had a deep v, now I have a mod. V. I am or will be looking for another boat, and I will stick with the Mod. V. I mostly bass fish or saugeye, but, when its windy, I can control my Mod V whole lot better than when I had a Deep V. Problem I have with my Fischer, is that the Beam is not wide enough. Only 62 inchs wide, the newer boats are at least 90 if I am not mistaken.


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## viper1 (Apr 13, 2004)

I had two modified and hated them both. Great on still water and awful in any kind of waves. Only Deep vee's now for me. The deeper and the wider the better. Not 19 any more and just don't have them sea legs. LOL!


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## austie (Apr 14, 2010)

yea guys I think i'm pretty set on the mod v. but now what boat? been looking at the tracker 175's and similar in that fashion, like the triton vt 17 mentioned before. the alum rangers seem to be a bit more costly for the same boat but idk its a worth while investment? also the crest liners seem to have a few choices. in that range i'm leaning toward a used boat around 10 grand . found some nice boats in that range for the price tag.


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## BtweenShots (May 6, 2007)

Check your PM's.

Gene


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## Dovans (Nov 15, 2011)

Just looked at a new Ranger Aluminum at the Fishing expo... Also got to look at Bass tracker, and Lowes. All comparable size and features. If I had the cash, I'd have bought the Ranger. Hands down. Next would have been the Lowes. Tracker, well, I saw some issues, and my thinking was, what about what I cant see. If I can see quality issues on top, whats going on down below where I can not see.


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## Bassbme (Mar 11, 2012)

Amen to what Dovans said. The Ranger is one seriously sweet boat. Pricey you bet. But you can see the same level of attention to detail that they have in their fiberglass boats, in their aluminum boats. Plus if you ever go to sell it, it's going to have a higher resale value than any other aluminum boat of that type, on the market.


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## BugBear (Mar 14, 2016)

Hi austie,

I'm like you. I'm looking for my first real boat. Leaning towards a Mod-V since I do mostly river fishing on the Wolf.

One thing I noticed as I was reading-around is that some of the Mod-Vs may have their decking made out of aluminum so that there's no wood to rot. Can anyone confirm this? I think I read that about a Triton from 2005. Not sure what other manufacturers would have this and which model years.

Thanks,
BugBear


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## catfish1605 (Jan 18, 2009)

I have a 2015 excel modified vee. There is no wood in the construction and it has a very large front and rear casting deck. My only complaint with it is what others have said if it's rough your getting wet that's just how it is. The stability and better boat control in windy conditions is worth the trade off though. One other thing that rarely gets mentioned is you usually have a little more room in a modified vee over a deep vee. Due to the bow coming to a point on the deep vee where you have a wider bow on the modified.


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## T-180 (Oct 18, 2005)

Austie, what lakes do you fish most often?? That will be your main concern with mod v vs deep v. I've had several of each & actually one of each now ; one is mostly for bowfishing. The mod v is more stable & drafts far less water than the deep v. The deep v considers 2' to be a good fishing chop whereas the mod v will make your kidneys bleed in the same conditions. trade off either way, so consider your main purpose & likely conditions.

The only wood in our G3 1860 mod v was a brace under the point in the front of the deck. We got rid of it when we put a new, much larger deck on it. The G3 will ride a chop fairly well, but you need to go the appropriate speed & have it trimmed properly.


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## Minnowhead (Jan 12, 2011)

I have a Starcraft mod-v and it is aluminum. There is a wood transom covered in aluminum...


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## jetboatbass (Dec 5, 2014)

I have a triton 176 sport with a 90/65 Yamaha 4 stroke love it I believe it has 84" beam most of the water we travel in is not deep enough to have a chop. I think rides ok on bigger lakes when I've been on them.


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