Are Aluminum Boats In Tournaments Common? 2024

Sun Fish reply :

I was just curious how common aluminum boats are in tournaments more specificly in the North East. I have yet to fish a tournament yet but was just curious if boats like the Bass Tracker Pro 165's or Pro Team 175's, 190's are common boats in tournaments. I know the FLW requires minimum 18' 150hp which would almost definately be a glass boat.

tbone1993 reply :

I see them all the time in college fishing tournaments since we do not have the same restrictions. But it does depend by tournament. I cannot wait for the day that I buy my first bass boat.

HookSetDon reply :

Actually during the Flw event on The big O, an angler that lives in my area fished out of an aluminum Lund

J Francho reply :

I've fished dozens of tournaments out of my 18' Xpress. Won a few, too.

moguy1973 reply :

My uncle fishes a local weekly tournament out of a tracker pro 165 with a 60hp on it. Just depends on the tourney though. I think he says there's guys with tiller handle motors on Jons in his tourney.

slonezp reply :

I fish tourneys in a deep v. We've also got a Crestliner, and 2 Xpress boats in our club. We also have no motor restrictions. 40hp-300hp currently running in our club

Sun Fish reply :

Wow a alum Lund boater in the FLW?

It seem's that they're common in club tournaments. What about on a slightly higher level in the tournament world? I still have yet to fish a tournament but plan to start fishing as many local small tournaments as I can next season. I currently have a 16' 32 year old glass bass boat that does me fine for now. I know it will be fine for small local tourneys but if I find some success and want to go further with tournament fishing, I'm wondering what my future upgrade should be.

I live in NE Pennsylvania so my big water access is limited but I'd be willing to travel in the future. Lake Onieda, and Chesapeake Bay are within a few hours which I know are FLW stops. I live less than an hour from Beltzville Lake, Lake Wallenpaupack, Lake Hopatcong and Lake Nockamixon which I know there are several club tournaments available and maybe something bigger.

I love my boat but I'd like something with a larger front casting deck and my 32 year old outboard just being that old often leaves me feeling uneasy as far as reliability. I've been looking at the Tracker Pro Team 165 and Pro Team 175 TXW and some used glass boats in the 8-12K range. My primary recreational fishing lakes are small electric only lakes but I'd also like to start fishing the Nock more regularly which has a 20hp restriction. I want something that will be great for my recreational fishing that wont hold me back in smaller waters but also not hold me back from progressing in potential future tournament fishing. What do you guys think?

Dave P reply :

We use a Pro Team 175

slonezp reply :

The only thing that's going to hold you back is yourself. I win money in my tin boat regularly. I qualified and fished Guntersville this past spring to fish for 50k. There was one other deep v and a couple Xpress boats in a 190 boat field. The fish don't care. That being said, I'm in the market for a bass boat. I need more room. The kids are grown and I'm not pulling them on tubes anymore. My 2 cents, If a 17ft Tracker suits you now, then get it. You may need more boat, down the road, you may not. Life has a funny way of changing plans. I wouldn't worry about it until then.

HookSetDon reply :

Heres the lund at the Big O. He placed well in the standings also!

slonezp reply :

That looks like the Lund Predator which is a big water bass/musky boat

HookSetDon reply :

Im not sure what model it is but its def aluminum lol

slonezp reply : http://youtu.be/8Z0CodkhhZM

HookSetDon reply :

Yep, thats him at the end of the video too. Nice boat.

tbone1993 reply :

On 11/18/2012 at 2:56 AM, slonezp said:

I always wondered by the bow section of lund boats are a lot deeper than any other bass boat or even fish and play style boats. It is something that turned me off from lunds except the predator is a lot closer to that of a bass boat. I feel like there is a lot of wasted space. I do not own a boat but it is something I take into consideration. I assume a lund with a deep V hull would be a lot better on one of the great lakes.

bighed reply :

I fished out of a Triton aluminum boat for a while. Loved the boat, big deck, tons of storage, easy to tow, easy on gas. Cashed a few checks out of it. In the end I couldn't stand the way the wind pushed it around. It was very hard to hold on structure in open water with even a little wind.

slonezp reply :

On 11/18/2012 at 5:24 AM, tbone1993 said:

I always wondered by the bow section of lund boats are a lot deeper than any other bass boat or even fish and play style boats. It is something that turned me off from lunds except the predator is a lot closer to that of a bass boat. I feel like there is a lot of wasted space. I do not own a boat but it is something I take into consideration. I assume a lund with a deep V hull would be a lot better on one of the great lakes.

Lund has done most of their marketing towards big water walleye guys. Very popular boat on the Great Lakes and up north and they ain't cheap. I thnk the 2010 Predator is around 40k with a 225. The Pro V which is their flagship model is close to 50k for the tin and even more for the glass version. They keep their value. I know a guy who just sold a 28 year old Pro V rigged for Great Lakes salmon fishing for 10k

ChrisAW reply :

Pretty common from what I've seen. Just one example was the last tournament I fished at a late weekday 3 hour tournament on a decent sized chain of lakes. A man showed up and entered in his 14' Deep V with a 20hp on the back, home built deck and 6 rods. A bunch of guys snickered at him.

He placed 2nd behind a guy with 17 aluminum, both of them beat the snot out of a bunch of guys with 18+ glass boats all kinds of tricked out.. Powerpoles, HDS10's.. blah blah.

Ofcoarse it doesn't always go that way, but the fish don't care what you're floating on most of the time.

ww2farmer reply :

Every tournament I fish has at least one aluminum boat in it................mine (most of the time). I have cashed plenty of times with it, won a few too. There is a local team of young dudes who fish out of weatherd older aluminum v-hull spectrum that regularly cash and win, and often by embarassing margins from the rest of the field. I do get pushed around in the wind more than bigger glass boats, and am pretty slow compaired to them, but there are ways around both of those problems. I gain an extra ounce of satisfaction when I win or cash knowing that my rig is mine, and not the banks, and any $$ I made that day goes in my pocket, not the gas tank.

Sam reply :

Depends on each tournament.

If the boat meets the minimum length and motor requirements it can be used in any BASS or FLW sanctioned tournament.

Before the tournament blast off check with the tournament director to confirm your boat is legal

Bassn Blvd reply :

I've been fishing out of an aluminum Tracker Tournament TX19 for 6 years now. I've won a couple grand this past year out of it.

The single biggest problem I have with fishing from the aluminum boat is the WIND. The boat gets tossed around like a balloon.

Speed would be the second problem. I run 38-41 mph, which is fine for short runs. But if you have to run across Lake Okeechobee in a hurry then you need speed.

Crappiebasser reply :

Steve Kennedy fished an aluminum boat in the Bassmaster Classic on the Red River.

james 14 reply :

On 11/19/2012 at 4:45 AM, Crappiebasser said:

Steve Kennedy fished an aluminum boat in the Bassmaster Classic on the Red River.

So did John Cox in an FLW event there last year and I believe he won it.

My partner and I fish out of his 14' Lowe Mod-V with a 25hp Yammie on the back. It's not so bad if the wind isn't kicking and we don't have to run very far, however, this year the wind has SUUUUUUUCKED and I fished yesterday on a lake where I had a 20 mile run to get to my spot. I spent over 2 hours just driving but, since I won, it kinda worked out.

BTW - what was stated earlier about FLW rules applies only to the main Walmart Tour. Everstart and BFL are as follows:

All boats must be propeller-driven, a minimum of 16 feet in length and have a rear deck (with a seat if requested). All boats must be equipped with wheel steering; no other steering device will be permitted. No barges or similarly cumbersome craft will be permitted.

trueblue1970 reply :

On 11/18/2012 at 10:56 AM, ww2farmer said:

Every tournament I fish has at least one aluminum boat in it................mine (most of the time). I have cashed plenty of times with it, won a few too. There is a local team of young dudes who fish out of weatherd older aluminum v-hull spectrum that regularly cash and win, and often by embarassing margins from the rest of the field. I do get pushed around in the wind more than bigger glass boats, and am pretty slow compaired to them, but there are ways around both of those problems. I gain an extra ounce of satisfaction when I win or cash knowing that my rig is mine, and not the banks, and any $$ I made that day goes in my pocket, not the gas tank.

I sold my 16' bass boat and went into an older 1542 mod V jon...the jon stores in my garage so no more $$$ for storage on the other boat. I fish the same spots, catch plenty of fish and can trailer my boat with a rope Dont get around as fast anymore, went from a 70hp to a 15hp, but I zip around the lake regardless.

Sun Fish reply :

On 11/19/2012 at 12:04 PM, james 14 said:

So did John Cox in an FLW event there last year and I believe he won it.

My partner and I fish out of his 14' Lowe Mod-V with a 25hp Yammie on the back. It's not so bad if the wind isn't kicking and we don't have to run very far, however, this year the wind has SUUUUUUUCKED and I fished yesterday on a lake where I had a 20 mile run to get to my spot. I spent over 2 hours just driving but, since I won, it kinda worked out.

BTW - what was stated earlier about FLW rules applies only to the main Walmart Tour. Everstart and BFL are as follows:

All boats must be propeller-driven, a minimum of 16 feet in length and have a rear deck (with a seat if requested). All boats must be equipped with wheel steering; no other steering device will be permitted. No barges or similarly cumbersome craft will be permitted.

Thats amazing I seen the video on youtube of John Cox doing that. However that Tracker had a 75hp, I could have sworn the minimum HP for FLW was 150hp. How did he get away with that?

Brandon K. reply :

There are always a lot of alum. boats in tournaments around here. Mainly because of the type of water we fish (River with gravel bars and stumps). From local tourneys all the way up to the state team. There is one guy that always does pretty good. He owns a glass boat. But, if you see him pull in the ramp with his friends Bass Tracker everyone knows he's on good fish.

PotomacBassin reply :

I use my Bass Tracker 190 with a 115 in our local tournaments. Does just fine and I can keep up with some of the glass boats, although they may be only going half throttle.

For the pros... it might have been last year's Bass Master's Classic where the one guy was talking how he wasn't sure if he was going to use his aluminum hull again today so he could get to where the other guys couldn't. Not sure about FLW though.

Teal reply :

Rick Clunn has fished a few events with a Tracker boat. I think he fished out of it at his last classic

Aluminum boats are very common in tournaments here. While glass boats make up the majority there all always tin boats in the mix. They are so common that nobody really turns their noses up at them because its usually the little old man in the 16' aluminum boat that will take everybody's money.

FishinDaddy reply :

On 1/4/2013 at 3:37 AM, Teal said:
Rick Clunn has fished a few events with a Tracker boat. I think he fished out of it at his last classic
Aluminum boats are very common in tournaments here. While glass boats make up the majority there all always tin boats in the mix. They are so common that nobody really turns their noses up at them because its usually the little old man in the 16' aluminum boat that will take everybody's money.

Ain't that the truth.

I started fishing tournaments in a 17' Triton tin with a 75. Now I fish out of a TR20x2 glass with a 250. There are times when I miss the tin but for safety and comfort I stay in the big boat.

Teal reply :

I was missing mine back in October, the fish were so far in the backs of the creeks that i could barley get my trolling motor down where they were. It was a "long cast kinda day". The javelin won't get quite as shallow as the alumacraft once did.

Aluminum boats definitely have the advantage when they fish are shallow and in calmer water.

jhoffman reply :

That 190 comes standard with a 115 optimax... that thing is gonna run balls to the wall. The bottom end nitro has the same motor on glass which is going to be 1000lbs heavier.

jhoffman reply :

FYI

I fish out of a 92 tracker tx17 with a 25hp evinrude 2 stroke. Takes awhile to get there but I can pull it with a 06 suzuki grand vitara and a tank of gas would last weeks even though I only fill it half way for weight savings.

Top speed is about 20mph on a good day. Guys blow by me like I am sitting still at times. Funny how fast they show up when I start crankn hogs over the side.

james 14 reply :

On 1/4/2013 at 10:29 PM, jhoffman said:
That 190 comes standard with a 115 optimax... that thing is gonna run balls to the wall. The bottom end nitro has the same motor on glass which is going to be 1000lbs heavier.

Not so sure about that...at least not according to Tracker's website. Z-6 is only 250lbs heavier and 7-10 mph faster. However, the 190 is a foot longer and rated for up to a 135 which will certainly yeild more mph but I'm not sure how you go about getting a motor that's not a Merc.

Shewillbemine reply :

I have used my aluminum Tracker 6 times since I filled it up. I still have more than 80% fuel in it and towing it feels like nothing. At some point, I'll step up to a fiberglass but this one's great for the time being.

Crookedneck reply :

There are usually a few aluminum boats in the tourneys around here, to include mine. I've actually got a 17' 6" aluminum bass boat, it actually has a v hull not your typical flat bottom aluminum bass boat. Hard to find and I looked for a while to find it. 90% of my bass fishing is on rivers where the water can get pretty skinny. I have fished some rough water on windy days. That is where a good trolling motor comes into play. Where some people laugh at my 80lbs thrust saying it is over kill for a tin boat, I don't get blown off my spots. Currently it has a 65 horse Merc. But, is rated for 115, I would like to get a 90 or 100 to put on it. I think 115 would be scary. I do get out run, but fish don't care how fast your boat is. My fishing partner has a 19' glass Ranger, when we travel we always take my boat. Saves gas money. The only real difference between the two boat that make a difference in tournement fishing is his boat has two livewells, and mine has one.

Gunner59 reply :

Thanks for asking that question,

I have been wondering that very same thing, my Tracker is a Pro 17.6 with a 40HP.

I was looking at the FLW Walmart series that has an event on Lake St Clair here in Michigan but the rules say min of 19feet and minimum HP of 150.

I do see boats like mine in the local NBAA events as well as the high dollar rigs.

Are these tournaments strict on the Min requirements? Or should I stick to smaller local events?

Thanks again for starting this post as well as all the comments.

Kprzybyla reply :

I started fishing the B.A.S.S. and FLW open team tournements in my state last year, out of a tracker tournement V18. I had it in my head how awesome it would be to beat these guys in the big Bass Cats and Rangers... it didn't happen. Our big lakes in NH get really rough, and getting tossed around all day in wind and chop definately effected our ability to fish effectively. Absolutely loved the boat for 99% of my fun fishing, great for the club and small lake stuff but when it came to the money tourneys... not so much... there's a reason these guys spend the money they do on the big glass rigs, speed matters, stability, SAFETY... I love a good underdog story but these guys are waaaaay to competitive, up here anyway. There are competitive tin boats, but at Glass price points...

12poundbass reply :

On 11/17/2012 at 8:32 AM, slonezp said:

, I'm in the market for a bass boat. I need more room. The kids are grown and I'm not pulling them on tubes anymore

What happened to that plan? LOL

slonezp reply :

On 8/19/2018 at 8:52 PM, 12poundbass said:

What happened to that plan? LOL

Bored are we, opening 6 year old threads? ????

I was looking at bass boats at the time. A repo'd Ranger with 15 hours on it, but someone else scooped it up before I could arrange financing. A leftover Z9, but BPS refused to put a bigger motor on it. A used Charger in your neck of the woods, but the engine reports had a number of unexplained alarms Had there not been a Predator in a local showroom, for me to fall in love with, I would have ended up with a new 19ft Ranger.

12poundbass reply :

On 8/19/2018 at 10:38 PM, slonezp said:

Bored are we, opening 6 year old threads? ????

I was looking at bass boats at the time. A repo'd Ranger with 15 hours on it, but someone else scooped it up before I could arrange financing. A leftover Z9, but BPS refused to put a bigger motor on it. A used Charger in your neck of the woods, but the engine reports had a number of unexplained alarms Had there not been a Predator in a local showroom, for me to fall in love with, I would have ended up with a new 19ft Ranger.

Haha. Somebody else revived it and I looked through it. I didn't look at the date until I read something made me stop and look at the date. I read yours wondering why you'd get rid of the Lund already.

NHBull reply :

Didn't fall for it this time ????

First thing I do not is check the OP date.......????

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