ashorn - Bangor, PA

[ASHORN]

Just getting in to Airboats, plan on running in the Delaware River just South
of the Delaware Water Gap. Been running the river for over 25 years with all
kinds of boats. The current boat is a jet. Still there are those really good
looking spots I can not get to.

Doing all kind of research and reading.

My ideal boat would be 16' with UHDPE on the bottom.
Thinking of using an old john boat for now. Snyder Airboats
in Millersburg has a really nice looking rig. From the pictures I
could make that.

Torn between a B&S, Kholer or a Lycoming 150 HP engine.
I want to keep the engine low in the boat because of the CG.
There are some rough spots in the river I think would flip a
boat with a high mounted engine. Want to keep everything
low except the prop.

Interesting link I found.

http://hovercraftdepot.com/Briggs1.html

[Snapper]

welcome to the site ashorn , the founder of the site lives in pa also and runs the river all the time in his mini , he is papee and kinda like the god father of the forum , I think you and he will hit it off great , probably end up riding together before you no it , anyways welcome and good luck with your mini project , anything we can do to help

[Papee]

Snapper, Welcome ASHORN.I'm just north of Harrisburg and I fish those spots the others miss. I have caught more nice bass and Walleye than I ever have since getting my current boat set up. Since you have a jet, you're accustomed to watching out for the obstacles. You should come north some time and I'll take you out. I run a 16x5 aluminum hull with a 4A084 4cyl motor.

[chuckitt]

Hey ashorn, thanks for joining the mini site. As for an airboat, don't worry
about th CG. The gyro effect of the prop spinning eliminates the feel of the
engine weight. Every airboat we build will plane up and lean in the turns just
like a jet boat without the feel of tipping or triping. All the airboats I have
seen with the engine down in the hull and the prop up high were not very
good boats. The prop spinning up would cause the boat to torque over more
due to less weight at the prop. They were heavery and sat down more in the
back, Had more trouble getting on plane, and if water got in the boat, the
engine would be setting in water. Papee knows the most about riding in the
rivers around PA. and setting up a mini airboat for your area.
Thanks again, Chuck

[David]

welcome to the site

[ASHORN]

My Uncle lives in Harrisburg about a mile from 3 mile island.
The airboat bug bit me when I was around 16 at the Millersburg Ferry
I saw a lot of airboats parked on the bank. I still have pictures
of them somewhere. At that time I always thought of them being
a Florida Boat. Been on the Susquehanna River several times
with my Jetboat. Can not remember the name of the park where
we launched anymore, that was years back as I am now 48.
Liked the river a lot, I am North East Harrisburg and
seeing the cold weather settle in here also. Was out that
really nice Sunday a few weeks ago.

At one time airboats ran the Delaware River, they are all gone
except for 1 I know of but it an older guy that has a 13 HP Honda
on a 16" john boat. It can barley get out of its own way. I did
notice he never goes down river, I think he can not get back up
thru the rapids. The Delaware National Recreational Area
banned them a long time ago. Guess I will be the first to
put one back on the river. I should be able to run from
Just South of the DRNRA to Easton PA and beyond.
If I have a boat that can go over a few gravel bars I will be ok.

In horror I see the 4A084 engines run on these airboats. My
father use to go to the auctions and buy the generators with
the 48V gensets & spotlights on them. He wanted the trailers.
We would strip off and separate all the metal, JUNK the engines.
These engines would have electric starters and alternators on them.
We must have done 30 of them over time. The trailers would
get beds and sides on them for the guys hauling fore wood.
They may have even been bigger that the 4A048s I do not know.
My cousin stopped in one day and say what we were doing,
he was a pilot and home builder. He saved three of them for his
buddies. Never did come across any again. The engines were 4
cylinder horizontally opposed aircraft type engines.

[Papee]

Nice story Ashorn, I am just north of Harrisburg. I usually run from the Clarks Ferry Bridge to Sunbury but occasionally I put in at the Fort Hunter access and fish the Rockville Bridge area. I normally put in at Halifax or at the Millerburg Ferry. I am running the 4A084 on my 16 ft boat and there are a few videos of it running the river here on the site if you look around. My boat was made by Tech Snyder and originally had the 084 on it. It has now come full circle having a v6 then a briggs, a 032, and now back to the 084. I'm really not sure how old it is but is one of the original aluminum boats, it has a 1/8 inch thick bottom.

[chuckitt]

Hey Papee, John O'Neal from Swamp Bug Airboats took the hull we call the RD2 and put 1/4 inch polymer on it, rigged it out with the 35 HP Briggs. It ran 30 MPH. He is putting 4 of these boats together as kit boats and they will be sold at Airboat Pro's. They will only need a prop and paint. I don't know if the other 3 will have poly installed. They will run OK with poly.
Thanks, Chuck
Hey Ashorn, we still have some more hulls in stock.