Team Beaver Fever Budget Bass Jon Boat Build

Oh and I highly recommend the motorguide bulldog since it has a short shaft perfect for a crawdad. I have the 40lb thrust but would recommend the 52lb. Only thing is you have to remove the transom mount it comes with.

I'll add some pics of my crawdad mods I did. the floors were permanently screwed to the aluminum tubing running along the floor ( regret). The front deck was wood and used for the tm plug and what you don't see because it was added later, eletroinics mount. ( again a regret) It made the boat too heavy. If I had to do it over again the floors would be removable and the front deck eliminated. I loved the angle irons to mount a foot controlled TM. and loved running the wires to the back and the battery placement in the back. It balanced out the ride perfectly. Also notice that the front and rear seats were pushed back. The rudder is a MUST if you are going with 1 tm up front. Without it boat control sucks. During a tourney The livewell would go behind me but infront of the 1st seat and still give me plenty of room to fish. No tourney , it was like I was in a 20' Stratos!!!





Last edited by stratos1966 on Thu Jan 10, 2013 1:09 pm; edited 1 time in total

I like the rudder. I always put a trolling motor on the fronta nd back. Most of the time the back one is just for a rudder and if I'm only fishing a small pond for a couple of hours I don't even take the battery

hopefully dan's looking for a 40 lb. thrust motorguide bulldog since i happen to have one i don't need now and it's sitting in damon's shop hahaha

it really worked well on my current jonboat and the shorter shaft was great. it's only an issue if you want a permanent mount up front but the plus is that you don't have to with it. you just screw the bracket on anywhere on the front and that's it.

i like that rudder and was actually thinking of one for this new boat.

Sam - you can remove the transom mount from the bulldog and use it with a motorguide bow mount. That's what I did.

A rudder or rear Tm is a MUST. otherwise you will just spin in the wind and your center or rotation will suck

thanks joe. i figured, but i was sold on getting a powerdrive v2 for a few different reasons like the rigid motor cables and mount size which are a problem on the tracker topper i have. i also like minn kota props a lot better.

weedless wedge is the only way to go

Love all the pics guys! This is exactly what I hoped this topic would become, love hearing all the different things guys have done. Plus knowing what works and what doesn'tt saves alot of headache down the road for anyone looking to do these kind of conversions. Thanks again guys keep em coming, I'll keep posting pics of progress as we build em!

I like how all my pics made the topic go waaaaaaaaaaaay out to the right.

It's the rudder

I think one of these would work great as a rudder. Plus, it is one less thing to carry along as you need it anyways...

I like how all my pics made the topic go waaaaaaaaaaaay out to the right.

you could edit that post and press enter after each photo...

I like how all my pics made the topic go waaaaaaaaaaaay out to the right.

you could edit that post and press enter after each photo...

Thanks. i did not know that. I will attempt to fix it. Also I have seen others use those paddles as rudders. Good point

joe read my mind. i planned on using 1 of my 2 oars which are in my trunk but i didn't get that far. i don't have an extra motor clamp so if i don't feel like buying one, i could build something simple with some pvc, wood, and clamps.