thunder jet

[missionfishin]

i like the prices but is it a good boat?

Click here and enter Thunder Jet

[Pickles]

I have been very happy with mine! :smile:

[Silver Hilton]

Well I guess they're OK, if you can't get a North River.

[FishinMission]

[ 01-10-2004, 04:45 PM: Message edited by: FishinMission ]

[FishinMission]

I know..You can buy mine...switch a couple of 10" letters and "Voila"...You'll have your own fish catching machine!

This is a Fish-Rite..by the way...and built like a tank. The guys at Steven's just marvel.

Mark

P.S. Don't make me look bad with that moniker..O.K.??

[ 01-10-2004, 04:47 PM: Message edited by: FishinMission ]

[Thumper]

Cool idea! Missionfishin buys FishinMission's boat, moves two letters, and is off and running. FishinMission and Missionfishin each get a new boat. Urk. Feelin' kinda funny here..... :blush:

[FishinMission]

Jack...I saw my dream boat in the classifieds here....mmmmm..how am I gonna get away with it....?

Hmmmmm...the wheels are turning....

:shocked: :shocked: :shocked:


Mark

[salmurai]

I heard they were OK until you hit something, then they kinda fold up, but that's just what I heard, but the price might reflect that also. Just don't hit anything and you should be fine. Good Luck, now go catch something.

[nitroduk]

my buddy has run one for four years or so now, and never a problem....

[DownTime]

Is it a good boat? Do fish live in the water?I have a 2001 Luxor with a 175 sportjet and 8hp high thrust yamaha 4-stroke.I have fished it from the CR buoy offshore to buoy 10 to crabbing the a-jetty to 5k cfs on the North fork Lewis not to mention a few gator trips on the Columbia and shad and Lake Roosevelt every summer,oh did I forget Potholes?Look at the welds,if you know anything about metal fabrication you won't find any better.This boat is built on the Snake River to run the Snake River,not a beginner or even intermediate river by any stretch.My son-in-law liked mine so much he bought the same boat.I don't think you can do any better even for more money.If you need any more info e-mail me. :smile:

JB

[Pickles]

I have to agree with downtime. Look at the welds they are excellent!

[ 01-18-2004, 07:08 PM: Message edited by: ****** ]

[Salmonator]

Originally posted by salmurai:
I heard they were OK until you hit something, then they kinda fold up, but that's just what I heard

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">And who did you hear this from. Can we talk to him too?

[Hanapa'a Time]

missionfishin,
check your PM, go up to profile and click.

Kurt

[HOGTIDE]

Ya Mark...I was thinking of you when I saw that 21' fishRite. Semi-vee, 78" bottom........Mission..."The Next Generation" :smile:

[salmurai]

Salmonator, If I knew who they were, I would gladly tell you. I talked to one guy at the Sportsman's Show last year. He said he hit a rock and put a big dent in the bottom of his. I talked with another on the Salmon River, in Idaho, this past fall. He said he hit a rock with his and it just folded up. These are the words he used. This information was passed on to me in the form of casual conversation between two jet boaters. I'm sorry but I don't get the names of everyone I talk with. I'm not trying to bash any boat builder, but a question was asked and I put in my $.02 worth. Read the rest of my post, "just don't hit anything and you should be fine." I will admit that I've never priced a Thunder Jet, but if the prices are that good, I guess you get what you pay for! The welds are nice to look at but look under the floor boards, that's where IT counts. I'm guessing the reason the two boats dented and folded in was the lack of or improper bracing and welding. That takes money, money the customer will never appreciate until he hits something. Maybe they use a lesser grade of aluminum. Maybe Thunder Jet has all this, I don't know, I'm just passing on what I heard. I do know this, if you hit a rock hard enough with any boat, you're going to put a dent in it. With the same impact, some boats will just have bigger dents than others. All this information is worth exactly what you pay for it.......

[Dr Strangelove]

In 1999 I personally talked to the now retired president of Almar and he told me of two Thunderjets that had been in to their yard in the Tacoma area for repairs and upon removing floorboards, it was apparent both had their fuel tanks wedged in between stanchions with pieces of foam. There was no bolt or fastener keeping the tank in place - just styro wedges. He was less than impressed and placed this company on the bottom of my list of potentially worthy purchases. The top of his list started with North River and Wooldridge for best built tanks on the water. Duckworth, Alumaweld, Custom Weld, Northwest Jet were next. My own short list continues to be North River (I have the 19ft Sportster 175SJ because I like power and fishing room) and the Boice V6 Vortec short linkage.

[Pickles]

I don't care what kind of welded aluminum boat you have, if you hit something hard enough your going to put a dent in it. My buddy has one hell of a dent in his North River after hitting a dead head on the Willamette last year. Another friend of mine just recently put a large dent in the bottom of his Thunderjet after hitting a large rock at 40 mph plus. The point is that both boats did exactly what they were supposed to do. They got their owners back without sinking. Welded aluminum boats are designed to dent on impact, this allows the energy of the impact to be absorbed without causing major structural damage.

[1pump]

I don't care what kind of welded aluminum boat you have, if you hit something hard enough your going to put a dent in it.

<font size="2" face="verdana,arial,helvetica">Amen.

Aluminum is only aluminum. It doesn't matter how thick, what grade, how it's welded, or what builder's name is on the side. It's not bulletproof, and you can always find a way to mangle it.

[Lure Dragger]

I really don't know that much about them except that when I was in Lewiston last year buying my new customweld there was a guy there trading his one year old thunder jet in for a new customweld of the sam size. This is the second custom weld that I have had and have really liked them. I had my first one for 12 years. I just wanted something a little bigger.

[wetonwhite]

have hung out and watched boats being cut out and welded up 2 for days 2 more days of watching paint and finish work tjet builds a good boat and my bet is if you hit a rock at 20-40 mph any other boat will have problems have one parked in the barn and when the 3 ft. of snow melts its going back in the water with no regrets :grin:

[Freighter Bait]

I've got a 1994 TJ Sign 17'. I've flown it off a 5'waterfall at full speed :shocked: (wasn't exactly planned but was the best plan in the final seconds), bounced on boulders in river rapids, wedged onto a deadhead by a passing freighter , cut through 2" lake ice, and slid across slabs that wouldn't break. I've hit waves that have about folded me in half. [img]graemlins/1zhelp.gif[/img] All I have to show for that is a few minor scratchs on the bottom. And a chip on the pickup shoe from the waterfall incident.
If that's abuse, this TJ is taking it :grin: . And it's paid for, so why change?

[5-Cents]

I am looking at a new boat right now... :grin:

All things considered I am 90% sure I am going to stay with Alumaweld (waiting for final numbers... make them good David )

This is after taking a good look at all the boats at the boat show and a hard look at both Alumaweld and North River.

Alumaweld has the most storage space per foot of boat. This is a big deal to me becuase I like to have ALL my gear with me on the boat and the Alumaweld seat storage boxes are huge. The locking glove box in my boat holds my fishfinder, GPS, binoculars, extra hats, some books and a bunch of other stuff with room to spare! Closed storage under the dash and a huge fish box too! As far as comfort goes they have the best bench seats and the air-ride seats up front are a dream.

I am on the water a lot and I plan on using my boat around 200 days a year. The boat needs to be comfortable, ride nice, versatile in the top configurations to stay cool on hot days and warm on cold days. It needs to have enough storage space for all my stuff plus my buddies stuff. When buying a boat you really have to consider how comfortable your time is going to be on the water... 200 days = roughly 2000 hours, you better get what you want!

The real selling point for me has been the level of commitment on the service end. Why would I leave Alumaweld when they have given me an awesome level of service? If I ever had a problem with my first boat they had me bring it right in and it was turned around, fixed, back to me and I was fishing without a long wait! [img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/applause.gif[/img]

They sold me the first time with a great looking, fish catching product but they have kept me around with top notch service and a commitment to excelence!

Thanks Alumaweld and Stevens Marine

[TH]

Good for you Shane...
are you looking at another Mirage?
another 23'
I thought you boat was pretty nice!

Are you looking at an outboard?

I shot you off an email, too many questions to answer on here :smile:

I don't care what boat you buy, the selection process is awesome!

But you know where I stand on new boats.... :grin: :tongue:

[ 01-11-2004, 09:05 AM: Message edited by: TH ]

[kayakfisher]

Alright...How are Boice boats? I have seen them and thought they looked well designed...but certainly did not pull out the floor boards.

They seem to have a long history ... ie the man who started Jerry's Jet boats on the Rogue I think started Boice boats?...

Any strong opinions here one way or the other?

M.

[Thumper]

5-Cents --- Just have Alumaweld use a bigger hole saw for the drop deck scuppers. What they do now is downright irresponsible (IMHO). [img]graemlins/berry.gif[/img]

Kayakfisher --- Boice Jets are like Swisher Sweets. You either love them or hate them. [img]graemlins/eek13.gif[/img]

[ 01-11-2004, 09:21 AM: Message edited by: Thumper ]

[TH]

Actually Justin Boice (father used to drive for Jerry's Boats) is running Boice Boats...

Talk to TheRogue, he has a new 22' I think! But he put that SJ thing in it :smile: JK

[Radke]

How about boats from Rogue Marine? I am also in the market to buy a boat, will be my first. I don't plan on doing any shallow river running, mostly Columbia, the bays and out in the ocean (once I get a bit of experience under my belt). I was impressed with the 'Hustler' displayed by Rogue Marine, but don't recall ever reading about them on this board. I really liked this boat and Hewescraft.

[Seefood Man]

I just sold my Luxor about two weeks ago and I will say that TJ builds a really good boat, however, now that I really know how they handle in the smaller rivers I'm going to an open sled Alumaweld with a 10 degree. The TJ, being an I/O sits stern heavy which means in the summer I had to blow over a lot of good steelhead water because I would have sat her on the rocks if I'd stopped. The Alumaweld rides level and drafts less. But now in all fairness I'm compairing apples to oranges. Two entirely different applications. The TJ is a great Columbia river and large water boat, but I know that the open sled will be better suited for my needs.

[rv10pilot]

I bought a TJ Alexis last year and love it. I think it is a great boat and If I needed to buy another boat for some reason I would buy another Thunderjet.

RV10pilot

[MX man]

5-cent,

I'm very surprised to hear that your considering an alumaweld. With all the stories/pictures i've seen you post I would have figured you would know what truley to look for when making a boat purchase. I realize you may have been happy with your experiences in the past but if you look and truley compare what your getting for your dollar, any one would be a fool to not consider other builders that supply to the general market. I'm not trying to be rude, but what i've found and was reminded by the PDX this show this year was this. Your dollar will go as far as you want it to. If you get down to the nitty gritty and what the boats are built out of and how they are put togeather you will see where the true advantages are. Not to nit pick, but Alumaweld is a dying breed only continuing to sell from a well established name. If you fish as much as you say you do, what boats seem to be more abundant than others in the past? I'm only here in the Pacific northwest a few months at a time but even still I get a chance to dip my rod as often as I can. Even still It's easy to see... But make your choices as you want, you'll find your favorite aluminum boat isn't the best priced anymore, nor the best built nor ever was.

From Tokyo
MXM

[T-Jet]

I have had mine for 4 years. Its a jetboat........I use it as such! The Columbia bores me, so I find myself running the Clackamas, Santiams, the Snake, Deschutes and such. I run in very skinny water. Its a 21' Hardtop. It ran the Clackamas in late July above eagle creek. I am embarrased to say but.....took a wrong channel on the Santiam and ended up running out of water, shutting down the motor and sliding across 75' of not so friendly riverbottom! I was lucky enough to skip back into the river. Fired her back up and off we went. I have slid across rocks running through extremely shallow tailouts. Wanted cool pictures blasting through washout rapids on the deschutes, tried getting air in it and snapped a cable for the bucket! Needless to say, I am tough on the boat. I use it! The boat never folded when I hit! I see alot of the "other" big name boats shut down and turn around when I run into not so comfortable water.All are very capable boats. Are all captains capable? How many use these boats to their full capabilities? How many find out what they are not capable of? I am very happy with mine! Got a neighbor down the street with a weldcraft...his transome broke out 30miles out of Newport Halibut fishing! Hows that for quality?

[TheRogue]

Why thanks for the plug, Travis!! Getting closer to that new rod order, by the way.

Kayakfisher...e-mail me if you'd like any more info.



TR

[ 01-12-2004, 12:23 PM: Message edited by: TheRogue ]

[TheRogue]

Kayakfisher, back at ya....

TR

[blacktail519]

MX MAN,
I dont know what part of the country your from, Nor do i care to know. Allumaweld a dying breed . Your nuts [img]graemlins/dork.gif[/img] . Are you saying allamaweld does not make a quality boat? Cause I beg to differ. I have a Intruder that more then suits my needs, and like 5 cents was saying, I have more storage then most any boat in its class. Not to mention comfortability.From what i gather from your reply, You have never stepped foot in an allumaweld, Or any alluminum boat for that matter. Back IT UP!!!!! Some times it best to just keep quite HUH :grin: