I enjoy mine, I’ve put mine through hell and it’s been fun. As long as you keep up on maintenance properly they are nice and reliable for the most part
These motors are for going through mud. Traditional outboards use water from the lake youre in to pump through the engine to cool it. The gator tail is air-cooled so its not as efficient and is much slower considering the size of the motor when compared to an outboard but it does benefit from being a sealed system and does not require being in water to run so you can run the boat through mud which is necessary for duck hunting since the water is low during the winter.
@tommyluke6407 Yeah... that's why I was so hesitant to make the switch but so far I've been alot more comfortable going where I used to be very hesitant.
That’s one of the main reasons I went with an outboard when I got a new boat this year, and the speed. I’m currently running a 50hp Suzuki on a 1756 DBST with a light load (me, full fuel, 4doz decoys, anchor, blind, and some other gear) and I get 42+ going down river and 35 up… bumping it up to 60hp soon and hoping to hit 38-40 going up river
The 4wd of the mud motor is better than the smooth steer and performance of outboard, unless you strictly run deep water! Your definitely plowing water, heavy boat…. Transfer some weight.
@tylfernandes9707 it's definitely q bulldozer right now lol I'm hoping playing with the trim pin gets me there with a new prop because there's not much else I can move off the bow
What’s it running mph in shallow water? I know those motors gain a little speed once they hit 2ft or less. I only have a cheap 15hp mudskipper on an old 1636 but I will see my speed go up 2mph once I hit 1.5 foot or less. This is where these mud motors shine is when there is hardly no water. I have been in spots than no outboard can go getting to a hole.
@drums4jesus21 I honestly don't know right now. I got it running and tested and then dropped it off at Estes Performance to do a few things to it. I should have an update video around the first week of December with a new prop too.
@ that motor should be running even better once you get a new prop and some work done by Estes. It sounded good on the last run you did. There is a company right now that has designed a closed cooling system for outboards that is designed to run very shallow called Freedom Motors for those that want the speed of an outboard and the ability to get in places a normal outboard want go.
@@Jackwagonoutdoorsbe careful with prop selection these motors want a specific prop for specific loads boat sizes power levels it can get weird quick trying to tune your setup
@@ar15gator where I hunt in etx, the outboard was limiting me on places I could hunt and wasn't trying to tear up a perfectly good outboard. So far, the gatortail has taken me to places I wouldn't even dream of taking an outboard.
@ Amazing! I am thinking of a little build for myself to go exploring, and fresh water fishing in Florida, during the cooler months, and I’ve always liked the long-tails, GatorTail style setups, but I’ve had the hang up because of my past outboard motor, life experiences, but when you get into the shallows, the skinny water, the marshy water, that creates so much havoc and expense, along with the risk and inconvenience, of being stranded for awhile, the long-tail is always nipping at my heels, especially being on a smaller build, 12-14’ Lund Jon boat, with a max allowable 20hp because of the FL State ruling on the particular waterway, lake I will be frequenting. Your video, and even more so, your response, has helped me make my decision on what avenue to go towards with my little build. Thank you very much.
Hello from Finland. No trim on that motor? Your plowing because on plane the motor pushes bow of The boat down.I bet you had a trim on that Yamaha. I guess you could adjust the trim Angle to some degree manually on that thing..? With proper trim you would get over 30knots easily.
@@Jackwagonoutdoorsthe centerline of thrust is higher on the surface drive. Unless you were set up to surface the 70. Trimming out to create the ideal running angle is not possible as the prop is already half out of the water. If the boat has any hook in the running surface near the transom you will fight plowing. Surface drives like a bit of rocker. Rocker creates natural bow lift and the thrust angle counters it. Bottom mods would likely be more economical and reliable than chasing horsepower.
Johnny is an awesome dude. He helped me with a ton of info when I built my motor!
I enjoy mine, I’ve put mine through hell and it’s been fun. As long as you keep up on maintenance properly they are nice and reliable for the most part
Thank You For Sharing ! It Takes A Few Trips To Work Out The Kinks. Vanguard Motors Are Great !
thanks for making this
Yuhhh eb switching over from gtr to outboards wit jack plates
Motor runs great!
Hi from Ireland, thats a very interesting motor! Iv never seen one before, sounds cool!
New subscriber 😊
These motors are for going through mud. Traditional outboards use water from the lake youre in to pump through the engine to cool it. The gator tail is air-cooled so its not as efficient and is much slower considering the size of the motor when compared to an outboard but it does benefit from being a sealed system and does not require being in water to run so you can run the boat through mud which is necessary for duck hunting since the water is low during the winter.
Oilslick color on exhaust looks kinda cool ~
Those motors are Badass!!!
I love the videos keep it up
that thing is sweet
Dude running 110octane in a turbo mud motor… he’s gotta be pushing 90hp+ based on his speeds with a 1860
Bad ass motors , they are just loud asf .
@tommyluke6407 Yeah... that's why I was so hesitant to make the switch but so far I've been alot more comfortable going where I used to be very hesitant.
That’s one of the main reasons I went with an outboard when I got a new boat this year, and the speed.
I’m currently running a 50hp Suzuki on a 1756 DBST with a light load (me, full fuel, 4doz decoys, anchor, blind, and some other gear) and I get 42+ going down river and 35 up… bumping it up to 60hp soon and hoping to hit 38-40 going up river
The 4wd of the mud motor is better than the smooth steer and performance of outboard, unless you strictly run deep water! Your definitely plowing water, heavy boat…. Transfer some weight.
@tylfernandes9707 it's definitely q bulldozer right now lol I'm hoping playing with the trim pin gets me there with a new prop because there's not much else I can move off the bow
What’s it running mph in shallow water? I know those motors gain a little speed once they hit 2ft or less.
I only have a cheap 15hp mudskipper on an old 1636 but I will see my speed go up 2mph once I hit 1.5 foot or less. This is where these mud motors shine is when there is hardly no water. I have been in spots than no outboard can go getting to a hole.
@drums4jesus21 I honestly don't know right now. I got it running and tested and then dropped it off at Estes Performance to do a few things to it. I should have an update video around the first week of December with a new prop too.
@ that motor should be running even better once you get a new prop and some work done by Estes. It sounded good on the last run you did.
There is a company right now that has designed a closed cooling system for outboards that is designed to run very shallow called Freedom Motors for those that want the speed of an outboard and the ability to get in places a normal outboard want go.
@@drums4jesus21 she's healthy already for sure. Just needs a little love. It definitely needs a good prop because the stock ca57 wasn't it.
@@JackwagonoutdoorsAgreed! Definitely looking forward to seeing it after it gets back with the mods.
@@Jackwagonoutdoorsbe careful with prop selection these motors want a specific prop for specific loads boat sizes power levels it can get weird quick trying to tune your setup
great video im subbed.
Should have kept the 70
@@wheresthetren1262 If I could only have both lol
Runs like a champ now! 💥💯 Why did you switch from outboard to a Gator-Tail?
@@ar15gator where I hunt in etx, the outboard was limiting me on places I could hunt and wasn't trying to tear up a perfectly good outboard. So far, the gatortail has taken me to places I wouldn't even dream of taking an outboard.
@ Amazing! I am thinking of a little build for myself to go exploring, and fresh water fishing in Florida, during the cooler months, and I’ve always liked the long-tails, GatorTail style setups, but I’ve had the hang up because of my past outboard motor, life experiences, but when you get into the shallows, the skinny water, the marshy water, that creates so much havoc and expense, along with the risk and inconvenience, of being stranded for awhile, the long-tail is always nipping at my heels, especially being on a smaller build, 12-14’ Lund Jon boat, with a max allowable 20hp because of the FL State ruling on the particular waterway, lake I will be frequenting. Your video, and even more so, your response, has helped me make my decision on what avenue to go towards with my little build. Thank you very much.
Truck with a Carolina squat? Yeah we're looking at a pattern of bad decisions.
Didn’t know they where carb would have thought they where fuel injected
@wheresthetren1262 most of them after 2016 went efi but those come with their own set of issues as well.
The older 35-37hp variants are carb’s the gator tails and mud buddy’s that are 40hp and + from the factory are EFI.
I have a 2012 that’s carbureted, I see some guys convert them back because of efi issues sometimes
@DownSouthDiver can't lose a hp pump if you don't have one lol
Hello from Finland. No trim on that motor? Your plowing because on plane the motor pushes bow of The boat down.I bet you had a trim on that Yamaha. I guess you could adjust the trim Angle to some degree manually on that thing..? With proper trim you would get over 30knots easily.
@anttivuori8659 it has trim and I've played with it, it's not a trim related issue. It's between the prop and setup.
Does sound as it could use more prop, and a little lower into the water maby?@Jackwagonoutdoors
Prop looks like it's getting too much air
@joewinkler2168 the sweet spot on these surface drive props for the rooster tail is about motor height. Half the prop runs out of the water.
@@Jackwagonoutdoorsthe centerline of thrust is higher on the surface drive. Unless you were set up to surface the 70. Trimming out to create the ideal running angle is not possible as the prop is already half out of the water. If the boat has any hook in the running surface near the transom you will fight plowing. Surface drives like a bit of rocker. Rocker creates natural bow lift and the thrust angle counters it. Bottom mods would likely be more economical and reliable than chasing horsepower.
Gotta give us an answer-
He surely doesn’t own a f250 to just pull a boat right?
@dirtymotovation na its just a little f150 haha