By Mark Taylor

Archives Reprint

    When Jerald Griffith got serious about shopping for a boat late in 2002, the first thing he did was think about how he planned to use it.

    He wanted something in which he could fish the New River, so it had to be able to run in shallow water and handle occasional collisions with rocks. Because Griffith also planned to fish in lakes and in inshore coastal waters, he wanted something fairly large, stable, and outfitted with a reasonably powerful engine.

    It also had to be reliable and easy to maintain, and it wouldn't hurt if it was relatively inexpensive.

    "It had to be aluminum," concluded Griffith, who ended up buying an 18-foot-long G3 johnboat.

    Trends ebb and flow in the boating business, but aluminum boats remain popular year after year.

    Aluminum boats have plenty of advantages, including durability, maneuverability and easy maintenance.

    "When it gets dirty you can just spray it out and forget about it," Griffith said.

    Because they're comparatively light, aluminum boats are relatively easy to haul around. Some smaller models will fit in the bed of a pickup or on a car's roof rack. The lighter weight also means they can be outfitted with smaller motors, another cost savings.

    Disadvantages?

    Families whose main interest is fun and cruising might be better served with a large, fast, cushy runabout. Boaters with a need for speed probably would prefer a sleek speedboat. Those who pull wakeboarders or skiers also would get more out of a fiberglass boat designed for those sports.

    For sheer utilitarian value, especially for serious fishermen, aluminum is often a good choice.

    "I bought mine for fishing ... and I love it," Griffith said.

    Many boaters and fishermen got their start in little aluminum johnboats, and those little craft are still popular.

    Yet today's aluminum boats aren't fit only for quiet little ponds or placid streams. Bass fishermen can find fast, high-end aluminum boats suited for tournament fishing. Some large v-hull boats are capable of handling extremely rough water, and carry price tags pushing $40,000.

    James Rudisill of Smith Mountain Boat and Tackle Inc. was skeptical about carrying aluminum boats when he and Scott Reynolds went into business together last year. At Reynolds' urging, Rudisill agreed to give a big Lund a try, loading it up with family and friends and taking it out on Smith Mountain Lake.

    "My opinion was aluminum boats rattle a lot and bang a lot," said Rudisill, a former striper fishing guide at Smith Mountain Lake. "That day I found the roughest water I could and I tried to find rattles and creaks and bangs. I couldn't find them."

    The Penhook company picked up Lund last year and sold quite a few. Some of those boats went to customers originally intent on buying big, fiberglass boats.

    "I believe the larger aluminum boats will handle any water similar-sized offshore fiberglass boats will handle," Rudisill said.

    While Rudisill and Reynolds, as well as Crestliner dealer Hughes Marine of Danville, put a lot of sales efforts toward moving beefy v-hull aluminum boats built to handle big, rough water, boat dealer Sam Phillips has other priorities.

    The owner of S&D Lakeside Marine, Phillips sells loads of flat-bottom johnboats - and pretty much only johnboats.

    His dealership's lot holds stacks of inexpensive, motorless johnboats, as well as a number of larger boats on trailers, many outfitted with high-tech, four-stroke engines and painted in camouflage.

    "In 1998, I got rid of all my fiberglass boats," Phillips said. "The market's just not there in my area."

    Like Griffith, who bought his G3 from S&D Lakeside, many of Phillips' customers are looking for boats for the New River, for both fishing and waterfowl hunting.

    "If you hit something, you can take it to a welder and not have to worry about an expensive fiberglass repair," Phillips said.

    Not all aluminum boats are created equal.

    A key difference is the thickness of the hull material. Thicker material equates to better durability. It also adds to weight and really isn't necessary for boats destined for light duty in ponds.

    Generally speaking, welded johnboats are considered more durable than riveted johnboats and are more expensive.

    When it comes to larger v-hull boats and bass boats, the jury is out in the welds vs. rivets debate. Some models use riveted construction while others use welds, with the respective manufacturers claiming their method is the best and backing them with lifetime hull warranties.

    While some dealers at the boat show hope to have the biggest, fastest, flashiest, most-attention-grabbing boat at the show, Phillips has another goal.

    "I'm going to take a little johnboat, put a two or three horsepower engine on it, and hopefully have the cheapest boat at the show," he said, laughing.

    It will probably sell, too, because such boats are always in demand.

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