Rivermaster Airboats

[OTTER]

Ok Guys
Tell me everything y'all know bout these boats.
Setups - A/C and Carmotor
Good Bad indifferent opinions
how do they do in skinny and lake water too.
Looking for / or build a 5 place ride pleasure boat for family use
who builds them and so forth.
Not looking for a 50K 800 hp boat !!!!

[Deano]

The original ones are no longer made.

However, Marty Bray who made the original molds for them is making an updated, improved version.
His number is all over the board here, you won't have a problem finding it.

For 5 people, I'd go with a 16 footer and a big block with a box. Good choice, by the way.

[SWAMPHUNTER45]

Marty will build exactly the boat you ask for and is using composite materials so wood rot is not a factor in his boats. I will agree with Deano that if your looking for a 5 seat boat your going to end up with either his 15ft 11 inch or 18ft boat. If your seeking a boat that can run dry reliably then it's either a gear drive mated to a Cadillac or Big Block Chevy type task. Sure the LSA or LS7 can do it as could a SC540 but to me low rpm with big torque is the winning combination.

Marty last time I was up to his shop was running an 18ft with extended deck powered by a direct drive Cadillac.

I have a 5 seat 15ft 11 inch built for coastal use, it has rod boxes, 3/8 poly and was build to last. It ran dry with a very high performance direct drive Cadillac spinning a 76 NGQ pitched at 2.5 but didn't give much reserve if you got into a sticky spot.

Fast forward to today and it is now rigged with a gear drive Cadillac with 4x81 inch S blades and it does everything well loaded with fuel, 5 people and cargo.

If I was going to advise someone about the Rivermaster, I would say they run flat. They do well in deep water and respond very well in the skinny. They are not a slider, they turn tight and are very predictable. If you do not have to have rod boxes, I would not get them as it is $750 more and added weight.

Marty Bray is an honest man who builds a great boat at a fair price!

[TheElevatorGuy]

Hey Mark, what happened to that nice Diamondback you had?

[Bdriller]

https://ocala.craigslist.org/boa/5537607071.html

[Bdriller]

this is not a rivermater but a rivermaster, I have however witnessed rivermating.

[chuckitt@earthlink.net]

Marty Bray builds the best Fiberglass hull made. They are all hand laid and you want find any excess resin in his layups. His new molds have a 2.5 inch chime dropped about 7 degrees. No hopping in the turns. My Alaska customer said his 14 foot drives like a Corvette and he can go into turns without having to increase the throttle, even in the rapids. We put 2 gals steel flex super slick on bottom and he complains that he can't park it on the shore and walk away, it slides back in the water.
I have sold his hulls for 20 years. A 16 foot will cost you 3520.00. A strip will cost 100.00 extra.
We have sold 2 hulls with 5 layers Kevlar in the bottom. No need for poly and it will bounce off rocks. The downside is it cost 500.00 per ft.
You don't need a big block motor to push this hull up a hill. You are just adding more weight. A ZZ5 or a ZZ383/425 crate engine with a 2.38 reduction will do the job. Any V8 engine with over 400 ft lbs torque will do the job if set up right.

Thanks, Chuck

[One Eyed Gator]

My 1st boat was a 15' rivermaster with a DD Caddy 472. Ran it for 5 years. It hopped on plane very quick, was stable and very predictable. Even ran some dry ground. Unfortunately I beat it to death fishing in the gulf even with poly. I guy bought it put another caddy on it and ran it for a few more years.

I have seen Marty's 18' hull with a DD caddy and it is impressive for what it is. Quality craftsmanship and he build a fiberglass rake for his hulls as well.

[Scotty1]

Does Marty have a web site

[chuckitt@earthlink.net]

Marty does not have a web site. He has Dealers like myself and a few others. He will take direct orders but the price is the same.
Thanks, Chuck

[jimbo_jwc]

Like my 2002 Rivermaster 16x8 4 seat 500ci Caddie DD 74x34 woodie . Titled as one and the hull ID #'s start with HF.
Runs as stock engine ,heavy with exhaust manifolds and intakes . Just got GPS mph running up river 2 men and gear full tank gas . I don't see many postings on here about speed like boating sites 3000 RPM lean carb a whopping 47 so I don't know if its good . The other man was hollering the speed for a while then I couldn't hear and he was giving me the fingers .

[Deano]

@ Jimbo . . . Even if your Caddie is running that well, you really should loose those factory exhaust manifolds and get some headers. Any headers. While airboat headers would be best, even some cheap knock-off block huggers will afford you an improvement, both weight and power wise.

@ Otter . . . The way you described what you were looking for, that boat that Bdriller posted the link to may be closer to what you are after than you realize. I had a friend with the same powertrain on an aluminum hull and it ran really good. That boat had to be heavier then what that Marty Bray weighs. You really owe it to yourself to sea trial that boat and see for yourself. If I were looking for a family type ride boat, no doubt I would do that first and then likely make him an offer.

[SWAMPHUNTER45]

Chuck if he purchases the hull from you will it be titled as an Airboat Pro or does he still title it homemade with an FLZ HIN?

[Bdriller]

Roho that built this boat is a personal friend of mine, he built some boats under the name of renegade airboats, his stainless metal work is top shelf and hes probably to honest for his own good, he is an anal tweaker ex nascar racer always making slight changes to an already perfect product , if a person really knows airboats and rides or has driven many different boats and rides or drives this boat you will walk away feeling you just for the first time experienced a truly remarkable boat ride, the proof is in the boat ride. Buddy told me the other day that he rode in swamphunters new 16 Marty Bray rivermaster he said it was the smoothest boat hes ever ridden in bar none.

[chuckitt@earthlink.net]

A hull manufacturer can't assign hull numbers to a hull as per USCG regulations. If I sell the hull only, I can't put my numbers in the hull. A registered boat builder that builds the complete airboat must install his assigned HIN in the hull. That puts the responsibility for safety on the builder. Builders that are registered with the USCG are inspected every so often to insure the safety requirements of the USCG are adhered to. Registered Manufacturers also have to furnish a Statement of Origin with the invoice.
An Airboat also requires an Exemption to be legal. Very few has this exemption. This exemption because airboats don't meet the USCG requirements for Floatation, Capacity, Fuel System, Electrical System, and I will have to look at my exemption certificate to see what the last one is. I will post a copy of it.
This may be why you can put your own boat together for less than a Boat Manufacturer. This is also why I value a used Manufactured airboat for more than a Homemade airboat. The State of Florida is a Safety failure in the issue of Homemade Titles because no safety inspection is made. If the homemade boat comes apart and kills someone, then the State should be charged with the deaf of the person. That being said, I know some homemade builders that are very good at building a safe and quality airboat.

You can do a search on this site about USCG Regulations or Hull Manufacturer.

Thanks, Chuck

[SWAMPHUNTER45]

The reason I asked Chuck was we got into an Insurance Company data base and you were listed as a builder they would insure. They don't take home made boats but a titled "Airboat Pro" would get coverage.

[OTTER]

That boat in Gainesville looks awesome, but is a few K out of my current price range... I currently am boatless and have a sincere itch to get back into the swamp soon.
Ive always said the right boat will come along and God willing I will be able to acquire it...
A sincere Thank You for educating mean this fine boat.
Im sure ill be reaching out to again in the near future....
If anyone has more to add, please do..

Thank You
Mark

[Scotty1]

WHAT LENGHTS DO THEY COME IN AND WHAT ARE THE PRICES FOR MARTY BREY HULL

[Bdriller]

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[Bdriller]

[SWAMPHUNTER45]

Marty Bray has a very uniqe slider mold. He basically builds all the hulls out of one master mold in which the transom section is moveable. Not to speak for him but he will build you what you ask for but 14, 15.2, 15.11 and 18ft are boat lengths that I know he has done. Chuck being a dealer would know more about recent changes.

[Bdriller]

here is the same 16' marty bray kit boat, engine stand fits ls or old school small block has 3 gallons of quick slick on bottom 11k if it doesn't sale soon I will buy it myself, its identical to the blue boat I'm sure this should be in classifieds but it is also a discussion about Marty Bray hulls.

[In the Glades]

I love my Rivermaster... 13'6 with a 470 and she ran up the hill no problem and I wasn't in the least bit worried running her across the lake when it was rough. I run down south mostly and it handles skinny water fine. My buddy ran his 15' 350/gearbox boat up the hill that day as well.

My boat hops and I've heard some of the old Rivermasters do, but I think mine is from a combination of set up and the bottom not being true in one spot.

[chuckitt@earthlink.net]

The 10 and 11 ft mini hulls have their own molds. The 12 ft is 7 ft 6 inches wide and has it's own mold. 14, 15, 16, 17, and 18 ft hulls are built from the same mold. At present, the 12 thru 18's are sold at 220.00 per ft. That price has been in effect for 4 or 5 years and due to material cost may change soon.

Thanks, Chuck