The durability of these boats is one of the most attractive features of heavy gauge aluminum construction. Not only are these boats super tough, they are easy to maintain—a feature that every fisherman can get behind.
Heavy gauge welded aluminum boats like this SmokerCraft Phantom X2-20 OS are starting to make their mark on the Great Lakes. These “west coast” designs are equally at home on the Great Lakes among anglers who troll for trout, salmon, walleye, musky and more.
The sprawling waters of the Great Lakes have for some time been the domain of big boats. It makes sense that anglers who routinely fish on the big ponds would gravitate toward larger and more seaworthy boats.
In recent years however, the widely expanding selection of fiberglass multi-species style boats has set the stage for a different kind of Great Lakes angler. The guys who own these fiberglass multi-species boats aren’t afraid to tackle big water and big waves when the bite is on!
The drive behind these multi-species boats has of course been the growing interest in walleye fishing tournaments. Popular circuits such as the Cabela’s Nation Walleye Tour routinely find themselves on Great Lakes waters as do a host of more regional events such as the Lake Erie Walleye Trail.
The majority of the contestants who participate in these events are fishing from 20-23 foot fiberglass boats that are designed to be small enough for trailering, but big enough to handle open water and big seas. A host of brands offer boats in this category including Ranger, Nitro, Skeeter, YarCraft, Lund, Vexus and Warrior just to name a few of the most important players.
So the traditional aluminum V hull “walleye” boats that were once so popular have been replaced in part by fiberglass multi-species boats. Some manufacturers like Lund and Starcraft still produce larger aluminum V hulls such as the Barron and Tyee produced by Lund and the Fishmaster Series made by Starcraft, but these boats are becoming a minority in the world of Great Lakes fishing where they were once the majority.
TIME MARCHES ON
As time marches on, times change and the products that fishermen gravitate towards also change. In the case of trailerable sized fishing boats, fiberglass has become a dominate player especially among tournament professionals, guides and serious amateurs. A booming economy has not only made it easier for anglers to afford these boats, but also for manufacturers to invest the research and development money into creating new and improved multi-species boats.
Ironically, the next big thing in multi-species boats may well swing back in the direction of aluminum manufacturing. The sales of traditional aluminum V hulls may be slipping, but another class of aluminum boats known as “heavy gauge” are experiencing a huge surge in sales.
Heavy gauge aluminum boats got their start on the west coast largely as boats that could do double duty fishing in major rivers like the Columbia or the Kenai, but also be highly functional as boats capable of fishing open water ocean estuaries for salmon and a host of other species.
While a typical multi-species aluminum boat found in the Great Lakes would likely feature a hull thickness of .100 or perhaps .125, heavy gauge boats are built from plate aluminum that are on average are about .160 inches thick!
These heavy gauge aluminum hulls are built more like battle ships than traditional fishing boats. A process known as TIG Welding or Tungsten Inert Gas welding is used to create these unique welded hulls that are not only exceptionally strong, but the welding process also produces an attractive looking finished product.
The author’s son Jake and his wife Paige spent some quality time chasing walleye on Saginaw Bay with the X2 Phantom.
Some of the first heavy gauge boats were marketed towards river steelhead fishermen and were built in the classic “jet sled” designs that feature flat or near flat bottoms suitable for use with jet pump outboard motors. These days, heavy gauge aluminum boats are produced in flat hulls for jet sleds, modified V hulls and deep V hulls for traditional outboards.
Open bow jet sleds got the ball rolling, but the manufacturers of heavy gauge aluminum boats are producing a much wider assortment of hulls including modified V hulls, open bow deep V hulls, cabin style deep V hulls, catamaran hulls and more. Some of these boat types are finding niches in sport fishing and others are being used for commercial fishing, as marine work boats, as marine search/rescue/fire craft and for military purposes.
The durability of these boats is one of the most attractive features of heavy gauge aluminum construction. Not only are these boats super tough, they are easy to maintain a feature that every fisherman can get behind.
The staff of Fishing 411 TV got our first look at these heavy gauge aluminum boats some years ago when we visited Alaska and filmed a number of salmon and trout shows on the Kenai River and also fished out of Homer for halibut.
A couple years later we visited the Columbia River to target Chinook salmon and had an opportunity to fish from several other heavy gauge aluminum boats. Since then, our staff has attended the Portland, Oregon sport show a number of times. Most of the major heavy gauge manufacturers and dealers attend this show to market their products.
BOAT BRANDS
The heavy gauge welded aluminum boat market has expanded rapidly and new brands and models are entering the market regularly. Some of the brands that have become known for producing quality boats include Hewes Craft, Duckworth, Spartan, North River, Allied Boats, SmokerCraft, Alumaweld, Thunder Jet and Kingfisher just to name a few.
While all of these brands have their own unique models and selling features, they all share the common bond of being made from heavy gauge aluminum and being manufactured using primarily welding processes.
GREAT LAKES BOUND
Most of the heavy gauge boats are being built on the west coast, but some manufacturers are popping up in the Great Lakes region as well. All the heavy gauge manufacturers have their eyes set on the Great Lakes, ultimately as another proving grounds for their designs.
SmokerCraft, Inc., produces the North American Angler series of heavy gauge aluminum boats out of New Paris, Indiana. Originally, these boats were built in a plant in Salem, Oregon, but a couple years ago SmokerCraft decided it made more sense to build all of their boats under one roof.
Back in 2018 the author had the unique opportunity to run this early prototype Phantom X2-20. Pictured here the boat is back trolling for steelhead on the St. Joe River using a bow mount electric motor to control the boat.
In the heavy gauge arena SmokerCraft is building open bow “sled” style boats and also Deep V models that are ideally suited to fishing the open waters of the Great Lakes. I was fortunate that SmokerCraft selected me to run the first prototype of a boat model they are calling the Phantom X2. I was skeptical at first how these heavy duty boats would handle Great Lakes waters, but my concerns quickly slipped away.
My first trip in the X2 Phantom was out of Frankfort, Michigan to fish for lake trout in West Bay. In the morning the seas were calm and making the nine mile run was a piece of cake. By mid-morning the wind had picked up from the southwest and the ride back turned out to be a fitting challenge for this new hull design.
In a quartering sea mixed with three to five foot waves, I trimmed the outboard in and tucked the nose of the X2 Phantom flat. At an average speed of 20 MPH, the Phantom punched through those waves like a battering ram and delivered a completely stable ride. The tall “west coast style” windshields deflected spray and the water that did splash into the boat quickly exited through an in-floor drainage system that allows water to pour out strategically located scuppers instead of ending up in the belly of the beast and having to be constantly bilged out.
That nine-mile run in rough water convinced me that the heavy gauge aluminum boat can hang with the best when it comes to running in big seas. For a boat that is only a little more than 20 feet in length and features a 102 inch beam, the X2 Phan-tom handles big water exceptionally well.
As for fishing, the X2-20 Phantom proved to be not only spacious, but an outstanding trolling platform as well. Rigging accessories like electric motors, sonar, chart plotters, rod holders, rod holder trees, downriggers, digital depth probes, tool holders, etc., proved to be a piece of cake The Phantom tracks nicely in a following sea, but can also troll into the waves and even quarters waves nicely while trolling when the conditions dictate.
The bottom of the boat is exceptionally wide and a pronounced reverse chine hull design produces a stable fishing platform in all wave conditions. Since this first prototype was designed, SmokerCraft has expanded the line up of Phantom boats to include a X2-18 and new for 2022 an X2-20 OS a boat that includes a factory designed off shore bracket for the outboard and kicker motor mounting.
The off shore bracket essentially extends the boat a little more than two feet, helping create an even better rough water design. The inside of the X2-20 OS also features a somewhat different layout. Instead of a traditional splash well, the back of the boat features a fish box that runs the full length of the transom. Built into this design is a wash down sink, cutting board and a heavy duty wash down pump and hose for clean up chores.
Josh Crabtree a steelhead fishing enthusiast from Michigan was one of the first anglers to fish from the X2-20 Phantom. At this point the boat was still a prototype, but totally functional.
The X2-20 OS also features an optional hard top that encloses the area from the windshield to about half of the cockpit space. The top features a canvas roof and vinyl drop down curtains on the sides and back. Inside the hard top are welded-in shelf units for storage. At the time this article is being written, the hard top design is just being completed and should be available soon.
The boat comes standard with two captains seats at the helm and for the co-pilot and two fold down bench seats that also double for tackle storage. The gunwales are wide and easily accept various lengths of track for mounting rod holders, down-riggers and other accessories. Inside the gunwales there are two extrusions that allow additional accessories to be mounted to the inside edge of the gunwale.
When SmokerCraft offered me an opportunity to run this new X2-20 OS I jumped at the chance to help them create a serious trolling machine that can handle everything the Great Lakes has to offer from salmon and trout to walleye, musky and much more. My boat will be rigged with a 250 HP Yamaha V-Max Outboard and a 9.9 HP Yamaha kicker motor. Preliminary tests indicate this boat will run about 55 MPH with this outboard setup.
The Phantom X2-20 OS was designed in part to celebrate SmokerCraft’s 100th anniversary. A milestone like this is some-thing very few boat manufacturers will ever be able to list on their resume!
The first X2 Phantom prototype built two years ago was in my possession from early September to late December. During that time the Fishing 411 TV staff dragged that boat all over the place. We shot television episodes from the boat, did numerous photo shoots and also conducted test rides for anglers who wanted to see for themself what a heavy gauge aluminum boat is capable of.
When the new Phantom X2-20 OS is delivered and the rigging process is complete, the goal is to film TV episodes from this boat in all five of the Great Lakes during the spring, summer and fall of 2022.
The advent of the heavy gauge aluminum fishing boat is just starting to penetrate the Great Lakes. Many of the top manufacturers have gained serious dealer support in recent years and indications are that the heavy gauge phenomenon is here to stay. One thing is for sure, as the big water fishing boat market continues to evolve, these heavy gauge boats are sure to turn some heads.
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