re: Is there a perfect duck boat? Width, motor, long tail, short tail?

Do you recommend belt or gear driven? how much did your dual rig cost ya? I'll mainly be hunting marsh, but would like to have the option of flooded timber. How much of a pain is the tiller on long runs?

I have a gatortail but the people I know that have prodrives like them and haven't really had problems with them. Gatortail is belt driven and has instant reverse, prodrive is gear powered and has full power reverse. Also, prodrives are heavier which is one of the reasons why I went with a gatortail (because of my boat). Honestly, both are good motors and it just depends on what you're looking for. I would not go wider than 18x54 for a duck hunting boat if you will be running any kind of timber or marshes with narrow areas. Really I would recommend an 18x48, but if you will be doing fishing I would go with the 18x54 for stability purposes.

Yes but that's the smallest I would go. I know people who go in much smaller boats but I wouldn't want to do that shite. And an 18x48 isn't bad to fish out of, especially if hunting is the main use for the boat and not fishing. Hell, I fish out of my 16x42 skiff with a 25hp gatortail and its not that bad. A lot easier to clean up after a fishing trip than an 18' bay boat.

Depending on what you're getting, that's about right. A 36 PD with auto reverse is quite expensive. And the boats are pretty expensive too, depending on the model and what extras you are getting. You can change from a CC to a tiller and vice versa, but I would recommend getting a tiller first because while a CC is nice for long rides, it isn't as good as the tiller at "digging" to get out of mud/lillies/grass. Not saying it can't, I'm just saying its easier to work a tiller.

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Full reverse on a prodrive is legit to have when you play hard

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agreed. It's better than having an inboard with reverse, which was always the standard for getting out of some nasty shite

Dual rig cost me 35k easy but mine wasn’t plain jane.

All the guys saying go tiller have never driven a console I bet. Yes a tiller will get un stuck easy but I spend most of my time driving not getting stuck. If you get a prodrive get hydraulic everything or you wont use the reverse trust me.

You going to be driving through grass or mud?

Nothing will touch a pro drive in the grass. Belt driven motors are normally a mile an hour faster. I like both prodrive and gatortail actually. Let me know where you plan to hunt and I will give my opinion.

How fast can you run in your dual rig? Was it worth it? I'm planning on hunting the Wax, Atchafalya Delta, etc.

At this point, having made that trip enough, get an aluminum boat with about 150 horses on the back. Hunt open water. You'll be hauling arse up and down the river, hunt open water

Surface drives make for a long boat ride.

Well tiller isn't really much of an option with duals, unless you like a good workout every time you take your boat out. But I do agree that CC are better for fishing, but OP wants it mainly for hunting so I would go with a tiller. Drive both and see what you think and which one you like better, that's my best advice.