V-Nose punt Or Normal Tinny

[purnong]

I'm in the market for a new 12'ish Tinny
The boat will be used primarily in the Murray river in South Oz and I'm leaning towards a V-Nose punt but I have never been in one, Had plenty of normal tinny's over the years so am quite familiar with those
Just wondering what peoples opinions are on the pro's and cons of either, Top of the list at the moment is the Quintrex 3.7 Explorer
I already have a Mercury 15hp Super and trailer so not looking to go any bigger than 3.8 or so
Any advice appreciated

[Chas & Clarry]

Just switched over from a "normal" to a Vpunt type (after 30 years in normal tinnies) and cannot believe the extra space (very beamy) and stability for a similar sized tinny. We only fish estuary and rivers these days, so made the decision to go this way. Ours is a TABS Bullshark. Very happy with it.

Tim and Trace

[Any_Weather]

Gday mate, I am not an expert by any means but after having a V-nose punt I would not go back to a normal tinny. I have a 385 quintrex explorer and I think it is awesome. I only use it in the pumistone passage and on dams but it handles the choppy stuff pretty well. After having a normal 4.2m seajay (it was a great little boat to) tinny that was very wet in any sort of breeze, I would not go back. The explorer is very dry for the size and unless it is very windy, there is very little spray. There is a BIGdifference between the 3.7m explorer and the 385. The 385 is alot wider. I run a 25hp Yamaha on mine and it goes well. I am not sure how a 15hp would go but I am sure someone else on here will help with that.

Thanks
Lee

[purnong]

Thanks for the replies fella's
What you are saying is encouraging and helping to make the decision easier, How I got to this point is that I have an old Clark 12' tinny and was running a 1977 Johnno 9.9 that the gearbox died on
So I bought the new Merc 15 Super (Tohatsu 18hp) and I'm fairly concerned the transom on the old Clark is not up to it, It is fairly flimsy and there is no engine rating on the hull anywhere and I don't really want to see the motor drop off the back
The 3.7 Explorer is big enough for what i need and I reckon the Merc should be a good combo, I have a bigger boat at home for ocean use so this will mostly be in the river
Another question, Can you go in shallower water with the v-nose or is their nothing much in it? I'd imagine the leg is the same depth under the boat

[Chas & Clarry]

Lee makes a good point about being drier too...we have already experienced that the Bullshark is definitely drier than our old Abolone was (but Adolone are notorously wet boats).

Can get a bit shallower if you are prepared to pole along...but really it is pretty minor IMO.

If you have a big boat for outside I'd be voting for the punt for the river

[braders83]

I've got a Bermuda V-nose punt. I agree with all of the comments above - but a coule of things i've found:
* In large rivers where the swell can get up a bit it doesn't chop through the water as good as a normal tinny (a lot more bouncy - but less spray if that makes sense)
* I have a new 15hp yammy on mine and I do a fair bit of fishing by myself. Even with my gear in it on the plane - it's probably a little overpowered. Weird to say I know but I certainly wouldn't want to go any faster by myself in an estuary - it bloody flies and i'm no stringbean!
I'm sure the positives outweigh the negatives and it would suit you down the murray (never been there but from what i can gather it's not a wide moreton bay or clarence river?). Based on where i fish i'm thinking of upgrading to a normal tinny that can handle more adverse weather a bit better in the waterways that i commonly fish.
Good luck!

[purnong]

Thanks all
After all the above comments I'm definitely leaning towards the V-nose, The Murray River where I normally go is only 150 metres wide but it can still get a fair wind chop on it at times