I am having a hull made that is 18ft by 44 inches. What size motor should I put on something that size?

They are asking about the transom but I hadn't even given it a thought. If the transom is made for a larger motor could I still put a smaller motor on the boat and be fine?

outboard or mm?

And no..you CANNOT put a short shafted motor on a tall transom and vice versa and expect it to run right

Ok. Guess I will need to get this figured out pretty quick. Planned on an outboard motor.

Bertram?

you can get mud motors with kits for high transoms but you'll lose some efficiency as the kits add drag... when i was shopping around i wanted a 20 in transom becasue I park my boat over night on a channel with high boat traffic, but ended up going with a shorter...you can get a 23 hp motor for a tall transom and i wouldn't go any smaller than that with the boat your having made...if you don't have any limitations, i.e. hunting public, get a 35 hp mm.......if youre not running through shallow shallow water for long distances (over a couple hundred yards), then get an outboard....i still need a mud motor...i've been caught inland for hours because of stupid mistakes

I have a few questions for you, what type of areas do you hunt, how many people do you take and how much gear do you carry??? If you hunt alot of shallows a mudmotor will definately be your friend, if you run open water no stumps, no mud, etc. an outboard will be perfect for you and not to mention be faster, I run a 1638 mud hull with pods and a 27 horsepower mud buddy hyperdrive, the only thing I wish I had done different with the setup, would have been to go with a wider boat because of the amount of gear and people I typically carry

What kind of water are you hunting? Be specific.

PRO DRIVE< PRO DRIVE!!! 36 hp should do it.

Not to many people complain about their boats being too fast or motor being too big. I'd buy all you can afford/boat is rated for.

I run a 16 footer with a 85hp and a 15 footer w/ a 31hp MB. For some reason on those long loaded down runs I still wish they were both faster!!

Another thing to consider: Some of your better waterfowl hunting is found in shallow areas, often with vegetation. It would certainly suck to get stuck on a sandbar in cold water.

Not sure where you heard that but that is incorrect. What makes a tall transom model mudmotor is the lengthened geardrive ( Prodrive and MB's new Sport V's ands H's) and belt housings of a (GD, G Tail or MB Sports). The longer geardrives and belt housings ( roughly 4") makes up the difference in the taller transom ( 21") boat models. The outdrives still run with the same attitude and angle into water( on the surface) as a short Transom ( 16")boat with a short transom model motor. There is no "drag" or loss of performance when matched. If you were to hang a tall transom model motor on a short transom boat then yes the angle at which the prop would run when trimmed up to surface would cause the rear end to push down, thus creating rear end drag and squat. Hole shot would suck and mid/top end would be terrible. Conversely, if you were to hang a short transom motor on a tall trasom boat, then you would have the bow being forced down cuz causing front end drag, zero holeshot and cavitation out the wazoo.

Guys need to remember that that is the biggest factor when getting a mm for your hull. It has to match the transom specs. Also, condition of transom is very important. I have had guys strengthen their transoms to make sure that these 300 lb motors will have enough support to handle them in the water and trailering down the road. If you have a wooden transom on your jon boat I suggest you take it to an alum fabricator and have it beefed up with at least 1/4" plate aluminum and preferably knee brace support as well. These motors put ALOT of force on a transom when running thru obstruction laden waters and even when bouncing down the highway trailering your rig. The smaller motors ( 23 hp and under) can still create enough force to crack a weak transom as well. I have seen and heard of folks' motors fall off cracked transoms cuz they were not supported enough. Most happened going down the highway. If you are gonna drop $4-$10K on a mm, spend another couple hunsky's and get the transom where it needs to be if things looks suspect on it.

So let it be written...so let it be done