TUFFY BOATS

[BigWadeS]

I am wondering if anyone has had any experiance's with these boats. Good or bad I am just wondering if they are as good as a couple people tell me.

[Northlander]

I have only ridden in 2 tuffies. Smooth ride and stable. Good fishin boats. Not speedy by any means but seemed to be a good fishin boat. I dont know anything else about them as far as problem areas.

[ChuckN]

If I had the option to buy a new boat, Tuffy is high on the list. Fished next to a couple of these boats in the past and I was impressed. They are really fast, dry and roomy. The Osprey 1890 would be my choice.

[dfv87]

Send out a page on the boards for Jet Man (Bill Sloneker) as I know he has one and I have fished out of it with him. It is a nice boat, but he drives a little crazy on Mille Lacs. 50 MPH on the bow seat of a tiller boat feels alot like the nose of a rocket. Sit down hold on and shut up!

Anyway he could give you all the straight dope on the Tuffy boats.

[waskawood]

I bought a 1760 tiller with a 90 Suzuki last August. I really like the boat and it fits my stytle of fishing very well. It has a center rod locker so it has a large casting deck which takes away from the cockpit area. I fish alone or with one other person so it is not a problem for me. It is structually very sound. Hit it as hard as you can with your fist and then do the same with another glass boat. It is dry and so are the storage compartments. It is the only glass boat I have owned so I can't compare it to the rest. I get 35 MPH on my GPS when alone. If you want a wider boat, the 1890 looks sweet.

[PerchJerker]

I pretty much agree with Chuck N. Nice boats, high on the list. Fast and dry, I thought they were kind of narrow and sat kind of low in the transom though (I am referring to console models that I've seen and been in). They sure look good on the water and running down the lake.

[Northlander]

Chuckn and Perchjerker you guys saw a Tuffy that you consider fast? What do you consider fast?

[Jim Hudson]

Tuffy Boats are very nice!!! The new line-up of the Osprey series are tough to beat for overall construction and for their big water ride.

A friend of mine runs an 06 2060 Osprey and the boat takes big water like a dream and the layout is very fisherman friendly. He runs a 225 Opti on his and it will run about 62MPH on the GPS, his previous boat was also a Tuffy that had a 225 Mercury EFI and he said that boat was a bit faster. The new models have a 25inch transom, which has changed from what I have heard, as before they had the 20inch transom.

The 2060 lacks a bit of width, with only a 90 inch beam, but this allows the boat to cut waves better and the big water ride is much smoother. Now the 1890 has a 96 inch beam, but I have never rode in one of them. The 2060 is rated for a 250.. so you could really get a screamer of a boat there.. And the 1890 has a 200 rating, another screamer. Another local guide runs a 1760 Osprey and really likes that boat as well. And all that I have talked to really love the customer service from Tuffy.

And I do believe, they are coming out with a 21 foot model next year, that should be rated for a 300HP.

One thing I really like about these boats is the touch pad electrical panel these boats have. Very easy to rig your electronics and master power.

[PerchJerker]

I've seen them run the same speeds Jim is talking about, upper 50's with 200's on the 19 foot boats. I was passed by a guy in the 20 footer, don't recall what motor he had, but he said with light loads he can run low 60's. I think Tuffy's look good flying over the water, the high bow and low transom give them kind of a unique look.

[ChuckN]

Northlander, check out their website. Those hulls draft water extremely well. They probably have one of the fastest hulls out there, not to mention ride.

In a tournament down a long narrow lake there were 2 Tuffys. One a 2060 with 225 and a 1890 with a 200. The 20' was in the mid-low 60's and the 1890 was around 60mph. I was going 53 and they caught up to me and passed in no time flat.

The Tuffy's hull resembles my Skeeter, but seemed the Tuffy performed better in all aspects it seemed. I have never driven one, but I would not rule them out if I were shopping. I have never heard of a person complain about a Tuffy neither.

We are not talking about their old tri-hulls here. I've actually fished in those older boats and, yes, no comparison to their new, redesign hulls.

[jet man]

I have now ran my 2060T with the F150 Yamaha and the Mertens enginesteer system for two seasons. The hull is awesome; stable, fast and handles rought water like dream. When I prop tested with a light load I actually hit 53 MPH with a 150 on a 20' 6" long boat. Full tourney load still hit 49.5 at 5900 rpm. It makes a great tiller boat becuase the 90 " beam is pefect. Excellent backtrolling boat as well. Tuffys have a larhe front deck so us multispecies guys love them becuase they have large casting platform. Also the center rod locker can handle 14 rods and 8'6" with ease.

One piece top cap makes for totally dry storage the way it is designed.

This boat has handled the worst Mill Lacs has to offer and done it well.

I live in big lake and if anyone wants to look or test ride let me know.

[BigWadeS]

Thank you all for your responses, still makes for some tough, but fun choices. I certainly haven't heard anything negative about them, at least not yet. The speed thing for me isn't that important, 30-40 mph on water is fast enough for me.

[Northlander]

Wow I didnt know Tuffy had tweeked their hulls so much. I remember Tuffys that I saw as being pretty blocky. Nice to see that a boat designer is getting the job done and keeping people happy after the sale. Not a common thing these days with boats or any vehicle.

So who has the fatsest hulls? Triton, Ranger, Skeeter, Tuffy, Champion? Glass of course.

[Rost]

I have always heard that the old tracker (glass) Targa had the fastest hull. Now that they are gone, I wonder who has taken the crown.

Speeking of, my buddy had a glass Targa with a Merc 225 Nitro on the back. Wow! The first time we dropped the throttle it sorta freaked me out!!