I/O vs Jet Boat

I know there has to be a post about this, I searched and cant seem to find it. I am looking to purchase an Ultra type boat (what are they officially called anyways?) some are I/O and some are Jet. I've never owned a Jet boat and not sure If I want to. A link to a prior discussion or opinions wanted!

Thanks

You're talking apples and oranges in propulsion terms.

If you don't need a jet (i.e. you boat in Havasu) then don't buy one.

If you boat in shallow areas, such as the lower river, then it's a viable option.

PM 460 and he will give you the whole scoop and then mail you a free MAB t-shirt

rivrrts429 said:

You're talking apples and oranges in propulsion terms.

If you don't need a jet (i.e. you boat in Havasu) then don't buy one.

If you boat in shallow areas, such as the lower river, then it's a viable option.

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No I dont need a jet. I was just curious as far as Maintenance and stuff.

You should definitely pm 460

Jet Pros:
Minimal maintenance compared to i/o's in terms or cost and frequency.
Not having to worry as much about how shallow certain stretches of the river are.
Safety as is in not having to worry about people acting wreck less and cutting themselves on your prop.

Jet Cons:
Fuel economy
Power / thrust ratio is horrible
Inmates on RDP will make fun of you for owning one.

SIK-06 said:

No I dont need a jet. I was just curious as far as Maintenance and stuff.

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I've owned Inboards, Outboards, Sterndrives, and Jets.

The Jet by far is the lowest Maintenance.

DeltaSigBoater said:

I've owned Inboards, Outboards, Sterndrives, and Jets.

The Jet by far is the lowest Maintenance.

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Very true, however when your watching your fuel gauge and speedometer having a contest to see which one gets to the other side fastest the extra maintenance costs on other type drives dont seem so bad.

Narrow rivers jets are a pain in the ass. No turning radius, well on most anyway.

Good way to land yourself on the shoreline.

Jet just takes a few squirts of grease from time to time.

As for their turning ability, its hard to match them in that regard.

Rajobigguy said:

Very true, however when your watching your fuel gauge and speedometer having a contest to see which one gets to the other side fastest the extra maintenance costs on other type drives dont seem so bad.

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My Jet boat, has neither

Unless you are going to boat in shallow water go with an i/o.

I have a eliminator 207 350mag carbed/alpha drive it is very easy on fuel will top out at 60 on a good day about 58 on average.The same boat in a jet with a big block may be lucky to match the speed and will suck the fuel down.Newer 350 mag or the 6.2 come with the bravo and make great power and a better choice.

As for maintenance for drive its a gear oil change once a season.I have had a prop shaft seal get damaged by fishing line it was a 250 dollar job and had water pump impeller changed too.Just had a gimbal bearing and bellows changed last year that was about 700 bucks.This was over the period of 12-13 years.

Jets are a simple deal but if you have pump work done it will make it more effecient but i prefer an i/o for larger boats and jets for 19 and under.

Jet botes (this is the correct spelling of a jet ) are less efficient and slower than I/O but everyone on this site will tell you that jet bote drivers are better looking and way cooler than any other propulsion type boat! :thumbsup Oh, and they get more hot chicks!

ChiliPepperGarage said:

Jet botes (this is the correct spelling of a jet ) are less efficient and slower than I/O but everyone on this site will tell you that jet bote drivers are better looking and way cooler than any other propulsion type boat! :thumbsup Oh, and they get more hot chicks!

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Slower? But it has the word "jet" in it, so it must be fast. Hahahaha j/k.

First let's ask a few questions....

1) where do you boat?

2) Male or Female?

bobbytheboozer said:

Slower? But it has the word "jet" in it, so it must be fast. Hahahaha j/k.

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Every one of them on Craigslist does 100+ . [emoji41]

ductape1000 said:

Every one of them on Craigslist does 100+ . [emoji41]

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beat me to it:skull

RCDave said:

As for their turning ability, its hard to match them in that regard.

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As long as you have a running engine and the pump isn't plugged up- Id agree.

If you lose an engine at the wrong time it's like docking with soyuz.

UD

The I/O will drink some gas the Jet will suck your wallet...

H20-ski said:

Narrow rivers jets are a pain in the ass. No turning radius, well on most anyway.

Good way to land yourself on the shoreline.

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I beg to differ

Canuck 1 said:

I beg to differ View attachment 471015

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Bnag!

My Dad owned a jet for 33 years and may have spent a grand total of 300 bucks on it during that time. His I/O he's had for less then 10, well lets just say it's much more then 300 bucks. That having been said the I/O is much on performance.

A jet is only good if you have an almost flat bottom and almost no freeboard. Off the river they suck, the slightest chop and you are miserable. They are o.k. if you stay on the river and low to no wind. On most lakes they are a nightmare, especially with wakeboard boats around! Maintenance is pretty much zero. I/O on anything with a deeper V and some freeboard. As in most boats is the only way to go.

[video=youtube;smN8pAXoiCo]https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=smN8pAXoiCo[/video]

BaHahaha!...No turning radius! :lmao There are jet boats, (thong & pasty haulers) that go fast, and there are ultra Jet boats! ...Like in the video!

My boat has a radius hull, and so maneuverable it's scary!... It can run in 8" of water on step, has tackled class III and IV rapids! :thumbsup Plus it's all weather! (windshield wipers, closed system heater, and shock spring'd seats) fer year round fish'n and fun!

Buy a jet. most started out with one, some of us still have one. :thumbsup
needs a tight pump and a place diverter.
if your worried about stopping at the gas dock. you shouldn't buy a boat. :rolleyes

I'd go with a jet boat roll bar boat!!

Always travel up river in a jet boat, if you run out of gas you can always float back. Been there done that...

Jets actually turn pretty well.

was thatguy said:

Jets actually turn pretty well.

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That was bitchen! Worth a watch

nowski said:

Always travel up river in a jet boat, if you run out of gas you can always float back. Been there done that...

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What would you do if you ran out of gas in an I/O down river? :hmm

Waffles said:

Jet Pros:
Minimal maintenance compared to i/o's in terms or cost and frequency.
Not having to worry as much about how shallow certain stretches of the river are.
Safety as is in not having to worry about people acting wreck less and cutting themselves on your prop.

Jet Cons:
Fuel economy
Power / thrust ratio is horrible
Inmates on RDP will make fun of you for owning one.

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Basically, the difference is this ^.

Some people like the way jets drive, some don't. Jets need thrust to turn, so you have to give it gas into a turn.
Jets are "usually" quicker to get on plane where an I/O will probably have more speed and gas efficiency.

Are you looking at 21' open bow models? Do you want a higher freeboard?

Jets can be great boats. The worst part is dealing with the this crowd. oint
And even that's not too bad.

brgrcru said:

Buy a jet. most started out with one, some of us still have one. :thumbsup
needs a tight pump and a place diverter.
if your worried about stopping at the gas dock. you shouldn't buy a boat. :rolleyes

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After I had my pump blueprinted, I used to run up and down from Havasu to Topock all weekend long and still pull a few skiers on 40 gallon of gas, not that much different than my IO.:thumbsup

I've had 2 Miller jets (still have our kick ass '79), a 5 rib hydro, 2 flatties, 2 Glastron I/O's, and various whackers also...even had an airboat up in Alaska.

They are all different and any one of them can be efficient or inefficient.
Our Miller was a total gas hog until I built a pair of custom 4150 750's for the BBC.
Now we run it hard all day and never use more than 12 gallons or so.
Before the pump build and the carb swap that would be at least 25 gallons, probably more.
It does over 80 MPH, can pull skiers, and is a blast to drive.
It's a lot of fun hearing all the jokes and then laying waste to most of the haters. And it's at the point now where it literally never breaks. (Knock on 'glass!!)

BUT it is what it is...a 19' playboat with no illusions.
I would never consider a bigger boat with a jet unless we are talking a full blown riverboat.

I guess I/0 don't use much gas, since they sit on the beach all day. Probably not much fun to drive? :skull

FreeBird236 said:

After I had my pump blueprinted, I used to run up and down from Havasu to Topock all weekend long and still pull a few skiers on 40 gallon of gas, not that much different than my IO.:thumbsup

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I have a commander 21' jet and a buddy has a 21' carrera both 454 ' s his bravo 1 we use within 3 gals of gas going the same speed and distance!

[video=youtube;0Q0lL1iRo54]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Q0lL1iRo54[/video]

These Mini's are pretty awesome little machines!

It doesn't really matter if it is a jet, i/o, or o/b I have owned or borrowed all 3 and I had a great time all day on all 3 and all 3 will get you on the water and get you wet, that's the ultimate goal right.

ChiliPepperGarage said:

Jet botes (this is the correct spelling of a jet ) are less efficient and slower than I/O but everyone on this site will tell you that jet bote drivers are better looking and way cooler than any other propulsion type boat! [emoji106]D Oh, and they get more hot chicks!

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So ya saying these jet boats come standard with these so called "Pussy magnets"
[video=youtube_https;9z-uYMrWTCc]https://youtu.be/9z-uYMrWTCc[/video]

Jimmy said:

So ya saying these jet boats come standard with these so called "Pussy magnets"

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They must have. Mention the term on this board and you have pussies waving their arms in disgust.

If your into driving a boat, like enjoy driving a boat in the water a jet is a lot of fun. If mine had larger tanks and I had a larger wallet I could drive mine sunrise to sunset. There is something about left side drive and a gas pedal.

SIK-06 said:

I know there has to be a post about this, I searched and cant seem to find it. I am looking to purchase an Ultra type boat (what are they officially called anyways?) some are I/O and some are Jet. I've never owned a Jet boat and not sure If I want to. A link to a prior discussion or opinions wanted!

Thanks

Click to expand...

At this point all here have formed opinions on jets vs I/O's, outboards, and straight drive inboards and V-drives. Each has their positives and negatives. I started out with 2-stroke outboards and have a soft spot for them. I've owned a straight drive inboard (1941 Chris Craft 16'er) and it drove great. Have owned several I/O's over the years and they had their issues both positive and negative.

A friend bought a Sugar Sand with a V6 Merc jet drive. It was an absolute blast to drive. OTOH I was glad I didn't own it, at least not as a primary boat.

The key here is not what any one of us think about them, pro or con. But what YOU think. You have to ask yourself "Do I want to own that?" What do you see yourself doing with it? The big thing is intended use. Once you have decided what you want to do with your boat, then you can decide what kind of drive system best suits you.