Based on the manufacturer listed weight of 30 of the top Flats Boats on the market, the average flats boat weighs approximately 870 pounds “dry” which excludes weight of fuel, water, and most equipment.
The goal of most flats boat manufacturers is to reduce the weight of the boat as much as possible in order to improve overall efficiency both with fuel consumption and the amount of draft of the boat. There are a lot of contributors the weight of a boat to include: hull shape and material, deck material, overall boat length, beam size (width), and engine size.
Flats boats are a highly customized boat that are tailored to fit exactly what the angler needs based on their fishing style, location, and comfort preferences. Minor tweaks to the attributes listed above can have a high impact to weight of a flats boat because they are typically so light to begin with. Most manufacturers list a range of weights (low end to high end) which can be adjusted through additional customization from the base weights.
Here are a few examples of popular flats boats and their corresponding advertised weight (high end) when fully rigged:
| Manufacturer | Model | Length | Beam | Draft | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hell's Bay | Eldora | 16′ 4″ | 69″ | 3.5″ | 350 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Whipray | 16′ 4″ | 70″ | 3.5″ | 570 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Waterman | 18′ 0″ | 73″ | 4.5″ | 610 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Professional | 17′ 8″ | 73″ | 4.5″ | 625 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Guide | 18′ 4″ | 73″ | 4.5″ | 695 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Glades | 17′ 8″ | 58″ | 4″ | 440 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Biscayne | 16′ 4″ | 70″ | 7″ | 595 lb |
| Hell's Bay | Marquesa | 18′ 1″ | 79″ | 7″ | 695 lb |
| Chittum Skiffs | Islamorada 18| Legacy | 18′ 0″ | 80″ | 8″ | 650 lb |
| Chittum Skiffs | Islamorada 18 | Snake Bight | 18′ 0″ | 80″ | 8″ | 550 lb |
| Chittum Skiffs | Islamorada 18| Laguna Madre | 18′ 0″ | 80″ | 6″ | 650 lb |
| Chittum Skiffs | Islamorada 18| Mangrove | 18′ 0″ | 80″ | 7″ | 450 lb |
| Chittum Skiffs | Islamorada 21| Legacy | 21′ 0″ | 88″ | 9″ | 750 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 16 Micro | 16′ 8″ | 60″ | 5″ | 400 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 18 Mosquito | 18′ 2″ | 70″ | 6″ | 540 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 17 Strike | 17′ 6″ | 73″ | 7″ | 550 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 17 Elite | 17′ 8″ | 72″ | 8″ | 600 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 18 Vengance | 18′ 0″ | 82″ | 8″ | 675 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 18 Air | 18′ 3″ | 77″ | 9″ | 700 lb |
| Beavertail Skiffs | 20 Lightning | 20′ 0″ | 82″ | 11″ | 1200 lb |
| Maverick | 17 HPX-S | 17′ 8″ | 74″ | 6″ | 1175 lb |
| Maverick | 17 HPX-V | 16′ 9″ | 75″ | 8″ | 1250 lb |
| Maverick | 18 HPX-V | 18′ 4″ | 80″ | 9″ | 1460 lb |
| Hewes | 16 Redfisher | 16′ 6″ | 87″ | 11″ | 1700 lb |
| Hewes | 18 Redfisher | 18′ 10″ | 95″ | 10″ | 1900 lb |
| Hewes | 20 Redfisher | 21′ 6″ | 102″ | 14″ | 2850 lb |
Construction Material Weight
Hull material can make huge differences in the weight of a boat. Manufacturers who incorporate higher strength materials such as kevlar or carbon fiber in their hull lamination can reduce the overall weight of the boat. This is possible because of the ability to use less material for the same strength and stiffness.
An easy way to see this in action is by comparing build options at offered by Chittum Skiffs. Here we can take the same hull, for example the Islamorada 18 Legacy edition, and vary the lamination option from either 10%, 50%, or 100% to get a swing in weight of 200 pounds.
| Lamination Option | % Carbon Fiber | Weight |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | 10% | 650 lb |
| Carbon System | 50% | 550 lb |
| Carbon Fiber | 100% | 450 lb |
Engine Weight
Weight of the engine is typically the most significant impact to overall weight besides the hull design and construction. Picking the right size engine is very important when it comes optimizing a flats boat to fit your fishing style and needs. Too often anglers want to jump right to the largest engine for which a boat is rated. This may be great for a large offshore fishing boat that don't need to be concerned with navigating skinny waters. However, for skiffs, this could be the difference between a 4″ draft and a 7″ draft.
Flats boats can be rigged with outboard engines as small as 15 HP and, on large flats boat, up to 200 HP. It is rare to see a flats boat with an outboard above 200 HP and most would even knock a boat that size out of the skiff category. Most traditional skiffs however will be powered with an engine in the 50 hp to 125 hp range. On a boat such as the Hells Bay Marquesa I like the Mercury Pro XS 115 for its high power to weight ratio.
The table below shows 6 top outboard engine brands and 15 common models that are found on flats boats. These engines range from 60HP to 115 HP and range from 209 lb to 392 lb. Follow the link on each row to visit the respective manufacturer's website to view more details on each specific engine.
| Brand | Model | HP | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yamaha | F60 | 60 | 247 lb |
| Yamaha | F70 | 70 | 253 lb |
| Yamaha | F90 | 90 | 353 lb |
| Yamaha | F115 | 115 | 377 lb |
| Tohatsu | MFS50A | 50 | 209 lb |
| Tohatsu | BTF90AK1 | 90 | 359 lb |
| Tohatsu | MFS115A | 115 | 392 lb |
| Honda | BF 50 | 50 | 214 lb |
| Mercury | 60 E.F.I | 60 | 247 lb |
| Mercury | 115 Pro XS | 115 | 359 lb |
| Suzuki | DF60AV | 60 | 229 lb |
| Suzuki | DF90A | 90 | 348 lb |
| Evinrude | E-TEC 60 | 60 | 250 lb |
| Evinrude | E-TEC 90 | 90 | 320 lb |
| Evinrude | E-TEC 115 | 115 | 390 lb |
Fuel and Water Weight
Flats boats have fuel capacity from anywhere between 6 gallons up to about 55 gallons with the average somewhere around the 25 gallon mark. Unleaded gas weighs in at about 6.3 pounds per gallon which would put the added fuel weight range of about 57 pounds on the low end (9 gal) up to 346 pounds on the high end (55 gal) with an average of 158 pounds (25 gal).
Not all boats have onboard live-wells since some fishermen prefer to use their bucket with an aerator system. However, the majority will have one or more live-wells with capacity typically around 15 to 30 gallons. At 8 pounds per gallon of water, live-well water can add 120 to 240 pounds to the overall weight of your boat.
Options and Accessories
Most manufacturers provide additional options to be included into the build to provide more fishing features. Everything comes with a cost, both dollars and weight so an angler looking to reduce both of these should look closely at every option before adding it to the build.
Standard options offered by most flats boat include: a polling platform, casting platform, power pole, trolling motor, electronics, and batteries.
Polling and Casting Platform Weight
Polling and casting platforms are typically pretty light weight and constructed of polished or powder coated aluminum. Adding one of each of these to your build will typical only cost you about 100 pounds; 50 – 80 for the polling platform and 20 – 30 for the casting platform.
Power Pole Weight
Power poles are another great option for easily anchoring your boat in a location without the need of a loud and clunky anchor. The Power-Pole Blade is a great option for most flats boats which comes in an 8 foot or 10 foot option which only adds about 38 pounds to your build.
Trolling Motor Weight
Trolling motors are another option that can be added to your flats boat. Some fishermen tend to stick to technical polling and choose to leave the trolling motor off. However, if you like to head out on the water alone like I do, it can be pretty difficult to poll, look for fish, and cast all at the same time. Using a trolling motor helps lighten the load quite a bit in comparison to polling, but it also adds deck obstruction, cost, noise, and some weight.
Today's trolling motors are pretty light weight and don't add too much to the overall weight of your boat. The average saltwater trolling motor will typically only add about 30 lb to your boat by itself, however they will require you boat to have an additional battery in order to operate it.
Battery Weight
Most flats boats will need 1 – 3 batteries depending on accessory choices such as trolling motors and other high usage electronics. Most will require at least one as a starter battery unless the boat is rigged with a very small pull start engine. It is also wise in general to have a spare battery onboard so you don't get stranded from a dead or faulted battery.
Batteries will weigh anywhere from about 25 lbs for a low capacity battery up to about 60 lbs for higher capacity. Assuming we will be somewhere in between, and that we have one battery for the starter, one for the trolling motor and accessories, and a spare, we are looking at an added weight of about 125 lbs due to batteries.
Weight Vs Ride Comfort
Does hull weight directly contribute to ride comfort? There are a number of factors that can contribute to a smoother ride such as weight, length, beam, deadrise, and other hull design features such as strakes and chines. With all other attributes being equal a heavier boat will in general have a smoother ride. However, I would not call the weight of a boat to be the main contributor in determining how well a boat will ride.
Hull design, not weight, is the most important thing to consider when looking for a boat that will deliver a comfortable ride. Specifically, the deadrise of a boat is usually a leading indicator of how well a boat will cut through chop and reduce bounce. However, just like weight, higher deadrise will also add to the amount of draft the boat will have.
Weight Vs Stability
Just like above, there are many attributes that can impact stability of a boat. Weight certainly can be one of them, but beam will be more more of a leading indicator for stability. In general, all other things equal, a heavier boat will be more stable. However, a 650 pound narrow boat with a 4′ beam will likely be much less stable than a 450 pound boat with a 7′ beam.
Weight Vs Draft
Draft is likely the one attribute of a boat that anglers are keeping an eye on. Shallow water fishermen need to get in and over very shallow waters to chase the fish held up in small holding ponds waiting on the tide to come in.
The range of draft a boat has is optimized through reduction of weight and design of the hull. Beam and deadrise play huge parts of determining the range of draft a boat will have and weight will determine where in that range a specific boat will sit.
For example, Chittum Skiff's Islamorada 18 Legacy has a advertised draft of 5″ to 8″. Choosing hull construction material such as 100% carbon fiber and an engine on the low end of spectrum will give you a boat drafting at closer to the 5″ range. If we opt to save some money an go with the standard construction material and go high end on the engine size we will end up being closer to the 8″ draft.
Building the Dream Flats Boat
There are infinite ways to customize a flats boat today and with all the advance manufacturing process out there they are just getting lighter and faster. This is true not just for hull fabrication but also engine weights as well.
If you are looking for a new flats boat just remember that weight is your enemy, but isn't the only variable in the equation. Weight along with length, beam, shape, and accessories should be looked at when picking the best boat for your application. If you are looking to get in super shallow water and don't need to travel long distances or through much chop, a light flatter boat may be great. However, if you are taking a crew of 3 or more and need to head across a bay or lagoon where chop can pick up a bit, perhaps a boat with a little more size may be needed to keep you and the crew comfortable and dry on your journey.
Luckily the folks at some of the top custom skiff manufacturers can help take the guess work away through their custom design and build processes. The best out there will build you a custom boats, that will fit your every need, optimized through 1 on 1 consultations with the builders. To lean more about these manufacturers, click along to view our article on the top 6 saltwater skiff manufacturers in the business today.
