12ft. Jon boat to Flats boat conversion

2015 Tracker 12w I converted into a flats boat. Super awesome little skiff for the bays and affordable. Powered by a 2015 Suzuki DF6, I can run all day on 1 gallon of gas. It does about 17mph, 22mph when the boat was completely stock.

[@themilfordfamily1656]

I only have one thing to say about your boat.....BAD AZZ!!!!! This is by far the best job boat on the tube

[@trippincircuitz]

the best jon boat modification I seen so far

[@shallowminded241]

thanks man!

[@Oldcarguy55-69]

I too think this is the best all round build on utube been looking for months keep coming back to this one for ideas have mine ready for the water now but want to make a few more changes to be more like yours.

[@shallowminded241]

karen Elam thank you. Seems lots of people like my build! I gave it lots of thought before I started and am pleased with the results. I've added a few things and changed a few things since the video. I plan on making another one shortly showing a few things up close and explaining what works well and what doesn't so sub if you want for more videos. I'm happy to answer any questions on the build. Thanks again for liking my boat build!

[@hobbyoftheday4017]

The paint job is on point man, looks great

[@shallowminded241]

Stefan Wingen thank you

[@stevegoodwin803]

Nice work, sir! I live in coastal NC and I'm specifically looking to get a 12' Lowe (1240) and convert it to flats and marsh creek fishing (and duck hunting). I've had longer jons but I'm convinced the 12' is exactly the size I need. You did an amazing job on your boat. Very well done!

[@peteryeung111]

Hey man, good job! one of the nicer ones I'd seen, in terms of simplicity, practical and good workmanship. Cheers.

[@shallowminded241]

thank you. I am enjoying it a lot and everything is working out great on the boat. cheers!

[@joshreed7102]

This by far is the best Jon boat mods I’ve seen. I’m going to do the very same thing. Good job dude!!

[@shallowminded241]

Josh Reed thank you

[@jonchapa1758]

That paint job looks amazing man! great job! I was wondering that as soon as you said it!

[@adam12502]

awesome job. I'm about halfway done with mine and I appreciate the ideas.

[@ryanmckissick9610]

Looks awesome... Best use of space I've seen on here.

[@dannyjc71]

Im about to purchase a 14 ft jon boat.....you have the perfect set up man,thanks for the great ideas

[@MichaelSmith-nf2um]

What an Awesome Job! I’m starting my project today! That Inspired me. I want it just like that! So cool!

[@howyoulykemenow]

That's a really nice set up, good work!

[@MikeClarkOutdoors]

That is one fine looking duck boat and fishing boat. Definitely looking at every boat and getting ideas. Looks good.

[@paddleandhook]

Really well done conversion! Best ive seen yet! Im about to buy a jon boat and use a couple of your ideas! Thanks

[@charlesyarber8378]

That is a great looking setup !! Great job man :)

[@edwardh1003]

Nicely setup boat, my friend. 👍

[@matthewwittenborn6283]

fire, its so hard to make it look that good man great job

[@dragon-wolf9916]

Awesome job! Looks great! Thanks for the ideas!

[@kikstand2011]

That is an awesome build man! 👍👍

[@glenncorrectedii5885]

Awesome setup man....great video

[@patriot8083]

Nicest Jon boat I've ever seen. Great job man.

[@shallowminded241]

Patriot 80 thank you

[@htfmedia]

Great looking boat! Looking to do this with my new topper 14

[@SuperYGOD]

The paint job is awesome.

[@MrBowNaxe]

Awesome build! Building mine now...thanks for the great ideas! I agree with the comments below, only reason there are dislikes is because their boat didn't turn out this nice!

[@JTgatoring]

Awesome build shallow mindedzt! Great video! I'll be doing a floor like that fairly soon on mine!

[@kadenobrien3782]

I like the boat just built a 14 foot Jon boat and I'm only 14😂😂. I like everything you've done. I have 2 led 2" light bars (spot lights) on the front and 2 led 4" flood light bars that face outward on my boat. It's pretty nice if u ask me especially at night. I can bow fish or do whatever I want at night

[@Rainy78]

WOW! Definitely the NICEST Jon boat Ive ever seen yet! You did a fantastic job with it. Id be damn proud having something like that! Im looking at getting one and customizing it but thats just out of the ballpark! Shes your pride n joy! Cheers :-)

[@shallowminded241]

thank man, I had fun with the build. good luck on your boat. if you have any questions on how I did things feel free to ask. thanks again for liking my work. Definitely makes me proud of my boat. Cheers!

[@Dylan-np2ns]

Best jon boat ive Ever seen man you took attention to every detail. 10/10 great job

[@shallowminded241]

thanks man. it's my first little boat and she fishes great.

[@shallowminded241]

if you have any questions about the boat or different things on it let me know. thanks for your compliment. means a lot seeing how there's 100s of upgraded jon boats on here.

[@Dylan-np2ns]

+shallow mindedzt where did you buy the lids for the compartments?

[@shallowminded241]

+Dylan Seitz I got it off of ebay. it is the taupe colored.

[@fivestarreptiles]

very clean build man!! WOW

[@shallowminded241]

thank you

[@DavidAguilar772]

thank you so much for showing this off gives me ideas to modify my own

[@shallowminded241]

my pleasure, good luck on your build.

[@Astralpilot2.0]

Email me brother. [e-mail]. I spoke to before

[@hookinncookin7985]

Perfect little setup

[@GetOutTheHouseGoFish]

Great Job with the boat; subscribed and thumbs up !

[@Mike-iz9km]

Cool ride!

[@03bonneville]

really nice job....clean and easy to fish out of.

[@shallowminded241]

03bonneville thanks you!

[@keithfowler6876]

Nice set up

[@Rundown_Racecars]

Great job nice build

[@jasoncooyon446]

Agree with big daddy teddy, best one on youtube. Outstanding job

[@jeffreyglass5964]

Very well done!

[@migsmoreno13]

Best video I seen on KZbin I have a 12ft Jon new alumacraft I need upgrade

[@shallowminded241]

thank you, had fun building it. seems to be set up good for what I do. I really like using the 6ft. casting deck for fishing and gigging.

[@Leveluptackle]

This is sick. I think I'm gonna do something similar to my 1440 Jon

[@jimpark4600]

Awesome Job! Gives me some great ideas too...

[@shallowminded241]

thanks bud, it was a fun build.

[@shuswapoutdoors]

best boat mod i have seen!

[@shallowminded241]

thanks bud, I put a lot of thought and work into it.

[@julientremblay3243]

dude.... this is sick!

[@riverrat6105]

nice job man

[@donnellholmes4246]

Nice job

[@ronhart4166]

Perfection !!! Love it 👍 Question for you. Why does people use the foam in the floor on jon boats? I have only ever had fiberglass boats and was wanting to build a small skiff like yours and in my research I see this foam board everywhere .

[@theoutdoorglockguy]

Nice job👍

[@SirJohnRobert]

Badd ass setup brother

[@shallowminded241]

PVT John Craft thanks bro, I had fun building it!

[@connorlewis4183]

Did this is amazing!!

[@Woodsmaster722]

Awesome boat

[@DipsetTheAdon]

This is well done

[@rossbocklage7270]

Badass! I was thinking about doing this to mine how much did it cost you start to finish?

[@NavigatingwithNafe]

nice job! 👍

[@prevost8686]

Good job. Is there anything you would do differently?

[@chadhilker6454]

Awesome Jon boat mods! I have a 1236 Alumacraft I modified with a lot of the same ideas and materials. I also did a home camo job using palm fronds as stencil. I built a collapsible duck blind on mine I can take on and off for duck season. I fish and duck hunt the flats of upper Tampa bay. You just struck me as a kindred spirit when I watched your video. I should take a video and post it of my set up. I “liked” and subscribed to your video. Was watching for some flooring ideas. The rubber mat seems awesome and could work for me. Where did you get it ? Is it secured down in any way and if not does it stay down at speeds ? Also I assume you have high des foam cutouts between the ribs underneath ?? Any feed back would help, thanks and maybe we’ll see you around out there, Chad

[@89mallard]

Nice boat man it came out really good!! Where did you get the rubber floor mat from? I have wood in the middle of my boat now and it’s to heavy.

[@3495mike]

it was green when i got it did the paint myself just added my mercury 4 stroke on today

[@nathanmiller9654]

nice motor but I didn't see the boat anywhere. he must be going crazy!

[@sportsmenjack7057]

Dope Boat

[@The-Capitalist]

Nice boat

[@elboregojhb]

That's badass!!!!!

[@nestoroniFL]

Bad ass rig man. How is that carpet holding up with the salt? I’m up in Pasco County looking to do something very similar.

[@ronhart4166]

Awesome job !!#Fishon

[@shallowminded241]

Ron Hart appreciate it. tight lines!

[@colbydunker345]

wow i love that boat

[@eliazerrodriguez1410]

I think the dislikes are for his lack of enthusiasm?

[@davidguillory3033]

Dry nice boat love the way it looks have some questions first what paint did you use on the camouflage and how is it holding up and where did you get the black mat at ?thanks and keep up the good work

[@shallowminded241]

David Guillory everything is holding up great. I got the mat from Home Depot and the spray paint is Krylon Camouflage. Everywhere carries it. good luck one your build.

[@rolandboyd.rb60boyd50]

that's a sweet ass boat son you did a good job you Florida boys know what you doing down there don't you

[@raymondphillips3913]

Nice boat man . Question tho were did you get the livewell I’ve been looking for one like that links would help a bunch thanks

[@claytonmcgrath2429]

How did you do the floor? Looks awesome!

[@europeanautohaus3643]

Best I've seen

[@shallowminded241]

thank you!

[@johnhansen2203]

How did you make the stencils? That would be a cool video

[@thecalebandhispanda]

Dude! That's a kick ass build. I just got a 1974 Sears 12' jon. Do you always run that solo or do you hunt it with a friend or dog?

[@shallowminded241]

thecalebandhispanda I can take a friend when I fish or hunt. I just make sure it's going to stay calm on the bay.

[@chriscoronado99]

is the mat flooring one solid piece. or does it connect like a puzzle

[@SebastianGutierrez-mf3pz]

Bro this boat is sick this is what I want to do with my 12ft I’ve already stripped it down bone stock

[@daniel_mccain]

Awesome looking boat man!! Where did you get the rubber mat from that is in the floor? I tried finding in the comments where somebody may have asked but could not find it.

[@zackteston2162]

Daniel McCain he said Home Depot all I could find

[@aricray8369]

What'd you use for the hatch you have on the bench you cut out?

[@wyattjohnsoutdoors6432]

Is that just a pull start or is it a key start as well

[@55jorge02]

nice dude!!!

[@shallowminded241]

thank you

[@Strider-bc2iq]

Where did you get that rubber mat for the floor?

[@TKOSNGR]

Very clean build. You do some nice work. I'm thinking about picking up the same boat this summer. My house was built in the 1920s and my garage won't allow for a boat much longer than a 12fter. How is the weight distribution in your boat? I'm worried the front would sit low after the added weight from the front deck.

[@shallowminded241]

it does good, balance well. for a 12ft jonboat I can't complain about anything. perfect setup for solo fishing. I have a 55 pound battery and my trolling motor up front. the front having weight helps plane the boat out quicker too.

[@TKOSNGR]

+shallow mindedzt Thanks for the response. Once again, nice job on your mod. I hope mine turns out half as nice 👍😀

[@shallowminded241]

+Kevin Ng thanks man. I just thought about things before I started. my main focus was keeping it light being it's only 12ft. but still have everything a nice flats boat has with plenty of storage space and everything be functional.

[@dylanburdick9839]

Awesome boat!! And for the flooring did you just lay the foam and then the mat or is there wood between the foam and mat?

[@shallowminded241]

Dylan Hunter thank you. just pink foam insulation and then the rubber mat.

[@shallowminded241]

Dylan Hunter wood isn't needed, it's very solid. the mat is 1/4" thick.

[@puertoricandutchman8703]

where u buy the mat

[@bobbyyoung7836]

Awesome

[@NTfoolhardy]

Nice but how much weight did you add?

[@nisa2043]

nice camo

[@jacksonrolin993]

What carpet did you use? Or did you spray paint your carpet?

[@ZAKOutdoors]

Where did you get the camo carpet?

[@Jacob-ie3en]

Boat looks awesome! Do you think this would be suitable for most inshore fishing? I am thinking of doing something similar.

[@shallowminded241]

Jacob Greene works good for me. If I did it all over I'd do a 14ft. Some days in the bay it's a bit rough for a 12ft.

[@Jacob-ie3en]

shallow mindedzt thanks for responding, how many people have you had on it at once and how was it?

[@shallowminded241]

Jacob Greene just me and one other person on calm nights. 2 guys about 170 pounds each max. It's a small boat I mainly built for solo flats fishing. It does OK with two but everything I added is a good bit of weight. Basically like having an extra person. I have it all balanced out well so it goes pretty good with just me, slower with a buddy. I'd build a 12x40 or 14x40 if I started all over. That way I would be much more stable with two people and I could run a 9.9hp or 15hp motor. My boat is for quiet, shallow waters only. I will run long distances but I'm always in 1-3 feet of water so it's not too sketchy but if you are in a bigger body of water where there's lots of boat traffic and choppy a lot I'd build something bigger.

[@josephrodriguez6709]

Nice rig how shallow can you get ?

[@philthytv5080]

Where’d you get that casting platform

[@duelyearty9255]

Where did you buy the camo carpet from?

[@swampland]

nice boat, do yourself a big favor and throe a (big foot) trolling motor switch on your front deck, i love mine

[@jimb6683]

Nice

[@suavelifestyle9094]

How many ppl can u ride with in the mangroves flats

[@pawcrawlowens8730]

nice

[@outdooradventures6403]

I want to take my 12ft john boat on salt. Water what do I have to do to it?

[@kbanashek]

Really nice job! where did you get the rubber flooring?

[@shallowminded241]

Kyle Banashek thank you. got it from Home Depot. Any store like that should carry different types.

[@adampage8772]

what thickness do you remember?

[@jasondill5372]

I have the same model boat. Pretty stock and I have a 6hp yammi 4stroke on it. It doesn't even get on plane! Did you mess with your motor mounting height or anything specific with your motor mount? Thanks. I love the boat. May game to do more to mine now that I've seen yours. Awesome job.

[@shallowminded241]

Jason Dill nope. I just researched all the 6hp motors before I bought one. In all the videos and reviews I watched the yamaha was the slowest. Yamahas are great motors. Their 6 hp is just not very strong. watch a couple of my other videos of my motor break in and you'll see its pretty quick and i never go above 5/8 throttle. Get a suzuki if you can, great motors and the strongest 6hp for sure.

[@jasondill5372]

Thanks so much. Great job on the boat

[@shallowminded241]

Jason Dill thank you

[@mistyjones1650]

Saweetness I want that same setup it's sexy good work man she's looks fun and very functional

[@shallowminded241]

Misty Jones thank you. It's been a lot of fun. Great little fishing boat for calm days on the flats!