# Riverhawk ?



## Animal slayer (Apr 23, 2014)

Thought about buying new riverhawk boat in winder ga and thoughts or suggestions


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## rockwalker (Apr 23, 2014)

I own a river hawk and if I had it to do over again I wouldn't. Spend the money on a quality aluminum boat.


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## Animal slayer (Apr 23, 2014)

What's wrong with your riverhawk and witch model do you have


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## fishingdave (Apr 23, 2014)

Google Saltmarsh skiffs. They make a kevlar jon boat.

Or check out their other boat Ankona Shadowcast.


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## sbroadwell (Apr 23, 2014)

I've got a Riverhawk B-60 and it's a great boat. I wouldn't take it out in the middle of Lanier on a summer day, but I wouldn't go there with a johnboat, either.
I have had my boat in Lanier on less busy times, and in Clark Hill, too. It also works great at places like Bear Creek, Ft. Yargo, etc.
I think it's MORE stable than a johnboat. When you walk around in it, no tipping at all.


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## Hooked On Quack (Apr 23, 2014)

rockwalker said:


> I own a river hawk and if I had it to do over again I wouldn't. Spend the money on a quality aluminum boat.



Seriously ???  I've owned a B-52 RiverHawk for years and it's the best small water/pond/lake boat I've ever owned.  I weigh 250lbs and can stand on the edge of the boat and pee.


I'd buy another one tomorrow, there's a nice one in Dublin for sale in the S&S.


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## rogers001 (Apr 24, 2014)

I own a 1686 rigged with nothing but electrics.  It is a great boat.  Owned a B-60 before I got the 1686.  Both preformed flawlessly.    I would buy another one.


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## Swamp Angel (Apr 24, 2014)

To be honest, it depends on what you're plannin' on usin' it for. If you're plannin' on headin' off into the depths of Lanier, it prolly ain't a good idea. But, if you have plans for usin' it on the 'Hooch for trout fishin' below Buford Dam (perticklerly around Shakerag, Duluth, and Norcross) you'll have a hard time findin' a better craft. An' the same can be said if'n you're plannin' on headin' out to the 'Hooch _above_ Lanier, and even up to the sev'ral sets of shoals upriver of the confluence with Mud Creek.

The River Hawk is based upon the Gheenoe design that was conceived an' engineered by Harley Gheene (who passed away only this last weekend). Harley was originally from east Tennessee and loved to fish fer trout, but got tired of bein' dumped out of his canoe. He designed a new hull shape on paper in the early-1960s, but never really did anything with it until he was employed as an engineer at NASA a couple years later. 

In 1967, Harley built the first full size model of his hull an' called it a Gheenoe. It was super-stable and could even handle an outboard motor up to 10HP at the time. This model is now known as the 15'-4" High Sider by Gheenoe aficionados, as well as by the 15' Original by those who have purchased River Hawks.

River Hawks, according to some Gheenoe owners, are a cheap knock-off of the Gheenoe. But truth be told, River Hawk is a legitimate break away company that was completely authorized and blessed by Harley Gheen when one of his employees in Titusville, Florida got homesick for north Georgia and wanted to return. Harley had no intentions of taking on a market the size of the whole United States, so he told his friend to move on back home and take the molds to build the Gheenoe model in Georgia and market it there. (Harley felt he had plenty of microskiff business in Florida to last him a life time - and he was right.)

Gheenoes were soon being built in Winder and marketed as "River Hawk" boats. The design was as successful in Georgia as it was in Florida, and improvements upon the design were made in order to provide customers with a larger, wider boat that was just as stable, just as inexpensive, and just as fun to operate. Thus the B-52 and B-60 models of the River Hawk came into being.

Gheenoe, in Florida, made some similar modifications with their Gheenoe "Classic" and later models designed and built by Harley's son, "Pugar," who runs Unlimited Glassworks aka Custom Gheenoe which builds a NMZ 15'-4" model similar to the original High Sider, as well as two copletely new designs in the Lo-Tide 15, and the Lo-Tide 25. (LT 15 and LT 25 respectively.)

I currently run around on the 'Hooch near Duluth in a white LT 15 known as the _'Hoochee Queen_. I wouldn't trade it for the world. But I also won't tell you that River Hawks are a cheap knock off of the original Gheenoe.

The truth is that River Hawks were once an authorized copy of the super-stable Gheenoe, and that over the years the companies have grown apart and their designs have been modified along similar, yet slightly different lines.

If you're looking for a quality boat that is stable enough to allow you to walk down the edge of the gunwale without flippping it, as well as allowing you to get into really skinny water without fear of getting stuck in the mud, you'll be hard pressed to beat either a River Hawk or a Gheenoe.

The only drawback is that the hull is fiberglass and does NOT like to meet rocks up close and personal. But, if you will familiarize yourself with a section of water before you go off tearing around in it like a hyped-up teenager on a Friday night you'll do just fine.

Along with checking out the models of River Hawks available, may I suggest that you poke around on a site called Custom Gheenoe. Check out the forums there too. Yeah, you'll hear a lot of anti-River Hawk speech, and you won't even be able to type the words "River Hawk" into your post. But, if you'll keep in mind that the basic hull design is the same for both of these boats, you'll learn a lot about their qualities as great boats for fishing in rivers, on small lakes, and even on saltwater flats.

I hope I've been some help to you in making a decision. Let us know what you decide upon, as well as what you name her when you get her!

Tight lines!


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## JohnK (Apr 24, 2014)

rockwalker said:


> I own a river hawk and if I had it to do over again I wouldn't. Spend the money on a quality aluminum boat.



I bought a B60 and trailer brand new for $1500 about 10 years ago. They have gotten too high for what you get in my opinion. Look at used skiff type boats if you want something small and good on gas. If you fish electric only the B60 is a good choice. The riverhawk is stable but there is no room for much of anything.


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## The Longhunter (Apr 24, 2014)

Swamp Angel said:


> Gheenoes were soon being built in Winder and marketed as "River Hawk" boats. The design was as successful in Georgia as it was in Florida, and improvements upon the design were made in order to provide customers with a larger, wider boat that was just as stable, just as inexpensive, and just as fun to operate. Thus the B-52 and B-60 models of the River Hawk came into being.
> 
> 
> The truth is that River Hawks were once an authorized copy of the super-stable Gheenoe, and that over the years the companies have grown apart and their designs have been modified along similar, yet slightly different lines.




The company in Winder built Gheenoes labeled as such under license from the company in Florida (Gheenoe).  When the license expired, the owners of the Winder operation made some changes in the design and started marketing them as Riverhawk so they wouldn't have to pay licensing fees.  If you compare them side by side, you can see the difference.  How significant those difference are is one of  those Chevy/Ford things.

I think the Riverhawk B-60 and B-52 are an incredible boat, but a little pricey for the B-60.  If you have the bucks the company will build you a hand laid version of any one of their models, which is stronger and lighter than the stock models.  Their are some other unadvertised modifications they will make if you have the bucks.

I know that the 13 and 15 foot original Gheenoe molds were sold to a guy in Watkinsville, and he was making green hulls and selling them (no name).  If you were handy, they were a real bargain.  The molds ended up in the bushes in Watkinsville and stayed there a long time.

I'm a "fully mature person" (maybe two ) and I would take a B-52 anywhere I would go in a jon boat.  Being vertically challenged, I find both the Gheenoe and the Riverhawk to be more stable for the big guy, and would take either one over the average 14-16 foot jon boat in a heartbeat.    I used to goose and duck hunt all over Clarks Hill in one and it was the standard model, and never had a problem, all winter long.  You can't be stupid in one,  which is true of everything.


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## jeshoffstall (Apr 24, 2014)

What about a B60 procaster as a lake boat (Altoona, Carters, Juliette)?  Assuming you are not running up and down the main channel?


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## buddy48 (Apr 24, 2014)

Get the original.... A Gheenoe. I have a custom Gheenoe, the NMZ. I love mine.


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## almoore (Apr 25, 2014)

I have a B60 with a 15 hp 4 cycle.  I think it's rated up to 20hp. It's definitely not a big lake boat.  Juliette and Carters are OK and I take it on Allatoona but don't run far from the ramp.  It excels in shallow water and can be poled and even paddled.  I got it for flats fishing.  It's easy to tow and I can launch it my brother in law's pond from the bank.  It's not good around rocks.  For a river boat, I'd go metal.  There's no storage.  I'd skip the live well.  Mine is transverse which helps you to get around it but I only use it for storage.  I'd prefer a 9.9hp 2 cycle that would let me use it on the 10 hp lakes and also let me lift off the engine for electric lakes.  My engine is too heavy but I do like the extra power and the electric start.


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## rockwalker (Apr 25, 2014)

I just always cringed every time I hit anything. For small open clean water ponds and small lakes it may be a good boat and I'm a 275lb fella and yes it's stable but for use in rivers and areas where stumps, trees and rocks are prevelant then you need an aluminum boat and the river hawk just didn't live up to my expectations in that area.


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## xbradley (Apr 25, 2014)

I have a b60, take it in allatoona and Carter's for stripes, gotta stay out of the big water for the most part though...my passenger is usually an 11 gallon greyline bait tank up towards the front.   It works well in the hooch, which is really what I bought it for in the first place.  I'm going to get a bigger boat for the lakes but I'll keep this thing because it works so well in the rivers.  Not a lot of $ in it but I've gotten a lot to fish and fun out of it.  No complaints except when I get stuck a long way from a ramp and the wind whips up high or I get heavy boat traffic in a lake.


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## PopPop (Apr 25, 2014)

I have a B52 with a 18 HP Nissan. I fish Weiss, Wedowee, and Logan Martin., just not on Week ends or Holidays. It is Stable and makes the most of HP with a very efficient hull. It is small and very little storage, but it is way better than a Jon Boat. Easy to tow too.


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## JohnK (Apr 26, 2014)

A few years ago the wind capsized one over here on Allatoona. I mean sunk and lost all his stuff. For the money they ask now you can get a good used tracker or something similar.


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## sbroadwell (Apr 26, 2014)

Good info, Swamp Angel. Another good site, that is not so Gheenoe-centric, is microskiff.com

I would have bought a Gheenoe instead of a Riverhawk, except they don't make one like the B-60. All their models are narrower. The extra width gives even more side to side stability, which is what I'm looking for.

Last week, I was in a bassboat up at Anthony Shoals on the Broad River. There were a number of Carolina Skiffs there also. We did ok in the Phoenix, but had to be careful. Next trip, I'll have the Riverhawk, and don't think it will be any trouble at all. Just keep your eyes open and go slowly.

Mine has a 9.9 Yamaha. With just me, my GPS speed is right at 20mph. Probably could do a little better by trimming it out some, but that's ok for me. You definitely DO not want to be going that fast on choppy water - the Riverhawk acts like a flatbottom boat on plane, and hits each wave pretty hard.


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