# How to choose, LT or NMZ



## johnnyphish (Dec 29, 2011)

I know they are different boats.  I started looking at LT25's but due to the cost (it really starts to add up), I am wondering if I could be happy with a NMZ.  I fish mostly solo but once in a while with 2 people.  I want simple either way.  

I fish mostly lagoon/indian river but sometimes in the st johns and lakes.  I know an LT25 will do what I want and more but have never been in a NMZ.  I just want something that I can fish in the lagoon under decent conditions  If it is too windy, I probably won't fish anyway.

Everyone says the NMZ is "really stable" but I don't know what that means.  Can anyone put it into terms?  I am 40 and semi-athletic but do fish with my father in law who is not as much.  Can we both stand and fish?  Can I pole from a platform and have an angler on the front deck?

I know there are a lot of questions but I don't know anyone that has either and I am trying to make up my mind....

Any input would help...

Thanks


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

I have fished both. Obviously the LT25 would be the better decision. But the NMZ is a badass little machine. It is tippy... They say it's stable, but in reality it's relatively stable. For what it is, it's stable. Compared to any other canoe in it's size, it's definitely more stable. I was not comfortable standing on the front deck fishing. You have to be on your toes. Any sudden movement from the guy poling, and if you're not swift on your toes, you're going over.
With that said, I have poled one on a Strongarm Products poling platform. I was extremely comfortable poling it. I didn't feel like I was going to fall at all when on the platform. Only when I was on the front deck I felt as if I was going to fall. In the LT, there is no such feeling. It is EXTREMELY stable.

Is the NMZ fishable? definitely. In fact I wanted one for myself. Would I use one as my main boat to fish out of, probably not. I'm sure others feel differently. It's all a matter of opinion.
Get out on the water on one and check for yourself. 

Hope that helps....


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## jking (Aug 11, 2011)

Why not a Classic? Cheaper than an LT, easier to find used,   more stable than a Highsider (NMZ) There's a reason they still make them. Mine is very stable. I stand up fish on the low front deck, fish standing on the rear seat with no worries. I overload it with my wife, kid , and lab. Have run through chop into a head wind, etc. You get wet and it will beat you up some if it's too rough (more than an LT) but It ain't tippy at all and it ain't going over. Go poking around the Custom Gheenoe forum for info also.


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## bassboyz (Apr 15, 2008)

It's simple.  If you are going to put it on a trailer get the LT or like a few have said Classic they are good boats as well..If you want to haul it in your truck get the NMZ


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## Shinerkiller (Dec 12, 2006)

My next Nmz will have a low front deck


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## johnnyphish (Dec 29, 2011)

Really like the hull design on the LT vs Classic. Would a LT15 be a compromise? Could save some money with the smaller engine-not interested in speed.

Anyone have a LT15 that can comment?


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## tguasjr (Mar 9, 2009)

The Lt 25 is some what more stable than the Lt15. The Lt 25 has lower chines therefore rolls less at rest whe the LT15 carves turns a little better due to the higher chines. They will both run 22-24 mph with a 15 hp. I would spend the extra couple of hundred bucks any get the stability of the LT25.


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## Viking1 (May 23, 2010)

I just sold my NMZ and bought a LT25.  The main reason that I bought LT25 was to carry more camping gear for some of the trips that I take.  I was very happy with my NMZ.  I fished it from one end of the state to the other and both coasts including the ML and IR.  If you get an NMZ you will not be disappointed.  The LT25 does have an advantage on handling rough water better than a NMZ.  With an electric bildge pump and two people in the boat I could go in two foot slop at a slow speed if I had to to make it back to a boat ramp (I would not start a trip that way) with the NMZ.  An advantage that an NMZ has is that you can get into tighter creeks if you do that type of fishing.  On my NMZ I had raised decks on both front and back and would not have it any other way.  This issue of a raised front deck can be a little like religion and there are some people that I respect on this forum that feel the other way so I would say it would not be a show stopper.  You can always stand on a cooler.

Bottom line get the best boat you can for the budget you have and don't look back.  Good luck with your search.


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## paint it black (Nov 3, 2007)

I should add, the NMZ I fished on had a raised front deck. I used to fish out of a lowsider 13' with two other adults, and we'd stand fine. I guess it was the raised front deck that made me feel sketchy. Yet I'll pole the ocean side of Eliot Key with swells for bones on my skiff and be fine up on the platform.


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## Bissell (Feb 27, 2010)

I have an NMZ I could take you out in for a fishing day if you'd like, I've got front and rear raised decks and a platform for polling, my platform is about 13" tall, and honestly I feel that I could go another 5" up and still be ok, the lighter the nmz the less stable it's going to be, never been on an lt but I can tell you I've polled past one and he wasn't going where I was... As far as conditions, if it's blowing that hard why the heck would you be out anyways lol I've got a bildge pump and all that jazz too, hardly ever use it...

I have the large centerbox turned 90, in this pick my friend is on the front deck and I'm in the cockpit and we walk all over the boat like it's a yatch


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## Bissell (Feb 27, 2010)

And if you want an lt15 you might as well buy a 25, it's literally $100 difference from the shop, and they say the 25 floats skinnier, but I'll stick with the z


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## [email protected] (Aug 15, 2010)

Definatley spend the extra $100 or so bucks on the LT 25 because it will go the same speed as the LT 15 with the same power. I have fished a 15'4" highsider which is same hull design as NMZ and I thought was extremely unstable. I just didnt enjoy myself. Found myself paying attention to stability more than fishing. You are also very limited in an NMZ vs the LT 25. In my LT 25 I would fish bridges and passes in the Miami area which I would have never dared to go in an NMZ. 

The LT 25's can be kind of pricey when you add up all the options when you buy new directly from the shop but there are a few nice used ones in the for sale section on both this forum and customgheenoe.


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