Lund 1775 Pro Guide Review
The Lund Pro Guide series consists of 17-, 18-, and 20-foot models. These models feature many advanced features from Lund’s top-of-the-line Pro V boats in a less expensive package. They are designed for dedicated recreational anglers rather than full-time tournament pros. Of these models, the Lund 1775 Pro Guide is the one that really hits the sweet spot. It is big enough to handle open waters, yet still easily towed behind the family SUV and manageable for anglers driving to remote lakes with poor ramps (or no boat ramps at all).
Like many American boat companies, Lund Boats was formed in the aftermath of World War II as a booming economy and increased leisure time encouraged thousands of young families to explore spending their time on the water.
Founder Howard Lund began making boats after he wasn’t able to find a durable, lightweight, and high-quality vessel that he liked for his favorite hobby: duck hunting. After crafting his own boat from an original design, he began producing vessels for other duck hunters. Before long, the Lund Boat Co. forged a reputation for constructing high-quality aluminum runabouts with innovative and imaginative features.
As tournament fishing’s popularity grew through the late 1960s and 1970s, innovations such as flat floors, seats with proper back support, and raised casting decks began to appear in Lund boats. Those innovations laid a foundation that evolved to become today’s highly popular Pro Guide series.
At a Glance: Lund 1775 Pro Guide
LUND PRO GUIDE
Specs
- Length: 17 feet, 10 inches
- Beam: 8 feet, 3 inches
- Dry weight: 1,010 pounds
- Fuel capacity: 21 gallons
- Passenger capacity: 6
- Maximum horsepower: 75
- Base price w/base power: $32,389
Power
- Tested: Mercury FourStroke 75 Tiller
- Cylinders: I4
- Displacement: 2.1L
- Weight: 359 pounds
- Cruise speed: 20 mph
- Top speed: 38 mph @ 5,500 rpm
Features We Love
- Tiller steering
- Loads of interior space thanks to lack of a console
- Big livewell with dividers and a timer
- Huge bow casting deck
- ProRide pedestal seats
- In-gunwale storage on both sides of the boat
- Three-step boarding ladder
- Tool rack on forward side of the console
- Central locking compartment that features 10 individual tubes
- Elevated deck pad to accommodate electric trolling motor
- Mercury SmartCraft digital engine controls
Lund 1775 Pro Guide Design and Construction
Designed expressly for serious fishing, the Lund 1775 Pro Guide shuns a traditional console and steering wheel in favor of tiller steering. Eliminating the console frees up an enormous amount of floor space, making the 17-foot, 10-inch 1775 Pro Guide immediately feel like a much bigger boat than it actually is. But more than that, tiller outboards put both throttle and steering control into one hand. That leaves the second hand free to hold the rod and feel for delicate, sensitive bites. You just can’t do this in a boat with a steering wheel.
Further, tiller control allows for extraordinarily precise boat control. Anglers can position the boat, and their fishing lines, exactly where they like. That’s particularly true when trolling in reverse gear.
Backtrolling, as it’s called, allows anglers to move at incredibly slow speeds with their line plumb below the boat. The wide, flat transom acts as a brake as they inch along and probe the bottom, pausing now and then as desired, giving fish a long, long look at their baits. You can’t do this in a boat with a steering wheel. That makes the tiller layout essential to this boat’s design.
Built to Fish
The Lund 1775 Pro Guide is an unapologetic, full-on fishing boat. There’s no ski-tow option, no sunpad, no cushy bow lounges. This boat is all about catching a wide range of freshwater fish. Don’t take that to mean the boat is stripped down, however, because it’s anything but.
Lund followed a long-established footprint in the design, with raised bow and stern casting decks sandwiching a deeper central cockpit. The stern deck is a bit abbreviated in length, this being a tiller boat. It allows a driver positioned on a cockpit seat to comfortably reach the engine. Still, the carpeted deck is more than large enough for comfortable casting.
Housed beneath its elevated surface is a large storage compartment to starboard and an equally large locker to port dedicated to battery stowage.
Also hidden is a substantial 16-gallon aerated livewell with dividers and a useful timer function. That livewell, by the way, is a full 37 inches in length, allowing it to accommodate some seriously big fish. The starboard end of the well includes a circular lip allowing it to fit a removable bait bucket if desired.
Cockpit
The cockpit floor in the Pro Guide is a durable vinyl that provides exceptional durability in this high-traffic space. The boat comes with two pedestal-mount fishing seats. One is dedicated to the driver and the other can be mounted in cockpit-forward receptacles to port or starboard, or up on the raised bow casting deck. The standard seats are Lund’s high-end ProRide pedestals for all-day comfort. Additional seats can be ordered as upgrades.
Surrounding the main cockpit floor is an elevated riser providing in-gunwale storage on both sides of the boat. You can stow gear such as rain suits, life jackets, and bulkier fishing items out of the way yet accessible.
Multiple drink holders are installed along the upper surface of these risers to keep cold (or hot) beverages within easy reach. Lund’s Dual Trak gunwale design allows owners to install a variety of accessory rod holders, drink holders, and tool caddies throughout the boat without drilling any holes.
Look closely to the aft end of the starboard-side riser and you’ll spot the power plug for a transom electric trolling motor. Well-positioned grab handles provide added security when boating in choppy conditions.
The outer transom provides a three-step boarding ladder as standard equipment and leaves plenty of room to install aftermarket wave barriers for use when backtrolling.
Lund 1775 Pro Guide Helm
One of the most interesting features in the Lund 1775 Pro Guide is the helm console. But rather than the traditional structure holding a steering wheel and windscreen, this console sits on the floor near the transom, facing the driver. A neat row of waterproof toggles control electrical accessories such as the livewell, the navigation lights, and the bilge pump. They are flanked by an accessory power outlet to the left, and the boat’s fuel gauge to right.
Along the forward side of the console is a tool rack that can accommodate needle-nosed pliers, wire cutters, hook disgorgers, knives, and more.
Atop this console is a reinforced surface for mounting electronics. Its height positions them perfectly for easy study when probing the depths. A large, wide door on the inboard face of the console opens downward to reveal a large space for tackle storage. Interior racks will hold four Plano Stowaway-style boxes.
The idea here is that from a well-upholstered helm seat, the angler can easily access everything at arm’s length. Engine controls, sonar and GPS, tackle storage, a refreshing beverage, and the livewell are all right there. It’s a very simple but beautiful approach to a fishing boat.
Fishing at the Bow
Of course, not all fishing happens at the stern of the boat, and there, too, the Lund 1775 Pro Guide shines. Its raised bow casting deck is more than large enough for two big guys to fish without knocking elbows, adding further versatility to the design.
The carpeted deck conceals a surprising amount of storage space. Open compartments on the aft face of the deck on each side allow quick access to frequently needed items. Up top, two massive lids—one on either side of the bow seat receptacle—swallow up even more gear.
Rods get special treatment in a central locking compartment that features 10 individual tubes.
Far forward on the bow deck is a further elevated deck pad to accommodate another electric trolling motor. And it has room to add still further electronics.
Lund 1775 Pro Guide Performance
While the Lund 1775 Pro Guide offers impressive performance, it’s important to first understand exactly what performance means in a boat like this. The Pro Guide is a serious fishing boat, so it’s not going to set any speed records.
Having said that, it’s no slouch with a Mercury FourStroke 75 Tiller on the transom. With two people aboard and a full tank of fuel, the boat climbed out of the hole faster than I thought it might and took about four seconds to reach a nice cruising speed of roughly 20 mph. That speed delivered the boat’s best fuel economy, roughly 3.2 gph and a range of approximately 125 miles.
With the throttle wide open on the Mercury 75, roughly 5,500 rpm, the boat reached its top speed of 38 mph in about 7.5 seconds. Lund’s Integrated Power Strake hull is a proven design that delivers a dry, stable ride with confident, predictable handling.
For serious anglers, what really matters is how the boat performs at the other end of the scale: trolling speeds. And this is where the Pro Guide with the Mercury 75 Tiller really shines. With Mercury’s SmartCraft digital engine controls, anglers can slow the boat down to a crawl and use the Troll Control feature, which makes engine rpm adjustments in increments of just 10 rpm.
Yes, you read that right: 10 rpm increments. It doesn’t get more precise than that.
Of course, if you really want to crawl along at the slowest possible speeds, you can add an electric motor at the stern. There is plenty of room. Or add splash guards, which will allow you to backtroll at snail-like speeds while positioning your bait with pinpoint precision.
That is high performance by any measure. At least to the serious anglers who are the customers of this freshwater fishing boat.
Conclusions
If you like to fish for lots of different species and appreciate versatility and control in an easily towable package, then the Lund 1775 Pro Guide checks a lot of boxes. I like the boat more than the final scoring reflects. If you are the kind of angler who doesn’t need versatility for family outings and protection from the elements, this boat’s score is higher.
Lund Boats Marketplace Inventory
Craig Ritchie
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