14' Lowe modification

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cscottblack

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Location
East Central Illinois
I'm new to the website and would like help and advice for my "winter project." I'm making modifications to a 1980, 14' Lowe V-hull boat, and will need advice as I make this journey.
 

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Hi there. Read as many posts as you could, then ask questions. A lot of guys on here are very helpful. I was in a similar situation last year.
 
I've made some progress over the weekend, but have a few questions.

1) I'm concerned about keeping the center of gravity low. Is there any "rule of thumb" to how high I can build casting decks without causing the boat to be unsteady?

2) What products are recommended for adding floatation after removing the floatation that was originally enclosed in the seats?

Thanks in advance!
 
I am by no means an expert but I can offer my 2 cents.

1. the higher you build the casting decks, the more shaky the boat. You will get more rocky action if you build too high. I have noticed that the front will be rocky (side to side) more than anything. I have a similar shaped boat.

2. search other posts for this topic. I built my decks over the bench seats. I didn't want to mess with them.
 
cscottblack said:
I've made some progress over the weekend, but have a few questions.

1) I'm concerned about keeping the center of gravity low. Is there any "rule of thumb" to how high I can build casting decks without causing the boat to be unsteady?

2) What products are recommended for adding floatation after removing the floatation that was originally enclosed in the seats?

Thanks in advance!

first off i have that same boat except mines a 79 and 16ft. are you removing the middle bench or back bench? just curious did you pull the foam sheets out from the benches? either way just use closed cell foam sheets like you get at home depot...i put a deck on my bow that sits level with the front bench and little bench up front and wether im sitting or standing its very stable. i wouldnt go any higher than that though if i were you....SWEET boat. mines almost finished and when it is im gonna post a thread of the build from start to finish, you may like some of my ideas..
 
is your hull triple riveted? mine is but from ur pics it dont look like urs is but i may b wrong. it doesent have the splash well either does it? does it have the two pods in back on each side? it also doesent have the benches connected to the hull in the middle of the bench???? or did you remove them?
 
Thanks for the replies! To answer your questions and also give a little more details about the boat and where I’m at on the build right now.
• Boat is 14’ front to back and is approximately 56” across at the widest part of the center
• The sides are between 14” and 16” depending on where I measure. (these are approximate numbers because the sides are a little tough to measure because of the curves)
• I haven’t removed any benches YET, which is part of what I’m struggling with.
• I’ve learned from reading other posts on the forum that “closed cell” foam is the stuff to use for floatation.
• The total cubic footage of closed cell foam enclosed in the original seats is +/- 6.5 cf. So I’m figuring I need to at least replace an equal amount and probably should increase the total volume of foam to offset the additional weight of flooring, carpet, decking, seats, etc.
• I’ve found a two part expanding foam mix that can be poured into the newly built boat cavities to replace the original floatation located under the seats
• The rear seat has foam in it, and no pods on the sides in the back. (ill post a few more pictures)
• The hull is double riveted not triple
• All the benches are connected to the hull, which adds to my concern about removing the benches.
Thanks again and I’ll attempt to post more pics.
 

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cscottblack said:
Thanks for the replies! To answer your questions and also give a little more details about the boat and where I’m at on the build right now.
• Boat is 14’ front to back and is approximately 56” across at the widest part of the center
• The sides are between 14” and 16” depending on where I measure. (these are approximate numbers because the sides are a little tough to measure because of the curves)
• I haven’t removed any benches YET, which is part of what I’m struggling with.
• I’ve learned from reading other posts on the forum that “closed cell” foam is the stuff to use for floatation.
• The total cubic footage of closed cell foam enclosed in the original seats is +/- 6.5 cf. So I’m figuring I need to at least replace an equal amount and probably should increase the total volume of foam to offset the additional weight of flooring, carpet, decking, seats, etc.
• I’ve found a two part expanding foam mix that can be poured into the newly built boat cavities to replace the original floatation located under the seats
• The rear seat has foam in it, and no pods on the sides in the back. (ill post a few more pictures)
• The hull is double riveted not triple
• All the benches are connected to the hull, which adds to my concern about removing the benches.
Thanks again and I’ll attempt to post more pics.

i was mistaken about mine being triple riveted, its double just like yours. your boat has a 57" inch beam, max depth of 22"inches, dry hull weight is 144 lbs, hull guage is .050,max weight capacity is 700lbs,max HP is 20 with a 49"inch transom width and a 15"inch transom height.IMG_2283 (800x449).jpgIMG_2284 (800x449).jpgIMG_2291 (449x800).jpgView attachment 1IMG_2289 (800x449).jpg
 
I was able to get a little work done this weekend before succumbing to the flu. Ugh! I got to watch the Super Bowl from the toilet bowl. :LOL2:

I'm posting a couple of updated pictures and hope to post a plan/layout of what and where I'd like to put "stuff," like anchor, trolling motor, seats, etc.

Oh yeah! A huge thanks to Shawnfish for the information about my boat!
 

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Good platform to work with. Based on your PM, you found my build, which is similar to yours.

I removed all my benches and saved the foam. Built a new back bench (taller and narrower than the original, turned the foam on its side)and stuffed it with the original foam. In the bow I put the rest of the foam and added a couple of cans of expanding foam to lock it in place.

As for stability, depends on your ability to balance and stay in the boat. The baot is stable, however the higher you go the more movement you incur. Think of the top of a 40 foot mast, or the top of a skyscrapper. The top will sway more than the bottom, same thing in your boat. Granted you wont be 40 in the air.

I spent a lot of time mocking up my boat before I committed to a design. The wife would see me sitting on a bucket with fishing pole in hand and ask me what the heck I was doing. Getting a feel for the boat and layout of coarse. :mrgreen:
How far is that reach to the motor pull rope, or the steering, or the anchors, bait bucket, lights, sonar unit, tackle boxes, livewell, etc. etc. etc. Build your boat for how YOU fish. I anchor up over fish cribs and slip bobber fish for Crappie. Some of the lakes I fish have a 25 per man limit. Thats 50 crappie in the livewell, I made sure my livewell was easy to get to, could hold dozens of fish, and keep them alive. I also night fish, so I have accessory outlets front and back to plug in night lights. When I boat camp I can fillet my fish on the bow of the boat, and have a 12v electric fillet knife that also plugs into the accessory outlet. Fillet fish right in camp. Both anchors are on the starboard side (bow and Stern) and we fish off the port side.

Space is a premium on a small boat. Use every square inch.
Post up your plans when you get time, and have fun.
 
Finally some progress!!!! After round of the flu (or some closely related illness) last weekend, I was able to get some work done. Saturday morning was spent/wasted buying materials, Saturday afternoon was for getting some last minute design things worked out.

Sunday some real progress! I was able to get the floor framing completed; (more or less) the side framing started, and also started the bow framing. Which as I anticipated is going to be complicated, with many compound miter cuts, however, I’m up to the challenge!

A big thanks to my friend Steve P. who came over and added his advice, help and recent experience on boat framing!
 

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I was given an old boat. It is exactly like yours. As far as I can tell, it is a 1978. It is a LoweLine 14 foot Sport V. It is even Red like yours. I am going to restore it. I am going to need a lot of help from your club to get this done. Any and all info will be greatly appreciated. It came with the original trailer and a 7.5 Mercury outboard that is probably the about same year. I am pretty excited about this. The first thing I need to do is replace the wooden transom. It is really soft. It looks to be riveted in place. Does anyone have a good plan on how to remove this. The corner braces on top are welded in place. Can I get the board out without cutting the welds?
 
Just a cautionary question - are you using pressure treated timber for your framing? It won't react well with the aluminum if so. Just don't want you to regret it later on.
 
I’ll attempt to reply to a couple of posts at once.

1st “Stroyed” – I would suggest the same advice someone gave me when I first started checking out this website/forum; read as much/many of the projects and posts as you can. To answer your question about the removal of the transom, IF your boat is exactly or even very similar to my boat, you should be able to remove the transom by drilling out the rivets. You should not need to remove the corner brackets. I would suggest saving, as much as possible, the original transom to use as a template to fashion the new transom. Good luck, take pic’s and let us all see how things go.

2nd “Vermonster” – Thanks for the “heads up” about the pressure treated lumber. I had already considered this and have made plans to “insulate” the PT lumber from the aluminum with pieces of rubber I have from a coal belt. The rubber is about 3/8 ‘s inch thick industrial grade rubber with a cloth lining that binds the layers of rubber together. All pieces/parts have been connected with triple coated deck screws and fasteners, suitable for pressure treated lumber. Therefore no direct PT lumber and aluminum contact should occur.

Thanks again for the advice!
 
Finally a few pictures of the progress!

I'll post these then start a new batch afterwhile.
 

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2nd round of pics.

I've made some additional changes since some of these pictures were taken. I'll post these pictures later after I had a good nights sleep. 8)
 

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I got the transom wood out. It was really rotten. Also, I just realized the front bench seat has been removed. That will change things a little. I need to see what to do with the front section. Its a pretty big area. Any ideas. Thanks,
 
8) Looking good, how do you like the clamp on style seat mounts (like the one you have at the back)? I would like to use these on my project build to keep from killing the original look too much but yet have some nice seats in it, also may pull them for storage or tarpping it.
 

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