1970 Cherokee V-Hull project

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 05 Jun 2013, 10:08

Just got back from overseas a couple months ago, relocated from South Carolina to Georgia and have been looking for a boat to work on ever since. Just picked this Cherokee up with a tilt trailer. came with paddle, life vest, minn kota TM, battery, and a couple spare tires.

Took it out this past weekend to check for leaks and the boat is solid except for one VERY slow leak on the left side of the transom as you face the bow. (I'm guessing it's coming from one of the rivets on that side because the welds are intact and those are the only thing under the water).

MY PLAN: to completely deck out this boat. to include bottom flooring, step up to front platform, storage containers, and anything else I can think of to make this as bass fishing friendly as possible. i'll be honest, I've never owned anything aside from canoe and kayaks so this is all brand new to me.

Here are the first pics. Thanks for following and any suggestions/constructive criticism is eagerly welcomed!

wwcenturion · Post by **wwcenturion** » 05 Jun 2013, 12:54

Nice boat, are you going to put a motor on it or stick with trolling only?

What about electronics? I got a control panel, lights, Hummingbird FF, and some other goodies from eBay and WalMart online.

BTW, thanks for your service brother.

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 05 Jun 2013, 13:24

@wwcenturion I've got a small console planned to go on the side bench i'm going to install to accommodate a control panel for lights, battery, ect. as far as the motor is concerned, presently i'm just going to stick with the TM as all the lakes near Atlanta that I frequent are electric only. but when I deck the rear of the boat I am going to leave enough room to throw an outboard on in the future.

Now i'm no artist but here is a picture of my initial sketch idea of what i'm leaning towards... will be making my first trip to Lowes in about 2 hours to get started on this!

Also, thank you for supporting the troops... the reception that my unit got when we hit stateside was incredible... never felt so good to be home.

wwcenturion · Post by **wwcenturion** » 05 Jun 2013, 15:12

Good luck at the hardware store, I was there for almost three hours the first time around. I've been back at least three other times. Never seem to have enough bolts, screws, nuts, and washers.

I will get some pics posted of all my stuff sometime within the next couple of days.

Keep us updated on your progress.

BTW, I live in Bama and hail from the eastern part of the state originally. Atlanta was in my backyard! Lots to do in northern Georgia up around Ellijay. I used to kayak in that area in my younger years.

Post by **gillhunter** » 05 Jun 2013, 15:39

Welcome!!

Good looking boat. It is a lot like my first one. I fish total electric 95% of the time. If you are planning on putting an outboard on some day you might consider offsetting your rear seat to the right side of the boat. The tillers on most motors are on the left and it gives you a little more room to steer.

Thanks for your service and I glad you got a warm reception, it wasn't that way in my day.

Looking forward to seeing your project.

wwcenturion · Post by **wwcenturion** » 05 Jun 2013, 16:52

He's still at the hardware store, I bet!

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 05 Jun 2013, 18:13

Hey guys. @wwcenturion yes! I was at the store for about an hour and a half talking, searching, comparing until I was just like, "OK i'm just going to go for it!" haha

@gillhunter thank you so much for that thought about switching my seat to the other side... I didn't even think about that. and I had planned on putting a bench seat and an electrical console there which would completely ruin the chance of putting the seat there in the future. I will invert my design to switch to the other side. thank you!

I got off work, ran by Lowes, grabbed some stuff to get me started and this is where i'm at right now. just completed most of the framing for the lower deck. i'm not a construction framer and this is my first go at decking a boat so here it goes...

wwcenturion · Post by **wwcenturion** » 05 Jun 2013, 18:57

Man, you are fast. That would have taken me two days!!!

Jonboat Jerry · Post by **Jonboat Jerry** » 05 Jun 2013, 19:17

Nice Tin and welcome to Tin Boats. Lots of great people here and some very good ideas.
Keep the pictures coming and keep hacking....Jerry

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 05 Jun 2013, 22:24

so I just finished day one... completed the lower deck frame and started on the upper deck. I designed everything to be removable. so the next time that I can get away to work on this I will be continuing the work on the upper and then removing all the wood to stain with sealant before installing permanently. Brantley Gilbert and Budweiser got me through tonight and even though i'm posting this I already can't wait to get back to work on my boat.

please let me know what you think. improvements?? better ways than I did it??

Post by **Keystone** » 05 Jun 2013, 22:27

Coming along nicely! Looking forward to the finished result.

wwcenturion · Post by **wwcenturion** » 06 Jun 2013, 07:38

Concerning the bow framing, why didn't you go all the way forward with the center 2x4 coming from the bench seat? Is the bow seat higher or lower than the bench seat? I am still fooling around with mine for that very reason and can't seem to come up with a solution.

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 06 Jun 2013, 07:58

@wwcenturian I did it this way because the front seat in the bow was about 6 inches higher than the middle bench. and I really wanted to have a large front platform relatively level. so I decided to raise the elevation of the middle bench by 2" and run the 2x4 and 2x6 flush with the bow bench.

my wife isn't big into fishing but she always kayaked and canoed with me before. so i'm really wanting this large platform so she can lay out and be comfortable while I fish.

WMcGrath · Post by **WMcGrath** » 06 Jun 2013, 14:25

Looks great.. getting right down to work! The only thing I noticed is if you were planning on moving up to a gas tiller.. you may want to put the captins seat on the other side of the rear bench... tillers are designed for use with your left hand while you sit to the right of them. Won't effect anything if you stick with the TM but if you put the switch box were you illustated it on the blue print, it would be in the way of the seat if you had to move it once you got the gas motor. I'm going to follow this one... I started my project in april and JUST put the deck in, at this rate you'll have it done well before me. Great job!

SCARNG2011 · Post by **SCARNG2011** » 06 Jun 2013, 18:59

Finished framing the top deck and now waiting for the sealant to dry.

@WMcGrath thank you for that idea. that's the second advice I've received on that issue. I have totally inverted my original design to accommodate the gas engine. I would have never noticed that until it was too late! thank you!