Alumacraft Jet Jon Project

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CedarRiverScooter

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My project is coming along, so I want to share some photos. I still need to add lateral braces across the bench seat top. I am currently busy untangling all the wires & hoses.

I welded in ribs to bolt the plastic hull to. I used Marine-Tex as a prmer on the aluminum side of glue joint, then 2 tubes of 3M5200 to glue it in. I was going the through-bolt it but have decided it is strong enough without them. (My friend is trying to take his apart & he can't break the 5200 free).

I am going to have 2 seats, side by side, just in front of the engine. I will have a stick steer on center, so I can drive from either seat.

The big problem will be having to wait for open water next month when I get it done!
 

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Nice work so far! Keep us posted.

Also, a bit of FYI, don't use 5200 on anything you may have to remove at a later date, as you have already surmised from your friend's experience with the stuff! :mrgreen:
 
I have a 1648 alumacraft mod v and it works well I can fit four but I have a smaller size engine so it only goes 23 ish with that load.
 
What did you fill the gap between the motor skid and the aluminum where the ski hul curves up? I used foam and lots of 5200 didn't know wether there's a better way.
 
AMK - If you look at the 2nd picture down, you can see that I added some 'strakes' to the jet ski hull. These are positioned so that I had about 1-1/2 inches of surface area for the 3M5200. There is no filler between that & the stringers I welded in. I was going to thru bolt the hull to the jet ski insert, but i decided it was strong enough as is.

My buddy (who got me started on all this) tried to remove the jet ski insert out of his hull & he couldn't bust the 5200 loose. He was going to have to saw it out. So apparently the 5200 is doing it's job!
 
I'd love to know how this works with a glass boat, I would think blending the jet ski bottom would work well.
 
does the second picture from the top of just what you cut out of the jetski include the motor mounting part. I don't see any joined pieces in the later picture but it doesn't look as long in the 2nd.
 
]Yes, the 2nd picture is what was cut out of jet ski, it is just upside down so you can see the strakes I added (which were just for glue surface).

Not sure what you men by 'joining pcs' but here is a snip of the 'stringers I welded in, they are what the jet ski insert was bolted down to:
[attachment=0]Capture 4.JPG[/attachment

If I was to do this again, I would make the stringers from angle aluminum. 1 pc would be glued to hull & welded at the ends to the cross ribs, the other upside down & welded to the 1st. Then you can match the taper of the jet ski insert without as much work as I went thru.

A guy could just poo rivet all this together & then have a shop do the welding (I would have been better off with a shop).

Airborne - The would work fine with a fiberglass hull. Most guys are using aluminum hulls because the light weight requires less draft. Not to forget gives more speed!
 

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Very nice so far. I made the mistake of using expandable foam to fill my ski to hull gap and regret it so much. I have ripped most of it out and used 5200 and fiberglass filler to fill the void but considering ripping it all out and starting from scratch. Will be watching your progress. Good luck!
 
Looks like a fuji 650? The 5200 is awesome stuff, dont care what anyone says. Builds looking good, keep up the good progress.
 
Getting close to the finish line!

Got it started, idled @6000 RPM; had to sync the carbs better. Backed it into the river but pump wasn't sealed right & took on water right away. That's OK because icebergs were still floating by. Not sure I want to be the Titanic on 6 O'clock news.

Here are some photos. Still have some appearance items to clean up.

boat final 001.JPG

boat final 002.JPG

boat final 003.JPG
 
Well done so far. I would rethink your thoughts on through bolting the ski to the boat hull. Figure all the thrust pushing the boat around and with the bumps and vibrations, I would add some hardward. I used 1/4-20 stainless carriage bolts to go from under the boat and used stainless poly nuts to synch it down. Done 8 of these under the engine mounting plate so you cant see them. Glad to see it coming along, hopfully mine will be ready for water testing in a few weeks. All the small things are killing me haha.
 
Better picture of operator station & controls. Switches are recessed to (hopefully) prevent unintential actuation:

getting better 008.JPG[attachment=0]

Keep thinking about improvements, I am going to brace those grab handles down to the floor somehow. (They are made from a a bicycle handlebar).

I have a complete reverse system coming my way that I scooped up for $90.
 
Shakedown cruise scheduled for Saturday afternoon. Up until this point it's only run on the thrailer.

I got cold feet (sorry for the pun) last weekend with an engine miss, 35 degree water with icebergs floating by, & wicked current. Thought I'd wait a week to let mother nature mellow out.
 

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