"Old Gold" - 1958 Alumacraft Deep C

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mgros483

Well-known member
Joined
May 29, 2014
Messages
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Location
SW WI
Hey all,

New guy here, I've been reading this forum for about a year now, but never posted. I love the projects you all have going on here, and if you've built anything on here, I've probably read it. So, I thought it's about time to contribute.

It all started last spring when I was at a boat ramp on the Mississippi River and saw this awesome piece of tin pull up to the dock:

2013-05-25 10.36.12 by Photo 144, on Flickr

I knew right then I needed to find one. So I scoured craigslist for a month or two and found one that looked appealing, it was about 2 hours from home, but I went there immediately. It looked in decent shape. I heard it run, hooked it up and pulled it home for $1200. The PO was a shadetree mechanic type, so everything worked fine, but the looks left something to be desired. As I was pulling out I got the "Oh I think I have the windshield in a brush pile in the back 40"....and he did.

Specs:

1958 Alumacraft Deep C - 15'
1976 Evinrude 40hp long shaft Model 40655A

This is the day I brought it home:

2013-06-10 08.37.34 by Photo 144, on Flickr

2013-06-11 18.39.05 by Photo 144, on Flickr

I started doing some research on it, and that's when I found tinboats. I decided to run it as-is last summer just to decide how I liked it, and what sort of amenities I wanted. I love fishing, but the wife said if I wanted her to come along, she needed a place to sun tan on the boat. So, I'm trying to get a best case scenario for the two. I dug through pretty much every build on here to get the basic newbie questions sorted out (used the 'search' function a lot, and didn't post a "hey I'm new, tell me what I should do" topic....that drives me nuts).

Here's the original brochure, just for fun:

Alumacraftb58009 by Photo 144, on Flickr

I decided I wanted a carpeted rear deck, wide gunwales to mount rod holders/downriggers/beer holders/speakers, and nice moveable pedestal seats. Also, I live in the middle of BFE so I needed to get most of my basic supplies from a local hardware store, or the occasional trip to Menards in the big city.

So, this spring rolled around and I dragged Old Gold out of the snowbank and got to work. That was four weeks ago.

First step was cleaning it out, removing the motor and replacing the transom. The transom wood was rotten inside and out, so I replaced it. I used standard exterior plywood (non-treated, of course) I got BC grade (one side sanded with no large knots), it was a little more pricey, but I didn't want a bunch of knot holes to fill, and wanted a halfway decent appearance.

For the external part of the transom, I used 1/2", cut to size and for the inside part I used 1 piece of 3/4" and one piece of 1/2" wood glued together. Both got stained and 6 coats of spar varnish. Then attached with stainless steel hardware, silicone on all the holes.


2014-05-04 11.59.17 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-04 14.05.43 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-04-13 17.37.45 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-08 10.39.17 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-15 17.15.15 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-15 19.35.42 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-15 19.35.48 by Photo 144, on Flickr

As you can tell from those pics, I started framing in my deck/gunwales while waiting for the varnish coats to dry (which takes forever in Wisconsin in the spring). I used 2x2 framing for the gunwales, 2x4 supports for the midship deck that were attached with joist hangers to the benches. Also did some fitting to make sure my tanks would fit in the back. Then cut and fit the 3/4" plywood for the deck, and 1/2" plywood for covering the sides and top of the gunwales. I also have a 2x6 across the stern for mounting rod holders.


2014-05-08 16.01.31 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-08 16.25.19 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-08 19.01.02 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-19 20.02.36 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-19 20.02.54 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-25 13.58.53 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-24 11.33.32 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-23 16.55.34 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-23 20.09.54 by Photo 144, on Flickr

Once it was mostly fit up, I pulled it all out to get varnished (4 coats). I did the 2x2 frame first and the 1/2" ply for the gunwales and sides. Haven't finished the floor yet, because I still need to cut and fit for my pedestal bases.


2014-05-25 14.50.52 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-25 19.38.19 by Photo 144, on Flickr

While that was drying, I pulled the fuel tanks apart and gave them a good cleaning, and a new seal under the pickup mechanism. Also, found a fawn...irrelevant, I know, but the tank was in the picture, so that's my excuse.


2014-05-28 20.57.01 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-28 20.56.49 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-06-03 20.13.02 by Photo 144, on Flickr

Like most tin that's been around 56 years, it has had plenty of PO's that have mounted all kinds of crap and have holes drilled everywhere, so I've been spending a lot of quality time with a DA sander (80 grit pads) and JB Marine-Weld putty to get things straightened out. I'm still not done with this, but it's getting better. The PO had silicone all over around this bracket on the stern also, so I got all of that out of there and JB'ed that on the inside, and also the seam on the outside. It didn't leak all summer, but I thought it couldn't hurt. Also, while sanding on the last two awful paint jobs, I found the original decals, I probably won't replace them, but still was a fun find.


2014-05-08 12.05.13 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-05-08 12.05.19 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-06-06 20.05.32 by Photo 144, on Flickr

So, getting up to the present, I started putting the varnished pieces back in, cleaned up the motor, and ordered a ridiculous amount of stuff from Cabelas/Gander Mtn/Bass Pro Shops. I couldn't resist setting my seats in to see what it might look like. Also notice I cut the handles off my tanks to get clearance in the stern. I'm sure someone is cringing about cutting up the old tanks, but you gotta work with what you have, ya know.


2014-06-06 20.05.44 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-06-08 11.12.01 by Photo 144, on Flickr


2014-06-08 11.12.14 by Photo 144, on Flickr

So I have to go out of town for work for the rest of the week/weekend, but hope to get crankin on it more next week.

My goal with this is to have a nice boat for not too much cash, and also to get it done quickly. So, disclaimer, my methods probably aren't 100% the best possible thing to do in every scenario, but I didn't want to learn any new skills (fiberglass), spend too much cash (marine ply), or have to look all over the world for specialty things (marine ply, again). Also, I don't have much access to metalworking equipment, or aluminum scraps for that matter. So, although I really would like this all to be Aluminum, that will have to wait for the next time around. Overall I think it's going to last pretty well, and it's a fun project. So, if I have to do it again in 5 years, I'm ok with that. But, I think it will last longer than that with proper care.

Stay tuned, I'll be installing the seat bases, doing a buttload of electrical work, and painting this rig soon. Hoping to have this baby on the water in another 3 weeks looking decent.

Welp, that was one helluva first post, eh?

If you have any questions or suggestions, I'd love to hear them. This forum will keep me going while I'm working all week away from my project.

Marty
 
That's a beautiful craft.

Well-done.

Classic and handsome when you bought it. I think you should be very pleased.

=D> =D> =D>
 
Just returned from the weekend, so no. Hopefully get something accomplished tomorrow.
 
Apparently, Wisconsin is a rainforest this year, so I haven't had much progress. Every time I have time to do some work, it's raining and I have to work outside. But, today I got a couple hours to mess around after work.

Drilled my holes for the pin pedestal bases through the plywood and the aluminum bench. I still have to enlarge the holes some due to the flaring of the base near the anchor plate. I don't have a hole saw large enough, so I'll have to cut an additional 7/8" of radius on the hole in order for the base to sit flush with the deck.

2014-06-25 19.59.43 by Photo 144, on Flickr

I had no idea what to expect in these benches, I thought maybe there would be foam, but it is just a sealed air compartment. Well, there are two dividers in it as well, so actually there are three sealed air compartments in each bench. Might be useful info for anyone else working on one of these old alumacrafts. Due to the pedestal bases being a straight hole through the bench, I lost my flotation in there and also had to drill some drain holes in the back of the benches in three places so it can drain if any rain gets through the pedestal base. I am going to put blue closed cell foam in the new gunwales to compensate for this loss and the added weight of the deck.

2014-06-25 19.59.50 by Photo 144, on Flickr

I set the seats in the holes to get a feel for how it will look. The seats in this pic are how they will be for just cruising around. Then, the other two holes will be used with the same seats. I will be able to pull them out, put them on tall pins and have two raised seats for fishing on the deck. Pretty good compromise to keep it versatile for fishing/cruising (aka, keeping the wife happy).

2014-06-25 20.00.29 by Photo 144, on Flickr

Also started to install some 1 1/2x1 1/2" aluminum angle pieces for additional support around the hatches. Forgot to take pics of that.

My plywood got a bit wet one night when the tarp blew off, so I'm letting it dry for a few days before I can apply the spar varnish.
 
A little more done on the boat this weekend. Put in some additional support for the deck using 1/8x1 1/2x1 1/2 aluminum angle. Turns out the quality control wasn't the greatest in 1958. My rear bench was not riveted on level. So, the deck wouldn't sit flat on the bench top, hence the angle on the sides. The angle under the center hatch is just for additional support.





Also cut the holes for my rear switch/fuse panel, 12v socket and fuse.



Then installed some foam in the gunwales. Just an FYI for anyone working with the blue foam. I had some PL400 construction adhesive lying around and I thought I'd use it to hold my foam together...didn't work. Smelled like someone was burning plastic and it ate away at the foam until it dried. Needless to say, switched to some silicone after that.



First coat of spar varnish is drying on the deck right now, so hopefully will get to installing seats and carpet very soon.
 
Thanks for checking out my build, what you're doing with the rear deck and well is just about the same thing I had planned to do.

Any idea if spar varnish will prevent the ply from checking over time? Do you plant to carpet over anything?
 
Based on what I've seen on this site, the spar varnish will do fine.

The other option is epoxy, which might be better for the long term, but I just went with the spar varnish because it's easy to find. Also, a lot of people have had good luck with it on their builds.

I will be carpeting pretty much the whole inside of the boat, I bought the gray "starboard" carpet from menards.
 
One more thing - you don't think you'll ever have to remove those tanks, do you? Just looked like it might be hard to remove them, if you had to. Maybe you wont ever need to though..
 
Yeah the tanks aren't coming out. Let's hope they hold up, otherwise I'll be cutting them up.
 
I'm sure they will! I have a plastic tank and don't know much about the metal ones. I'd be willing to bet you wont have to.. just an observation!
 
Not much progress due to the holidays and fishing in the other operable tin boat, but got my battery cables mostly finished last night. I got a second battery, it's smaller and not in the greatest shape, but it will do for now at least to get the wiring all how I want it and test the weight and balance.

I used 4 gauge cable all around, was going to go with the 6 gauge originally used in the boat, but the 4 ga. was only a few dollars more. Used copper cable ends, soldered them in with the propane torch and put 1/2" heat shrink over the top. The battery switch has much larger posts than the batteries and the motor, so ended up having to drill out the ends to fit. I couldn't find circuit breakers for the battery cables locally, so I went without them for now. I've never had them on any boat I had, so I'm not sure if they're truly necessary on a small boat. But, if anyone has any opinions on where to get one and what size, I might look into installing them.

Also scored a free trolling motor from my stepdad. I want a foot control, but this thing is about brand new, only used twice on a kayak. I might just sell it and put the money toward a minn kota foot control. So if anyone has eyes out for one of these, I'd be glad to discuss selling it. It's a minn kota endura 30, if my memory serves me right. I can check into details when I get home.

Still putting layers of varnish on the decking, should be ready to install tomorrow when I have the cables all situated how I want them.

Not very interesting pics, but here you go:


image


image
 
How did you take out and install the inner transom? Did you have to drill out the rivets on the supports and re rivet? What about the end caps? Did you have to take those out?
 
[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=359090#p359090 said:
memyself » 10 Jul 2014, 15:25[/url]"]How did you take out and install the inner transom? Did you have to drill out the rivets on the supports and re rivet? What about the end caps? Did you have to take those out?

Yes, you have to drill out the rivets in the support, then you have to pound the supports evenly toward the outer sides of the splashwell a few inches, then pound the front end of the support toward the centerline of the boat. It seems like it would be easier to just drill them out then pound the fronts outward, but it doesn't work that way. The supports must not quite be symmetrical or something.

This is really hard to explain in text, I wish you could see my hand movements, haha.

The end caps did not have to come out on mine, at least, just the screw going down into the inner transom board.

Getting it back in was a little tricky, but some work with a pry bar and a mallet got it in eventually and smashed my fingers numerous times in the process.
 
Finally finished varnishing the deck so I could start making some headway. Finished up what little I had left on the new battery cables and battery switch.

I installed the four swivl-eze pedestal bases with t-nuts into the 3/4" deck. I used loctite on all the screws, then proceeded to hammer all of the t-nuts from the back side, then flip it over and tighten the screws. Repeated this four times before the screws wouldn't tighten all the way. Might be useful info for anyone doing the same thing, if I just tightened them as tight as they would go the first time, I'm sure they would have worked loose in a short time. Since I'm carpeting over the bases, that would be a big problem.

Also (not in the pictures) I put some PL400 construction adhesive on the bottom of the bases before installing them. Probably overkill, but I really want these things to be sturdy since I'm not putting them through the aluminum benches.

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Then I screwed down the deck with sheet metal screws into the benches and wood screws into my 2x4' bracing. I went overkill with these too, most likely.

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Once everything was in I had to test out the seats and they work perfectly. No flex at all at the bases. Took pics of it in both modes, cruising with the seats down, and fishing up on the pin pedestals. Of course I sat on them and made pretend fishing motions in the yard. Scared the neighbors.

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I used some bondo to patch up a few gaps, so that will be dried out tomorrow and I'll be ready for carpet. Getting closer to getting her in the water, can't wait.
 
Just a quick picture update, started carpeting. I used weldwood contact cement. I bought both that and outdoor adhesive, but once I tried the contact cement I was hooked. Very fast and easy to work with. Just lay out your pieces cut roughly where you want them, put weight on one half to hold it down in place, lay down cement on the deck and the carpet, wait a few minutes and slap it on. Still stayed wet enough to do some minor adjustments and trim the ends up to fit. Then when that's stuck, pull your weight off the other side and do the second half.

I'm very pleased with how quickly the carpet is going, would have finished the whole thing in one afternoon, but had to shoot on my trap league and then it looked like rain after that. Going to finish it up tonight.

I'm having flashbacks to my days of being a commercial floor layer...I wish I still had the skills I used to with carpet, my seams would look much better than they do, but I'm happy with it so far.


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Got Phase One of the carpet completed this weekend. I ran out of contact cement by the time I got to the final, center hatch lid, so I decided to use some of the indoor/outdoor carpet adhesive I bought but planned on returning. Let me tell you, contact cement is the way to go. I finished it off with the glue, but contact cement would have made the job much easier, especially wrapping the edges of the hatches. I ended up having to use a lot of stainless staples to hold it together right while it dried. The contact cement would have just stuck them in the right spot the first try.


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Yes, I know she's too old for a pacifier...a constant battle in my house.


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I was originally going to put in recessed handles for the hatches, but decided to save some cash and just cut up an old strap I had to make some loops. They work well and were free to me.


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Also got a lot of odds and ends done. Installed bilge pump, hooked up batteries, and ran the motor in a water tank to make sure everything was clicking. I am having a problem with my control cables being too short now that the deck is on and it has to make a couple of extra turns. If anyone has any tips, I'd like to hear them. I'm trying to figure out another way to route them now, but I really would like all of my cables/hoses to all come out of the center hole in my rod holder section by the splashwell. Anyone ever replace/extend control cables? Is it difficult/expensive?

I got my steering hooked up after a lot of cursing and repetitive work due to stupid mistakes. Finally ended up having to pull the whole cable out and off the drum and re-winding the whole deal....twice, because I wound it backward the first time. Word of advice for anyone dealing with cable and drum steering: Do a lot of thinking and figuring out how it works before you put it all together the wrong way. It seems simple, but for some reason it gave me a real hard time.

I'm currently kicking myself for not figuring out my fuel line situation before installing the deck. I got impatient because I didn't have the supplies to do it at the time and it's a long ride to a decent store out here. It's really a tight space to work and I'm hoping I don't end up having to just ditch my big metal tanks and switch to small plastic ones. We shall see.

Up next will be some more carpeting, installing front seats/swivels, figuring out and mounting the controls, and a lot of wiring.
 

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