2015 Alumacraft MV 1546 DD build

[Va Larry]

How do you think a 9.9hp would perform on the 1546?

Not well.
I wouldn't think you would be able to get on plane with fishing stuff on the boat.
Biggest thing I would look at if I wanted a 9.9 to plane me and my fishing gear would be a riveted 1542. I would and did personally look for a riveted 1442 for hp restricted lakes. I would consider a 1436 if I wanted to cover some ground on decent size lake, or take a buddy and fishing gear and still hope to get it on plane.

Chevyrulz I like your boat. Interested to see how you get it all setup when your done.

 

[chevyrulz]

Unfortunately, my lake is horsepower restricted. How do you think a 9.9hp would perform on the 1546?

fine for idling around short distances but your asking a guy that put a 30hp motor on a 1436L that's rated for a 15hp motor lol I'd never have any use for such a slow boat, I don't fish/hunt small bodies of water though...

Enjoyed reading this thread

Really surprised that considering the 1546 is an all welded boat its not much heavier then a riveted jon

thanks, glad to hear it...and yes I was also surprised when I read the various hull weights from the Alumacraft website, and I was even more surprised when I learned how heavy pretty much every other welded hull is

Got my flooring last night, gotta trim to fit but I'll get some pictures on here soon

 

[Fadec]

fine for idling around short distances but your asking a guy that put a 30hp motor on a 1436L that's rated for a 15hp motor lol I'd never have any use for such a slow boat, I don't fish/hunt small bodies of water though...

I have a 9.9hp pushing my 20ft pontoon boat so I'm used to going slow. Heck a 9.9 on a 1546 jon would a speed demon to me! Lol

Fadec

 

[chevyrulz]

Took about 20 minutes to install the floor, the material seems durable. It definitely feels great on bare feet. I didn't glue it down so hopefully it doesn't blow out of the boat on the way to the ramp! I used a razor blade and a framing square to easily cut the length & width.

 

[dwbiggs]

What I ended up using on floor...and had flotation pods installed

 

[dwbiggs]

Pods...

 

[chevyrulz]

nice!

 

[Y_J]

Took about 20 minutes to install the floor, the material seems durable. It definitely feels great on bare feet. I didn't glue it down so hopefully it doesn't blow out of the boat on the way to the ramp! I used a razor blade and a framing square to easily cut the length & width.

Looking good, my friend. Gives me a good idea what mine will be looking like.
I've still got 2 of the squares on my front step with me in and out quit abit times per day and my critters (2 cats and a dog) in and out all day long and the pads still aren't showing any wear.

 

[chevyrulz]

yea this flooring seems tough, and so far they don't stain. I had fish blood all over the flooring all weekend catching redfish & it hosed right off. I was thinking this flooring might float if I didn't glue it down & it be a problem, but it actually made washing out the boat super easy, all the trash floated under them & flowed to back. & no worries about em blowing out of the boat til I install hatches, every time I go fishing I have plenty of stuff all over the floor like fishing rods, cooler, cast net, minnow keeper, etc...lol

Anyone ever installed golf tube rod sleeves in a foam filled deck? How the heck do I put these in? I am debating on whether I can get by without a gun box or not, and I think I could so long as I have SOME type of built in dry storage storage. Which is easy, cut the hatch dig out the foam, I can handle that. Or even through a bench that's like a 1' or so wide, I could drill from both sides, & figure a way to get the foam out the way of the golf tube. BUT what if I just want the golf tubes, & no hatch, how do I dig out foam 3' back through 1.25" hole???? Even if I build a gun box, it would be cool to have these golf tubes at the end of it, either going back into the rear bench, or into the front deck, or hell, both! I am seeing these golf tubes on Amazon in both 1.25" and 1.5" but I ain't sure how to get a hole that big to go back 3' into a deck...without cutting a big hole in the top of the deck for access. I could cut the drop deck for access to the foam, install the golf tubes, some more foam to hold the tubes in place, then install a Tempress hatch in the hole I cut, but I'd rather not do that if there's an easier way. I know I could prolly buy a special super long drill bit like the ones electrician's use, but would they be 1.25" or 1.5" diameter?...I doubt it, prolly 3/4"...plus but I'd rather NOT try & drill 3' into a deck that's kinda close to the bottom of the boat, ya know? who already solved this problem & how?!

 

[Va Larry]

I've seen a couple builds on here where guys have used metal pipe with a sharp or sharpened end to make a tunnel through the foam for the ends of their rod tubes. I remember one guy used a shop broom handle after the broom accidentally got run over.
I would think a piece of pvc pipe with a well sharpened end would work too.

 

[chevyrulz]

Thanks Larry! I'm damn sure gonna try that before I hack up the deck, lol

 

[Va Larry]

You're welcome, and good luck.
Let us know how it works. I might be doing the same in the rear bench of my 1442 soon too.

 

[typed by ben]

yea this flooring seems tough, and so far they don't stain. I had fish blood all over the flooring all weekend catching redfish & it hosed right off. I was thinking this flooring might float if I didn't glue it down & it be a problem, but it actually made washing out the boat super easy, all the trash floated under them & flowed to back. & no worries about em blowing out of the boat til I install hatches, every time I go fishing I have plenty of stuff all over the floor like fishing rods, cooler, cast net, minnow keeper, etc...lol

Anyone ever installed golf tube rod sleeves in a foam filled deck? How the heck do I put these in? I am debating on whether I can get by without a gun box or not, and I think I could so long as I have SOME type of built in dry storage storage. Which is easy, cut the hatch dig out the foam, I can handle that. Or even through a bench that's like a 1' or so wide, I could drill from both sides, & figure a way to get the foam out the way of the golf tube. BUT what if I just want the golf tubes, & no hatch, how do I dig out foam 3' back through 1.25" hole???? Even if I build a gun box, it would be cool to have these golf tubes at the end of it, either going back into the rear bench, or into the front deck, or hell, both! I am seeing these golf tubes on Amazon in both 1.25" and 1.5" but I ain't sure how to get a hole that big to go back 3' into a deck...without cutting a big hole in the top of the deck for access. I could cut the drop deck for access to the foam, install the golf tubes, some more foam to hold the tubes in place, then install a Tempress hatch in the hole I cut, but I'd rather not do that if there's an easier way. I know I could prolly buy a special super long drill bit like the ones electrician's use, but would they be 1.25" or 1.5" diameter?...I doubt it, prolly 3/4"...plus but I'd rather NOT try & drill 3' into a deck that's kinda close to the bottom of the boat, ya know? who already solved this problem & how?!

i used a piece of 1" conduit cut at 45 degrees. thinner wall cuts easier but will also deform easier under pressure as you turn it. you just press it in, turn it over a couple of times by hand like a drill bit, then pull it out and take the foam out of the cavity in the center. perfect diameter for the tubes, and cheap to do.

 

[chevyrulz]

preciate the tips Ben! I'll let y'all know once I've tried it

 

[chevyrulz]

made an anchor pin on the cheap rather than buy a premade one for $70-100...

Here's the finished product:

 

[chevyrulz]

boat kills ducks, shot 11 between 3 of us this past Saturday

made it bout 1/2 way through building a blind on the cheap then gave up & went hunting. design took some time & thought to figure out how to make a sturdy, functional, trailerable blind without spending a fortune OR drilling holes in the boat [-X

The only expensive part was the fancy Avery "fast grass" mats I bought for $120. The rest of the blind is prolly $30 more worth of pvc pipe, pvc fittings, pvc glue, black tape, & black zip ties. I believe it is going to be great, but I'll find out soon enough & post the details with pictures so stay tuned


update from page 7:

 

[dwbiggs]

Cool...took my boat out on first hunt opening day...didn't have your luck though. Built my blind out of 1/2" EMT and used cheap hand clamps to attach to boat. Got some military netting and burlap for cover...will shoot a few pics this weekend. Thought I may regret using 1/2" instead of 3/4" but so far so good.

You hunted three out of boat?

 

[BigTerp]

I'd like to see pics of the blinds. I don't hunt out of my boat, but use it to get to hunting spots on the river (usually islands). Many times I wish I had a blind for my boat to setup where the ducks/geese like to be.

 

[chevyrulz]

yea, 3 + a dog in this boat is easy if you trust the +2 & the dog to obey YOUR rules / be safe :wink:

everything I could find on scissor blinds & boat blinds in general on the google was all EMT or aluminum, everyone does it but I don't like the idea of EMT in my boat for 2 reasons, corrosion & weight, then aluminum is far too expensive & still probably heavier than PVC

mine's 3/4" PVC, covered with black duct tape, rain hasn't let up all week so I haven't felt like to attaching the grass to the frame yet, didn't wanna rush it. i'm guessing here, but i couldn't have added more than 20-25 lbs for my whole blind

it's a 2 piece frame at the moment, prolly redo it as a 4 piece to make it easier to handle & put away for storage in the off season. in theory, it makes use of the front cleat & rear corner gussets to secure the blind to the boat for 75mph highway speeds without drilling holes in the boat. i'll test it out this coming weekend & report back with pictures

another way to do a boat blind on the cheap is wood & tree branches. get some 3x3 or 2x2 pine preferably a harder wood like oak, poplar, or maple or something, drill holes in it bout every 1 or 2 feet, run it around the top of the inside of the boat, & stick tree branches in the holes, the ducks don't care about the boat if it's got trees growing out of it & it's not moving, looks like they'd see it, & hunters might laugh, but I swear you'll have ducks flying right to you if there's decoys out front, that style takes a bit of time to setup though, and i'm going to super quick setup like a scissor blind or a fixed blind. my design should just be a matter of unrolling the left & right sides like you have to do with a scissor blind, except it doesn't pop up & provide that additional cover like a scissor blind would. however, mine can be propped up to allow for extra cover :lol:

military netting

yep, from the army navy store real cheap! stuff works wonders for hiding the boat from ducks on a budget


& dwbiggs, defintinitely show us yours, this thread sucks lately without picture huh?? lol

 

[dwbiggs]

Reason I got 1/2 inch EMT was save weight. Very simple scissor blind...let sides down and wrap it with a couple bungies, no issues going down highway. Blind is 10 ft...runnng from about a foot or so back on front bench to right where drop deck ends. Looks kinda funny because the blind hangs over sides up front where boat tapers. 2 of us had more than enough room. Only thing i need to work on his how to store texas rigged decoys...took up most of floor...may get a box or something. Made separate cover for motor as well.