beginning of my first aluminum v!!!!

[jasper60103]

yep, both my motors have wheeled carts. They help a lot. Nice job.

 

[Stevecris]

I just started a similar project and was in Lowe's looking at the composite flooring and thinking the same way as you on this. Have you decided if you will use it or not?

 

[jfetter20]

Hadn't used it, but the composite decking definitely has potential. The only negative thing is the thickness. It's almost too thick and may make the boat a bit too heavy. But for use in a small area, this may be a non-issue.

still not quite to sure , im starting to agree with dave. on one hand , it is waterproff and would heavy duty , but the weight factor is so much higher with the stuff. as long as i can figure out a way to do it and keep the weight down , ill do it. im thinking maybe two thin stringers underneath that are cut the contour of the boat and then use the thin decking boards to cover the top with maybe about 1/8" between the boards or something. going to doodle around on some paper and see if i can figure out the best way

 

[Ranchero50]

One of the curses of the composites it they sag if not supported well enough...

Personally it's pretty much a no brainer to add aluminum to an aluminum boat. Cuts and drills easy, even rivets easy or you can get it welded. It doesn't rot, doesn't suck up water, cleans easily and the best part is if you drill and tap for machine screws it can be taken apart to get at the hull for when you whack the rock...

Jamie

 

[jfetter20]

what about rivnuts? ive seen alot of them on the internet but i havent seen anyone really use them on there boats. they seem like a good price for the amount you get. how well do they hold in , would they be strong enough? if so , i think this would be the best bet for making removable panels?

 

[jfetter20]

been kind of busy lately , so havent had much time to work on the boat. luckily , ive been able to do some computer work and find out some new parts and new ideas. so far ive ruled it down to a grassy camo design. seems pretty simple and can be done with about $30 bucks in stencils and some rattle can paint after i get the base coat down. not sure what color im going to go with because im going to coat the bottom with steelflex. thinking i may go with two different shades of khaki or tan to somewhat match the picture

 

[Ranchero50]

Rivnuts tend to really suck when they strip out in the base metal. Then it's chisel and hammer time to get stuff apart. Tracker used them for a few years on boats, very bad poop.

10-32 hardware will hold well in 1/8-3/16" angle. Set up two drills, one with the drill and the other with the tap and you can get stuff done quickly. Drill and tap the panel and support. Put a screw in each hole as you go so the sheet doesn't shift. Once done, remove the sheet and oversize the holes a bit and put it back together.

Jamie

 

[RStewart]

Nice boat. We have almost the same boat. I like the plans you have. I wish I would have rebuilt my trailer first, but it will give me something to do this winter when fishing slows a little. Keep the pics coming.

 

[tccanoe]

Hay Fet, glancing through your thread I don't know if you got a couple of you questions answered or not. The wheel size on your trailer is fine. They are nice heavy duty rims and tires for the size trailer and boat you have. You can drive to Alaska with that trailer. I like the way you are decking low in the mid-ships. You may wabble a little off the casting deck but you can take a stability break for lunch and if the weather gets bad you can hunker down. What I did note was your motor may be a long shaft. Measure from the bottom of the motor to the cavitation plate (large plate above the prop) it should be 15" on a short shaft, 20" on a long shaft and 25" on an extra long (never seen one) shaft. If you have not redone your transom you could put an extre 5" on it. You could add a (brain lock) jack plate jr.? Or just leave as is because it probably won't make a world of differance. For the age of your boat and trailer, they have not been abused or messed with too much. Perfact for a restore and fabulous MOD. Keep up the goooood work. It's a Mini Jacker I was trying to think of. If it's to pricy, there a lots of examples of home mods that work well around here or like I said, just add 5" to the top of the transom. This is assuming your shaft is a 20incher. (it's hard to tell from the pics)

 

[jfetter20]

okay , so ive started looking around for some primer to paint the hull and ive come across a couple different solutions. i can either shell out the 5 buck a can for etching or primer , or........ i can spend 20 bucks for a gallon of " aluminum primer ". says nothing on the can about etching , but i guarantees to stick to aluminum and make a good bond. my question is would this be a suitable replacement for rattle cans? has anyone used this stuff before? i figured that if its rustoleum , you cant go wrong?

 

[Howard]

I used the spray cans with zero problems.

 

[jfetter20]

just out of curiousity , how many cans did it take you to do the hull? i plan on doing both the inside and out

 

[summers]

+1 on your question i am looking for the same information. and the choice bewtween the gallon vs numbers of cans. I know that you should have at least three coats this is why iam leaning to the gallon of the primer.

 

[SaltyBuckster]

If you strip the boat all the way down to the aluminum you will need a lot of it.Probably the whole gallon.I am in the process also of doing my 16 foot flatbottom.My paint looks old,but it is not peeling anywhere.I'm going to sand it down with a DA sander and see how far I need to go before I by it bt the spray can or the gallon.I"m going with the Reelfoot Grasslands also.Should be interesting to watch.

 

[jfetter20]

ok , so ive got most of the brackets and suspension done on the frame. didnt come out as good as i was hoping due to the extreme pitting on the steel under carriage , but im not taking the time to go through and bondo everything! lol all that is left is to buy one more new tire/rim and to get the main section of the frame done , then its off to bunk building!

 

[jfetter20]

okay , well the suspension is put back together. started sanding on the main part of the frame and the tongue. only thing left is to get a wheel/tire, new winch , some lights , and a new hitch for the front!

 

[jfetter20]

ok......so ive been gone for quite a while due to my work schedule the last few weeks , but i was finally able to get the rest of the trailer finished. got it pulled out this morning and got the shell of the boat put back on it. i laughed as i noticed that the painted parts had been waiting to be reassembled for so long that they had collected dust. anyway , start sanding down the hull for primer and paint tomorrow. checks good for leak tests and ive got the trailer lights ordered

 

[Ictalurus]

Trailer looks good, almost brand new!

 

[jfetter20]

ok , so the shell has been painted and the trailer has been changed around a bit. painted the hull with a 50/50 mix of mineral spirits and charcoal grey rustoleum , very impressed with how hard the finish came out. couldnt hardly even scratch the finish when i was trying to.

also got the winch and stop at the front changed around into a safer and easier configuration.

as for the trailer , decided to get rid of the rollers all together. the more that i was messing with it , realized that it was going to be unstable and was moving around to much. removed all the sets of rollers and replaced it with a pair of 5' bunks on the rear and a pair of angled 1' bunks on the front. still easy to move on and off , but wont slide of while going down the ramp. even got the fabric cheap at menards this weekend to make it even better. was going to end up forking out 50 cents a foot for outdoor carpet off the rolls. while standing there saw that they had 6x8 sections of outdoor carpet for 9.99 on sale. got it wrapped and installed , just waiting for this weekend so that i can finish up the inside. then its off to find a new motor!

 

[atuck593]

I don't think you answered this but did you go with the gallon of aluminum primer or the self etching cans. I am looking at painting the inside and outside of my boat. I am thinking that the spray paint cans will be a lot out of the budget ( $5 a can). I see what ever your choice was it worked out well for you.