Budget drop in decks and floors

[Weldorthemagnificent]

I see a new thread every couple weeks from people asking how to make a cheap easy deck or floors for their boat. This thread is for them. All you customizers and tin boat gurus move on, no pro level tips here. As an owner of a succession of tin boats and an avid fisherman, I have improved usability of all my boats and done it on a budget because for me it's about functionality. I will share my latest improvement below. Feel free to add pics and tips from your projects and maybe together we can help new boat owners make cheap and simple improvements!

My current main boat is a 16' Naden utility vee hull. My buddy fishes up front and me in the rear. He is a bit of a complainer so I never really paid attention to how much the sloping floor sucked to fish out of until I took a turn up front! Something has to be done.

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[Weldorthemagnificent]

I cut plywood deck and face boards from exterior 1/2". I use strip templates to make the shapes. This is cheap plywood that I don't intend to cover or attempt to make pretty.

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[Weldorthemagnificent]

I used pieces from an old desk my son made in highschool and recently took apart. Literally scrap wood for the framing underneath. Screwed together and a coat of Thompson's water seal because that's what I had in the garage. That's it, it's done and it can be that simple. My 225lbs jumped around on it and it holds just fine. The same principles can be applied to floorboards to drop in between the seats as well if desired. For a blood and guts fishing boat it's as far as I'm going.

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[Weldorthemagnificent]

It looks tiny in the pics. It's 45" wide and 50" long. Used a long straight board across the bench seats to keep the deck parallel when making the template. Now to wait a couple months for the lakes to thaw so I can try it out!

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[DaleH]

You are sooooo right, at a minimum that's all that's needed. Good job!

Now, only because I always have the epoxy(www.raka.com) on hand, I'll advise others how to take it one step further to last the life of the boat.

1) Wet out the edges of the plywood, wet out again, once the 1st coat kicks ... repeat
2) Coat topsides and bottom
) Lightly sand and paint with RustOleum enamel or any good 'barn' paint, throw sand on top of the top-coat if needed for traction

Takes but 2-hours extra at most, less time really ...

Now sit back and enjoy a boat's lifetime free of rot floor!

 

[CedarRiverScooter]

Great info.

Bling doesn't belong on a real fishing boat. I've saw a $60K fishing boat on CL a few weeks ago.

 

[jessejoe23]

Nice Work! Does it just sit in there? or did you attach it some how?

 

[Weldorthemagnificent]

It just sits there saddled over the bow seat.

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[freimer]

Nice job. Simple and functional. I did the same on my 14’ Blue Fin including drop-in floors between the benches.


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[Weldorthemagnificent]

Post some pics of your floorboards. I have had them in other boats but this one has a fairly gentle shape, so standing behind the front seat is good all the way to the back.

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[freimer]

Unfortunately my boat is in winter storage, so no pics available right now. I went ultra cheap with free plywood painted with grey floor paint and a 2x2 frame underneath. My benches don’t go all the way down to the bottom of the hull, so I built the floor a few inches longer than the space in between the seats. If I slide it in at an angle under one bench and drop the other end of the floor down, I can then move it back just a little so that it sits with a couple inches under each bench. Hope that makes sense. A couple of dowels slipped into some pre-drilled holes keep it from sliding back and forth. If I can find some pics somewhere I will try to figure out how to post them.


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[Weldorthemagnificent]

Great description!

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[Weldorthemagnificent]

Got a chance to lake test my deck today. held up just fine and carried the weight of the battery and my fishing buddy. The deck did squeak a bit so I may try stapling some foam or fabric to the edges but otherwise I'm happy with it and it will lift out easily when I need it to.

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[stomper]

looks great. Its amazing how something so simple can make time spent in the boat so much more enjoyable.

 

[Jim]

nice work! =D>

 

[Rebelwork]

I'm considering a 1/4 torsion box design for my conversion. I'm more concerned about weight at this point...

 

[Weldorthemagnificent]

I'm considering a 1/4 torsion box design for my conversion. I'm more concerned about weight at this point...

That would be interesting. If you do it, post a pic here.

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[Rebelwork]

.......

 

[freimer]

Finally got around to posting a couple pics of my drop in deck and floors. I have a drop in deck up front, and also made one for between the middle and front seat for a bigger deck if I desire (which is pretty much always). Stability not an issue, as I sit to fish with the exception of getting up to stretch my legs once in a while. Sorry about the sideways photos.

 

[Weldorthemagnificent]

Sweet, nice job!

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