Couple of questions for boat build

[JPRBasser]

I just got my boat.. a 14' Sea Nymph 14r. I want to take out the middle bench seat with the purpose of putting in flat flooring in between the first and last bench seats to have as much open space as possible and raised decking at the front of the boat and the back of the boat. Storage isn't my biggest concern as I don't plan to bring tons of tackle or keep any tackle in the boat long term. I just need hatches for the battery and other essentials. My main questions are 1) How to remove the bench seat, and the best way to fill in the holes that removing it will leave. 2) Do I have to attach the flat floor to the boat, or will making the floor fit snug just by dropping 3/4" carpeted plywood be stable and sturdy enough alone. 3) As for the raised decking, I plan to attach part of the decking to the bench seat, but how should I attach the other end (i.e. the end of the decking neat the tip of the boat and closest to the transom; unsupported by a bench seat) of the decking so that it Is sturdy? Also, Im not sure of the condition that the transom is in. I can post pics of it within the next couple days and if someone could tell me if its good to go or not , that'd be great. 4) how do I know if the bearings on the trailer are good? the well thing is packed with grease and I'd hate for something to go wrong with a tire or bearing while driving. Ill post a pic of my goal with the finished project that I found off the internet, and I'll be able to post pics of my actual boat on Tuesday. I'm only 19 and very new to all this so sorry if there's a lot of easy/obvious things. Still learning and looking to build an awesome rig here. All help is appreciated, Thanks!!!!

 

[surfman]

My bench seat was riveted in on the sides, I simply ground off the head of the rivet on the inside of the boat, against the seat flange and then used a punch to knock out the rivet, I then used a blind rivet, got them from Grainger and used two hammers to install them, took about a 1/2 hour to do. I put a dab of 5200 sealer on them but that probably isn't necessary.

 

[CedarRiverScooter]

Definitely screw the floor down.

I recommend putting the screws in after the carpet, as the day will come when you want to pull it up to clean out.

Also, use exterior ply & coat it with old timers formula (search site for recipe).

 

[JPRBasser]

Definitely screw the floor down.

I recommend putting the screws in after the carpet, as the day will come when you want to pull it up to clean out.

Also, use exterior ply & coat it with old timers formula (search site for recipe).

What should I screw the flooring into though? Directly to the hull or should I make a frame from 2x4s and lay that down first between the two bench seats? Thanks

 

[CedarRiverScooter]

You screw it to the cross ribs.

Stainless sheet metal screws are good.

 

[surfman]

For a V hull boat like the one pictured you are going to have to build a frame to support the floor with. I would use Aluminum Angle, not wood. Wood is heavy and will rot. There are many ways to do this. I would avoid drilling any holes into the hull. I would attach everything to the ribs.

 

[JPRBasser]

Pics of the transom

 

[MrSimon]

I just got my boat.. a 14' Sea Nymph 14r. I want to take out the middle bench seat with the purpose of putting in flat flooring in between the first and last bench seats to have as much open space as possible and raised decking at the front of the boat and the back of the boat. Storage isn't my biggest concern as I don't plan to bring tons of tackle or keep any tackle in the boat long term. I just need hatches for the battery and other essentials. My main questions are 1) How to remove the bench seat, and the best way to fill in the holes that removing it will leave. 2) Do I have to attach the flat floor to the boat, or will making the floor fit snug just by dropping 3/4" carpeted plywood be stable and sturdy enough alone. 3) As for the raised decking, I plan to attach part of the decking to the bench seat, but how should I attach the other end (i.e. the end of the decking neat the tip of the boat and closest to the transom; unsupported by a bench seat) of the decking so that it Is sturdy? Also, Im not sure of the condition that the transom is in. I can post pics of it within the next couple days and if someone could tell me if its good to go or not , that'd be great. 4) how do I know if the bearings on the trailer are good? the well thing is packed with grease and I'd hate for something to go wrong with a tire or bearing while driving. Ill post a pic of my goal with the finished project that I found off the internet, and I'll be able to post pics of my actual boat on Tuesday. I'm only 19 and very new to all this so sorry if there's a lot of easy/obvious things. Still learning and looking to build an awesome rig here. All help is appreciated, Thanks!!!!

You have a fun project in front of you. It will get involved, but take your time. The payoff will be awesome. The most important thing is to have the proper tools and to be patient. You will need a drill with some good bits, an angle grinder with cutting and grinding discs (wear eye protection!), a jigsaw with plenty of high quality blades, a good quality rivet gun, and other basic tools. A second set of hands will come in handy too.

1) Remove all the rivets on the center seat in whatever way suits you. Then fill the holes with either blind end rivets, or stainless bolts and locknuts with hard plastic washers. Both methods will work fine. If it's above the water line, you don't need any sealant. Be careful with stainless hardware, it's soft and will break if you over-tighten. For anything close to or below the water line, dab on some 3M 5200 marine sealant ... get it on Amazon. Not cheap, but fantastic.

2) For the floor, you will first need to build a flat base to rest the floor on. You do this by riveting aluminum angle iron to the ribs already in the boat. Don't rivet anything directly to the hull. Once the braces are riveted in, you can drop in your floor and attach it with some machine screws to the braces. You don't need a ton of screws.

3) You have to get creative on attaching unsupported parts of the raised deck. I like to rivet aluminum angle to gunwales and then put cross braces in. It makes a very light weight and sturdy platform to lay the deck on. Aluminum angle and a good quality rivet gun ... and blind end rivets are your best friend in a project like this. And creativity. There isn't really a wrong answer, as long as its sturdy.

4) Bearings. First off, just replace them. They are cheap and you should know how to do it anyway. But, if you just want to check ... jack up the trailer until a tire is off the ground. Grab it firmly at the top and bottom and shake back and forth. If there is wiggle or play, your bearing is bad. Also, after driving for at least 30 minutes the hubs should be only warm to the touch. If they are hot, the bearings are bad.

And my last, but important, piece of advice is to spend a lot of time thinking and looking at pictures. A LOT of time. Just sit in the boat and think .... you'll be amazed what you come up with. Then, go build it. And don't worry about making it perfect .... just have fun.

 

[MrSimon]

Actually, after looking at your pics more closely, you might get away with less work on the floor. The boat has a fairly flat bottom. You might be able to use a piece of plywood with a 2x4 running longways screwed to the bottom. The 2x4 will lay right in the bottom, going across the ribs, and the edge of the plywood will just rest on the ribs close to the gunwales. You can taper the floor as it goes forward.

I once built a 14 v-hull like yours. I removed all the seats and laid down a plywood floor and built a raised front deck. It was quick and dirty, but it worked great for years.