My jet boat build

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

Greetings, folks! I've been hiding in the weeds awhile, finally have some pictures of my project and some sea testing.

I wanted-
a boat that was easy to launch and handle with 1 person, superdawg is useless on the ramp.
able to access shallow water, not afraid of stumps and logs.
reliable
stable platform, able to walk around while making fishing gestures.
reasonably priced and affordable to use at current gas prices.

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

Started with a craigslist find- a 15.5 fiberglass boat, semi-flat bottom with a fried 50hp outboard on a trailer. Added the jetpump/motor mount section from a kawasaki tandem sport jetski. (A HUUUGE!!! thank you to my friends- jerry the fiberglass guy and brandon the sailor man!!! =D> )

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

cutting the hull, fitting and 'glassing the donor section in.

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

came out way beyond what i'd hoped for

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

This is a Kawasaki 650 motor, rated approx 65hp. My original plan was a boston whaler type center console, until I ran it on the water. I have since gone with conventional bass boat seating. The horrible mechanisim on the side of the console was for the trim, and the throttle was the thumb throttle mounted on the orange hand hold.

The boat worked good, but the balance/weight distribution was way off.

rock_smasher · Mar 13, 2011

The next batch of pics is temporarily missing for now-

I went with normal bass boat type seating, with the motor between driver and passenger. I built a simple plywood cover for the motor and some temporary seating and we headed for the lake.

After 10 or so outings, I have to say I LOVE THIS BOAT!!!! It came out so much better than I had hoped for! It's still a work in progress, but so far it has been great fun. It will float in 6" of water with 2 adults in it, will carry 4 ppl @ 25mph, will do approx 33mph with 2 across 6" of water, no problem. I've ran over stumps, logs, and a submerged railroad tie with no damage.

The only problem i've had, was while on a full moon cruise with wifey, the pump clogged with moss... Other than that, it's been push button fun.

Still need to finish the loose ends, enclose the motor, better seating, floor, reverse... the list goes on. But, as I look at it now, it has been a wild success! It's very easy to launch and trailer by myself, goes everywhere I have tried, has always started and brought me home, and will go for a weekend on a 6.5 ga tank of gas. AND I've spent about 800.00 dollars on it to this point, I'd call it a bargain!