New member, first tin boat

[CRAPPIE_SLAYER]

Nice lookin' boat. I like the layout that you have planned for it.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Thudpucker, actually the funny thing is that the program is free. If you have Windows on your PC then you already have it. I just used Microsoft Paint and spent about an hour drawing. I had everything pictured in my mind exactly how I wanted it, so I just had to draw it. Filling in everything took the longest part of the hour.

AlumaDude, the motor is an '81 mercury 4.5hp shortshaft. Its a great little motor I got with my very first boat, which was a little too small for my taste (a fiberglass 12 ft V hull). But I'm afraid it won't push my aluminum jon upstream on the Savannah river. I like lake and pond fishing but I got an aluminum because I wanted to go set lines on the river too, and I dare not hit the river in a glass boat. So I'm looking for a 15-25 horse that I can put on the aluminum.

And yes, I concede that it was my deal of the century. A few days after I got the boat, it rained for a whole week and the boat literally filled up with water. When the rain stopped I went out to see if there were any leaks and there weren't any droplets coming from anywhere ! For $250 I was sure I'd have to rebuck a few rivets, or seal some seams, or maybe discover a crack somewhere, but I never did.

Thanks to everyone for the kind words, I just hope I can hold off on my impatience and move slowly on the construction so the finished product looks even better than the picture.

I'll keep everyone posted...

 

[Hydrilla]

Good use of MS Paint, I do the same thing. I have access to Photoshop as well as some CAD drawing type programs, but it's a jon boat for cripes sake :mrgreen: Just wouldn't seem right to get that fancy, lol. Good looking layout, I'm anxious to see how it turns out.

 

[thudpucker]

I think I'm somewhat impoverished or emotionally crippled when it comes to those drawing programs. :mrgreen:

I down loaded something and got the tutorial and still couldn't wade through it.

I'll just look....

 

[Hydrilla]

That's why paint is so good for this, it's like using an Etch-a-Sketch

I think I'm somewhat impoverished or emotionally crippled when it comes to those drawing programs. :mrgreen:

I down loaded something and got the tutorial and still couldn't wade through it.

I'll just look....

 

[forced2workborn2fish]

good start can't wait to see how it turns out

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Hoping to get out today and get some work done on the boat. Will post pictures once I make some progress.

 

[AlumaDude]

Ha Ha Ha!!! So I'm NOT the only person to ever fill up they're boat with rain water! I found out the same way that MY boat was LEAK FREE. It only took a half an hour to bucket out the water to the point where I could tip the boat "bow up" and drain the rest out the back!!! MAN... I'm a retard... And to think it was on the trailer too.... Glad that didn't collapse...

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Mine was on the trailer too. I guess that means we know our trailers are pretty stout and don't have to worry about them falling apart ! I didn't have the tongue jack on at the time and the tongue was on the concrete so i just jacked it up with a car jack and pulled the plug. It also helped to get all the crud out of the bottom the previous owner let build up. I think it took about an hour to drain all the water out. I'm glad I'm not alone on that one. I kinda felt retarded too !

 

[danmyersmn]

Mine was on the trailer too. I guess that means we know our trailers are pretty stout and don't have to worry about them falling apart ! I didn't have the tongue jack on at the time and the tongue was on the concrete so i just jacked it up with a car jack and pulled the plug. It also helped to get all the crud out of the bottom the previous owner let build up. I think it took about an hour to drain all the water out. I'm glad I'm not alone on that one. I kinda felt retarded too !

The last time I went out fishing my bud showed up at my house with water coming out of the drain plug. The boat had filled up to around 2" below the top of the seats on a mod-v 14'. We drained water all the way to launch and still had water left under the deck. I am guessing gas mileage wasn't so great on that trip

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Sorry about not posting any updates everyone. I didn't get anything done over the winter because I didn't have an enclosed shop to work in and even GA winters can be cold. We moved to the other side of town and I have a very large 2 bay shop now. I did manage to get started on the frame for the floor, and will be securing it and posting photos soon. Once the floor is in I will work on storage and building a custom fiberglass livewell for inside the rear bench (gonna take alot of photos of that so others will have a reference). Also I had someone offer to trade a 25 horse johnson with controls for my 12 ft fiberglass v, trailer and 4.5 hp mercury, sounds like a good deal to me. I sure need that bigger motor for this boat. Also planning out my electrical system. I'll make sure to keep ya'll updated regularly...

 

[thudpucker]

I'm just three hours west of you and I haven't been outside much either.
I have a covered barn to work in, but its cold and the wind comes through it like its looking for a body to freeze!

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Bear with me here, I've got photos of a pod i made for my fish finder. Gonna post a few at a time to show the progress, it's not completely finished but I've got enough to show...

The mounting bracket for it was flimsy and I didnt want anyone to accidently bump it and break the mount, so i decided to make a fiberglass pod so the lcd would be almost flush with the surface of the pod.

Here's my finder...

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

So the first (and most important) step is to tape up the item to be glassed around. If you don't do a good job, you will get the glass stuck to your unit. So put several layers of painters tape around the unit. Be sure to match the contours tight because you want a snug fit.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Next, I got a piece of cardboard and cut out a hole exactly the shape of the front of the unit. I cut it small at first so and adjusted it so I wouldn't have to do this twice. I made sure the unit only came about 1/4-1/2 inch out the bottom when facing down, this way I can still grab the edges to pull it out. I then taped the unit into place on the cardboard, making sure to get a good crease at the edge where the unit meets the cardbord.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Once everything was where I needed it, I began glassing. I used Bondo hair glass, because it builds quickly, and well... I had some leftover from a while back...

I didn't get any photos of me doing this part because once you mix this stuff you have to work fast because it dries quickly.

Scoop out as much glass as you think you will need, make a round pancake shape with it, then squirt a solid line of hardener across the widest part of the pancake, that's how much hardener it takes. Don't add too much or it'll set up on you too quickly. Blend it together.

Make sure you wear gloves on this part because it gets messy... Smear it about 3/8 - 1/2 inch thick around the back of the unit. Make sure to squeeze it into the corners good, and be careful to avoid negative space. By that I mean, if you glass too far around the unit, you can't pull it out once the glass hardens. That = BAD.

Then you just let it harden, and add more in spots if necessary. Now this stuff produces heat as it dries, so ventilate it well so you dont fry your unit.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Now give the glass and hour or two to harden, and pull off the cardboard and CAREFULLY pop out your finder... Ideally it should come out without too much fuss. You now have a basic pod, if you did this correctly your unit should actually "snap" into place without falling out like mine. Use a file to smooth rough edges and graduate to sandpaper, if you are really picky, you can spot glaze the imperfections with regular bondo and get it looking really smooth. I am flush mounting behind a panel so the exterior doesn't matter too much to me. If you wanna paint it just blow it off with compressed air and wipe with a tack cloth, and spray paint it.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

Also yes i noticed i didnt leave a hole in the back for the cords to come through. I figured a dremel would make a nicer shaped hole than i could form by hand. Any questions, let me know.... I post a photo of what it looks like flush mounted as soon as i get it in there...

 

[thudpucker]

that is cool. I cant wait to see the finished product. I just wonder where I could put mine. I sit in different places so I need mine to move.

 

[DownSouthGaBoy]

If you need it to move, build a box like a mini television, flush mount it on the front, and weight the bottom down so it won't flip over. The box wouldn't need to be bigger than about 7x7. This way you can move it around with you, but don't have to worry about stepping on it and breaking it. You could even carpet the outside to match your boat. Heres a basic idea...