Putting in floor - advice needed

[Alex_c]

I am planning on putting in a floor in my 14' semi-v hull. The problem is that unlike a lot of the boats I see that either have a flat floor (jon) or have a V-shaped one like some star crafts, mine goes from a V at the bow and gradually tapers to a flat stern. The floor is "rounded" and I am trying to figure out the best way to attach the floor and have it lay flat, as well as have it somewhat level when the boat is anchored in the river.

I suppose I could rivet a piece of square tube on the inside running the length of the keel and build off that, but my only concern is that the floor will get really small towards the front of the boat if I keep it 1-2" off the keel.

Included is a link to my build thread. The first picture will give you an idea of how the floor of the boat is laid out.

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=26955

 

[thudpucker]

Boy did that scratch drawing in your other post come out slick.

All my life I hated those round bottom slick floors.
Years later when I got my own boat, I fixed that situation veddy quick!

I used wood though. Up front I modified the little V deck to hold the fuel and Battery under it.

Then I put a 'cut to fit' wood deck from the front V to the front of the first seat. I used Stainless screws to put the foundation for that deck all the way around. And a Keel piece under the middle, cut to fit right on the keel and up to the deck board.

In the rear or middle it was a lot easier.
I made some mistakes on Rivets and Corrosion failures plagued me.

I'd say this about that! #-o Don't spend all that money. Use wood instead of aluminum.
Just make the floor flat and well supported. The front deck will be higher than the rear deck.

Plan on a Channel to run your electrical wires from the battery in front to back where the switches will be. I put mine right up under the gunnel's.

 

[Alex_c]

Hey there thanks for the reply!

I got a decent deal on aluminum and the plan is to run a piece from the front of the rear platform all the way to the rear face of the front bench seat along the keel. From there I will make cross pieces that go across the hull and rivet into it for extra rigidity. If you look at the drawing, the frame for the floor is laid out in blue, and the material used will be 2x2"x1/8" aluminum square tubing. I am close to starting work on the floor so I will post some more pics up once it's done.

 

[thudpucker]

If your not in Salt Water you can use Soft AL rivets.

You sound like your kinda crafty with that AL stuff. I wasn't, so I used Wood. #-o
I wish I could do drawings like you did. What program did you use?
Dick

 

[Alex_c]

Thanks for the kind words, it's actually really easy with Windows Paint for Windows 7. I basically used the polygon tool for everything. (the one just to the left of the triangle in the shapes area of the toolbar).

I took the picture from the balcony and then used the polygon tool to trace the interior layout based off of the markings and features of the boat as it came from factory.

You can change the fill in the polygon from transparent to solid, so you can fill the interior of the shape you have created with whatever colour you want. It helps to zoom in to a comfortable magnification for the trickier areas, and don't forget to Ctrl-Z to undo quickly if you make a mistake. It takes a few tries to get the angles and proportions right, but once you get an idea of the perspective it will all come together. I colour coded for materials where:

White - Sheet Aluminum
Brown - Wood
Blue - Aluminum tubing

hope this helps!

 

[shawnfish]

id loose the middle bench....heres how i did mine.

not the best pics but i just ran the sq tube frome gunnel to gunnel. my floors 8ft long and i think i used 6 tubes total. im 200lbs and my floor dont flex with me walking on it. i was gonna weld the ends to secure them but i tried liquid nails to see if it held good and after 2 days drying i couldnt pull them up with all my strength. i put a small length of tube vertically in the center of each one and liquid nailed it to the bottom and each cross peice to give a lil more support. then i used ss screws to secure the floor to the sq tube...

 

[Alex_c]

Looks very similar to what I settled on. I am keeping
The middle bench but i am going to cut about 16" wide out of the middle to install a floor so I can walk thru. I have to beach the boat in shallow, fast moving rivers so being able to get around the boat easily is a huge advantage. Plus I can lay out on the floor like a slob when anchored out on the river after a couple adult sodas.