Rat's 1977 Polar Kraft 1440 refit

[Rat]

You take me to Summerville and I'll take you to Granger!

 

[Rat]

I got the wood removed fro the boat yesterday, and the first coat of epoxy on it. Today I got the second coat of epoxy, should be ready for the sole to go in tomorrow.

I made a slight miscalculation on the transom, I built it for a 20" shaft and I actually have a 17" shaft, so I had to cut down my beautiful transom; at least the motor fits now. :roll: I already had the transom gussets in and everything!

Anyway, here's the update...

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

I'm no expert but are you sure about your transom height. The motor looks like it's high.

 

[huntinfool]

uhhh......... From what I'm seeing it is too high also......IMHO. Usually you want the plate even with the bottom of the boat or perhaps 1-1.5" above the bottom...but that looks like it is more than that. Maybe it is an optical illusion, but it sure looks like it is 4-6" above the bottom of the boat. Lets see what others have to say.


Also not trying to nock or question your work, but I don't see any screws or bolts to hold the top of the transom to the aluminum skin at the top edge. I know that the motor will be bolted on, but I usually make sure that it is screwed or bolted along the top edge in a few places.


LOOKS GREAT!!! Keep up the good work.

 

[Rat]

Yep, that picture is the "before" picture, before I cut the transom down; I will get images up of how the motor sits on it now tomorrow.

I will build a cap for the transom after I have the final height of the motor tuned just right; it will bolt the cap, the top of the skin and transom together as well as make a nice transition. I still need to build the keystone clamping board and a few other things as well back there; I am going to wait until I have the aft deck on though to make sure I have the look of everything right.

The new transom ended up being about 2" higher than the stock transom and will need to be fine tuned a little bit more to get it perfect.

 

[huntinfool]

Gotcha! That should be more like it. Project is coming along nicely.

What do you want to know about Somerville? We fish a couple spots for black bass and know of a few humps for whites/hybrids. But anytime your wanting to go let me know.

 

[Rat]

Looks like rain through the weekend, God knows we need it but sure puts the brakes on the boat. Maybe I can get something done in the workshop; we'll see.

 

[huntinfool]

Same here. Got a short list of things I would like to do/change on my boat. But the rain will slow me down or bring a screeching halt to this train wreck. I might see about putting it in our shop and trying to get it all done.

Good luck

 

[bird dogg]

a thought i had well prolly wont do any good now but you coulda kept the hight transom so you would have no problems with water running in an jus fabbed up a jack plate with angle iron an jus moved it down.
for those who dont know it looks like your running a johnson around a 20 an the pickup is above the plate section on the other side

 

[Rat]

The rain sure has been nice since we are in Stage two water rationing and a sever drought. But with a break in the weather this weekend I am able to get some work done to the PolarKraft.

Since I decided to go ahead and add a sole I am adding flotation under it as well. I had to blank off the limber holes and channels so the two part foam wouldn't fill them in. Since my front deck isn't sealed I need some way for the water to get to the bilge. I used Alu flashing, some glue and some masking tape. Glued the covers on, poured the foam, then trimmed the foam. I use a long butchers saw blade for trimming the foam, it works pretty well for small jobs.






All the ply is sealed and ready to be installed, all the screw and bolt holes gave been overdrilled and filled with thickened epoxy. I preped the cleats and fastened them to the hull as well as the rear frame. I used a new-to-me product called 8200. West Marine guy said it is better than 4200 but not as permanent as 5200. So I bought a tube and I am going to try it out. I used 8200 on all the cleats and 5200 on the rear frame. I use a notched spreader to spread the 5200 and 8200, it will not press out like silicone caulk does, you need to have a nice even layer of glue. West Marine makes on with three different notches on it and is disposable; that's what I use. The smallest notches for 5200 and the biggest for making epoxy laminations with thickened epoxy.






If the rain holds out I should have her all together tomorrow and be ready for paint in a few days.

 

[huntinfool]

Looks good. What is your projected finish date? ( not the actual day...just time frame?)
I plan on putting a floor (sole) on mine too and I will be making sure that I keep the drain areas open too. I have a mound of foam that Bass Pro uses in their aluminum boats. We got a bunch of kits from them that they no longer use, so I just plan on using that. It is about 1" thick and I will just lay it down between the ribs.

Keep the updates coming. I'm looking at trolling motors and as soon as I get one I will just about be done....(yeah right) :LOL2: :LOL2:

 

[Rat]

If I can get two more good weekends of work in that should just about do it, but when those will happen is anyone's guess. The details are what drag out the longest, plus I need to rebuild the trailer and the motor. The trailer can wait, the motor can't.

Sheet foam between the ribs will be much easier than two part foam, not that it was that hard really. Do you have a spec sheet on sheet foam that is USCG approved? I would love to have some. There are times that sheet foam makes more sense, but I am not going to put something in someone's boat that isn't USCG Approved.

I hear what you mean about being done also, their like our kids; we never stop trying to change them up just a little bit; no matter how great they are! :mrgreen:

 

[Rat]

Last night after I posted I went out and laid the sole in. I had to wait for the glue on the cleats to set up, and I was going to wait until this morning, but I did it last night.
Here's a picture of it from this morning:

So today I got the sides glued on and the glass laid in the cockpit.

I laid out the dry glass and cut it to fit then I made my fillets using medium hardener so they would set up quickly, gave everything a coating of epoxy (with medium hardener again), waited until it was all tacky and then laid the glass in and wet it out. Roz, my wife, helped me lay the glass in and I wet it out. 7 feet by 4 feet of 12 oz biax glass, I used just over 1 gallon of epoxy and had enough left over to coat the aft deck one more time and some touch up in a few places.






Forecast is for rain for the next three days.

 

[Rat]

Went ahead and glued down the aft deck this evening. She's starting to look like a fishing boat! There are no hatch cutouts in the aft deck, as you can see; I am going to use pre-built hatches but I don't have them yet. I will cut them in after I get them.

Last picture for the night:

 

[huntinfool]

It's looking good! I bet it will weigh a lot, but it will be built like a tank. Can't wait to see it finished.

 

[Rat]

Hopefully she isn't going to turn out too heavy; I estimated the weight last night.
91.75 pounds of 1/2 ply (I used 7/16 but don't know the weight of it, so it will be a little less)
12.00 pounds epoxy (2 gallons) includes fillets/glue
1.0 pound 12 oz glass
12.0 pounds of 1x2 (approx 40 linear feet)
2.5 pounds two part foam

120 pounds additional so far (give or take). This is in addition to the hull and doesn't include the transom rebuild.

Most of the heavy stuff is done so I am thinking the hull will end up around an additional 150 pounds with hardware.

 

[huntinfool]

That's not too bad. I was estimating a bit higher. When you get the batts., fuel tank and gear in it it might be righ there. Keep up the good work and I can't wait to see it done.

 

[Hydrilla]

Thanks for posting the weight info, I was curious as to how much weight the fiberglass would add.

 

[huntinfool]

Rat, I can't find the thread where we were talking about a light weight product to make a floor out of that would last forever. I see on another thread taht someone used a product called Sintra. I think that this would work for floors, although he said it was expensive. I think that it would be worth looking into. I would plan on adding Skid no more to it and that would be it.

Just FYI.

 

[dearl]

Rat the boats looking real good, I have alot of respect for guys that can work with fiberglass, takes alot of skill, and it looks like you've got it down to a science. Keep up the good work. At the pace your going you'll be fishing while I'm still welding. =D>