Re: 16ft Monark?

[rob.hildebrand.7]

First off this is my first post here I have read just about everything I can and still haven't been able to make up my mind. I have an older 16ft Monark flatbottom that I would like to make into a jet Jon for running the upper Potomac and monocacy rivers. I will be using the boat for cat fishing only I'm a big guy 300lb and at most one other person 150-225lb i mostly fish solo with a total of 100lbs of gear including anchors. I just cant decide what kind of ski to use for the build. I am here looking for recommendations this is my first jet Jon build. Although I have done alot of modifications to my other boats I have all welding equipment and a complete CNC machine shop at my disposal. I am also a mechanic for a living so repairs don't concern me but i want it to be reliable and somewhat low maintenance. I would like to keep this as low budget as possible.

 

[Johnny]

Rob, :WELCOME: to Tin Boats.
Please complete your profile when you have time.
Knowing what part of the country you hail from helps
us give you more accurate information.

 

[CedarRiverScooter]

Hi Rob - I built a Jet Jon from Polaris jet ski. Glued & screwed the ski hull into the 16' Alumacraft flat. I was like you & was focused on low budget. Now at the end of the 1st season it is starting to take on water (must be a hairline crack which only opens up under power - does not leak statically).

If I could start over I would go full aluminum build. I think you can get a Yamaha alum intake, watch ebay. I would also go 4 stroke, but those are pricey.

You also may want to go up 1 size in boat. 1752 would be very stable.

The finished boat is well worth the effort. Everyone that I take out likes it.

 

[rob.hildebrand.7]

I agree on going up a size with the boat this is just a hull I have sitting around at the house so I want to build it to have some experience and use it for while till I can upgrade to a 1860+ and I am leaning toward an all aluminum build since I have all the equipment to do the work but i don't know much about what make and models have the parts I need I would like it to be 2 stroke

 

[PSG-1]

There are basically 2 methods of doing this.

The cut-and-splice method, where the hull of the jet ski is cut away, including the engine and pump, and that is bolted into the bottom of the boat as one piece.

The fabricated aluminum method, which means fabricating mounts for the engine and welding into the hull. Also, fabricating your jet unit tunnel where the jet unit will bolt up. Most PWC's have the intake duct as part of the glass hull, only a few have a bolt-in duct, so, you will have to use one of those. However, Kevin Turner, one of the members here, recently posted about some aftermarket intake ducts for yamaha pumps, which appear to be a lot better than the thin OEM ducts.

Now, as far as the rest of the boat goes, the design possibilities are endless.

 

[amk]

I have a 1648 and it worked great. So if all you have is this monark it will be fine.

 

[amk]

Heres a couple from my build thread its the link in my signature. I don't weld aluminum so I had mine fabricated but I have built one myself and when it cools off in the winter I plan on starting another one with no "pasting" which is referring to fiber glassing. I think the idea of getting a sheet of aluminum and building the whole setup on it like a skid is the way to go. Then cut an appropriate sized hole in the hull if your not welding it in just leave like two inches of overlap and run a good bead of 3 m all the way around put the skid on top and then rivet the heck outa it all the way around (I haven't tried this yet but im planning on it). Mine was all welded but could be built with out welding by just using rivets, bolts, and 3m to water seal inbetween rivets and bolts. As long as you have a metal brake there shouldn't be many more exotic tool requirements. I built my own metal brake from watching youtube videos. As for motor mounts I think next time Im going to get a piece of square tubing cut into four pieces for the mounts and just shim the motor to the required height. There are a lot of ways to do it and there is only a handful of us that have built boats so I'm sure there are better easier ways to do them I look forward to seeing your build if you decide to do it.