Sears 12ft Jon Project

[ohiolunker]

It floats! Even managed to land the first fish of the boat. A little 10 inch bass I caught on a spinnerbait. Only fish of the day, but at least the maiden voyage wasn't a complete bust. The front seat was still a bit high, but all I had to do was remove the small extension I added. The weight is distributed a little too much to the port side when the battery is in. Might not be an issue if I had a gas tank on the other side in the rear, but will probably slide the battery over a bit for now.

 

[lbursell]

Nicely done. You've put in a lot of work, but you got a good pay-off out of it.

 

[Howard]

I like that you kept it open. I think sometimes we go overboard on the top deck space needed. Good job =D>

 

[ohiolunker]

Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words

 

[Plane Driver]

Where did you get the center mount for your seat or did you build that on your own? That is a great set-up. If possible I might try to get a center seat in similar to yours. Great work!

 

[BtsNhoS]

what happened to the rod holders? (maybe you said it earlier but i missed it) i have the same ones and im looking for different ways to mount them, im thinking of just doing u-bolts

 

[ohiolunker]

Where did you get the center mount for your seat or did you build that on your own? That is a great set-up. If possible I might try to get a center seat in similar to yours. Great work!

I built the seat mount myself. Just made a square frame out of 2X4s, stained, covered them with carpet and bolted on a standard post style seat mount. I screwed it into the floor so it wouldn't move.

 

[ohiolunker]

what happened to the rod holders? (maybe you said it earlier but i missed it) i have the same ones and im looking for different ways to mount them, im thinking of just doing u-bolts

I made the rod holder mounts so they are removable. I store them in the back deck compartment until I want to go trolling. They bolt onto the oar mounts with a stainless bolt and a wing nut. Check out page 2 of my build for pics of the holders and mounts. Hope it gives you some ideas.

 

[agrimm]

I have the same boat and I am wondering what the load capacity is on yours. I think mine says 300lbs total. How does the added weight of the decking affect the amount of weight you can load in the boat?

Looks great by the way. Nice work.

 

[zeedogg]

let us know how this holds up when fishing 2 guys.

looking for stability and buoyancy tips for a 12/32

 

[Plane Driver]

Nice work on that - does it seem to hold well? Did you drill into boat or did you use braces to support the base?

 

[ohiolunker]

Didn't drill into the boat anywhere with exception to the cross members where I bolted on some brackets for the frame. So far the boat has been out twice without any issues. The only thing I might try to fix is that there is a lot of weight to one side with the battery in and it tends to lean a touch to the port side. I've only been out in it by myself so far, but my cousin is looking you get out on the water before the weather gets ugly. agrimm I think my capacity is the same is yours, but the weight of the decks hasn't seemed to be a problem so far. I'm a pretty light guy (~165lbs) so we'll see how it floats with another person out with me.

On a side note, didn't catch anything last time out, but saw 2 bald eagles. Very cool sight to see. Those things are impressively large.

 

[agrimm]

Thanks. I would imagine the extra foam under the floorboards help to displace some of the weight. How thick is the plywood that you used for the decking and do you think it could be thinner and still hold up as well?

 

[ohiolunker]

I used 5/8 ply. You might be able to get by with 1/2 inch, but I figured I may have to occasionally step on the decks to get in and out of the boat when tied up to the dock. Also, considering the amount of moisture boats are subjected to I thought thinner wood would be more susceptible to noticeable warping.

 

[Specknrebel]

hey i like the way your boat came out....i hope you dont mind if i steal some ideas from you for my sears 12 ft. great job man. =P~

 

[ohiolunker]

hey i like the way your boat came out....i hope you dont mind if i steal some ideas from you for my sears 12 ft. great job man. =P~

Steal away. That's why I put it on here. Thanks for the post.

 

[Specknrebel]

I've got a couple framing questions I'm looking for help with. I've posted them on a couple forums on tinboats and figured I would put it up here as well and to see if anyone can point me straight. I'd like to use Simpson Strong Tie 2x2 brackets to fasten directly to my cross members to build a deck; however, I know theses framing brackets are galvanized. My question is is there anything I can coat/paint the brackets with to avoid galvanized on aluminum problems? Also, my entire boat will be Steelflexed so there will be minimal direct contact with the aluminum. Last question is if there is nothing I can do to avoid problems with the galvanized brackets, does anyone know where I can get them in stainless?

yes there is a chemical i used to use to prevent rust, the name of it im not sure how to spell it , but its an oxidizer, you can buy it at lows and it may run like 15 dollars a gallon. ask the guy there in the paint department he will be able to tell you the name of the chemical..sorry but my memory is horrible with names.

 

[PSG-1]

You must be referring to "Ospho" (phosphoric acid)

While this stuff works great for neutralizing rust, as well as cleaning and etching aluminum for painting, DO NOT use it on galvanized metal, it will eat that coating away. Again, this is phosphoric acid.

The way it works on rust is that it creates a chemical reaction with the red iron oxide, turning it into iron phosphate, which is black in color. For aluminum, it etches into the metal, creating some 'tooth' for paint adhesion, and removing aluminum oxide from the surface. (You must also use zinc chromate primer before painting aluminum, or the paint will not adhere, it will flake off)

If you want to neutralize the galvanic action between the galvanized and aluminum, ideally, you would put a zinc on each galvanized bracket, but at the very least, you need to use a barrier between them, such as undercoating, or truck bed liner. Paint both mating surfaces before bolting together.

 

[ohiolunker]

I ended up making aluminum brackets for anywhere that would touch the hull and only used the stong-ties for the wood.

 

[trueblue1970]

Great job on your boat. Any updates? How does it handle with another person in the boat? I just bought a 12' foot Sears jon myself w/trailer. Prior owner did some minor mods to it (carpet wood over benches w/ seats mounted on swivel base and a removeable floor on the back half. Seats/wood base are on hinges which makes for nice storage in the benches. Im going to take it out a few times before I decide what to change/add to it.