THE SWAMP DONKEY- New Pics Paint/Floor/Electrical

[waterfowler1]

Haha yea those two are a little too jumpy for the boat, I've got a chocolate lab and he is pretty laid back and will definitely get to see quite a bit of boating action.

Today was pretty hot so I didnt really accomplish much...

But my girlfriend Shyanne got in on the action!

Finished the bunks!

She wanted to sit in it...

Because I Eyeball everything I didn't compensate for the bunk not being tall enough for the boat to clear the fenders #-o #-o #-o So after feeling a bit frustrated I decided id have to have some custom ones made and took the old ones off...

Thanks for lookin! I plan to start the winch post tomorrow and wire the trailer while im at it... If you got a suggestion or comment don't be afraid to post, Id love to hear what you guys have to say!!!!

Thanks!

 

[Howard]

I was wondering why those bunks were so low, looks like you GF and pups are ready to go boating

 

[waterfowler1]

Today I got quite a bit accomplished!!!

I started out by wiring the lights and I got it done fairly early so I began to horrible transom replacement!!! :shock: :shock: lol

Can you say LEDS !?

To make this setup work I had to extend the ground (white to blue)

Grounded down

The tail-lights are sealed and therefore individually grounded so I extended the grounds and bolted them together.

Cutting the corner braces!

Everything just fell apart...

All cleaned up!

Okay so how do I bend this up and out of the way so I can slide in the new transom???

What I have so far...

Alright so I need some suggestions on how to bend that top cap up or info on how to work around it? I cant continue until I get some help!!!! Thanks!

 

[lckstckn2smknbrls]

I used a pair of vicegrips with 4 or 5 inch wide jaws. They are for gutter work.

 

[hyzerbomber]

Could you cut if off and come back with an Alum C-channel and cap it off? Not sure of the different sizes of that material but have seen people use it for Floor support over the ribs of a semi-V in other mod's.
Do not know Alum that well but would think even using large hand breaks to bend it back might compromise the structure of the material/cap...?

Nice work on the trailer BTW!

 

[KMixson]

Not sure how feasible it would be, but maybe you could make a two piece transom. Place one board on the lower half and then fit another on the top of that one by sliding it into the top bracket then pushing the bottom of it flush with the top of the lower piece.

 

[huntinfool]

Instead of having some fenders made, why not just change out the 2x4's for some 4x4's. Then you would have the clearance needed to use the fenders you already have made.

As for the transom, the bottom piece of aluminum is more than likely riveted in. Why not just take the rivets out and then install the transom and then reinstall the aluminum piece. If not then making a two piece transom or bending the top aluminum up may be your only option.

 

[waterfowler1]

Thanks for all the comments and suggestions guys!

Today I made a run to home depot and picked up a hand seamer, plywood, glue, and vise grips to aid in my project!

I used a combo of the hand seamer and vise grips and got the top cap settled for now...

Its not too pretty, but grandad stopped by the house and he mentioned that his good friend who builds fence at his placecan weld aluminum! SCORE!

My transom in two parts, (3/4" plywood was used)

I glued and clamped the two pieces together tonight with titebond III and will probably seal it tomorrow before going to check on food plots/trail cams.

Hyzer- Thanks! I still gotta do some touch ups and finish the winch post but other than that Ill be done with it! and If I do need to replace the cap it may not be that big of a deal, I think I could just cut it flush with the back end and make sure to run bolts all the way through the new cap, wall of boat, transom boards, and out the cap, with the corner braces holding the ends.

Mixson- thought about scootin around the problem but I dont want to ever have to do this again [-o< , that was the original transom that was in it and it lasted almost 30 years. If I ever have to replace it again ill probably sell the thing, lol. so I ended up opting for the hard and dirty way.

Huntinfool-Well the amount of time and money It would take to remake the bunks, wouldnt be able to touch buying new fenders, plus the old ones were pretty much junk, When I picked up the boat the guy had to use a pry bar to bend one up so It wouldnt drag close to the tire. :shock: Im already starting to cook up ideas in my head!!! :roll:

 

[BassBlaster]

Getting that aluminum bent up out of the way is the easy part. Getting it back is a PITA. I beat on mine for an hour getting it back like it was supposed to be and its still not 100% but it was good enough to get the bolts in so I went with it. Yours seems to be in quite a bit better shape than mine is though. Mine looks like it may have had a motor ripped off of it at one time. I stained my new transom a walnut color and put three coats of spar on it. I did that little piece on the back the same way.

 

[waterfowler1]

yea now Im debating on whether to try and bend it back or just replace it. I found some aluminum channel that would work for $12. So If I just cut off what is there now flush with the back end, could I just bolt it all the way though and still have the craft be structurally sound? or is this a no no?

 

[nyjay75]

I had about a 1/2 inch between my boat and my fenders, after thinking about 4x4's and modifying my fenders, I just turned my 2x4's on end. This increased the gap and only took abou 20 minutes to change the mounting brackets around. Plus it's a helluva lot cheaper then replacing anything. Great job so far, and good luck bending that cap back.

 

[DaveInGA]

waterfowler1,

Another option on the fender/bunk problem is just to throw another 2X4 under each bunk, screwing them together before remounting. Maybe cheaper than having custom fenders made.

On the transom here's a couple ideas:

1. Before you cut out the original metal, try using some string/rope/wire slipped into the "U" of the folded metal, tie the ends together to form a loop and get a buddy to pull the metal out of the way "just enough" for you to slip the transom in. It may turn out you can get it out of the way enough to slide the transom in without bending the metal. You could try it with screw drivers at end end of the channel as well, but I suspect the rope idea might work better. Remember, you only have to do it once and it's done. So a little patience, sweat and problem solved.

2. If you decide to cut the original channel out and use a new piece of channel, you should be fine also. I would suggest running it all the way across the top of the transom board to "cap" the transom full and to actually gain structural rigidity. You might want to run screws all the way across the new channel and then attach the caps. Don't forget the 5200.

Hope this helps,

Dave

 

[hyzerbomber]

No engineer but would think a bolted C-channel would end up being stronger than the original. Especially if you go all the way across per Dave. Would depend the integrity of the "C" too. If you have a metal shop local, it might be worth a little extra cost for a more industrial C especially if you are going with a strong outboard...? 2¢

 

[huntinfool]

waterfowler1,

Another option on the fender/bunk problem is just to throw another 2X4 under each bunk, screwing them together before remounting. Maybe cheaper than having custom fenders made.

Dave

This is what I did. I just typed a 4x4 and forgot to mention just adding another 2x4.

 

[waterfowler1]

Hey guys so today was totally dedicated to the winch post and I got the task completed!

This is how it turned out!

Took the advise and found some 3/4" steel rod and replaced the PVC

After debating I think I will be putting in a new top cap for the transom. I think im past fender issue for now, I think Ill leave things the way they are and just buy some new ones. I am going to complete the winch post by cutting off the extra thats hanging off the back of the arms and maybe start to touch up the paint a little bit. Thanks For all the help guys!

 

[KMixson]

Do you have a cap for the top of the winch post or drain holes in the bottom of it?

 

[waterfowler1]

right now neither, but ill probably get a cap soon

 

[waterfowler1]

Hey guys!


have been extremely busy lately as I have begun my college career. I finally had a chance to come home and continue working on the Swamp Donkey. I haven't done a whole lot up until today but I will be ready to have the transom welded up tomorrow. Thanks for the support!

Paint is stripped off

As you can see, I put a coat of bedliner on the bottom of the boat and am currently waiting on another can of the stuff before I can put the final coat on.

The JB putty fix lol... The transom was beginning to pit so I cleaned it up and stuck some putty in to fill the holes and hand sanded them down.

There is however a little bit of paint left, This is an example and I was wondering if i could leave it, i am going to use a self etching primer, so would it be an issue if i left it?

The new top cap!!!

oh that transom looks beautiful!!!

This might be a problem...

Do you guys think this could be bent? or fixed for that matter???

Looks pretty good to me, ill prolly have the top cap welded all the way across the back of the boat or at least until it crosses the transom info plate to keep it intact.

I will probably put a bolt through here for support on both sides of the transom

I may even drill out these two holes and put bolts in there to beef it up that much more lol

Well thats all I got so far, tomorrow ill talk to a welder in town about what he could do for the price. Im gonna try to keep my posts more up to date and work around my school schedule. Again thank you guys for the support!!! I wouldn't be able to do this if it wasn't for you guys chiming in every once in a while!

 

[moberg12]

How did you seal the transom?

I wouldn't weld the cap to the boat, you have to think that you or the next owner might need to replace the wood in the transom again in the future. During my build I'm focusing a lot on doing things right the first time but I'm also trying to make sure things are easy to fix in the future.

Just a thought

Greg

 

[waterfowler1]

I went the thompsons route, with titebond III holding my pieces together and a fairly thick bead of titebond III around all edges. I could go without welding the entire top cap but i would have to fill a few holes first, which in turn would be good in the long run like you stated.