Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have one.

[kentuckydiesel]

Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have one.

I just bought this boat last weekend. Had it out once so far and love everything about how the hull performs...but it seems to have a twist to it which is only visible on the starboard side. I'm imagining that some structural member must be cracked, but before I go ripping up flooring, has anyone ever seen this happen? There is no major damage to the outside of the hull, aside from a keel repair which is close to the point where this twist seems to be.

Hull is a 1961 Lone Star Cruise Master which has been converted to a walk through/open bow type boat.



Thanks,
Phillip

 

[Bondo]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

I just bought this boat last weekend. Had it out once so far and love everything about how the hull performs...but it seems to have a twist to it which is only visible on the starboard side. I'm imagining that some structural member must be cracked, but before I go ripping up flooring, has anyone ever seen this happen? There is no major damage to the outside of the hull, aside from a keel repair which is close to the point where this twist seems to be.

Hull is a 1961 Lone Star Cruise Master which has been converted to a walk through/open bow type boat.

View attachment 198164View attachment 198165

Thanks,
Phillip

Ayuh,... Welcome Aboard,.... I just ain't seein' the twist in yer pictures,...

The conversion done to it, Really changes the hull structure,...
Hopefully, it was done Right, 'n not the cause of the twist,...

 

[kentuckydiesel]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Ayuh,... Welcome Aboard,.... I just ain't seein' the twist in yer pictures,...

The conversion done to it, Really changes the hull structure,...
Hopefully, it was done Right, 'n not the cause of the twist,...

You have to look carefully at the trim along the edge of the rail. It is nice and straight coming forward from the transom area, then drops down slightly where the arrow is pointing.

There wasn't a whole lot of structure to the roof. It just riveted on to the rails (with small/light rivets) and had a light gauge aluminum wall with a door in the center that riveted to one of the ribs in the hull.


BTW, there is no "twist" on the port side.

-Phillip

 

[kentuckydiesel]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Here is a brochure page showing what it used to look like. http://www.fiberglassics.com/wiki/images/5/53/Lonestarb60005.jpg

-Phillip

 

[Bondo]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

You have to look carefully at the trim along the edge of the rail. It is nice and straight coming forward from the transom area, then drops down slightly where the arrow is pointing.

There wasn't a whole lot of structure to the roof. It just riveted on to the rails (with small/light rivets) and had a light gauge aluminum wall with a door in the center that riveted to one of the ribs in the hull.


BTW, there is no "twist" on the port side.

-Phillip

Ayuh,... I believe that'd qualify as Monocot(sp) construction, 'n is Very strong for it's weight,...

The roof structure, Used to hold the gunnel rails "in-place",...

There shoulda been some sorta "Bulkhead" structure put in to replace the strength lost with the roof gone,...

That's My take on it anyways,...

 

[Bob_VT]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

I agree with Bond-o ..... since you changed the type to a bow rider .....you lost some strength and yes, that could be a warp spot. You have lost some of the structural support.

 

[kentuckydiesel]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Ayuh,... I believe that'd qualify as Monoquote(sp) construction, 'n is Very strong for it's weight,...

The roof structure, Used to hold the gunnel rails "in-place",...

There shoulda been some sorta "Bulkhead" structure put in to replace the strength lost with the roof gone,...

That's My take on it anyways,...

Take a look at this picture from the top. The hull structure is really pretty strong on it's own.

You think it's still not quite enough?



Thanks,
Phillip

 

[Bondo]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Take a look at this picture from the top. The hull structure is really pretty strong on it's own.

You think it's still not quite enough?

View attachment 198183

Thanks,
Phillip

Ayuh,.... If there was a bulkhead, from the underside of the gunwale on 1 side, down the side, under the deck, 'n back up the other side, it'd be nearly as strong, as with the roof structure,...

Kinda like there should be, 'tween the walk-through windshield consoles,...

The gunwale with the twist is curlin' In-ward ain't it,..??

 

[kentuckydiesel]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Ayuh,.... If there was a bulkhead, from the underside of the gunwale on 1 side, down the side, under the deck, 'n back up the other side, it'd be nearly as strong, as with the roof structure,...

Kinda like there should be, 'tween the walk-through windshield consoles,...

The gunwale with the twist is curlin' In-ward ain't it,..??

Nope, It's warped outward, which shouldn't happen given the stresses that should be on a hull.

Thanks, Phillip

 

[jbcurt00]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Unless you know why the cabin was removed, perhaps damage pushed the gunwale outward. And it wasn't noticed at redesign.

Doesn't really appear to be any accompaning bulge outward on the hull side...

Any 'large boned' guys been jumping off the starboard gunwale? :watermelon:

That area you've got marked w/ the arrow, is that about where the cabin's trailing edge would have been attached?

In the red artist rendering, it looks like there's more cabin & less deck space aft.

But the pix of the blue one at the dock seems to be about where the cabin ended is your area of concern:

There was additional 'stuff' in the cabin adding to the structure that was removed, bench seat boxes, kitchenette/counter, head (all where pedestal bow seats are now) it wasn't just:
.....riveted on to the rails (with small/light rivets) and had a light gauge aluminum wall with a door in the center that riveted to one of the ribs in the hull.

Elements designed to work together as a system, when slightly changed can change a great deal, add hydrodynamic & propulsion forces, perhaps even more unexpected changes can occur. And that's on calm water, add crossing wakes & actually using a boat, even more forces come into play. Significant changes (similar to removing the cabin & converting to open bow) could have even more significant impacts on hull dynamics. How could it not? Weight, its distribution, form, function, & structural elements have all been modified.

Did you 'notice' the warp/twist before towing the boat any distance, or before splashing your new purchase? Did something occur that caused you to notice it? Like: While loading the boat on the trailer, after an afternoon out on the river, I heard a load popping noise behind my right shoulder, along the starboard gunwale.........

You've got a couple of very informed Mod's both suggesting it's a structural support problem. Until other evidence surfaces, I'd be inclined to follow their lead. Might help you prevent an even worse problem from arising, or at a minimum help solve the mystery.........

 

[kentuckydiesel]

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

Re: Anyone ever seen a larger aluminum hull develop a "twist"? Mine appears to have

After a bit of investigation (removing panels and such), I've found that the only thing that has any bend or twist to it at all is the gunwale itself. Nothing in the rest of the hull. It was that way when I got it. Wondering if the boat didn't have a run in with a falling tree at some point. Very well may be the reason it doesn't have a roof on it any more.

Anyhow, I completely understand what you guys are saying regarding there being many parts to the original structure. As time goes on, I will look into adding structure back to it (I run a metal fabrication/manufacturing , shop so I have that covered).

That said, this boat was supposedly redone around 1992-1993 and was run on Chesapeake Bay and Lake Erie throughout it's entire life. Though some measure of it's original structure has been removed, it has been that way for 20 years, and it is far more solid than I would ever have expected a 1961 riveted aluminum boat to be. If nothing else, it's a testament to the "overbuilding" that used to occur so much more often in our nation's past.

Thanks,
Phillip