choppy watters

[tashasdaddy]

Re: choppy watters

here's and idea that will work, using some 1x dimensional lumber and 1 1/2 inch aluminum angle for brackets, you build a support frame, as the did in wooden boats, then cover with 1/4" ply, and paint, 3 coats. should not weight more than 50 pounds. if you can't read the picture, send me a PM with your email, and i will send it direct.

 

[tmcalavy]

Re: choppy watters

Please post a photo of your home-made trim tab Boatist. I've got kinda the same prob with a 15-foot tinny with a 58 Johnson 18 hp on the back. It's a 54 vintage flat bottomed john/tinny with semi-V bow so the rear seat is right next to the transom. I take a real bath with the boat loaded, weight distributed evenly in semi-rough water. Before trying TD's solution and moving the pilot's seat to the middle seat with controls/steering, I want to try a tiller extension I made from plans in the Outboard Boaters Handbook...plus moving forward to just behind the middle seat. Still haven't had a chance to test it out though. I'm hoping these two things and trimming the motor differently will make the difference I'm looking for. Love the setup TD has posted with pix though. That's my eventual goal if I can find the stick steering for an affordable price. TD, what is the switchbox? for shown in your pix of the stick-steering setup? Electric start for that sweet old Johnson?

 

[Ezrider_92356]

Re: choppy watters

well i worked on it for a few hours today, i dident follow my plan i used had in my head when i stared working on it, it evolved a little, i ended up using 3/8ths plywood as i had a sheet laying around and picked threw the dumpster of the company next door to ours for a bunch of 1x4 that they are always throwing away so total cost so far is 0 dollars

im still not finished framing it out, i alowed the plywood to be larger than needed flat accounting for shrinkage as i bow it. so far its comming along pretty good. when im done how can i make it look like its all one peice? a couple layers of fiberglass maby? and some automotive body filler to fill in the cracks on the plywood? one thing im concerned about is that wood and aluminum expand and contract at differnt rates if i use fiberglass to make an uniform finish between the two surfaces will it eventualy crack?

 

[bekosh]

Re: choppy watters

Don't take this the wrong way. The first thing that comes to mind is 'Redneck Yacht Club' "
http://www.redneckyachtclub.com/"
I would seal the plywood with some resin, then attach it as a seperate piece with stainless screws and 3M 5200. That should leave it flexible enough to deal with any expansion & contraction. But still let you make a water tight joint.
Good job!

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: choppy watters

Not trying to knock how you are building your upper bow but when i built my boat i used mahogany door skins not 3/8 or 1/4 inch plywood. It was more than strong enough and very lite. With some water proof varnish it looked very good. At the time they were about $10 dollars a skin.
Just a thought.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: choppy watters

Just one more thing i also used an old original flat pickup truck bug deflector as a front window and it worked well.

 

[jtexas]

Re: choppy watters

what I did with floors & deck is, paint a coat of poly resin w/o hardener top bottom & edges, then a coat with hardener top bottom & edges, then while it was still tacky, a layer of fiberglass cloth top only. squeegee out all the air pockets. No carpet, no paint, makes a pretty good non-skid easy to clean surface.

 

[Ezrider_92356]

Re: choppy watters

the door skins is a very good idea. mine is still quite light right now about probably 25-30lbs all together i should still be under my 50lb goal after adding a windshild and steering wheel controlls im going to use an cable and pully type setup for the steering wheel and i have a set of johnson throttle and shifter controls that im going to see if i can make them work on my mariner if i cant i can probably trade them off or somthing.


puddle jumper do you have any pics of your boat

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: choppy watters

this is my 1956 Duracraft, they originally did not have windshields, i installed a bug deflector to deflect any water over the bow, from coming into the cockpit.

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: choppy watters

the door skins is a very good idea. mine is still quite light right now about probably 25-30lbs all together i should still be under my 50lb goal after adding a windshild and steering wheel controlls im going to use an cable and pully type setup for the steering wheel and i have a set of johnson throttle and shifter controls that im going to see if i can make them work on my mariner if i cant i can probably trade them off or somthing.


puddle jumper do you have any pics of your boat

Sorry no i don't. I built the boat back in my early 20s. Way back when i could not afford a name brand boat. It was cool i got the plans from my first boss. It looked like a minicher cigar hull with a 40hp on the back. The best part was the girls loved it.

 

[bekosh]

Re: choppy watters

Would it have looked kind of like these?
http://www.hotdogpowerboats.com/
Sweet!

 

[puddle jumper]

Re: choppy watters

That's pretty close. Mine was 15 feet long and seated 4 with a tight fit. I don't know how fast it went but at top speed only about a foot of the boat was in the water. My friends and I spent a lot of time in it. The funny thing was out on the water the only people that would wave were the guys in large
very expensive boats. Every one in there smaller 17-20 footers just snubbed
there nose at me. I think it was becouse i could blow there doors off going down the lake. It was a poor mans thrill ride.