Could I build one?

[wyoben]

<br /><br />This one is made of aluminum. It costs about $900. Could I build one our of 3/16" mild steel. I have a nice big sheet of diamond plate steel and a mig welder. When done I would paint it with Polyurthane paint. It would go on a freshwater only trailered boat. The boat is a 21FT IMP with an super think transom. The motor is a 1984 200HP Merc. Any advice or ideas would be a help.

 

[mellowyellow]

Re: Could I build one?

what is it???

 

[Luna Sea]

Re: Could I build one?

fuel tank? waste tank? baitwell? I see an access panel on top......

 

[wyoben]

Re: Could I build one?

Oh, sorry, it's an outboard bracket, used to convert an I/O to an Outboard.

 

[wyoben]

Re: Could I build one?

http://www.stainlessmarine.com/single2.html

 

[Bondo]

Re: Could I build one?

I've seen them Hand-Built out of,<br />Wood,<br />Fiberglass,<br />Aluminum,<br />And, Mild Steel....... But, This was on/part of a Big Steel Barge.....<br />I'm Sure it'll work... But keeping it from rusting will be Time Consuming, to say the least....<br />Just don't limit yourself to this 1 sytle....<br />Plate against the transom,+ a plate to bolt the motor to,<br />Then Structural Between the plates is how we did the Barge.....<br />Just Don't move the engine any farther back than Absolutely Nessessary......<br />Most boats tend to handle a little Squirrelly after this operation... You're moving the CG Way Back from where it was.....<br /><br />Good Luck,+ Go For It.......

 

[wyoben]

Re: Could I build one?

I'd like to make one out of fiberglass, but I'm not an engineer. Anyone have plans or pictures of a fiberglass one?

 

[k_page]

Re: Could I build one?

Armstrong also makes a good bracket but is also expensive. I had one built for about $400. the place is in Bay St. Louis Miss. I have had it for about 3 years w/ no problems. Do a search on-line "outboard motor braket" there are quite a few builders. I have seen them made of plywood and fiberglass. I run my boat offshore and didn't know if I could build one strong enough to take the beating.<br />Will try to find web-site and foward it. I believe the company name is DADS.

 

[Hooty]

Re: Could I build one?

Why not just use a jack plate?<br /><br />c/6<br />Hooty

 

[wyoben]

Re: Could I build one?

I'm not sure what a jack plate is, but I think its used to raise the engine up and down to trim it out. Don't they only go like 5 or so inches. I would need on that would go about 2 1/2 feet to clear the transom to tilt the motor.

 

[k_page]

Re: Could I build one?

A few thing I ran into when tring to put a bracket on my boat , the engine had to sit back far enough to trim up fully with out hitting the transom, Strong enough to handle the tourque of the engine, (apparently the weight of the engine is not as much of a concideration) and the placement of the bracket. There is a formula that goes something like this, for every 12" futher back the engine sits the mount will rise 1.5" , the other thing to check into is the length of the shaft (25" or 20")<br />A friend that fish w/ decided to cut the transom and build a splash well out of fiberglass and plywood and it works fine, you will lose fishing space.

 

[Rmac]

Re: Could I build one?

www.dadmarine.com, is the place for cheap brackets<br /><br />RM

 

[ThomWV]

Re: Could I build one?

I have the bracket off of my boat at the moment. Its made by Gil, one of the premier bracket builders. If you like I can measure all of the dimensions for you, as well as the angles. <br /><br />Let me say a couple of things first. These things have to be extremely strong, not so much for the torque of the engine, or even the power, but because the stresses from either rough water or towing. As I'm sure you know bolt patterns for mounting the engines is standardized so the back plate's dimensions are the same no matter what. Also, brackets are built with enough set back so that the engine can tilt full up without hitting anything.<br /><br />Now, mine is made out of aluminum, its total weight is probably about 70 pounds by my guess. I would not make one out of steel myself, but you do what you think is best. If you want the dimensions I'll just take a couple of pictures of it and then edit them to put in the numbers. This is nothing to skimp on at all in its construction or in its finish, particularly the inside. The last thing you would want was corrosion in the inside of the box weakening the bracket but doing it unseen.<br /><br />Let me know if you want the numbers.<br /><br />By the way, let me see if I can find a picture of the boat from the side so that these guys can see why you'd use a bracket - its so you can maintain a full transom more than anything else. A very important safety feature. It also keeps you away from fire if the engine lit up, it makes the boat quieter, and it vastly improves handeling. It also allows you to run the engine higher, which has its advantages as well.<br /><br />Thom<br /><br />Here:<br />

 

[wyoben]

Re: Could I build one?

I think I will bite the bullet and have dadmarine guys build one for me. I have not welded to much aluminum and would worry about the strength of the welds, etc. At night I sit by the fire and look through the west marine catalog, in fact I wore out one 2003 catalog so bad the wife got me a new one. It amazes me how much everything in the marine industry costs!