My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Not sure, I think it could be because of the hydrofoil. There was also water spray from a fishinder transducer.

 

[BloodStone]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

No offense,............

But for some reason I don't see that "bracket" holding up to the torque of an outboard motor,.......

I agree!
I just saw his boat for sale on Lansing Craigslist (minus the motor) & all I could think was; the man is either the bravest or craziest son of a gun on the water!

 

[Scott Danforth]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

isnt this an old thread?

 

[jasoutside]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Hey Scott, heads up, he already sold the motor off this boat. Now just the boat is up for sale.

http://images.craigslist.org/00f0f_1wL4Ox2J6aG_600x450.jpg

 

[Bondo]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Hey Scott, heads up, he already sold the motor off this boat. Now just the boat is up for sale.

http://images.craigslist.org/00f0f_1wL4Ox2J6aG_600x450.jpg

Ayuh,.... How much is he willin' to pay to have it hauled off,..??

isnt this an old thread?

Ya, but it's too funny to kill,...

 

[jasoutside]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Ayuh,.... How much is he willin' to pay to have it hauled off,..??

Zero, he's actually asking $1800 for the bracket, free boat attached to it.

 

[bigdirty]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

wow... :lol: I just read through this whole thread.. i could put my $.02 in, but it's probably not necessary.. I will say 'A for effort' but I think either way, it's better that it's NOT in the water at this point.. I'm a machinist by trade, and if I built something like that i'd likely get fired.. or sued. Well... that was a waste of $500 of aluminum and stainless bolts :laugh:

 

[Brian 26]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Full Ad:

19' Blue Fin 1989 Aluminum Boat No Motor Trade for Silver

Up for sale or trade is a 19' blue fin aluminum boat I rebuilt. Hull was sealed with Gluv-It epoxy. I put new marine grade plywood floor in with new floatation. Floor is covered with marine grade Nautolex vinyl. Boat comes with trolling motor that isn't mounted yet. Trailer is galvanized and has brand new wheels and tires this summer. Comes with two spares.

This boat is unique in that it used to be an OMC inboard/outboard setup, but I converted it to run an outboard with a truss-style offshore bracket I fabricated out of T6061 aluminum. I replaced the entire transom and sealed the hole. The transom was then beefed up with 1/4" 60601 aluminum plate and additional knee braces and sealed with 3M 5200 marine sealant.

I sold the motor separately last spring, so you will need to put your own motor on it. I'm willing to trade for gold or silver bars, coins/ dollars.

***MOTOR NOT INCLUDED***


Here's a video of the boat going at cruising speed on the Grand River:

19' Blue Fin I/O Converted to Outboard Crusing Speed - YouTube


Other extras: Boat cover, Obrien skis, 7 lifejackets, ski tow ropes.

 

[Bondo]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Zero, he's actually asking $1800 for the bracket, free boat attached to it.

Ayuh,... With the price of scrap aluminum down abit, it wouldn't be too much of a Loss, at that price,...

Lookin' at his pictures, I can't believe he left out the top channel, gunnel if ya would, across the top of the transom,...
or a splashwell,...

Lots, 'n Lotsa strength lost by that lack of detail,...

 

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

It actually worked quite well. I pulled a skier with 5 people on board with that 90 horse motor. Apparently you didn't notice how I beefed up the inside of the transom with knee braces. I didn't have any leaks. The interior turned out well. I was putting it up for sale since I wanted to pursue some other hobbies. The project was meant to inspire people that don't have access to a welder and/or the skills thereof to put an all welded bracket on. It's merely an investigation into what's available and how it can be used. I took the best tips and advice I could from previous threads to put together this bracket. If you look at some of the old welded tubuluar gill brackets, not much difference. They're still bolted to the transom much like mine.

There was some actual constructive criticism from people earlier on this thread on the design and and how it could be improved. I thank those people for that and also for those that complimented the job.

But, I like it when you get a bunch of people on here that think they know everything because they're a "machinist" or "boat mechanic" and feel they can be tools. Until I see a degree in nautical engineering, you have no room to come on here and be a tool.

Often times people want to pursue a project like this, but people on here intimidate them with their "knowledge" and prevent them from trying something new, which I feel is a shame. Not everyone is like that though and it is definitely good to get a second, third, etc opinion from someone before you try it. I recognize and understand that, as a researcher by profession.

 

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

I did end up pulling the ad, because like many have said there is always a concern for failure and I really don't want to get sued. That being said, there is a possibility for a failure to happen with a commercial job too. So this boat will stay in my ownership and remain a testament that what I did worked, and worked fine. Laugh all you want, proof is in the pudding.

Bigdirty, I'm open to your 0.02, but only if it's constructive. I will say the one thing I regretted doing was not welding a formal plate covering for the old lower unit hole. That was somewhat "rednecked" with marinetex, but it is very strong. The 1/4" panels covering it displace the load pretty well.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

I'm gunna say this...Being a History buff I'm fully aware of the ridicule that most all of the great inventors of the industrial revolution had to endure with many of their inventions. Henry Ford was one of them. That being said, our society was a lot less prone to litigation back then and you could put things out for public use and get away with serious injury and not be ruined by it. Not so much nowadays!!! Your attempt at making a Non Welded Motor Bracket Is commendable, IMHO, and whether or not it is flawed is still unproven. The video made it appear as if it worked fairly well. For your own personal use, and personal Risk, it would be acceptable to use but to be sold to others would be a very high risk in today's litigious society. Taking it off the market is a wise decision, IMHO!! I believe it could still be a viable boat for someone wanting to restore a boat of this vintage since you've done nothing to the hull that cannot be "un-done" to make her seaworthy again. At least I don't think so, but I'm not a "Tinner" so what do I know!!!!

 

[bigdirty]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

...

But, I like it when you get a bunch of people on here that think they know everything because they're a "machinist" or "boat mechanic" and feel they can be tools. Until I see a degree in nautical engineering, you have no room to come on here and be a tool.

Often times people want to pursue a project like this, but people on here intimidate them with their "knowledge" and prevent them from trying something new, which I feel is a shame. Not everyone is like that though and it is definitely good to get a second, third, etc opinion from someone before you try it. I recognize and understand that, as a researcher by profession.

So you would like my $.02, but only if its constructive, AND after you have basically told me i have 'been a tool' 2 posts back...

I don't need a degree in nautical engineering, my trade papers and years of experience are MORE than enough for me to look at your bracket and determine there are some issues with the structure and design of it, and that while it 'works' it may not do so for a very long time. And if you did sell it to someone and it failed, causing an accident or worse, well yup, you'd be on the hook there my friend.

Just because you used 'big 1/2" stainless bolts' doesn't mean squat, and the way they are installed has greatly reduced any 'strength' that those bolts may have, as the SHEAR forces are the main force many of those bolts will see. (you say you are a researcher, so i'm sure you can go figure that one out..) That said, the bolts will likely not be the first thing to fail... As the bracket torques front to back and side to side it will eventually wear the aluminum (being a lot softer than the stainless bolts) and the entire bracket will start to flex and move around.. The transom may be fine, and the bracket to transom mounting quite strong and rigid, but the bracket itself is simply not going to be able to take the forces it will see while underway, over time. IMO

 

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

To be fair, your original post wasn't respectful and warranted the response it did. Yes, the corners could wear but has that ever been tested? 1-2 more bolts at the corners may or may not prevent wearing. At this point I could probably easily DC stick weld the seams, but then I'd be changing the title of the thread.

 

[bigdirty]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

To be fair, your original post wasn't respectful and warranted the response it did.

First off, i disagree, and either way, i didn't resort to immature and disrespectful 'name calling' or bashing. Basically, I just said it like it is...

What do you say to the people at Moby Cool? They directly mount their pod brackets with the exact same bolt configuration, steel on aluminum: Moby-Cool.com,barnacle antifouling,paint,a/c hood/hatch , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OqY-w4LIJRY.

If you scour the internet, pretty much everyone uses 1/2" bolts to bolt the commercial brackets to the transom. I haven't seen any directly welded to the transom. That's the only alternative I see to bolts.

I could potentially see wearing at the corners which could be an issue but possibly resolved with 1-2 more bolts at each end.

Did you not READ what I wrote? i'm not talking about the transom attachment point, or how you filled the hole, or braced it. The moby-cool mount looks WELDED to me... it is a solid structure, bolted to the boat. Yours is NOT and that is where I'm seeing potential problems with what you have built. Out there where the motor is bolted to the bracket, ya know? Adding another bolt would help, but the problem would still arise over time IMO

 

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

wow... :lol: I just read through this whole thread.. i could put my $.02 in, but it's probably not necessary.. I will say 'A for effort' but I think either way, it's better that it's NOT in the water at this point.. I'm a machinist by trade, and if I built something like that i'd likely get fired.. or sued. Well... that was a waste of $500 of aluminum and stainless bolts :laugh:

Really doesn't seem respectful to me. You basically laughed at my work and said how much of a waste it was, but I digress. Anyways, I realized I made a mistake and saw you were talking about the corners and made edits, which you did not see. Even with the 4 bolts alone, it is rigid. Yes, steel on aluminum is not ideal, but I would imagine someone has built aluminum truss with steel bolts, I don't know. Like I said, I can easily have the seams welded or use the HF brazing rods, which I may have to resort to for more piece of mind.

 

[bigdirty]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Yes, the corners could wear but has that ever been tested?

Doesn't need to be 'tested' as it is simple physics, and the fact that aluminum is quite soft compared to stainless. But what would I know about it, I'm just a machinist right? :lol:

 

[zool]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

op2::fencing:

 

[runninfarmer]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

I never said it wasn't a valid point. My point is that there needs to be sufficient movement and/or flexing to cause wear. Yes, outboards have a lot of torque, but it's not like they twist 1/2" angle aluminum like a rubber band. It's also not like it's a steel bearing riding on aluminum. If it's rigid enough to put flexing at a minimum I wouldn't think it'd be a major issue, then again I don't really know. I really respect machinists and the work they do, but their title doesn't give them the right to degrade the backyard metal worker.

 

[Fun Times]

Re: My Custom Offshore Bracket: I/O Conversion for less than $500, No Welder Required

Alright guys, it's time to put the continuous back and forth of if it's going to work or not over time to rest.

Runninfarmer is now aware of the potential dangers that his project possesses and it seems he has done the right thing by not selling the boat to unsuspecting buyers. Since it is his design and he now knows of the potential weak spots, all we can do is hope that he will be doing near daily inspections of how it's holding up in order to keep everyone in and around him as safe as possible.

This old brought up once again thread is now closed.
iboats Moderation Team