# .08" or .10"???



## dc9loser (Jun 11, 2013)

I am close to ordering a boat from Welbuilt. Thinking 1852 flat bottom. They come in .08" or .10".

The .08" version is 400 lbs... the .10 version is 480 lbs.

The price difference is $250 more for the thicker metal boat.

Back in the day it seemed that most boats were about .07", now everyone wants thicker and thicker - with .10' being the standard for newer welded boats. Over at the Mudboat forum they all want .19" and say you are a sissy if you don't have a thousand pound jon boat. 

My thinking is that lighter is better, I really want to go .08", save some money and weight. I want to go shallow shallow shallow, but I will not be jumping logs at 20 mph. My intent is to use the boat to do rivers in Florida, and gator hunt. The thought of getting stuck with a thousand pound hull I cannot budge seems like more of an issue to me than breaking a hull.

Do hulls actually break? Has anyone ever had that happen in normal boating... hitting an uncharted rock or ??? Is there really some justifiable reason to go heavier???

Why would I want .10" and more weight?

Thanks in advance.


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## wingsnhammers (Jun 11, 2013)

I assume that you mean .080" and .100". I guess it would depend on the purpose of the boat. For a working boat or a boat that will see alot of heavy use, I would want the .100". For a weekend fishing boat that won't see many rock flats, stumps, beaver dams, or sand bars, the .080 will do you just fine. Also, I would take into account the bracing inside of the boat and the overall construction. Every Weldbilt I have seen has been very beefy when it comes to internal ribs, bracing and general construction. I would have no fear of owning and using a weldbilt made from .080". 

Now, that is just me throwing in my 2 cents. I mainly fish a large, open lake without to many obstacles and don't get to use a boat as much as I would like. My needs (or wants) are very different from yours and I sure am not going to throw a gator in my little boat. :mrgreen:


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## Jonboat Jerry (Jun 11, 2013)

dc9loser said:


> I am close to ordering a boat from Welbuilt. Thinking 1852 flat bottom. They come in .8" or .10".
> The .8" version is 400 lbs... the .10 version is 480 lbs.
> The price difference is $250 more for the thicker metal boat.
> Back in the day it seemed that most boats were about .7", now everyone wants thicker and thicker - with .10' being the standard for newer welded boats. Over at the Mudboat forum they all want .19" and say you are a sissy if you don't have a thousand pound jon boat.
> ...


Welcome DC9. After reading our post , I think you meant .080 gauge & .100 gauge thickness (from their website).
My preference is lighter since I fish the Flats, so I get a small crunch when I hit something.
But when you go Gator Hunting, that boat is going to take hits both inside and outside, in the dark, and that changes things.
The small difference in weight would outweigh the safety issue. It takes a lot to break a keel. Just my 2C.
Be sure to fill out your profile so we can see where you are, there may be other Gator Hunters lurking near you.
Jerry


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## vahunter (Jun 11, 2013)

I have a weldbilt 1548mv .080 hull and I have had zero issues. I chose .080 for the same reasons. I don't use mine quite like you plan to but I hunt and fish out of it quite often.


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## dc9loser (Jun 11, 2013)

Thanks guys! I think I fixed my math problem above BTW. - .08 of course.

Jonboat Jerry, yeah, I live on Millers Bayou about 6 miles South of ya! I fish the same areas I suppose, or will fish the same areas.

I appreciate the advice using .1" for heavy duty use. My issue is I doubt anybody without a mud motor on the back of their boat is capable of heavy-duty use that demands a thicker hull. Does anyone on here actually know of a real case where a hull was torn, that is the actual metal gave way on a boat powered by a conventional outboard (not a mudmotor or jet)???

If this is really a common... or even uncommon occurrence I could see going with a thicker hull. That is my question, is there a real threat of a hull breach in that the motor will be slamming hard on anything presenting a threat long before the hull does?

I had a 14 foot Sea Nymph and hit rock at 20 mph without so much as a dent. It made a horrible scrapping noise and stopped unharmed. It was a riveted hull and I am sure it was less than .08". 

I mean, I see people buy Dually Diesel Pickup Trucks, Heavy fiberglass boats with three motors on them, and all sorts of other nonsense due to macho overkill beyond what would ever be needed, vs an actual need, and then pay at the pump for their nonsense.

It seems to me that people naturally want bigger and heavier without regard to logic. AM I wrong and why?? 

I went gator hunting last fall with a guide who had a .12" gatortrax welded hull with a mudbuddy motor on it. Nice boat, but the very experienced guide was afraid of going some places in his boat that I HAD GONE in a lightweight boat because he did not want to get stuck. His rig was over a 1000 lbs of heavy metal and motor and when it got stuck, not much you can do without getting in the water with the gators. I don't want to get stuck in a boat I cannot manhandle out.


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## craveman85 (Jun 13, 2013)

I once had a .070 boat come out of the back of a truck at 50mph. Had some dents and some leaky rivets but no holes


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## hipster dufus (Jun 13, 2013)

i have a 1648 mv weldbilt. bought in 08/12. i ordered the.100 and the 20 in transom. i have a 30hp tohatsu efi tiller. i like heavy.i amquite happy with it. go heavy


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## cva34 (Jun 13, 2013)

Go with the .100,5 years from now ,you will be glad you did...cva34


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## erictetterton (Jun 13, 2013)

.100 all the way. I have a Alweld and its solid as a rock. The extra thickness is for peace of mind


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## vahunter (Jun 13, 2013)

I've already answered this and said .080" is fine.....I love my boat and I love Weldbilts but I was reading the Arkansas forum and they're way more familiar with them than a lot of us. I read some porpoising issues because I was having some. I thought my weight distribution was off some but the porpoising was only with a passenger in the back with me but wasn't bad.

The problem is a bottom that is not as smooth and flat as a boat should be. I've found many jon boats have this problem in my reading. After having read this I would suggest .100" hull. Again I love my boat and I worked that hull flat and i think it will make I huge difference. I haven't had it out yet but feel very confident that it will run and plane much nicer.


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## dc9loser (Jun 16, 2013)

The Consensus seems to be pretty definitively .10... everyone but me more or less.

Here is food for thought. The Weldbuilt website says .10 boats are 20% heavier than .08 boats. I don't get that one as .10 is 25% thicker and heavier per square inch than .08 is..... hence it would be 25% heavier? No?

By my calculations an 1852 hull resting evenly in the water would draft 1.36 inches in .08 and 1.7 inches in .10. That is .34 inches more - so not too much.

If I mount a 205 lb Tohatsu 50 on it, and then put 500 lbs of people in it that will change to: 3.75 inches for the .08 and 4.09 for the .10 - so a difference of .34 inches still.... so I guess that makes sense that the advantage is a constant.

Now if I had a 2052 hull in .08 with the same 705 pound load it would draft 3.34 inches or a .75 inch advantage.

So I suppose in the end .10 probably not a big deficit, you guys are probably right..... but I still like light and every ounce adds up.... still not decided... but leaning toward .10.

***My math was based on hull length minus 5 feet for the bow not being in contact with the water (probably less than 5 feet for actual boats, I don't have one laying around to measure). So hull length minus 5 feet x 12 inches per foot x width in inches = square inches of hull in contact with water. Then take the boat weight divded by .0361 pounds per cubic inch of water and you can calculate the depth of water needed to support the weight.


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## dc9loser (Jun 16, 2013)

[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=318631#p318631 said:


> craveman85 » 13 Jun 2013, 11:34[/url]"]I once had a .070 boat come out of the back of a truck at 50mph. Had some dents and some leaky rivets but no holes



Yeah, that is what I'm talking about.


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## turbotodd (Jun 16, 2013)

A boat that size should not even be offered with .080" thickness, IMO. Should be .100 and/or .125. 

If you've ever run a "tin foil" boat, and then jumped into one that had some meat, the difference is amazing. But it boils down to how you will use it. If you are going to use it in rocky areas with no concern about weight or draft, .100 all the way. .080 is used for someone who wants to save money but isn't concerned about dinging it up any. 

I know we're only talking about .020" inch, but think about what happens to aluminum. When it's bent, it gets thinner at the bend. So a .080 boat might only be .050 thick depending on the bend. Also .080 will flex a little more. Flex leads to cracking especially at welded areas. 

Also...if it ever has to be repaired, it's easier to weld (or have it welded) a .100" thickness aluminum than it is .080". Especially if the welder is using MIG process which is a bit harder to control than a dedicated HF TIG process welder.


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## dc9loser (Jun 19, 2013)

Going with .10.


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## Quackrstackr (Jun 19, 2013)

Good choice.

You have to figure hull rigidity into a boat that size as well along with resistance to knocks and bangs. The more you flex, the more apt you are to start a stress fracture. I have a buddy with a WE that has had to have his 4 year old boat welded up twice now because of all of the flex, even though it is a .10 hull. We run the exact same water and my boat is still in "as new" condition structurally.


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