# Lowe 1436 mod and resto FINISHED NEW PICS!!!!!!



## BassBlaster (Jun 5, 2010)

Thought I would get a thread started of my boat since I'm about to begin working on it. My trailer project is finally coming to an end with the exception of a few bolt on items I still need to purchase so its on to new things. This is a 1981 Lowe 1436. I bought it a few months ago on Craigslist. Hopefully get it stripped in the next few weeks and get the transon replaced so I can get it into a weld shop for a couple repairs. Heres a few pics of what I'm starting with. Oh, I called my thread Project Slab Assassin cause thats what I am leaning toward naming my boat when its complete unless I think of something really cool before I get done!!

















My little man loves to play in the boat. Cant wait till its done next spring and he can come fishing with me!!


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## BassBlaster (Jun 5, 2010)

Heres a couple more pics. Can someone tell me the purpose of the wood on the back of the boat? Do I need to put that back on there when I replace the transom?






Heres a pic of the contraption that is welded to the front. It serves its purpose but looks horrible. The welds look like bubble gum. If it dosnt cost too much I'll have the weld shop fab up a new one and weld it on when it goes in for repairs.


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## bobberboy (Jun 5, 2010)

With a name like Slab Assassin you'll probably scare the fish into the boat. The trailer looks nice and the boat will too when you're done with it. 

Here's an unrelated question. That room you have the boat and trailer in can't be your garage because there's not enough crap in it. You can actually walk around and work on the boat there. Even f I had a garage it would never look like that. Impressive...most impressive.

Good luck on the boat and post pics.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 5, 2010)

Lol. We just moved into this house a month ago. It has soooooo much storage. I made it a point to only put the boat and tools in the garage.


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## bassjunkie (Jun 5, 2010)

looks like a good boat to build i have a yazoo that is a 1438 and its extremely stable with a deck on it but im eventually gonna redo the whole thing i didnt plan my last deck and i hate it its too short and i tried to put rhino lining on plywood bad mistake the first time i took it out the lining peeled off. Name the boat "ss master baiter " i think that would be a good attention getting name. oh and airplane stripper and a pressure washer does good for stripping the paint. the plywood on the back serves no purpose except making the boat look tacky just leave it off


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## arkansasnative (Jun 7, 2010)

bassjunkie said:


> the plywood on the back serves no purpose except making the boat look tacky just leave it off



anyone else have anything to say about this? if this is true i wont put one back on my boat when the thompsons dries...


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## Ictalurus (Jun 7, 2010)

arkansasnative said:


> bassjunkie wrote:
> the plywood on the back serves no purpose except making the boat look tacky just leave it off



Not quite sure what BJ is talking about, but I like the rear deck on my boat, creates a place for my gas tank and a nice storage area.


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## arkansasnative (Jun 7, 2010)

he's talking about the piece of plywood bassblaster has on the backside of his transom... where the motor attaches. look at the 5th pic in this thread to see what im talking about


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## Ictalurus (Jun 7, 2010)

arkansasnative said:


> he's talking about the piece of plywood bassblaster has on the backside of his transom



I'd definitely replace it, find a nice piece of oak, stain it a color of your choice and coat the piss out of it w/ polyurethane. Think it looks classy and timeless, a throwback to more simpler times, IMO.


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## perchin (Jun 7, 2010)

Yeah.... the wood is a good idea to replace.... If it was useless and didn't protect your transom than why do some brand new jon's come off the show room floor with the wood in place? :wink: 

As for using polyurathane....don't... instead coat the pi** out of it with spar urathane.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 7, 2010)

perchin said:


> Yeah.... the wood is a good idea to replace.... If it was useless and didn't protect your transom than why do some brand new jon's come off the show room floor with the wood in place? :wink:
> 
> As for using polyurathane....don't... instead coat the pi** out of it with spar urathane.


Thanks. I couldnt tell if it was something that came on the boat originally or if it had been added later. I'll be replacing it. So its basically just to stiffen up the transom a little more then, huh?

As far as treating it, I see tons of good reviews here for the spar urethane so thats what I had planned to use for the transom.

I started to strip the paint yesterday. I spent about 2 hours on it and allready burned up a cup brush and all I got done was the gunwales. This is going to be a long process. I considered the airplane stripper but I cant help to think that that is just going to make a horrible mess. The wire wheel also is giving it a really nice sanded like finish for the primer to stick too.


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## Ictalurus (Jun 7, 2010)

Sorry, SPAR urethane. Also, you don't have to get down to bare metal to start with. You can just get all of the chipping and loose paint off and go from there. Just a suggestion to help with time.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 7, 2010)

Ictalurus said:


> Sorry, SPAR urethane. Also, you don't have to get down to bare metal to start with. You can just get all of the chipping and loose paint off and go from there. Just a suggestion to help with time.


My wife says I have OCD. I like to think I'm just a perfectionist but I wont paint this boat till it is bare shiny aluminum. Thats just how I do everything. I know in my mind its not 100% necessary to get it all off but I still cant do it. It must all come off!!! I'm not too bad though, I'm not touching the inside cause it will all be hidden by carpet, lol.


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## BaitCaster (Jun 7, 2010)

Nice looking boat. "Slab Assassin" :twisted: - I love the name!

I think the plywood on the transom is to reinforce/stengthen it.


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## WhiteMoose (Jun 7, 2010)

Same boat as mine! Check out my thread. I even had a similar contraption bolted to the front of mine, so that must have been a problem area with that model.

I replaced the plywood on the back because I feel it stiffens up the transom and protected the aluminum from the motor clamps. Mine is just treated with Thompsons, but I plan on painting it green to match the boat later on. The way it is bolted on, it can easily be replaced every few years if needed.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 7, 2010)

Thanks BC

Moose, I have been through your thread multiple times. It has become my reference everytime I have an idea. I refer to your build to see what you did and what may or may not work with my ideas!!


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## WhiteMoose (Jun 7, 2010)

Oh yeah, I didn't realize you were the one asking about the gas tank. Glad my trials and errors could be of some help to you.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 11, 2010)

So, I got to work this morning and a buddy says hey come check out what I got done on my truck last night. (Hes rebuilding an old Kenworth) I walk into the other shop and there it sits with a freshly sandblasted frame.

I never knew we had a sandblaster and every one knows about my project and never mentioned it. Needless to say, I'm not messin with this wire wheel any more. Going to go blast it in the morning if the rain holds off long enough. Wish I had know about this when I did my trailer. Oh well, still excited about the time its gonna save me on the boat. Hes even giving me 300 pounds of sand that he has left over so its gonna be blasted for free. I'll post pics as soon as I get it done. Hopefully its not raining in the morning.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 12, 2010)

I thought the rain was gonna keep me from blasting today but it gave ma a long enough break to get it done. Hauled the boat over to the shop and flipped it over on the ground and started blasting. After I wrapped everything up, I flipped it over and realized I had missed a few spots. Nothing major just a few small spots that I will clean up with the wire wheel. I had planned on spending 20 plus hours wire wheeling this thing. I sand blasted it in about 15 minuutes. The same buddy who hooked me up with the blaster said his brother can probably do all my welding. Next step is to get that old transom wood out and get it replaced then off for a little welding then I'll start putin some color on it. Still a little cloudy on the paint scheme but I'm leaning toward a camo pattern. Heres a couple pics of it all blasted clean.


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## WhiteMoose (Jun 12, 2010)

looks great! Nice work.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 13, 2010)

I got the old rotted transom wood out today. I was a little nervous cutting the corner supports off but all went well and when they get welded back on it should look like they never came off. The wood just fell apart when I took it out. It was much worse than I thought. It was completely water logged and this boat has been garage kept the last couple months. I do have a question about the new transom wood though. Mine is only 8" tall and 1 1/2" thick. Would it be better to buy a 2 X 10 and rip it down to 8" to fit or is laminating plywood to get to the 1 1/2" still better? Obviously, the solid 2 X 10 would be simpler (and cheaper) but if the ply is a better route then thats how I will go. I want the strongest option and years of use.

Heres a pic of the old transom tore out.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 13, 2010)

Moderaters, will you please move this to the conversions and mods forum? I dont know why I started it in the boat house. Thank you.


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## BassBlaster (Jun 13, 2010)

Here is a rough idea of what I want to do. This is just a rough draft and is not to scale by any means.






The grey areas are the decked areas. The floors are gonna be carpeted as well. The trolling motor will be much more centered. I have a pretty good idea of what I want but I am open to any and all suggestions!!


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## BassBlaster (Jun 21, 2010)

Finally got the transom done and installed. After I got it built, I decided I didnt wanna see natural wood color on the areas that will be exposed when its all complete so I gave everything a coat of "Special Walnut" stain and then hit it with 3 coats of spar urethane. I cut all the original rivets out and bolted everything back together with 1/4" stainless hardware. Turned out really nice, I love the color of the wood now and it should give me many years of service. Next step is to find a weld shop so I can get it ready for paint!!

The corner supports are not welded in place yet, just put them in place for the photo.






This piece will come back off for paint, just wanted to see it in place!!


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## Brine (Jun 21, 2010)

BassBlaster said:


> Moderaters, will you please move this to the conversions and mods forum? I dont know why I started it in the boat house. Thank you.



Gotcha moved over BB. Sorry, I didn't catch it earlier. 

Nice work on the transom. That thing looks great.


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## sgtfletcher (Jun 21, 2010)

I LIKE YOUR CAD DRAWING WHAT SOFTWARE ARE YOU USING, I HAVE AN OLD BEAST THAT I'M GOING TO START ON AND LOOKING SOME CAD SOFTWARE TO USE FOR SET UP.
NICE JOB ON TRANSOM


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## BassBlaster (Jun 21, 2010)

sgtfletcher said:


> I LIKE YOUR CAD DRAWING WHAT SOFTWARE ARE YOU USING, I HAVE AN OLD BEAST THAT I'M GOING TO START ON AND LOOKING SOME CAD SOFTWARE TO USE FOR SET UP.
> NICE JOB ON TRANSOM


Thanks. The little drawing I did on Microsoft Paint. Pretty simple to use. I'm not familiar with the program at all and I was able to do that in about 10 or 15 minutes. Its not even close to being to scale but gives a rough idea of what I want to accomplish.


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## mdhall (Jun 22, 2010)

If you do decide on the camo pattern. Try this one and let me know how it works  I just got my new project boat but since the wifey and I are moving, its been put on hold for a while.
You can find the free camo boat stencils here at: https://www.outdoorwriter.net/?p=361

It should look like this when you're done though. Good luck on everything, I've got the same boat, just in a little worse shape than yours. BTW, I am also the owner of OutdoorWriter.net, so try not to bad mouth my pattern too bad


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## Howard (Jun 22, 2010)

I am about the same stage you are. Have heard good things on airplane stripper--kinda leaning that way. Has anyone used it and does the power washer help? Can you buy it at a retail store or online only? Little man looks ready to go fishing now!


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## BassBlaster (Jun 22, 2010)

mdhall said:


> BTW, I am also the owner of OutdoorWriter.net, so try not to bad mouth my pattern too bad


No bad mouthing here, I like it. The pattern I chose is very similar but I havnt ordered the stencils yet. I may just go with yours. What do you call your pattern? Thanks for the link!!


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## Home Grown Basser (Jun 23, 2010)

Great looking trailer and neat boat name. We named our jon boat Home Grown and had a sticker made. Oh and my saltwater boats name is MasterBaiter


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## fadeblack (Jun 18, 2011)

I been wirewheelin like crazy! I wish I would have went the same route as you. Much less work!!!


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## BassBlaster (Jul 8, 2011)

So, here we are a year later and my boat still looks exactly like the last pics I posted. Been really busy with the new baby and all. Ive jumped back into my little boat project with both feet though.

Just ordered my steelflex and have purchased most of the primer and paint that I'll need. I took the boat to work in March because there was a TIG welder there for awhile and a buddy said he would get my welding done for me. Well, it sat there for three months and no one touched it except for someone to run into my trailer. I finally got fed up and brought it back home. Now I have to redo one of my fenders on my trailer. I located a local guy that welds on boats in his spare time and I will be dropping the boat off to him in the next couple days.

Just wanted to give an update and get my thread back to the front page so I can start adding new pics (hopefully in the next week or so).

I do have a couple new questions though...

First, since I sandblasted the boat and its been setting as bare aluminum for a year, is there anything I need to do pryer to priming and painting besides cleaning? I have read that aluminum in raw form starts to oxidize almost imediately even if you cant see it.

Also, if you are familiar with member Dixie Boyles build, I am really loving the openess of his rig. I have allready removed the front mini deck/bench that comes stock and it will be replaced with a small deck/storage area. Mainly for a place to mount the TM and FF and have a bit of storage space. It will not be a fishing platform but will put the structural integrity back in the nose of the boat. What are your thoughts on removing the center bench to get the openess like in his boat? I know structural integrity is the issue but will adding a floor and covering the sides do anything structurally? For what it's worth, this is a 100% aluminum build. The only wood that will be on this boat is the transom.

Thanks guys and I'm looking forward to updating my thread and getting this little rig on the water!!


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## BassBlaster (Jul 16, 2011)

So I took my boat to the welder today expecting to drop it off. When I got there he said lets pull it in the building and have a look. He finished all the welding I needed done in less than 2 hours and then charged me 70 bucks. Of course I hooked him up with a nice tip for doing such a great job for such a great price!! If anyone is in need of welding in the Central OH area, I can hook you up with this guy. He is a super great guy to deal with.

Steelflex came the other day so we'll be chugging along soon!! Updated pics to come, battery is dead in camera right now.


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## fishingmich (Jul 16, 2011)

Hey BB. Gonna be in Columbus next weekend for my daughters softball tourney. W ould like to check out your boat if you have time. I finished my boat last year, but that was before I found this site so I never posted it. let me know, maybe we can get together.


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## BassBlaster (Aug 7, 2011)

Hey there fishinmich, should have sent me a PM, I'm on everyday but havnt checked this thread casue I didnt have any updates. Sorry.

Been working on the boat all weekend.

Yesterday, I pulled it out of the garage and put it on some horses. I put 4 or 5 inches of water in it and found several leaky rivets. I marked them all and brought the boat back inside for some rebucking. After that I spent a couple hours with my grinder and a cup brush cleaning up the bottom of the boat. I sandblasted last year but it has sat bare ever since. I wanted to make sure I got all the oxidation off so I would get a good bond with the steelflex.

This morning, I woke up ready to steelflex. Ive kinda been dreading it after reading the "everything steelflex" thread front to back. That thread had me a little gun shy!! I'm here to say, that stuff isnt near as hard to work with as let on by some folks in that thread. It definately isnt the same as painting but its not bad at all. Then again the temps were around 90 today with roughly 90% humidity so I'm sure the humidity gave me a little more time to work with it than some others have experienced. I dont have any pics of the process because I was a nervous wreck and didnt want to have to deal with the camera. Also the stuff is REALLY messy and I wouldnt have touched the camera anyhow.

I didnt like the olive drab color that I chose after seeing it on some other rigs here. I was looking for something a little closer to what todays olive drab is. I chose to not use all of the pigment. I used a little less than half of the pigment. Its still darker than I wanted but overall, I'm happy with it. I'd call it more of a forest green than an olive drab or army green which is what I believe thier olive drab really is. Also, lots of people steelflexed thier entire boat with 2 coats and still had some left over for touchups. For the life of me, I cant figure that out. I must have gotten a little carried away with it. I only did the bottom of my boat, 2 coats and I used the entire gallon. Actually had to go back and scrape the cans to get the last little bit to finish up. I did have about a half a cup get wasted after mixing up too much at the end of the first coat. I gaurantee it not to leak!!!! LOL

Heres the end result after finishing the steelflex...






When I get the boat flipped back upright in the next day or so, I'll get pics of the welding I had done. I completely forgot about it when I had it flipped upright yesterday.

Were chugging right along now. I ordered a ton of stuff from Bass Pro that has all gotten here so I just about have everything I need to completely finish my project. Hopefully she'll be done in time for the fall Crappie bite!!!


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## MikefromSliderG5 (Aug 8, 2011)

Congrats on your new baby, and your boat is turning out great! Your pics-and boat name-have motivated me to take the kids out fishing today-beautiful day for it! Good luck on your mods-love the Microsoft Paint drawing.


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## BassBlaster (Aug 8, 2011)

Thanks!!


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## BassBlaster (Aug 12, 2011)

So, got some more work done today. The wife had the day off so I had a free evening for a change. I usually have my kids every evening cause the wife works second shift. Its great that I get to spend so much time with my little ones but it really hurts the boat progress!!

After work today, I spent another couple hours with my grinder and cup brush, cleaning the rest of the oxidation on the areas to be painted. I also got it primed with the self etchng primer. Tomorrow, I plan to hit it lightly with some 400 grit and start laying the paint to it. It will be camo. I ordered stencils from Reelfoot Custom Camo. I'm using a pattern called "River Bottoms". Should match up pretty close to the camo seats I purchased. I'm excited to finally be making so much progress on the boat after waiting for a year to get the welding done!!

Sorry, still no pics. I ran out of daylight. I actually finished priming with the porch light, lol. I promise to take pics tomorrow of its current state and pics of each layer of the camo paint as it goes on. I havnt seen any threads really about camoing a boat so I'll take lots of pics and if my paint job turns out good, maybe I'll do a little write up.

Thanks for looking.

Oh, BTW, my birthday is Sept. 29. I have set my deadline for a complete project for the weekend following my birthday. The fall Crappie bite should just be heating up then!!! The clock is tickin'!!


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## jonmac3569 (Aug 13, 2011)

I had the same issue with the steelflex. I have a 1438, I put 2 coats on the entire outside of the boat and I had to order an additional 2 quarts because I don't think I got it thick enough on the sides. I also used about half the pigment and ended up with a similar color. looks good!


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## BassBlaster (Aug 13, 2011)

So, the rain held off today and I was able to get my painting done. Wow, what a lot of work!! I decided to do a camo pattern awhile back mainly because I'm a redneck and I like camo, lol but also because this boat has so many little dings and dents in it that I thought that would be the best way to hide them. I decided later that I wanted a nice looking pattern rather than me just spraying random colors on the boat trying to replicate something. I purchased some stencils from Reelfoot Custom Camo and they are alot harder to work with than I thought. Wasnt any fault of the stencil, it's just a pain to try and get clean lines without having a perfectly flat surface. None the less, I think it turned out pretty good. Not exactly what I was hoping for but very close so overall, I'm pretty happy with how it turned out.

From the front...







Side view...






And the back...






I plan to do a little "how to" write up later with more pics of each layer. I'll post it in the Boat House for any interested.


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## cooter brown (Aug 13, 2011)

Nice job. I think it looks great!


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## BassBlaster (Aug 16, 2011)

Thanks!!

Well guys, the boat project has come to a halt. Well, not completely but its going to slow down a bit. My little man that is pictured crawling around the boat in some earlier pics is not technically our child. We used to do foster care and he came to live with us when he was 2 days old. When he was 2 years old we felt like child protective services was doing a horrible job handling his case so we took them to court. Did you know you could do that? I didnt, lol. We did though and the court awarded us permanent legal custody of him. He is now 4 years old. Because he technically isnt ours, we cant carry medical insurance on him for whatever reason so his medical care is provided by the state. Because of this, job and family services are now after birth mom for some child support and all the sudden, she's ready to sign all her rights away. She dosnt have any desire to have him in her life anyhow. So, were gonna jump at the chance to officially adopt our little man and give him our last name. Problem is, thats freakin EXPENSIVE!! You sure would think the state and these attorneys would have a little better pricing when it comes to adoption, with all the kids in this country needing homes. Anyhow, he's more important to us than the boat so were going to shift focus and funds toward making him a permanent part of our family. I'll still be working on the boat in my free time and will get her done, I just dont see me making my deadline of the end of Sept. now. I have allready purchased most things needed to complete my project, just need some carpet, some aluminum angle and some other minor things. I'll still keep updateing my thread but it is definately gonna slow down a bit. Thanks guys!!


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## JonBoatfever (Aug 16, 2011)

Thats awesome that your adopting a child!


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## BOB350RX (Aug 16, 2011)

hey an seeing how you guys are doing such a noble thing i have some 1" x .250 alum angle here let from a prev build not a whole lot maybe a pc 5' and a couple small pcs, if you want them they are yours, they do have some holes in them ill check it out tommorow and let you know exactly how much i have but if you want it its yours, pm your address and ill ship it to ya no strings attached, good luck with the lil one, and its a shame that it costs soo much seeing how you have had the lil one for damn near its whole life at this point, and now want to do the right thing, it should be free... let me know man if you need anything else and i can see what i have layin around,


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## 79Stroker (Aug 16, 2011)

=D> on the adoption i know what you mean about the states child services not handling things right, my family used to foster, and that can become a cluster. Wish we would have known about being able to sue them, we let go of two amazing little boys(had every intention of adopting) because of the hassle of dealing with state, at times you really wonder if the state is actually a better place for the child


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## BassBlaster (Aug 16, 2011)

BOB350RX said:


> hey an seeing how you guys are doing such a noble thing i have some 1" x .250 alum angle here let from a prev build not a whole lot maybe a pc 5' and a couple small pcs, if you want them they are yours, they do have some holes in them ill check it out tommorow and let you know exactly how much i have but if you want it its yours, pm your address and ill ship it to ya no strings attached, good luck with the lil one, and its a shame that it costs soo much seeing how you have had the lil one for damn near its whole life at this point, and now want to do the right thing, it should be free... let me know man if you need anything else and i can see what i have layin around,


Hey thanks man, I really appreciate the offer. My boss build race cars in his spare time and said I can have all his shorts. I have no clue where hes using alum angle in a race car but hey, its free!! Just looking at his scrap pile, I may be able to scrounge up enough for my build. I definately appreciate it though. Thanks again!!


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## BassBlaster (Aug 16, 2011)

79Stroker said:


> =D> on the adoption i know what you mean about the states child services not handling things right, my family used to foster, and that can become a cluster. Wish we would have known about being able to sue them, we let go of two amazing little boys(had every intention of adopting) because of the hassle of dealing with state, at times you really wonder if the state is actually a better place for the child


We learned that they definately do not have the childs best interest in mind. I think we proved that when the judge gave us custody and not them. We lost all the benifits of being a foster parent and they took away our license but it was worth it to not see him have to deal with the crap they were putting him through. I guess we could have overlooked it and kept collecting thier money but that wouldnt be fair to the child. We wernt fostering to make money anyhow.

Sorry, you lost your boys. I dont know what I would do without my little man. He and our new baby girl have change my entire outlook on life. I dont do anything without them in mind and I dont know how we could ever be without them.

We didnt know at the time anyone could ever be awarded custody of a child over children services but we were fed up and it was worth a shot. We didnt actually sue them for anything, we just went to the court and filed for custody. CPS fought us in court but in the end we one. It was completely obvious to the judge that they didnt have his best interest in mind. BTW, he has 3 half brothers and a half sister that was also in foster care at the time. The 2 families they live with also went to court and won and are also currently seeking adoption. The other 2 families live just across town, so they all get to play together pretty regularly.


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## 79Stroker (Aug 16, 2011)

thats awesome that your able to keep him around his family, and though your boat is on hold for a little bit im sure you will have some great time with the kids


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## BOB350RX (Aug 17, 2011)

BassBlaster said:


> BOB350RX said:
> 
> 
> > hey an seeing how you guys are doing such a noble thing i have some 1" x .250 alum angle here let from a prev build not a whole lot maybe a pc 5' and a couple small pcs, if you want them they are yours, they do have some holes in them ill check it out tommorow and let you know exactly how much i have but if you want it its yours, pm your address and ill ship it to ya no strings attached, good luck with the lil one, and its a shame that it costs soo much seeing how you have had the lil one for damn near its whole life at this point, and now want to do the right thing, it should be free... let me know man if you need anything else and i can see what i have layin around,
> ...



ANYTIME


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## Plane Driver (Sep 16, 2011)

Looks great man! Glad to hear a fairly good opinion of the Steelflex. I've been thinking about coating the bottom of my boat with it also. After curing, does it still have a glossy finish? How long does it need to cure before you hit the water? Thanks!


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## Howard (Sep 16, 2011)

Good to see you back and way to be a man and provide for that child, thats awesome =D>


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## BassBlaster (Mar 2, 2013)

Well, after nearly 2 years of not doing anything to the boat, I'm finally back at it!!

I ordered all my aluminum for my front deck framing today and also ordered a bunch of electrical stuff on Amazon (buss bars, circuit breakers, etc) so I have everything I need to do my wireing now. Still need to pick up my heavy wire for the trolling motor but not positive on the length just yet. My aluminum will be here early in the week but will probably be the weekend before I can get going on anything. Hoping to get the front deck all framed up next weekend and hopefully most of the wiring so I can start laying down my flooring. Once I get it down and carpeted it will be as simple as installing all my electronics and she'll be ready to go fishin!!


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## Nowakezone (Mar 2, 2013)

Glad to hear you're back in the game!!! How's the family doing?


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## BassBlaster (Mar 2, 2013)

Nowakezone said:


> Glad to hear you're back in the game!!! How's the family doing?


Doing well. Thanks!! The little man crawling aroound in my boat in the earlier pics is now 5 years old. The new baby that was mentioned in the thread is now 2 years old and we have another new baby thats 10 months old. Our family has grown rapidly in the last couple years but we are done growing it now, lol. Now I can concentrate on finishing the boat so I can get little man out on the water!!


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## hoosier78 (Mar 2, 2013)

Looking forward to your updates.


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## BassBlaster (Mar 8, 2013)

Project "Slab Assassin" lives again!!!

The rest of my electrical componants came in today and I also recieved my order of aluminum angle for my front deck framing. I keep saying deck but its not actually gonna be a deck intended for standing. Im way too fat and this boat is way to small for all that. Its gonna be more of a place to mount my trolling motor and FF. It will also have a compartment for the battery, charger and wireing, a compartment for tackle and a seperate compartment for storing safety equipment, etc.

I'm excited to get going on this thing again. I have to move a few things around in the garage in the morning and then its framing all day. Hoping to get that done and get started on the wireing Sun. Fingers crossed. Spring Crappie is coming fast!!

I know, I've been away for a couple years and said I was back last year and didnt make progress. I also know that if no pics, it didnt happen, lol. See, I'm serious this time. I wanna go fishin dang it!!!!


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## BassBlaster (Mar 10, 2013)

Finally. Progress pics!!!!

I got my framing done. I still need to build the small tackle hatch the will be to the right of the battery tray and add a couple of supports for the trolling motor. It will be located over that front left larger opening. I just ran out of angle. This was designed just for storage and what not, not to walk on but its stout and could definately be walked on.




I also got all my wireing pulled through the conduit for my lighting, bilge, etc. Its a mess right now but I'll get it all cleaned up and it will look like a wire harness when I'm done. My conduit is 1/2" SDR 11 water line. It fit perfect behind the ribs.




Heres my charger. It was originally suppose to be in the battery compartment but it was gonna be so tight in there, I was worried about over heating and I wouldnt be able to see the indicater lights without removing the battery so, its in the front hatch with the life jackets and safety gear. It should get plenty of air flow in here and I'll have easy access to it if need be.




Thats all for now. Will probably be next weekend before I get back to it as I'm still on winter shift so that means I'm on nights. Only 3 weeks of that crap left though. Come on April!!


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## BassBlaster (Mar 10, 2013)

Oh, forgot to mention, that floor pan in the front hatch is the same road sign material I'm using for my deck and flooring. That stuff is tuff. I like to give myself a heart attack making those bends. I spent about 2 hours bending that crap. Wish I knew someone with a brake. Luckily, nothing else should need bent.


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## BassBlaster (Mar 13, 2013)

Got some more stuff done today. I finished up all the wireing and got it all cleaned up. It sill looks like chaos but at least its organized chaos!! I used heat shrink connectors everywhere and then use heat shrink tubing over every connection so it should be sealed up fairly well. I also made some little labels and labeled every wire on the hot side and the ground side. I figured if nothing else, if I ever sell the boat, the new owner would be able to identify everything without a test light. That and I havnt actually installed the switch panel yet. Its just clamped up there for the wireing job. It will come back out untill after the flooring goes in and then be reinstalled.




The large buss is the ground buss and the smaller one is my positive buss. I didnt need as many positive connections since I'm using a switch panel. The upper breaker is a 50 amp for the trolling motor. I used 8 gauge wire there. The lower breaker is a 30 amp for the switch panel. I dont know if this was even neccissary but its there none the less. I guess you cant have too much protection, lol. I used 10 gauge wire to the switch panel.




The back of the switch panel. Every switch has its own breaker. Everything on my boat is on a breaker with the exception of one light in the rear of the boat. It will be on a seperate switch. I couldnt find the proper size breaker so its on a fuse.




The wires under the switch panel are the wires the switch panel itself will hook up to. The large ones in the middle are my battery cables obviously. The ones on the right will be where my trolling motor plug will be.




This wireing is all new to me but I looked around here and read a whole lot before I started and I had fun wireing this up. Thanks for all the info posted everytwhere!!


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## BassBlaster (Mar 15, 2013)

With 3 years to think about the name I chose for my boat, I decided I dont really wanna put "Slab Assassin" on the side of my boat. I dunno if I want to put anything on it actually. Anyhow, Ive updated my thread title to reflect that.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 3, 2013)

Just about got this puppy finished up. Ive been working on it from morning to night every weekend for the past few weekends. I got all my panels built, carpeted and installed and most of my electronics installed. All I have left to do is wire up my bilge and make and install my 3 hatch doors. I'll get that done this weekend. I have to as I'm scheduled for inspection next Wed the 10th. Once I get my inspection, I can get ahold of bulldog and order my lettering and she'll be ready for the water!! I also purchased a used transom saver on CL for 7 bucks. Its a bit too long so I'll modify it slightly.

I took a couple pics with my phone. I havnt posted pics from my phone before so I'll get those posted if I can figure it out. Otherwise, I'll get it out of the garage this weekend and have finished pics!!


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## BassBlaster (Apr 3, 2013)




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## RiverBottomOutdoors (Apr 3, 2013)

You make me proud to be a fisherman. If you find yourself in Southern Virginia, send me a message. You're welcome on my boat anytime.

Build turned out nice. Some of the cleanest electrical work shown on this site.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 3, 2013)

Thanks man!! The wireing was the hardest part for me. I dont have alot of electrical knowledge but I catch on fast. It wouldnt even be close to looking that nice if not for TinBoats!!


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## medicman619 (Apr 3, 2013)

Looking good man! =D>


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## BassBlaster (Apr 4, 2013)

Thanks!!


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## BassBlaster (Apr 7, 2013)

She's finally done!!! Three years later, but its done!! The water is just strating to warm up and I'll actually be on the water when the crappies start to get hot. I have inspection on Wed. morning and then I'll order my registration numbers from bulldog. I also purchased a used transom saver on CL that needs to be slightly modded to fit. I'll get that done one evening this week and get that motor a little further from the ground. Other than that, shes done!! I'm so excited to not have to fish on the bank anymore. Its been way too long since Ive had a boat.

Oh, you may notice in the pics, my large hatch isnt quite flush. I need to make a little adjustment there but no big deal.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 7, 2013)




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## BassBlaster (Apr 7, 2013)

Someone asked somwhere about drainage. This is what I did.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 7, 2013)

Heres my fishing partners!! The baby was asleep so he didnt get to play on the boat.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 7, 2013)

The most important mod yet!! One for the boat, the trailer and the truck!!


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## RStewart (Apr 7, 2013)

Boat looks good. You did a great job. You have the same switch panel I do. Which Hummingbird fish finder is that? How many feet of aluminum angle did your build take?


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## Pweisbrod (Apr 8, 2013)

Looks awesome!


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## Pdk111 (Apr 8, 2013)

Very nice. Exactly what I would like to do.

Two things I liked:
I have no reason for camo...but the idea of doing it to mask "imperfections" in the aluminum makes great sense. 
You did the mod adding floor/carpet without changing bench height or stability...probably improved it with weight of floor below waterline. 

You might find a twin of it up in MA some day....


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## RiverBottomOutdoors (Apr 8, 2013)

:beer:


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## BassBlaster (Apr 8, 2013)

RStewart said:


> Boat looks good. You did a great job. You have the same switch panel I do. Which Hummingbird fish finder is that? How many feet of aluminum angle did your build take?


Thanks. The FF is a 385ci. Its the color model with built in gps and mapping. I used 32' of 1x1x1/8 and about 40' of 1x1x1/16.


Pdk111 said:


> Very nice. Exactly what I would like to do.
> 
> Two things I liked:
> I have no reason for camo...but the idea of doing it to mask "imperfections" in the aluminum makes great sense.
> ...


I have no reason for camo either, I just like it, lol. It hides dings and dents very well though!! I kept the floor low for stabillity. Im a bigger guy and I plan to take my 5 year old with me so tippy wont work for me. Copy away!! Glad you like it!!


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## PitFishin' (Apr 8, 2013)

=D> Just wanted to say Great Job! very touching story, and I know how life can get in the way sometimes. you give me hope, as im 2 yrs into my build.... but theres not a day that goes by that i dont go out and stare at it. lol! very clean boat, i really like your camo job. good luck on them slabs. we caught about 50 last sat between 6 of us, biggest being about 13" but there not on over here yet.


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## Andyg (Apr 9, 2013)

Nice rig, Classic Sea Horse outboard?


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## BassBlaster (Apr 9, 2013)

PitFishin' said:


> =D> Just wanted to say Great Job! very touching story, and I know how life can get in the way sometimes. you give me hope, as im 2 yrs into my build.... but theres not a day that goes by that i dont go out and stare at it. lol! very clean boat, i really like your camo job. good luck on them slabs. we caught about 50 last sat between 6 of us, biggest being about 13" but there not on over here yet.


Thanks. I know what you mean. My wife caught me many times just staring at my boat. Stick with it. Youll get her done eventually.


Andyg said:


> Nice rig, Classic Sea Horse outboard?


Thanks. Yep its a 1956 Johnson QD 17 that runs like a brand spankin new one!!


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## kfa4303 (Apr 9, 2013)

sweet motor. I used to have a '61 QD-22 myself. Here's a great little maintenance link, should you ever need it. 

https://www.leeroysramblings.com/johnson_QD.htm


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## DOBSONFLY (Apr 9, 2013)

=D> Good work and good luck on the water! :fishing:


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## BassBlaster (Apr 10, 2013)

Thanks guys!!

I went through inspection this morning and got registered. Hoping to be on the water by next weekend!! If I havnt mentioned it allready, my decals will be blaze/hunter orange. Should look cool against the camo!!


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## RStewart (Apr 10, 2013)

BassBlaster said:


> Thanks guys!!
> 
> I went through inspection this morning and got registered. Just sent bulldog a PM to order my decals. Hoping to be on the water by next weekend!! If I havnt mentioned it allready, my decals will be blaze/hunter orange. Should look cool against the camo!!


 
Can't wait to see those on there. If you don't mind me asking, what is the cost for them? I need to order some from him.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 10, 2013)

I added some other decals for the back of the boat and I havnt gotten a quote yet. The original quote for just the registration numbers was $25.


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## BassBlaster (Apr 17, 2013)

Its finished!!! Okay it was allready finished but now its legal to be on the water!! I picked up my decals today and got them put on. They contrast very nicely with the camo. The sun made them look strange in the pic but these are blaze orange or hunter orange. I also decided my boat name was Crappie Slayer!!! Because I put that on there, I'll probably never catch another crappie. I hope not as I have a crappie tourney in Sept. Was actually suppose to fish one in early May but missed registration since my boat wasnt complete. Oh well, my boat is finished and thats all that matters right now!! Weatherman is calling for 82 tomorrow and I have to work. Calling for 50 on Sat. Guess I'll just be cold cause I'll be on the lake!!!

Heres my last pics for this build......


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## bigwave (Apr 18, 2013)

Great job man =D> =D>


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## BassBlaster (Apr 18, 2013)

Thanks!!


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## Brine (Apr 18, 2013)

Congrats =D> 

Next Pics = Fish Pics 8)


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## BassBlaster (Apr 18, 2013)

Brine said:


> Congrats =D>
> 
> Next Pics = Fish Pics 8)


Thanks!!

Yeah I hope so. Crappie should be turning on anytime now. Big cold front moving through tonight probably wont help!!


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## BassBlaster (Apr 20, 2013)

So the boat made its maiden voyage today and it didnt go well.

I went to one of my favorite local crappie lakes. Its a small electric only lake. I went there specifically because I knew there wouldnt be any boat traffic. First off, the boat floats incredibly well. I was a little worried that a 36" boat would be a little more wobbly than I would have liked but its actually fairly stable. Much more stable that I was expecting. I can move about pretty easily without getting that tippy feeling. Thats a huge plus since I plan to fish with my 5 year old!! So, I trolled all the way across the lake to a little cove where I always catch crappie. First cast went right into the brush and I was snagged. No problem, I'll troll up in there and get my jig back. I got out of the snag and tried to back out of the brush and the trolling motor suddenly has no power. How is this? It has worked in every test during construction and just trolled all the way across the lake without fail. I decide to dig out my emergency paddle and start making my way back to the ramp. Well, its windy and the wind is stronger than me and my paddle. Im paddleing like mad but the boat is only moving sideways. The wind is pushing me toward the dam. This is a lake with absolutely nothing to keep a boat from running over the dam. It dosnt have any gates or anything. I started to panic and dedcided ODNR is just going to have to write me a ticket because Im not going over the dam. I ran back to my little outboard and fired it up. I started cruising toward the ramp and my outboard quit. What the heck? Ive only run this outboard in a barrel prior to this point but it has never quit. Why is it quiting now. I pump up the tank and fire it back up. I did this two or three times before I got to the ramp. I got out of the water, got everything strapped down and decided to mess with the TM. While looking everything over, I discovered a switch I wasnt familiar with. On the left side of the foot pedal is a 3 way switch. Forward allows the momentary foot switch to work. Backward turns the power on continuosly and the middle is off. Somehow while I was fighting the brush for my jig, I must have bumped this switch with my foot and cut the power to my motor. Now Im relieved that theres nothing wrong with the boat but mad that all this happened, I decided to just call it a day and come home. On the ride home I was thinking about my outboard cutting out and why that could be and then realized that everytime it quit, I had to pump up the tank again to get it to start. Then I remembered the other day, I backed the cap off on the tank to relieve pressure and never tightened it back up so the pressure coming from the motor thats suppose to pressurize the tank was all escaping through the cap. So, all my problems were my own fault and Im still mad that I ruined what could have been a good day on the water. Oh well. If nothing else, I learned some things about my rig and I can garauntee these things wont happen again!! My wife also got a kick out of my story. Oh and the game warden must have been off today cause no one was waiting for me at the ramp to write me a ticket for running a gas motor in an electric only lake!!


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## bigwave (Apr 20, 2013)

Well take it as lesson's learned. Everyone makes bonehead mistakes, I do it all the time......then I just laugh and move on. #-o


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## BassBlaster (Apr 20, 2013)

Yup. Im laughing now. I was too mad too laugh earlier. My wife laughed at me though, lol.


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## mbweimar (Apr 20, 2013)

Beats being at work all day!


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## BassBlaster (Apr 20, 2013)

You got that right!!


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## medicman619 (Apr 26, 2013)

Glad you could make it out! I've been out there a few times already. Only caught a small LM back in that cove behind the island. The wind lately has been crazy! Don't you just love the boat ramp there??? The wind always blows me past it. Very frustrating!!


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## BassBlaster (Apr 28, 2013)

I went out again Yesterday and had no problems. Boat ran beautifully!! No fish though. had one bite all day and missed it, lol.

Yeah I hear ya about that ramp. Its also way too shallow, needs to be a touch steeper. I also wish it was further North. I prefer to fish in the creek N of 665 but I dont think I can get there and back on my one battery. I'm thinking of heading over in the morning. Im on vacation this week. Ill be around that island. Ive caught alot of crappie around it over the years!!


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## IDAHOAUGER (Apr 28, 2013)

Very nice job on you're boat! Great story to learn from, the kind of situation I can definitely see finding myself in with my luck. Thank God you made it out safe and as you stated, a funny story now to look back on and learn from! Not having the warden waiting to give you a ticket is an added bonus! Thanks for sharing this story, will undoubtedly save someone else reading this post some headaches and stress down the road to check the things you mention on the TM.


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## sleblanc (Oct 5, 2013)

excellent build i have the same boat. it was given to me. i need to cut the transom off however and the pods in the back were cut out. so i have a little work to do. what did you use for the floor,sides, and decking. i see it was all built with aluminum angle framing.


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## joebest (Oct 6, 2013)

What size aluminum angle did you go with for your frame work and what thickness is the sheet you used to cover it?


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## Colehenry (Feb 13, 2014)

How much did the most cost you? How do you get it into that new of shape?


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## rednecknproud21 (Oct 16, 2015)

I know this is an older post but I'm curious as to what type of mounting brackets you used on those seats and if you can adjust them from side to side


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## Wyatt (Oct 16, 2015)

Just read this whole build and it's very impressive. First off, many congrats on all the additions to the family. And secondly, fantastic build. I know it's a couple years old now but I hope you didn't have any problems with the transom strap rubbing away the paint on the gunwales. I did on my old Lowe 1436 but it was also the original paint as well. Hope you've have some good times fishing out of this rig!


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