# Project one and done...Alumacraft 1447



## JaxJonBoat (Mar 31, 2012)

Wanted to post a link to my project. I looked and could not find anyone who had powder coated their whole boat so I wanted to post some pics of mine. Boat was given to me about three weeks ago by a co-worker and as you can see I have been busy, trying to get completely done by the end of spring. I think I have a good start, what think so far? I am finishing up the transom this weekend and starting the decking Monday.

Here is the link to the time line just in reverse order.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2829484103149.2113456.1440496732&type=3&l=0f01696e16

let me know if link does't work and I will post them the hard way.


----------



## Bugpac (Mar 31, 2012)

Nice, powder is durable as heck to, I think if i were to do it i would build all my decking first then disassemble to powder, seems from my experience, a drill makes powder flake.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Mar 31, 2012)

I totally agree, it as a spur of the moment thing. The guy who had the equipment was selling everything including his 25 foot oven so I was on borrowed time. Only charged me $100 bucks with me helping so I jumped on it and spent all last Sunday knocking it out. We primed and top coated with a powder called super durable blue. Dupont makes it I think and it has to pass a 2000 hr salt spray, where normal powder is tested at 1000 hrs. It appears and feels rock solid, fingers crossed.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 1, 2012)

busy day today, got the transom done!! along with coating the rear bench. starting to look like a boat again. transom has 3/4 inch blue composite board sandwiched between two 1/4 inch aluminum plates, a little heavy but seems very strong and will never rot. all stainless hardware with 5200 sealing everything, by the way 5200 is some messy stuff but seems to work well.

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2829484103149.2113456.1440496732&type=3&l=0f01696e16


----------



## gouran01 (Apr 2, 2012)

looks dang good!


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 2, 2012)

quick timeline to date.....three weeks into it. this week trying to decide on floor material


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 2, 2012)




----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 2, 2012)




----------



## fool4fish1226 (Apr 6, 2012)

Lookin good any more updates


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 6, 2012)

I ordered a HF Boat trailer day before yesterday as I am at the point where I need to put it on a trailer in case I need to take it somewhere and it should be here sometime next week. Today I am picking up the material to enlarge my side gate and move it forward closer to the front of the house, this will allow me to store it on the side of the house out of site as my HOA does not allow boats hehe. I will post pics of the trailer build as I will be modding it a little to fit my needs. Once it is on the trailer, the floor and front storage will go in along with the wiring. Then it will be off to the Honda dealer for a 15-20hp, have not decided on which yet because they weigh the same. Obviously this is the major investment for this boat so I want to get it right and not be let down. Thank goodness the wife suggested I get a brand new motor, hehe, if she only knew.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 7, 2012)

working on custom side gate today. should be interesting as i am no carpenter. pics will follow


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 8, 2012)

Finished the side gate today, Got tracking info for the HF boat trailer, will be here thursday, so i know what i will be doing next weekend. A friend gave me a minn kota turbo 65 today, so i might play around with that until i get the outboard.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 11, 2012)

The HF boat trailer came a day early, whoohoo!!!






will be building it tomorrow after work


----------



## BeerAndBait (Apr 11, 2012)

Nice gate bud.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 11, 2012)

thanks!!! it turned out better than i expected and latches from the inside. should have done it long ago and i was able to put my golf cart back there too now and free up some room in the garage, it used to sit in the garage where that grey carpet is with the trailer parts sitting on top. made the wife happy too, thats always a bonus.


----------



## Loggerhead Mike (Apr 12, 2012)

That's one sweet p/c setup

Boat looks great


----------



## hendo (Apr 12, 2012)

Nice paint job Jax. Is that automotive paint, base coat and clear or single stage paint?


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 12, 2012)

thanks guys, yeah it turned out above my expectations. My friend has a 25' oven and large hangers as you can see in the photos. the shop is at his house, how nice is that!!!! we used a two stage powder coat system. first we degreased and acid cleaned the hull, then used aluminum oxide primer powder, half baked it then while it was still hot applied the DuPont ultra durable blue top coat powder, they melt together and form one single bond that way. then we did the final bake to 400 degrees for 15 mins. The DuPont powder has to pass a 2000 hour salt spray test while normal powder usually only has to test to 1000 hrs. they should all come from the factory this way. this stuff is hard as a rock and we did a test piece that we bent a full 180 to make sure it would not peel off, it stayed on perfectly. time will tell as i haven't seen anyone powder the whole boat, hopefully it will last.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 12, 2012)

got my trailer 90% complete tonight, still have to mount lights, wench support, jack and figure out the design for the bunks. no issues at tag agency today getting it registered, cost $60 bucks tho, ouch. should have it all done by Saturday with boat sitting on top. Also watching a few motors on ebay.


----------



## hendo (Apr 12, 2012)

Great detail. It should last forever. I am trying to get my thought together because I am going to start my project soon. Just trying to find a good price on a boat package deal.


----------



## TimRich (Apr 13, 2012)

Man I'd love to powder coat my boat but I know I'd never be able to afford that...lol The boat looks awesome!


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 14, 2012)

Well i was super busy today. Got the trailer 99% done. Still need to do final bunk adjustments, not going to carpet the bunks, i am going to use L shaped Teflon the full legth, i will mount that later. I lucked out and came across a cover at walmart that was in the clearance bins!!! $25 normally $58, i think that is a score. Here are the lastest pics, starting to look like a boat now.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 15, 2012)

Just scored a '87 Johnson 9.9hp. Shipping from Northern Wisconsin, looks almost new inside and out, hopefully will be here by next weekend. I am going to look into what exactly it will take to make it a 15 and add electric start to it. This should be fun.


----------



## phxbuckeye (Apr 16, 2012)

Please let us know what you find out about getting more juice out of your motor. i have a 9.9 Merc and would love a few extra ponies. Motors are expensive!


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 16, 2012)

Here is a good link for Johnson info.

https://www.sschapterpsa.com/ramblings/OMC link/OMC info.htm


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 17, 2012)

ok, day 2 and no correspondece from the seller on my motor i bought on ebay, getting nervous and i sent them a note asking when they were going to ship it. Hopefully it will be soon. I hate waiting.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 24, 2012)

Finally got my motor today, cranked it up and it actually ran really good. everything seemed to check out great so far. i changed out the gear oil in the foot and most likely will replace the impeller this weekend for peace of mind. ran it for about 20 minutes, never even got warm to the touch, looked like the thermostat was working right and there was some water coming out the pee hole. cranked up on about the 5th pull then after it ran, first pull every time after. i will check compression probably tomorrow but i think it will be fine, looks like it was well maintained for a 25yr old motor. now time to see how it run under load on the water this Saturday, can't wait.

It was still running in these pics, you can see the fuel line is off and i am running the carb dry


----------



## bigwave (Apr 25, 2012)

Your boat turned out killer, should run up the St. Johns real nice. =D>


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 25, 2012)

Thanks, I still have a ways to go but it should be fishable by this weekend. Probably wont fish but I will test it out to see how it performs. Looking forward to the St. Johns, intercoastal, guana state park, nassua sound and so one, watch out fish i am coming for you this summer!!!


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 27, 2012)

Ok, ran the motor again yesterday. sounded good and ran nice a COOL, almost seemed too cool. Now i am wondering if it has a thermostat in it at all. Picking up a new impeller today on the way home but no one has a thermostat so i am going to take the cover off and see whats there.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Apr 29, 2012)

Boat is ready, i am ready, the wife is ready to let me go and the weather decided it needed the wind to start blowing and thunder storm, ugh i was going to go try and test this thing out and get it adjusted today because the next two weekends are booked solid.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 20, 2012)

Finally got out today for the first time, boat ran great and handled real good. Hit 15.2mph fully loaded, not bad for a 9.9hp I think. Fished at Guanna State Park, buddy brought his Gheenue too. Caught my first fish with artificail bait, sad i know but I never really fished much with artificial. All the hard work paid off. Can't wait to go again!!!


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 21, 2012)

Guess i know why it was so windy yesterday now, stupid tropical storm off our coast in MAY!!!!!! Really?


----------



## jasper60103 (May 21, 2012)

That's quite a transformation. Good job. =D>


----------



## Kismet (May 21, 2012)

Just got to reading this thread.

What a beautiful job!

Sounds like good fortune and hard work all came together for you.

Nicely done.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 21, 2012)

Thanks guys, seems like it has taken forever to get to this point but I am not quite done yet, but close. I have a minn kota power center with a series 27 battery inside. I plan on decking the front to just in front of the battery where the rib is to match the floor and rear bench and up to just below the rub rail. This will allow me to put another seat up front (not going with a pedistal just flush on the deck) and have a place to put stuff so i dont have step over everything as well as keeping the battery safe and out of the elements. I have plenty of aluminum angle I have been collecting to do the framing. Going to try to have this done by next weekend. Keeping fingers crossed I get new bow mount trolling motor for fathers day, hint hint to the wife.


----------



## jasper60103 (May 21, 2012)

I didn't notice the flooring before, nice.
What kind of material is that?


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 21, 2012)

its half inch sanded plywood with no knots, sealed with Spar and top coated with 4 layers of spray bed liner both sides, on top of 1.5" s of pink Owen Corning closed cell foam board. seems bullet proof so far an is rock hard, fingers crossed. really seems to make the boat feel more solid while underway. no battle wounds on first trip, not even a scratch and is not slippery in the least. I used aluminum insert nuts in the ribs, kinda like a pop rivet but with a nut inside to hold everything down. this way if it does rot i can take out the SS 10/32 srews and use the deck as a template and cut me a new one in ten minutes. Hopefully that will be a very long time. My friend who saw it thought i had found a plastic board to use haha.


----------



## jasper60103 (May 21, 2012)

Yea, I was thinking plastic too.
Enjoy!


----------



## fool4fish1226 (May 22, 2012)

Turned out real nice, glad to see you are now enjoying it =D>


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 22, 2012)

Thanks!!!! I am taking my 8 yr old daughter out saturday morning to a different area, should be fun. There is really good fishing up there and some islands to explore too along with some pure whilte sand bars, so i think she will like it, can't wait to see her face when she hooks a nice size red fish hehe.


----------



## Gators5220 (May 31, 2012)

Nice little red, did you do the upgrade from a 9.9 to 15hp already?


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 31, 2012)

Gators5220 said:


> Nice little red, did you do the upgrade from a 9.9 to 15hp already?



Thanks, to bad he was only 17"s  but was fun to catch. Maybe i will have better luck this weekend.

I am wanting to get the 15hp carb but i am having a hard time locating one that will fit, the motor is an 87 but has the older style carb on it, they used two different ones that yr. So in the mean time i am working on getting a jack plate installed to get my motor up where it needs to be and I ordered a tiny tach the other day so i can see where the motor is running and if i can prop it up any. 

This motor looks so new under the cowl i almost dont want to mess with it, hard to believe it is 25 yrs old, totally spotless and well maintained or hardly used, not sure which but i am not complaining. I know the 15 hp carb would help a lot as at WOT if just feels like the motor has more to give but just cant if that makes any sense.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 31, 2012)

JaxJonBoat said:


> Gators5220 said:
> 
> 
> > Nice little red, did you do the upgrade from a 9.9 to 15hp already?
> ...



PS....Go Gators!!!


----------



## trueblue1970 (May 31, 2012)

Looking at your pics I was thinking..wow, area looks familiar. Im not too far...I live in Palm Coast and I have a place similiar plave called Princess Place Preserve. Boat looks great...nice job.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 31, 2012)

Thanks, i still have to deck the front in just past the battery box and i will be done, but it is totally fishable now. Going out this weekend just trying to decide where haha. Probably Sisters Creek area. Yeah those pics were at Guanna State park, just a few mile north of where you are, just north of St. Augusine off A1A. Kinda shallow but perfect for our kind of boat, but limited to 10hp or less which means very little traffic which is nice.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (May 31, 2012)

some pics from Clapboard Creek last weekend off of St. Johns River couple miles from inlet to ocean. Daughters first fishing trip.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jun 2, 2012)

good fishing day today, caught some flounders but no red fish boooo






Buddy out with me in his Gheenoe






caught a dork fish lol


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jun 9, 2012)

ordered a mini jack plate earlier this week, came in yesterday looks really well made. I coated the thick wood piece with spar urethane today and will attempt to install tomorrow if this rain will let up. going to try to mount it so the motor is about an inch above the bottom. I will post before and after pics if mother nature allows.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jun 21, 2012)

before















after, now sits one inch above bottom of boat.


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jun 21, 2012)

ok since i cannot stop tinkering i have finally finished my parts aquisition to turn my 9.9 into a 15 electric start. it was a challenge to say the least gathering all the needed parts, most of which are not available new anymore. conversion photos to follow this weekend, wish me luck.


----------



## trueblue1970 (Jun 21, 2012)

Looks great. I havent fished there but have heard about it. I just picked up a 12' with a trailer...minor mods have been made to it, swivel seats, one section of carpeted flooring put in... Im going to take it out locally on a small lake here and see how it goes with one of my boys. I was debating on a 14, but this was a decent deal so I grabbed it. I at least have the trailer and can use the 12 when I go alone.


----------



## inlovewithsurfin (Jun 21, 2012)

awesome build! and i love your 9.9 outboard! let us know how the 15 conversion goes!  i just bought a 1974 7hp outboard and it starts up on the first pull every time! still havent gotten to run it on the boat yet but hoping to change that this weekend. I recently bought a 12ft flat bottom with trailer and completely overhauled it! check out my build and feel free to give any imput/advice! 

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=26077


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jun 23, 2012)

I was able to rebuild the 15hp carb today and get it installed, everything well but the recoil starter tried me a little going back in, but I got it. Also, got the electric start bypass cover in the mail today, so the last piece of that puzzle i am in possession of thank goodness, very hard to find, almost as hard as the carb was. The motor ran really good and I am taking it out tomorrow, will post any performance improvements. fastest so far with old set up was a little over 18mph, hoping for better between the carb and jack plate, wish me luck. here are some pics of the carb swap. 

https://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u422/caseynettles/Facebook/Jon%20Boat%20Project/IMAG0003.jpg

https://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u422/caseynettles/Facebook/Jon%20Boat%20Project/IMAG0004.jpg

https://i1067.photobucket.com/albums/u422/caseynettles/Facebook/Jon%20Boat%20Project/IMAG0008.jpg


----------



## JaxJonBoat (Jul 2, 2012)

I love Florida!!!! Pic taken this past Sunday with my daughter and me out fishing Fort George inlet and we stopped at the sandbar to cool off with a dip in the water and some shore fishing, the water here is normally Bahama blue but all the rain lately has it a little tannin color, but it wont last long.




I haven't done the electric start conversion yet, I have everything but it turned into a much bigger project with adding a fused switch panel, 30amp start button, 12v outlet, permanent bilge pump and nav lights lol, i will get to it when I have a whole day to devote to it, which wont be this weekend because the wife, kids and i are going back to the inlet so they can play and swim some more. First time the wife will be on the boat!!!


----------

