# '88 16ft V mod. muskiecraft



## danmyersmn (Sep 21, 2009)

The season is going to be coming to an end in another month or two and I will be redoing my rig this winter. I decided to get started with the thread so that I don't end up months behind on the updates and never get around to them. The boat is a 'Northwood' 16' V. All of the research I have found is that Northwood was a private brand for Link Recreation (Marine dealer) and/or resort sales/rentals. The company would buy surplus hulls from other manufacturers and build lines based on them. I believe my hull is a Smokercraft. If it is or not is not much of an issue. When its done it will be re-badged "Muskiecraft".

I am starting with painting the motor since it still needs to be able to make it on the water for a few more weeks. 

Here is how it started: 














The boat is currently watertight. I did have two leaks. A missing rivet on each side. The holes are filled with Cabelas Aluminium repair. Basically this is a stick of low temp epoxy. You heat up the metal with a propane torch and wick the epoxy into the hole. I will place new rivets into both spots once I tear it down and can better access both sides of the hole.

I started working on the motor cap. Decals and paint where removed and sanding and priming started. I put the first coat of topcoat on yesterday and wet sanded it this morning. I am almost happy with how it is turning out but I found a few scratches I missed. I am going to go ahead with another top coat and wet sand and see if they fill in. Motor will be coming off tonight for cleaning and primer and prep for paint. It needs to be back on by Saturday so If I cant get the prep & prime done by tomorrow I will need to use it Saturday in prime and give it another cleaning after. 

I did that yesterday. I took my boys out Crappie fishing with the lid in primer. New decals and sound foam have also been ordered and those should arrive this week.










Little:





Large: 37" Slimer. I caught his brother 39" 2 days later. Same lake, different lure.


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## jasper60103 (Sep 21, 2009)

Nice rig. Do happen to know how much it weighs? I have a 16' semi-v as well. I'm thinking about getting a newer motor. How do you like yours? Does it push it well?


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## danmyersmn (Sep 21, 2009)

Me and a fishing buddy can run around in the 16-19mph depending on if the wind is front or back. With my wife and two boys its more like 14-17mph. The motor has stabilizer fins installed. The deck and seat covers are all 3/4" plywood with a bunch of 2x4 supports. I wouldn't say my boat is very light in its current configuration. That's one of the things I hope to change before next year-pull some weight out of it.


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## jasper60103 (Sep 21, 2009)

yea, your hull is similar to mine with deep sides and long transom, but yours is much nicer. I wouldn't strip it down. Plus it sounds like it gets the job done. Nice catch by the way. 

Mine was 400lbs from the factory. A side storage box and side steer console was removed by someone. The flat floors were added by the previous owner, which I really like. But the floors add how much weight??


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## danmyersmn (Sep 22, 2009)

jasper60103 said:


> yea, your hull is similar to mine with deep sides and long transom, but yours is much nicer. I wouldn't strip it down. Plus it sounds like it gets the job done. Nice catch by the way.
> 
> Mine was 400lbs from the factory. A side storage box and side steer console was removed by someone. The flat floors were added by the previous owner, which I really like. But the floors add how much weight??



I like the open floor on your rig. It took me a long time to decide to keep my benches vs. removing them. I would like to get my rods into a hard sided storage but I decided I wanted to keep the benches and turn them into storage.


I will weigh one of my floor sections tonight and give you an idea what it weighs. The boat does look ok from a distance but once you fish in it for a while you start to learn all the things you want different. For me I need storage. Currently I have a battery and gas tank behind the rear seat. I am adding two more batteries because I am adding a 24v bow mount troller. The transom troller is staying in the boat as well. I do a lot of drifting with a drift sock on the front and the troller on back to keep me drifting how I want. I want the drift sock out of my boat never to come back in! The drifts we do are about 30-40 min and then we are motoring back up to the start to run the drift again. Setting up the sock each time is something I could do without. I also have grown tired of 3 large plano boxes and 4 medium plano boxes kicking around under my feet and a cooler as well. I fish with 3 poles with different sized lures so I always have all my plano boxes scattered around at my feet. I am going to remove the foam from the 3 bench seats. The front bench will keep the foam it has. It is too small for storage. The benches will then get lids on hinges and they will all be for storage for batteries, tackle, gear, etc. etc.. Then I can flip the hatch up on the seat in front of me and toss all my plano boxes inside when I am done swapping lures. I am also going to put a storage hatch in the floor with a compartment under it to store life vests. The only time I wear a vest is when we start getting into October and the water starts to get cool. I have switched to fishing in Artic Armor when its cold and since the Artic Armor floats I can do away with the vest in the late fall early spring as well. The rear casting deck is 1" lower then the rear seat so its a funny step and its hard to cast around my tiller and electronics because of it. If you look at the seats closely you will notice I have a piece of aluminium behind each seat back. The seat backs are rotted out and need replace. So, I have numerous things I can change to make it better suited for what I want. But your right, it is a nice rig as is and I am pleased with how it performs now. I just know it can be better.

I do plan to put new foam in to replace what I take out. Under my current floor I have a huge expanse of open space. I am going to be raising up the floor 1" and that's going to give me even more. I am still debating how I want to do the foam. I am thinking pink sytro-lowes stuff vs. 2 part. The 2 part is more permanent but I am not looking to make my boat watertight. It is garage kept. Stored 5 months of the year and trying to keep foam dry will just turn into trying to dry the foam out after its wet. I am also debating about the carpet. I always fish barefoot, except for when its cold. I might switch over to something such as Kiwi-Grip but I would like to find something that is durable like kiwi-grip but is a little less a non-slip coating and more of a rubberised coating so that I can continue to stay barefoot. I am still debating that though. Maybe the Cabelas Tuff-Grip stuff. That is a decisions to be made later this winter. Right now I need to put a final coat of paint on my motor so that I can get it back on the boat for Saturday and Muskie chasing.


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## Rat (Sep 22, 2009)

Anything heavy that you can locate under the sole will improve performance, handling and stability. I would put the three batteries under the sole at least. This will keep your center of gravity low and keep the batteries out of the way. 

I really like the color of that hull!


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## jasper60103 (Sep 22, 2009)

danmyersmn,
sounds like you have a plan. I'm really amazed at the mods on this forum. Great ideas. 
Oh, I just noticed the AnchorMateII on your boat. I just scored one a couple weeks ago on craigslist. $30 for the mount, crank and a anchor.
I want it bow mounted like yours, and I want the crank behind the rear seat near the transom.
I plan to buy the pulley kit (https://www.worthco.com/marine/anchoraccess.html), which comes with 2 line guides and a swivel pulley.
My problem is I can't figure out how to mount the pulley under the bow cap. 

Can you share how it's done on your rig?
Do you like how it performs?
Just realized your in minnesota too. I'm south of the metro near lakeville. I've been up to elk river several times for work.

thanks,
jasper


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## huntinfool (Sep 22, 2009)

> I am also debating about the carpet. I always fish barefoot, except for when its cold. I might switch over to something such as Kiwi-Grip but I would like to find something that is durable like kiwi-grip but is a little less a non-slip coating and more of a rubberised coating so that I can continue to stay barefoot. I am still debating that though. Maybe the Cabelas Tuff-Grip stuff. That is a decisions to be made later this winter.



I use a product called Skid no more. It is basically a latex paint with ground up rubber in it. I get it locally here and it is about $60 a gallon. It comes in a grey, but you can add white to lighten it up.(that is what I did) I like to fish barefoot sometimes and in Texas the heat can be unbearable on your feet. Especially with a dark color. But I have used this several times and it works great. Not slippery at all and not too harsh on your feet. Where you are you could probably get away with the darker grey too. I'll see if I can get some manufacture info or a web site.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 22, 2009)

jasper60103 said:


> danmyersmn,
> sounds like you have a plan. I'm really amazed at the mods on this forum. Great ideas.
> Oh, I just noticed the AnchorMateII on your boat. I just scored one a couple weeks ago on craigslist. $30 for the mount, crank and a anchor.
> I want it bow mounted like yours, and I want the crank behind the rear seat near the transom.
> ...




Hah, maybe its a small world. I sold my AnchorMate II on craiglist for $30.00 a few weeks back. Did you buy it in the Home Depot parking lot in North Minneapolis? I have the pulley kit and it will be coming off the boat when I get around to drilling out the rivets and yanking it off. I can shoot pic's of how it is done. I only used the AnchorMate when taking my kids bobber fishing. I didn't have room for it with my planned bow mount troller.

Good Idea Rat about putting the batteries down as low as possible. I will have to see how I can mount them down low. Thats months away though so all of those ideas are still in the planning stages. 

Ok, photo time. How about a 22" inside a 39". No, i didn't catch it that way. My wife didn't believe me when I told her that a big pike or muskie will eat smaller ones no problem. I showed her, she took a picture. thats that. 

Oh, and I am a huge fan of photo and release of any of these guys that are over 25". Send them back to be someone else's memory. However, this one came out of a lake that the DNR is actively drawing down to turn into a duck pond. It is 4000 acres with the deepest hole being 9'. They are drawing it down to 5' and are actively netting Panfish and Crappies and moving them to kid fishing ponds. I have no remorse for keeping what is going to be winter kill come this November. Any other lake and it would of went back in the water instead of pickled  It's too bad too. The lake would produce a new record for both Bass and Pike given another year or two.


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## huntinfool (Sep 22, 2009)

Here is the product I was talking about...at least if the pictures work.





BTW nice fish and that is crazy! I would only think that the length would be a problem for them. But down here in the south we know that Bass will eat other bass along with crappie (big ones too)


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## jasper60103 (Sep 22, 2009)

_Hah, maybe its a small world. I sold my AnchorMate II on craiglist for $30.00 a few weeks back. Did you buy it in the Home Depot parking lot in North Minneapolis?_

LOL! yea, that was me. Appreciate any help when you get a chance. It's a low priority though. I'm still working some issues with my motor before it gets too cold. I may get out this weekend. Looks like you're having loads of fun.


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## RBuffordTJ (Sep 22, 2009)

I just put Durabak on mine. It is great, stays cool, non slip, not a paint but a poly that stays flexible.






A little more expensive but I like it. You can see it on my boat if you look at the link in my signature.

Bufford in Orlando

P.S. Awesome fish, horrible treatment of the lake by the powers-what-be.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 22, 2009)

I thought that the durabak was a dirt magnet and would turn brown quickly. Not your experience?

I took the floor out to measure it. This one weighs 34lbs. The rear section is the same size and likely weighs the same. 











First finish coating after wet sanding with 600.







Final coat ready for rubbing compound in a few days. Just waiting for the paint to fully cure before I mess with it.














I couldn't remember if the decals I ordered had the front and rear "20" badges so I didn't remove them.

Here is the anchormate pulleys as they where used.






And removed






$50 bought me all this at a local marine dealer today. The hinges are aluminum and 6'...three of them @ $5 each.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 22, 2009)

huntinfool said:


> Here is the product I was talking about...at least if the pictures work.
> View attachment 1
> 
> 
> ...


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## jasper60103 (Sep 22, 2009)

danmyersmn,

You're making lots of progress. Nice work on the outboard. 

I'm surprised, the floor boards not that heavy at all. I guess my rig isn't too much heavier since the steering console and storage was removed.

Also, thanks for the detailed pics on the pulley and guide. I'm a little concerned about mounting them that low. It seems too close the water line? I will think on it. 

Thanks again.


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## huntinfool (Sep 22, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> My local dealer has this product at a decent price. I was going to look into it more. Are you happy with it? Would you spend 6 hours standing on it barefoot?


[/quote]

Not only would I but I already do. I have used this on several boats. Including the one in my signature. I have not had any problems with it. I can tell you it will not span a gap that well, but I should have filled the gaps first and then spread this. But that was my fault. Otherwise it is great, and for the price it can't be beat.


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## jasper60103 (Sep 23, 2009)

jasper60103 said:


> danmyersmn,
> ...
> Also, thanks for the detailed pics on the pulley and guide. I'm a little concerned about mounting them that low. It seems too close the water line? I will think on it.
> 
> Thanks again.




Second thought, I may just attached the pulley to the floor board.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 23, 2009)

jasper60103 said:


> jasper60103 said:
> 
> 
> > danmyersmn,
> ...




They are not as close to the waterline as you may think. If you look at that picture you are not looking at the floor. That is the front casting deck. The front deck is resting on top of the bench seats. That's pretty high above the waterline. If you think it through you will find a good way to mount the setup in your boat that works how you want it too.


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## Jim (Sep 23, 2009)

jasper60103 said:


> _Hah, maybe its a small world. I sold my AnchorMate II on craiglist for $30.00 a few weeks back. Did you buy it in the Home Depot parking lot in North Minneapolis?_
> 
> LOL! yea, that was me. Appreciate any help when you get a chance. It's a low priority though. I'm still working some issues with my motor before it gets too cold. I may get out this weekend. Looks like you're having loads of fun.




:LOL2: 
Awesome! :beer:


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## RBuffordTJ (Sep 23, 2009)

> I thought that the durabak was a dirt magnet and would turn brown quickly. Not your experience?


Nope, not yet. The people I have talked to who use it have not given me any warnings like that at all.

Bufford


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## jasper60103 (Sep 23, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> jasper60103 said:
> 
> 
> > jasper60103 said:
> ...



Ok, I see what you're saying. I may take that approach after all. I don't want the rope to interfere with storage either. Thanks for clarifying.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 24, 2009)

A few days back I started filling holes in my hull. I have lots of them from the previous owner and his love for attaching stuff. 

So....drill out pop rivits and clean up the metal.






Add Acetylene and Aluminium brazing rods.





Plug the holes. Notice I got too hot with the Acetylene and started to burn the hull. I suppose that's the down side of using free gas. My fishing partner is a master plumber and had this tank. I was out of MAPP gas and didn't want to use propane so i opted for the Acetylene. It will clean up though so it's not an issue that I feel needs further attention. I added material with the rod to fill from both sides of the hull.





The repairs are cleaned up using an 80grit flap wheel and I gave them a skim coat of JB Weld on both sides to fill any pin holes and block sanded it with 400 grit. This is enough of a repair for what I need. The repairs are likely to still be noticed under the paint when I am done. Even if they are. I am not planning on filling every scratch or banging back every dent. This is a 10 footer fishing machine not a brand new show stopper so its more about function. 






I filled 10 holes. I still have 5 I believe on this side then I can go to the other side. The transom has 6 holes in it from various trolling motors but I have a different plan for repairing those. Now I need to put everything back together and prep the boat for this weekend.


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## huntinfool (Sep 24, 2009)

Keep up the good work!


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## jasper60103 (Sep 24, 2009)

danmyersmn,
the project is moving right along, and good luck with the muskies.
I'm hoping the rain will hold out, even though we desperately need it. I want to tune my carb.


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## danmyersmn (Sep 29, 2009)

Not much to update but I was able to apply my decals. I am loving the way the motor looks now. Makes the boat look sad.  

Old





New









Planning to go on a overnight musky trip to Mille Lacs this weekend then I need to decide if its time to tear the boat apart or wait a few more weeks.


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## jasper60103 (Sep 29, 2009)

_Planning to go on a overnight musky trip to Mille Lacs this weekend then I need to decide if its time to tear the boat apart or wait a few more weeks._

yea, I say give a 2-3 weeks. We still have some decent fishing days left. 

In the spring, I went on a bass hunt with my Dad in Tn. It was 50-60s and high winds, but the stripes and bass were hitting like crazy. That was the best 2 days of fishing I had all year.

I didn't get a chance to tune my carb last weekend. Got busy around the house. I plan to get out on the water one weekend, hopefully.

Your motor looks great!


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## CRAPPIE_SLAYER (Sep 30, 2009)

Wow! the motor looks just fantastic! =D>


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## danmyersmn (Oct 4, 2009)

So I was able to get some work done. I was debating over and over about my bench seats and after seeing what CrappieSlayer was doing I finally took the plunge and decided to yank them out.

I cut the front bench top and rear out. The front of the front seat is where the forward platform is going to start so it stayed in. 

Plantform supports.









The sides are going to be boxed and tied into the floor. You can also see how I am tying the old bench supports into the new framing as well as how I am tying the floor into the bottom of the boat.






















Where the second bench was located I am building a little bump out from the new sides. Battery will be stored here on both sides. I am going also planning to mount two seats here for my boys using some form of removable mount.










Decking is going to be wood and the faces are all going to be .040 aluminum. I traded an engine stand and 4 wheel dollies for the sheet of aluminum and a stereo so that is what I will be using. I ran out of Aluminum angle so that's it for now.


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## CRAPPIE_SLAYER (Oct 5, 2009)

Lookin' good. Think you'll be happy with the space opened up by removing the benchs, I know I am so far. Tying the old seat brackets into the floor should keep it nice and rigid. Can't wait to see the rest of the build! By the way, love the drawing on the side of the boat :LOL2: .


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## masterofillusion (Oct 5, 2009)

Looks great, you are way ahead of me. I have a question. The aluminum angle is 45 degrees, the side of the boat is at a slant. My boat has slanted sides. How are you going to make that work? I will need to make some adjustment. I wanted to attach pieces of angle to set the deck on. Thanks


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## danmyersmn (Oct 5, 2009)

masterofillusion said:


> Looks great, you are way ahead of me. I have a question. The aluminum angle is 45 degrees, the side of the boat is at a slant. My boat has slanted sides. How are you going to make that work? I will need to make some adjustment. I wanted to attach pieces of angle to set the deck on. Thanks



I hope I don't make this more confusing by trying to explain it more. 

I knew I wanted a shelf on top and I decided that I could use the existing seat supports to set the width of the top of this "side shelf" (I don't know what better to refer to it as #-o ). I took a piece of angle aluminum and clamped it too the two the supports. I also decided to slant the front part slightly. The "side shelf" starts at the same height as my front casting deck. I then angled it up slightly to the height I was going to build the battery boxes. From the battery boxes I am going to extend it all the way to the stern at the same height as the battery box. 

Once I had the width of the top of my "side shelf" set. Then I eyeballed it from the outer edge to come down at an angle that would encase the current seat supports. You can see what I mean by this in one of the first pictures of my last post. I wanted to keep this "side shelf" as narrow as I thought I could get away with and still have the support and strength I was after.







Now that the sides of my "side shelf" are mounted to the floor I plan to hang angle for the floor off of each of the side pieces like this.





Then I will bring a short piece down from this support too the floor in two spots across the middle of the boat like you see here.





Then when the framing is done for both the sides and the floor I will have an aluminum face and wood decking. Here is the concept using some scrap aluminum and scrap wood. I hope it makes sense.






Clear as mud?


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## danmyersmn (Oct 5, 2009)

Here is another pic to understand better.


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## masterofillusion (Oct 5, 2009)

The second to the last photo, where you have the short horizontal piece riveted to the side of the boat, that looks like its angled up. That is where I see a problem for me. I don't think I can bend the angle down enough to make it level across the boat. Is there another option? Great job by the way. I went to harbor freight and bought a 6" cut off saw for 39.00. Saves me a lot of time. I was using a air cut off tool. Now I can cut any angle also. Thanks for the reply.


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## danmyersmn (Oct 5, 2009)

OH, I see what your saying. The horizontal piece that is riveted to the boat. The top of that will be at too much of an angle if it is mounted to your boat wall? Well, to be honest, those pieces are at an angle on my boat as well. They are not perfectly level. I noticed the same thing when I fastened mine to the boat and I decided I am not concerned with this. The entire top decking of this shelf is going to be one piece of 3/4" wood. It does not bother me that the entire flat surface of the angle is not touching the wood. It will have enough support with the wood resting on a portion of the angle. If you wanted too I suppose you could use a angle finder and find the right angle and bang on the piece in a vice until the angle will give you a flat edge. Or, set your aluminum angle 1/4" down from your finished deck hight and rip a piece of 1x1 wood to an angle on the bottom to compensate. That's the nice thing about building these rigs how we want them. We can alter plans as needed for our vessel.


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## masterofillusion (Oct 6, 2009)

Ok I will lower it a bit, that should work. It should be strong enough and you can't see it any way. Its supposed to rain this weekend so I plan on bustin a.. on it. I bought some speedgrip from norton to glue everything. Less riveting. cya


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## danmyersmn (Oct 12, 2009)

Here is an update. I have all the seats removed. I have the both front side supports and the front of the battery box done. The rear portion of the floor is starting to come together and the rear casting deck has started coming together. I had a leak in the floor where two rivets where missing. I installed both of those again and I am confident they are sealed. I had decided against using steel-flex so I decided to seal any possible leaks in the rivets from the top side.


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## jasper60103 (Oct 12, 2009)

wow, she's coming along. Good job!

edit: I meant to ask how did you paint your outboard?
Did you use a sprayer? What kind of paint?
It looks great.


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## danmyersmn (Oct 13, 2009)

I used rattle can paint for my motor. For the top I removed the decal's and gave it a good sanding. next I washed it down with degreaser inside and out. Cleaned the outside with acetone and sprayed it with sanding primer. Another quick sanding and another spraying of different color primer. Sanding to find the lowspots. Filled them with filler (bond-o). sanded, one more coat of primer final sanding and sprayed with three coats of paint with wetsanding between each. Then I bought the sound deadening foam and decals from evinrude and applied those.

For the rest of the motor I used a brass wire brush and lots and lots of degreaser and water and cleaned it up. gave it a sanding to roughen up the paint and washed it a final time with acetone. Then I sprayed it with zinc chromate primer where any metal was exposed. I gave it two coats of paint with no wetsanding. I didn't feel it was worth the work to try and wetsand all the areas on the lower end of the motor so I didn't. I applied the decals for the bottom portion and called it good.

Paint and primer was this:
https://www.moellermarine.com/aftermarket/marine_paints/engine_paint/


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## jasper60103 (Oct 13, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> I used rattle can paint for my motor. For the top I removed the decal's and gave it a good sanding. next I washed it down with degreaser inside and out. Cleaned the outside with acetone and sprayed it with sanding primer. Another quick sanding and another spraying of different color primer. Sanding to find the lowspots. Filled them with filler (bond-o). sanded, one more coat of primer final sanding and sprayed with three coats of paint with wetsanding between each. Then I bought the sound deadening foam and decals from evinrude and applied those.
> 
> For the rest of the motor I used a brass wire brush and lots and lots of degreaser and water and cleaned it up. gave it a sanding to roughen up the paint and washed it a final time with acetone. Then I sprayed it with zinc chromate primer where any metal was exposed. I gave it two coats of paint with no wetsanding. I didn't feel it was worth the work to try and wetsand all the areas on the lower end of the motor so I didn't. I applied the decals for the bottom portion and called it good.
> 
> ...



Sounds good. I'll put that on my To Do list. Thanks.


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## danmyersmn (Oct 14, 2009)

Was able to work more today. I am home with both of my boys. They both have H1N1 so I am just watching the fever and making them stay in bed. 

I am tired of working on the framing with the angle so I decided to spend the day working on other things. I hooked up the speakers and radio I acquired to see how they would work. The appear to work fine. The CD player on the radio doesn't work but that isn't an issue. I wanted the "radio" part of it.

After that they went back on the shelf and I stared working on some of the aluminum paneling. 










Then I used some pink foam and made a box of pink foam strips and gorilla glue. I then glued it to the side and used some wedges to hold it in place. The whole point is to make an open box that wont fill in when I use A/B foam. I am going to cut a hole in the front here and that is where the speakers will install.

The pink foam will keep the void open and allow me to have a cavity for the speaker.






I broke my drill bit so I went to buy a new one and grab some 5200 to fill the corners. Cabelas was out of 5200 and I forgot the drill bit so that was it for today. I am thinking about using PL polyurethane construction adhesive for the corners so that I can paint it. Thoughts?


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## masterofillusion (Oct 14, 2009)

Man, you are smokin me, #-o I wasn't able to work on my boat last weekend so I am way behind. Hope your boys recover quick.


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## danmyersmn (Oct 19, 2009)

Ok, Time for some updates.

First my youngest son decided he would help by stapling two scraps of pink foam together. 






Side compartment built behind the battery storage. I can keep 6 boxes in the two areas. I am going to pick up a few of these big boxes that are 1/2 height as these for the other box. Some of my musky lures are HUGE but flat so they don't need to be in such tall boxes. On top is going to be my switches and radio and my fishfinder will mount on top of that. The top box is going to be the wire distribution central. 

The storage boxes are painted with Rustoleum epoxy. 











On the other side I am framing out a smaller storage area for smaller plano boxes. I can stick seven of them in here. I probably will do 4 or 5 of them then my one tupperware container full of berkley gulp baits and a hookout and such things.






I am planning next to tear apart my battery boxes. They are not quite square enough for me so I am going to redo them. 

Back up front where I am going to have a storage compartment. I had two cans of Rustoleum spray on bedliner on my shelf. I am tossing anchors in this compartment so I decided to coat it with the bedliner. I didn't like the black so I gave it the Pollok treatment with the gray epoxy. I will proabably do the same with whatever colors paint I decide to use on the exterior and interior. give this front storage area a nice ugly treatment.


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## dneaster3 (Oct 20, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> I didn't like the black so I gave it _the Pollok treatment _with the gray epoxy.


 :lol: :lol: 

Lookin' good, man. Keep the pictures coming.

How much of the bedliner did it take to cover that section?


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## danmyersmn (Oct 21, 2009)

Less then two cans. I had 1 can plus another can of almost-full-but-not-quite on the shelf.


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## danmyersmn (Oct 25, 2009)

spent the day tearing apart the battery boxes and redoing them. I finished framing them but did not cut new aluminum faces for them so I don't have much of anything for photos. I am much happier with how they are looking now. They where only off square by about 1/2" but it was enough that it was painful for me to look at.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 1, 2009)

OK, two days of work and I have some more pics and some real progress.

I finished all the framing. I am done cutting this darn Aluminum angle. I think 

Ok, so back a few posts I painted my front storage area with truckbed liner. Well the more I looked at it the more I disliked it. In fact it was annoying me. It did not blend with the rest of the boat and it was time to go. I spent a few hours sanding it all off.

I then sprayed it with Rustoleum industrial. The color is Almond and It should be a very close match to what I plan to paint the inside of the boat-above the decking. I use rattle can for all the areas that will be below hatches to give it a uniform color. 






Here is the area under the rod storage hatch. Most of this area will be filled with fishing poles so this is just a background color strictly for appearance sake. You can also see where I had to cut out an extra section I had running starboard-to-port. It looks to be sticking out here but how I plan to frame it with wood for the rod locker storage hatch all of this aluminum should be well hidden.

You can also see the new battery boxes. I added a diagonal support to help keep it square. I used PL and glued the back side of all the corners where I have pop-rivets. When I put the aluminum facing on I am going to grind off all the rivet heads first. The PL will hold the framing in place until the aluminum sheeting is riveted on. 











Rear casting deck is framed out. The rear seat will be mounted in this corner. The will be able to be added/removed from a hatch on top of the platform. Thus why it got a coat of almond paint. If I can see it when this project is done then painted it will be 

Here is the battery and gas tank platforms. I drilled some holes in it in case any water found its way onto the platform.







I use PL to glue pink foam in place to form walls on both sides of the rear casting deck. I am going to fill the void between the boat wall and pink foam with A/B foam. This will bond with the pink but also the pink will keep it in place and from expanding into areas I don't want it.






Here are a few longer shots.











Next I am going to do all the vertical faces with sheet aluminum then I can prep all the areas above the decking for paint. I am planning to use rust-oleum brush on oil-based paint to do the interior. I am extremely pleased with how it went into my tackle compartments and I think it will hold up to abuse well. I also should be able to get it in almost identical color as what I spraybombed already. Its the same branding but since its brush on oil based instead of spray bomb it might be a slight different shade. Close enough since both areas will be separated by the decking.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 3, 2009)

Nothing to report, just feeling "fish-sick" kind of like being home sick but I am missing fishing not my home. 

So, here is a pic. I "may" have been ummmmm "consuming" on this day. 

Lake Michigan out of Algoma Wi.


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## Nussy (Nov 3, 2009)

Wow not far from me in Green Bay. Had to be awhile ago as you'd be in a Parka these days. Being a Muskie Guy you should be on the Bay of Green Bay catching 50+inchers!!!! I can't wait to see your finished product. You boat looks HUGE in the pics and love tackle box trays.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 3, 2009)

Yep, it was back in early mid summer. I was dragged along on a charter so I didn't have much choice other then to drink, smoke cigars and wait for "fish on".


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## Cheeseball (Nov 4, 2009)

Very nice work! I'm anxious to see the end result.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 7, 2009)

spent the day trying to get everything setup to lay down my A/B foam. I had the two cans of foam wrapped in a heating blanket on high all day. It was nice and warm waiting for me to start mixing but I didn't get everything done so I will have to shoot for tomorrow trying to get the foam in.

So today I started with finishing up some putting on some aluminium facing to hold back foam. You can also see the rod holder. I mounted up the rod holders. The front is riveted using aluminium angle to the floor angle supports. The back of them is just held in place using some pieces of pink foam and PL. The A/B foam will encase the tubes and hold them solid. EDIT: I have since revised this plan. I decided not to fill this void with A/B foam. I removed the pink foam and ran a second piece of aluminum angle across on top of these tubes and I fastened the tubes to that piece. /EDIT I am debating how I planned to do this now. The rod handles can extend out the back. I need to figure out how to keep the foam below the tubes. I didn't plan for that but will figure it out. You can also see the finished tackle storage. It will be painted the same grey as the one on the other side.






Another shot, you can see the rod holder better and the aluminium facing is showing. The aluminium sheet had a white coating on it already. I am going to sand that and paint it the same color as the rest of the boat when its painted. 





Here is the front tubes for the rod holder. The little rod close is 4/ 6" and the one in the background is 7'. I think I can get probably get a 9 footer in. I painted the PVC pipes with Valspar plastic paint. Notice I already scratched it....grrrrr! I am going to touch up the scratches and see if it is more durable after it completely out gasses. Front is riveted to the floor and the back is held in places with pink plastic wedged. Again, the A/B foam will fill in around the tubes and lock them in place.

I also ran two 3/4" pvc pipes for my livewell. One will be for fill the other will be for drain. 






Ok, so one thing I have always been planning is to make my boat a "wet boat". What is a "wet boat" well I am taking the approach that everything is going to get wet and not try to keep everything dry but rather plan for how to get rid of the water. That is also why I am using aluminium angle instead of wood, using non-slip coating (or vinyl, I am back to thinking about vinyl again) instead of carpeting on the floor, etc. So, I kept looking at my transom and thinking about how to waterproof it. 

So, I pulled it out to encase it with resin










Also, I have had a chronic problem. My transom trolling motor would always hit my whale tails on my gas motor if I tried to use it with the motor down. I was not able to slide it over far enough because the transom top wasn't flat and if I slid it too far over to the side it would move and shift and get all funky and angled. I added a piece of wood to give a flat top for the trolling motor. 






I used PL to glue the piece to the transom and screwed it in place. Once the PL was setup I pulled the screws out and encased the entire thing in resin. I have lots of sanding to due I was pretty sloppy with the resin but it will all work out fine in the end.


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## Boater (Nov 7, 2009)

Looking good, thought I would introduce myself, Im just north of you up in Little Falls. I have a 14' Mirrocraft 1977 I just started and would like to use the alum not wood as I see most doing here. I have a few questions if you dont mind sharing, #1 Are you fastening yours with pop rivers or what? #2 what size and thickness "L" are you working with? and the last question you gonna have it done for 2010 opener??? Thanks


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## Doug (Nov 7, 2009)

Great pic's 8) . Looks like a great plan coming together.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 8, 2009)

Welcome to the site boater, its a great place to hang out with good people and learn all the little ideas that others have done. I am using 3/4" x 3/4" x 1/8" angle. I am placing it 12" on-center and trying with no areas that are not supported down to the floor that have a greater span then 15". I haven't seen any other builds on this site that have used this small of angle so I might be pioneering or failing. Only time will tell I suppose.

I am planning to have it done by opener. I am only working on it on the weekends now. Soon I will be snowboarding every Saturday so that might be a problem. But, it will get done, I have no concerns about that.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 8, 2009)

I have a collection of pics that make one big mess!!!

First I finished the transom and installed it. The top aluminum cap and all the through bolts where glued with 5200 and all the bolts are stainless.






I ran wires to all the locations that I plan to have speakers and lights and pumps...well most of them. I know now of one that I missed. Then I started installing foam. I also was able to cut the top off the foam where it expanded over the top of where my decking will go and tossed it into other voids as filler.






Here you can see how I used pink foam walls to contain the foam and then filled the cavity with pieces of foam. and the poar foam bound it all together. 





I was thinking that I was going to have more A/B foam then I needed. It turned out I had a lot more space to fill then I thought. I ended up using an entire two gallons of the foam. I had my garage at 85 and the foam was about 100 so I think it was warm enough. I just don't think it expanded as much as I would of liked. 

So, I was going to call it good enough but I decided to use some pink foam. I cut squares of pink and I used PL to glue it to the boat and then glue each piece on top of the one below it. Once the glue sets they will be locked in place. In total I used the 2 gallons of A/B. one full block of Styrofoam that was pulled out of one of the seats and 1 1/2 sheets of 1/2" pink foam 8' x 10' sheets. I am confident enough that I have enough flotation installed again should I need it.

You can see here how I used the foam to lock the rod tubes in place. I basically pored a mix over it a few times until it had expanded up enough to come through around the tubes.


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## Hydrilla (Nov 8, 2009)

Looking awesome man! Your boat is currently the build of the week on my Jon Boats Group on Facebook 8)


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## danmyersmn (Nov 9, 2009)

Well its a bad week for it then. I am absolutely disgusted with myself! I made a huge error last night and I don't know how I will repair it. I know I will repair it but until I get home from work and start looking at it more my ADD mind has me thinking of a dozen reasons why the boat is scrapped now.

So.... last night I decided to dump a pail of water into the bow of the boat to make sure it drains all the way to the back. It didn't. It got stuck at the first rib right where I start my front casting platform. I figured I let too much A/B foam flow down and it was blocking the drain hole in the back of the rib. I decided to grab a drill bit and see if I could open up the hole. I couldn't. Next I decided to take a longer bit and see if I could drill a new hole from the front side. It went great. As soon as I was done the water started to flow through the rib. I heard the water start to run out the back of the boat and I thought "darn" that drained fast. I went to the back and to my horror I found the water draining out a drain hole at the back of the center strake. 

Yes, that's right. I now have a hole in my hull that is beneath a rib from the top and a strake from the bottom. At this point I think the better plan is to access it by cutting away at the rib instead of the strake. I am trying not to think about it since I will need to remove my rod tubes and they are now A/B foamed in place. 

Anyone want to buy a project?

I'll feel better after I get a chance to get at it tonight. Just sick about it right now.


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## ober51 (Nov 9, 2009)

Looks awesome - great job! Just wondering what the approx. weight will be when you are done? Will the aluminum keep the weight down? Is it heavier than when you first got it? Again, awesome job =D>


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## danmyersmn (Nov 9, 2009)

ober51 said:


> Looks awesome - great job! Just wondering what the approx. weight will be when you are done? Will the aluminum keep the weight down? Is it heavier than when you first got it? Again, awesome job =D>



Well I removed two casting decks that where made of 3/4 plywood and framed with 2x4s. I also removed three bench seats that where .08 aluminum and on top of the benches was more 3/4" plywood. Two floor sections that where 3/4" plywood and 2x4's. I am doing my new decking with 1/2" and 1 layer of fiberglass. I assume that the weight is going to end up lighter if I exclude the fact that I am adding 2 batteries and a second trolling motor. With those added it would be hard not to end up heavier no mater what I did.


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## Nick Jones (Nov 9, 2009)

wow man that is looking great. thanks for all the tips about rivets too.


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## Hanr3 (Nov 9, 2009)

Great build so far, except for the added hole in the bottom of the boat.  

I also built my boat as a wet boat. All water can run to the bottom of my boat and flow to the transom where it gets pumped out. 

As to your problem, yea it sucks and yea it will set you back some time. It could be worse, and you could make it worse by ripping things out. Take your time and everything will be fine. Use a hacksaw blade to cut that coam out. Make a handle out of tape on one end. It will conform to the irriegular surface of the boat and slice the foam like butter. 

I spent some time looking at your tube section in teh pic you posted. Is that sch40 pvc? If so, whack the center couple of tubes off just infront of the rib about 2". You can use a connector to reattach the piece you whacked off. That should give you access to the foam under the tubes, and behind the tubes. Clear out the foam with a hacksaw blade and fill the boat hole with JB Weld, liquid metal that hardens like steel. You can sand, drill, and tap it. 

One other thing. Back on page 1-2 or so the question was asked how much does the wood weigh? A 4'x8' sheet of plywood weighs roughly 25 pounds per quarter inch thick. 1/4" thick sheet weighs 25 pounds, 1/2" thick sheet 50 pounds, 3/4" = 75 pounds. Pressure treated is slightly more.


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## Hydrilla (Nov 9, 2009)

Man, I do understand getting discouraged, I've wanted to throw in the towel on a few occasions, and my build isn't as complicated or near as difficult as yours. Yes it's a setback, but you'll overcome it. Good advice from Hanr3.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 9, 2009)

I know I will get it fixed. Just frustrated that I let it happen. Hanr, I need to take the entire tube assembly out. First, I can probably cut the tubes at the end near the front of the boat and then work down from there to repair the hole I drilled. This isn't going to fix the problem i started with. Somewhere under the tubes I let the A/B foam block my drainage. I am going to pull the entire tube assembly out, pull the pink foam under it out and find where the problem is and fix it. Then I can address the hole in the boat properly and put stuff back in. 

The big problem I have is how to get to the hole. I either need to cut out a section of the rib or the strake. I would rather work from the top down instead of the bottom up. Then once I have that done how do I repair the rib? At this point I am thinking that I will use two pieces of aluminium angle. If I cut it long enough to put two rivets on each side of the hole I cut in the rib then the angle should be stronger then the rib I remove. I guess I will find out soon enough, I am almost through the day and can get back to finding out where the darn new hole is in my boat.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 9, 2009)

All is better now. Once I got home I was able to take a look at my options and make the repair. 

So first, I tried a couple different ways of getting the foam separated from the rod tubes. Eventually I broke one. After that I took a sawzall to them and cut them all. Then they came out easy.






Here is the foam that the tubes where encased in. Notice the big blob coming out from under then pink foam. No wonder water didn't make it past.





Another shot of the blob of foam and here is the hole I made.





Better shot of the hole. I used a sawzall to cut out the rib and get access to it.





I used a torch and a stick of alumiweld and filled in the hole.





used a flap wheel to grind down the weld to make sure it was holding.





Took the torch too it again and covered it with Cabela's boat patch. This is actually a 3M product I just don't recall the product number but it melts on and I used it to fill 10 holes the boat came with and it held up great until I could make proper repairs so it will work as a skim coat/sealer here without issues.






Finally I used 3 pieces of angle aluminium and riveted them to each side of the hole I put in the rib. Should be more then strong enough as a repair to the rib I cut. Plus it Gurka approved!


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## Hanr3 (Nov 9, 2009)

wow that was fast. 

Nice job.
So what are you going to do witht he foam now? More is better, however you need to have a water path.


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## azfish (Nov 9, 2009)

nice job fixin that hole. now a question, that boat patch you used, how good is that stuff to use as a small hole patch on the high spots of the boat? do you think it will last a long time because i dont have a welder to fix them properly? thnx for the input.


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## Nick Jones (Nov 10, 2009)

Looks good man but i am surprised you didn't use a solid rivet. That hole must be larger than it looks. How did it look on the bottom of the boat?


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## danmyersmn (Nov 10, 2009)

As for the foam I am hoping that I can take a 3/4" piece of PVC pipe and use it like a punch with a rubber mallet. since its plastic it wont harm the boat hull and if it follows the v on the bottom of the hull and punches a 3/4" hole through the foam I will have all the drainage I need. Then I can leave the A/B in place as it is. One bonus that came out of this was that I know I won't be filliing in this area with A/B foam so I can replace the small blocks of pink foam with large strips that go from one side to the other under the rod tubes. I had enough room under them for 3 or 4 layers and I will get a huge bump in material by being able to build up bigger sheets before the rod tubes go back in.

AZFish - the patch stuff will produce a strong patch. When I bought the boat the previous owner had drilled out a few leaking rivets and replaced them with nuts/bolts. The nuts/bolts had rusted away so I had removed them and plugged the holes with the green patch stuff and nothing else. I had to grind it of when I was ready to put solid rivets in. It would work fine. Personally if I had a hole through the boat I might consider 3M 5200 first. In my case I was simply putting a skim coat on top of my alumiweld since the alumiweld may have had some pin holes in it. Second, this stuff is a solid stick of plastic, you apply it by heating the metal hot enough to start melting the stick and then sort of glob it on as it melts and it fills in any voids. It works pretty nice but its a big nasty green blob. If it is going to go anywhere you can see it then you will have a big green nasty blob to work with 

Nick - I couldn't use a solid rivet. From the bottom this hole is inside a strake. I.E. the long aluminium runners that are riveted to the underside of the hull. I would have to cut a hole in the strake to get a metal backer up against a solid rivet. I also considered a pop rivet but the hole was sort of long and oblong and at an angle. the more I looked at it the best option I could come up with was filling it with alumiweld.


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## Nick Jones (Nov 10, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> As for the foam I am hoping that I can take a 3/4" piece of PVC pipe and use it like a punch with a rubber mallet. since its plastic it wont harm the boat hull and if it follows the v on the bottom of the hull and punches a 3/4" hole through the foam I will have all the drainage I need. Then I can leave the A/B in place as it is. One bonus that came out of this was that I know I won't be filliing in this area with A/B foam so I can replace the small blocks of pink foam with large strips that go from one side to the other under the rod tubes. I had enough room under them for 3 or 4 layers and I will get a huge bump in material by being able to build up bigger sheets before the rod tubes go back in.
> 
> AZFish - the patch stuff will produce a strong patch. When I bought the boat the previous owner had drilled out a few leaking rivets and replaced them with nuts/bolts. The nuts/bolts had rusted away so I had removed them and plugged the holes with the green patch stuff and nothing else. I had to grind it of when I was ready to put solid rivets in. It would work fine. Personally if I had a hole through the boat I might consider 3M 5200 first. In my case I was simply putting a skim coat on top of my alumiweld since the alumiweld may have had some pin holes in it. Second, this stuff is a solid stick of plastic, you apply it by heating the metal hot enough to start melting the stick and then sort of glob it on as it melts and it fills in any voids. It works pretty nice but its a big nasty green blob. If it is going to go anywhere you can see it then you will have a big green nasty blob to work with
> 
> Nick - I couldn't use a solid rivet. From the bottom this hole is inside a strake. I.E. the long aluminium runners that are riveted to the underside of the hull. I would have to cut a hole in the strake to get a metal backer up against a solid rivet. I also considered a pop rivet but the hole was sort of long and oblong and at an angle. the more I looked at it the best option I could come up with was filling it with alumiweld.



Yeah I was thinking that since it was in the middle of the boat. wasn't sure so I thought I would ask. That kind of stuff is so frustrating.


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## azfish (Nov 10, 2009)

danmyersmn thanks for the advise. the 3M 5200 what is that? sounds like its a good hole fixer is that correct?


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## CRAPPIE_SLAYER (Nov 10, 2009)

The 5200 is more of a caulking type sealer used around through hull bolts, seams, and such. Not sure i'd patch any major holes with it.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 11, 2009)

CRAPPIE_SLAYER said:


> The 5200 is more of a caulking type sealer used around through hull bolts, seams, and such. Not sure i'd patch any major holes with it.



True enough, I guess I was thinking a pin hole type hole when azfish asked about patching a hole. Anything bigger then that I would go with a solid rivet unless you cant get to both sides like I had an issue with. In my mind I would attack a hole in this order, eventually the hole and circumstances will give way to one of them: Solid Rivet, Pop Rivet & 5200, AlumiWeld & skim coat sealer of some sort of epoxy, 5200, PL, etc. Larger tears and rips are a whole different ballgame.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 15, 2009)

I didn't get a whole lot done today but I did make a good milestone. All the sheet aluminum is done. Next comes cleaning/sanding/cleaning/priming/paint. That will probably be a few weeks of the same thing all day long with little to no progress to show for it.

I chopped a channel in the foam block that was the nightmare of my last weeks build. My son helped.





Here I have the foam channeled and the drain holes through the rib cleaned out. I didn't realize I had completely encased a rib. Another of those "no wonder it wasn't allowing water to drain" moments.





I picked up a can of GreatStuff to use to finish installing my rod tubes. The rear handle holders where foamed in and the front pieces I cut off to remove where installed again using some unions. I then filled as many areas as I could using the pink foam I had laying around and used the great stuff to bind it all together.






I also added a few more pieces on top of the tubes. 





I would really like to get the deck on cause the foam is kind of an ugly mess and I am sort of tired of looking at it. Anyway, moving along, I finished up all the sheet aluminum and here are some shots.















The 3M 3500 from last weekend is still tacky so hopefully sitting another week it will be ready to start working with. Either way I am going to pull all the exterior decals and that's probably going to take me all day next week anyway.


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## Cheeseball (Nov 15, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> The 3M 3500 from last weekend is still tacky so hopefully sitting another week it will be ready to start working with. Either way I am going to pull all the exterior decals and that's probably going to take me all day next week anyway.



It took awhile for 3500 to set up for me as well, but when it's dry it seems like really tough stuff.

Keep up the good work!


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## danmyersmn (Nov 23, 2009)

I was posting a few pics so I thought I would throw one in here too. Boat is flipped and I started prepping for paint. I got carried away and now all the paint is coming off instead of a scuff and prime.


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## CRAPPIE_SLAYER (Nov 23, 2009)

Ha! Same thing happend to me. Was just going to take some of the loose stuff off, and it all started comming off. Oh well, it'll end up looking nice in the end. By the way, what is that large hole in the side for??


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## danmyersmn (Nov 23, 2009)

livewell overflow. I have three holes for my livewell. Two in the back. One to pump in one to drain out. When I am using the livewell I plug the drain in the bottom of it with a standard sump plug. Then the pump fills the livewell until it hits the overflow and out the side it goes.


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## jasper60103 (Nov 23, 2009)

wow, that wire wheel really took it off.
I agree, you should have a really nice finish.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 25, 2009)

most of the work was done with a cupbrush on an angle grinder. The wire wheel was for spots that the cup brush couldn't access well.

Paint is done being removed, zinc chromate is on and the bottom is painted.















I am hoping that it has finished outgassing by Saturday and I can paint the rest.


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## Hydrilla (Nov 25, 2009)

Looks great! Looks like the same color as mine. I dig it.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 25, 2009)

Hydrilla said:


> Looks great! Looks like the same color as mine. I dig it.



What paint did you paint yours with. This is what I am using.






Sand on the bottom, Hunter Green on the top. Sand on the inside.


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## jasper60103 (Nov 25, 2009)

almost looks too good to fish. sweet!


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## Hydrilla (Nov 25, 2009)

I used Krylon indoor/outdoor paint. Only after the fact did I read that this paint isn't very good as a boat paint, oh well. 

I'm pretty sure it's this kind except I think they called the color beige or tan.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 29, 2009)

Here is the progress from this week.

Since I decided to replace my rollers with bunks I took my trailer apart. Well, that led to project creep and I ended up deciding to paint the trailer too. I have the bottom painted and the top has been primed waiting to be painted tomorrow. The exterior of the trailer is being primed and painted with brush on rustoleum professional. Inside the channel I am using spray bomb rustoleum primer and paint. I don't think the spray bomb will hold up as well but it will work inside the trailer.






The outside of the boat is completed painting. Tan on bottom and green on top.






Added a little bling.






I also installed the transducer mount and some "rear bling" 












This pinstripe is kind of cool. Depending on how the light is shining on it it is either green, silver, black, or somewhere in between. It shifts colors with the light.


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## azfish (Nov 29, 2009)

very nice paint job on the boat, i also like the bling looks good.


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## Nussy (Nov 29, 2009)

Great paint job. just curious did you roll and tip or spray it on?


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## danmyersmn (Nov 29, 2009)

Nussy said:


> Great paint job. just curious did you roll and tip or spray it on?



I rolled it. I was going to do the roll and tip but I thinned the paint 10% and it rolled on and within 30-40 seconds the air bubbles popped and it smoothed out. No tipping needed.


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## VBTravisD (Nov 29, 2009)

You might have posted this... how many coats or primer and color did you use?


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## danmyersmn (Nov 29, 2009)

VBTravisD said:


> You might have posted this... how many coats or primer and color did you use?



one coat of spraybomb zinc chromate and three coats of rolled on rustoleum thinned 10% of the tan and after the second coat of the green it looked thick and I decided two was enough.


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## VBTravisD (Nov 29, 2009)

This may sound rookie... but what is the benefit of thinning? A few of the areas I fish I worry about rocks or gravel scratching the hull. I am using the same paint (just OD green)...


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## danmyersmn (Nov 30, 2009)

VBTravisD said:


> This may sound rookie... but what is the benefit of thinning? A few of the areas I fish I worry about rocks or gravel scratching the hull. I am using the same paint (just OD green)...



I thinned it because I wanted it to go on thinner and if needed apply more coats rather then putting it on thicker and having more bubbles to deal with. I don't think it makes much difference, you go over rocks the paint is going to come off. I debated about painting mine because I run it up on shore to beach it all the time and the sand and rocks are going to take the paint off the bottom. I decided to paint it and let the paint come off as it will. It will still look better when its floating in the water


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## VBTravisD (Nov 30, 2009)

I hear ya man... And it does look great! Best hing about using rustoleum... you can get it for 8 bucks at any hardware store.


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## danmyersmn (Nov 30, 2009)

VBTravisD said:


> I hear ya man... And it does look great! Best hing about using rustoleum... you can get it for 8 bucks at any hardware store.



Except for the sand. Nobody has sand around here (the tan color) I had to mail order it and pay $14 shipping 

Oh, add a medical co-pay to the build too. I just got back from the Dr. they had to cut a hole in my leg and pull out a stainless steel wire that made itself into a self guided missile from my cup brush. Damn thing!


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## CRAPPIE_SLAYER (Dec 1, 2009)

OUCH! That thing must have been moving! Had a bunch stick in me when I was stripping the trailer, but none deep enough to be cut out.


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## danmyersmn (Dec 1, 2009)

CRAPPIE_SLAYER said:


> OUCH! That thing must have been moving! Had a bunch stick in me when I was stripping the trailer, but none deep enough to be cut out.



It actually worked its way in slowly. It must of got caught in my coveralls and I didn't notice. I then went to rest my arm on my leg and could feel it poking around. I grabbed a tweezers and tried to get it out. I ended up just pushing it below the skin and I couldn't grab it anymore. Oh well, what can you do...I decided to get back to work. The boat is important :mrgreen:


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## Nussy (Dec 14, 2009)

A few posts back you thought that spray paint wouldn't hold up as well as rolled/brushed on. Just wondering if there is any reason for that? I'm trying to decide whether I want to use spray paint again or roll it on.


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## danmyersmn (Dec 14, 2009)

Just from my experience with spray paint. Maybe it is based in the cheap spray bombs. The paint just doesn't appear to be as durable as the brush on product. I am not sure if spray bomb rustoleum pro is the same material as brush on. My gut tells me its not. I suppose you could try and compare MSDS or email the company. Dunno, just what I was thinking. The interior on the bottom that I sprayed the tan (yellow/butter) color appears to be pretty tough. Maybe I am wrong. You should test for us. :mrgreen: :mrgreen:


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## Nussy (Dec 14, 2009)

OK, just thought you new something I didn't.  

I used spray rustoleum on the outside of my first build and I think it's scratched pretty easily . That was after 4 coats, sprayed about 20 minutes apart as directed. On my new build I was thinking about rolling it on like you did with the 10% thinning...but I also want to paint the inside which might be tough to do with a roller. So I was hoping I could spray the inside to match. 

Decided to call Rustoleum. According to their customer service the paint in a spray can only slightly different than the regular stuff. She said they have same finish qualities and durability and should match from a color perspective. One thing she did say is not to use any rustoleum paint(including their boat paint) below the water line on an aluminum boat. She suggested contacting Pettit which is their sister company. I think the Rustoleum would probaby be fine as long as the boat isn't sitting in the water all the time.


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## danmyersmn (Dec 15, 2009)

Nussy said:


> OK, just thought you new something I didn't.
> 
> I used spray rustoleum on the outside of my first build and I think it's scratched pretty easily . That was after 4 coats, sprayed about 20 minutes apart as directed. On my new build I was thinking about rolling it on like you did with the 10% thinning...but I also want to paint the inside which might be tough to do with a roller. So I was hoping I could spray the inside to match.
> 
> Decided to call Rustoleum. According to their customer service the paint in a spray can only slightly different than the regular stuff. She said they have same finish qualities and durability and should match from a color perspective. One thing she did say is not to use any rustoleum paint(including their boat paint) below the water line on an aluminum boat. She suggested contacting Pettit which is their sister company. I think the Rustoleum would probaby be fine as long as the boat isn't sitting in the water all the time.




Time will tell I guess. My paint is on and I can't comment on how long it will last until its been on for a while. I have no plans to sand it off and put something else on though


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## danmyersmn (Dec 19, 2009)

ok, one of my soon to be final updates for a while. I have been holding off on starting my decking/wiring/plumbing/etc. because I was contacted about a job prospect. That prospect went great and now I am moving to Charleston, South Caroline before Feb. 1. 

So today I am going to replace my hubs and wheels and then my motor will be going back on and the cover will be tied down after I toss as much boat stuff into it. I am going to take the boat out to my fathers and store it there while I move. After my house in MN sells I can look for a new house in SC and then come back for the boat. I will be able to hook on and drive since I am doing the hubs and wheel now 

With luck I hope to be working on it again in 6 months but if its a year or more then that's what it is. 

So, who has an empty seat in near Charleston?


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## Nussy (Dec 19, 2009)

Wow now you need the boat since your moving from Ice Fishing territory!!!


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## danmyersmn (Dec 20, 2009)

Nussy said:


> Wow now you need the boat since your moving from Ice Fishing territory!!!



Yeah I know, but I have a month to help my wife get the house in shape for selling. You haven't seen my garage!!! Then I am moving to a location with no garage. I guess its time to try some shore fishing of the Atlantic


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## jasper60103 (Dec 20, 2009)

danmyersmn said:


> ok, one of my soon to be final updates for a while. I have been holding off on starting my decking/wiring/plumbing/etc. because I was contacted about a job prospect. That prospect went great and now I am moving to Charleston, South Caroline before Feb. 1...



I certainly enjoyed following your mod and learned a lot from it. I know moving is a big job. Give us an update when you get a chance. Take care.


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## danmyersmn (Jan 16, 2010)

Boat is still stuck in storage. I am close to my move. Leaving in 10 days. I have been thinking about how I am going to refit my boat for my new fishing. I won't have huge boxes of huge muskie/pike lures to deal with so I think the storage areas will just be stuck lockers/openings to toss stuff into. I am not to concerned with what to do with them at this point. Maybe I will pull them out and give my self more floor space. 

I have decided I am going to rethink my motor options. I was going to put a 80# 24v. Autopilot troller on the bow. This is an ideal tool for muskie fishing because you point the bow of the boat down the shoreline in about 10' of water and troll it while your casting each side. I don't know if I am going to need this type of motor for fishing around Charleston. Maybe? I have read about drifting with the tide or trolling back against the tide. I think either way you are more involved with the trolling motor and not going 30-40min straight runs where it would be nice if the troller would do the work for you.

Either way, my priority now is a new outboard. My current motor can be a bear to start sometimes. 20-30 pulls. After it is good and warm it starts right up so I have never worried about it since I am always fishing lakes. Switching to River fishing and I want something I feel a little more secure with. I am going to look into a 20-30hp electric start tiller. I am hoping to find one for a decent price. 

After that I will probably look at a 50# bow mount troller. I might be open to going back to 12v since I don't know how much I will use it. It's going to be all new and a learning curve on how you fish tides and/or brackish water. Should be fun though!


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## danmyersmn (Jul 18, 2010)

so it begins again. I finally have the boat out of storage and into my garage. Painted the interior and am ready to finish up the plumbing, then electrical, then decking.


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## One Legged Josh (Jul 19, 2010)

danmyersmn said:


> so it begins again. I finally have the boat out of storage and into my garage. Painted the interior and am ready to finish up the plumbing, then electrical, then decking.



Looking forward to watching you finish your build! Have you been doing any fishing?


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## danmyersmn (Jul 22, 2010)

I have gone off shore and caught Mahi a few times and I have surf fished the beach a number of times but I haven't dropped a line in any freshwater down here yet. I plan to soon though.

I am going with the "high speed" build now since I put this entire project on hold 1/2 way through the winter and now I just want to get it finished enough to be out fishing. I have the front casting deck cut and the bottom side and edges coated in Thompson water seal. I will finish coating the topside tonight then that goes on hold while I wait for a livewell pump to be shipped down from my bro in MN. Once that arrives the plumbing and lights on the front deck will be finished and I will work my way back the floor. 

I am using 3/4" exterior plywood for the decking and my plans for the below deck rod holder have been put on hold, I am going with a single flat piece of deck with no hatch. That may change in the future, but as I said, now I want to get it done on the water. I won't shortcut things i think i require, but items like a radio, rod storage, lights, etc. can be put on later in steps.

No pics of the front deck, I got rained on and had to shove everything back into my garage for the night.


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## LonLB (Dec 3, 2010)

I know you said you put the in floor rod holders on hold but I would LOVE to see what you had in mind....I can't quite picture it, even with the pictures you posted.

Are the reels resting right on the floor?

How will you deck over it, and still be able to get them out??


Nice build! I'm looking to pick up a Starcraft and do a similar Musky boat mod.


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## 89Suburban (Dec 3, 2010)

Outsyanding thread, and great work!


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## benjineer (Dec 3, 2010)

That's a fine platform to work with. Hope you can go get some salt on that thing soon! Winter is the best time for inshore trout.


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## danmyersmn (Dec 4, 2010)

I had been wanting to get back and post an update and someone resurrected my thread so here it is 

I have been using the snot out of the rig and I am very happy with the outcome. I still have some work to do, but other then changing the rear seat mount and installing a bow trolling motor I am mostly just going to abuse it until it falls apart.






I ended up using a piece of clear acrylic from Lowes to mount the eletronics. I was going to do something a bit "nicer" but when I wanted to finish up the rig I was just wasting fishing time. Winter had long been gone and I was right in the middle of South Carolina summer. It was fishing time. My battery is charged by feeding through the 12v accessory plug. I use the same plug to run a solar charger when I am out on the water. I don't know how much it actually helps, but I have it so why not. GPS is wired into the Humminbird giving me the ability to set waypoints and trails.


















So, my very first fishing trip out produced two things. First, a buddy caught his first redfish. I had no luck catching one this day but I did manage to find the joys of trying to get out of the mud as the tide goes out.





So by the next trip I had added a pin anchor and a push pole.









The front seat can be moved to a second mount on the front deck and that is where the front person always fishes from. I plan to switch to the same setup for the rear seat so I can raise that one up. It is currently mounted to the rear deck. The plan is to add a bow mount trolling motor with a foot control that can reach the rear seat. I like to drift the rivers with the tide and I want to do it sitting in the back seat casting into areas I haven't drifted yet with my bow pointing against the incoming/outgoing tide.





Livewell is a pretty standard setup. I have a pump brining water in from the transom and and overflow out the side. I also have a second pump that recirculates. This two fill tubes on the one side.
I decided it was easier just to install a second set of plumbing instead of messing with various valve setups.









It works great for keeping minnows and shrimp alive and its located in a decent location for using a cast net to catch bait. 

Before I launched the rig for the first time I flooded it in my driveway. Good thing I did, i had a huge leak. As it turned out the drive from MN to SC vibrated the rig enough that the 3M 5200 detached between the transom and the transducer mounting board.





I took the board off cleaned up as much 5200 as i needed. Filled all the old transducer holes with JB Weld and attached the board again with SS screws and more JB Weld. Easy fix.

The paint has held up as well as I would of liked. It does scratch off where I run over rocks and oyster beds but I wasn't expecting a bullet proof application. Just something a bit more appealing the the faded smurf blue I started with. I would not hesitate to use the same paint again next time.





I also installed a bunch of Bluewater LED's. I bought them about this time last year when Bluewater first had a $25 gift certificate for $20 deal. I bought a bunch of gift certificates then a few weeks later they had another crazy deal of 15% off or something. I bought a huge amount of lights. I had originally planned to use them for late night muskie and walleye fishing. I haven't had any use for them down here but I am planning some shark fishing trips in Bull Bay in an overnight camping outing next year and they should come in very handy then. 













Running lights are wired but not installed. I toss them under the front floor board and plan to mount them when the trolling motor goes in.





I skipped the carpet because I wash the entire rig down after every trip out. It is hard to see but all the decking has a 1/8" edge around it that it is not flush against the boat. The water just runs straight below the deck and out the back. I painted the entire interior with Rustoleum Industrial and I almost fell out of the boat trying to learn to throw a cast net so I put another layer and covered it all in a coating of sand. It works great now. I was concerned in previous posts about fishing barefoot and a textured surface. I fish on this surface barefoot all the time. It works well. 



And final results...first up my first redfish.














I also use the boat to transport all my surf fishing gear to an island. I can approach the island from the backside and stay out of the surf and ocean waves. I anchor and cart all my gear to the other side of the island. It is supposed to be a great area to catch huge redfish. My kids love to run around and be kids and I end up catching nothing but "Car batteries" So named cause thats what they feel like trying to reel in.


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## LonLB (Dec 4, 2010)

I know your not using it anymore, but how were you planning to use the under floor rod storage?


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## danmyersmn (Dec 4, 2010)

These two images should give you a clear picture of how the front and pack portion of the rod holders would work. They are still in place and if I ever want to use them I could just finish the access hatch to have access to them. As you can see from the picture I have enough room under the decking that I can have a baitcaster or a spinner hanging and they are not contacting the floor. I have the luck of having a really deep boat.









If if you at this picture you can see the area the hatch was going to be. Basically on the floor where the yellow float is sitting. I was going to make a flush hatch that would pull up and out of the way to grab the rods out. Have you have ever seen a ski boat where they have the teak hatch that pulls up to get ski's out? Same idea. With the hatch open then the rod could be slid forward further into the front tube and this would allow the rod handle to come out of the back tube and then slide up and out of the compartment backwards-sort of. Good scientific explanation eh? :mrgreen:


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## LonLB (Dec 4, 2010)

Ah so it wasn't necessarily a hinged hatch cover, but something you removed to get the rods out.....Is that right.

I might look at doing something similar.


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## benjineer (Dec 7, 2010)

I like your boat. That's about what I'm shooting for. Wish mine were that deep. What did you use for the livewell liner?


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## 89Suburban (Dec 7, 2010)

Is that bow light LED also? I LOVE the extension cord reel used for anchor rope idea, awesome!  Good job man!


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## danmyersmn (Dec 12, 2010)

benjineer said:


> I like your boat. That's about what I'm shooting for. Wish mine were that deep. What did you use for the livewell liner?


https://www.tempress.com/store/index.php?cPath=12_69&osCsid=u7abapstrjrdi9e7sb5vo9p4i4


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## danmyersmn (Dec 12, 2010)

89Suburban said:


> Is that bow light LED also? I LOVE the extension cord reel used for anchor rope idea, awesome!  Good job man!



Yes, I picked up the Bow light off a clearance shelf somewhere along the way. Cord reel works great. We don't have enough room to have anchor ropes laying all over the place in our rigs.


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## LonLB (Dec 14, 2010)

I had one other question.

Where did you buy all of the aluminum angle?
How much $$ do you think you had in just the aluminum?

I may have to copy your paint job. I wanted to go with rusto because of the availability and price, and when looking at their colors, I think you picked the best color combo.


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## LonLB (Dec 18, 2010)

danmyersmn said:


> A few days back I started filling holes in my hull. I have lots of them from the previous owner and his love for attaching stuff.
> 
> So....drill out pop rivits and clean up the metal.
> 
> ...





This might be a dumb question, but where might I look to have the brazing work done locally?

I don't want to just add rivets and the boat I'm buying has a VHF radio antennae, and grab rails that are coming off, to just name a couple things.


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## danmyersmn (Dec 19, 2010)

LonLB said:


> I had one other question.
> 
> Where did you buy all of the aluminum angle?
> How much $$ do you think you had in just the aluminum?
> ...



I picked up all the aluminum angle at "discount steel" in Minneapolis. I bought it at the full lenth price because it is cheapest that way. I rolled my front van passenger window down and drove home with it sticking a out the window and all the way back in my van. I have a lot of money in the aluminum I didn't keep track but wood would of been cheaper for sure!


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## danmyersmn (Dec 19, 2010)

LonLB said:


> This might be a dumb question, but where might I look to have the brazing work done locally?
> 
> I don't want to just add rivets and the boat I'm buying has a VHF radio antennae, and grab rails that are coming off, to just name a couple things.



Any HVAC company could probably do it for you. I don't know if they would though, it is beyond what they normally do. You are better off just going to Lowes/Home Depot/Menards/etc. and picking up a bottle of MAPP gas for $10.00 and doing the work yourself. Its not terribly difficult. The hardest part is learning how hot to heat the aluminum. It needs to get pretty darn hot to get a good bite.


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## Decatur (Feb 5, 2011)

Thanks for sharing your build. You answered some questions, and gave me some ideas for my 16' Alumacraft build I started, and haven't been able to finish 3 years ago. Maybe this year! :wink:


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## danmyersmn (Mar 26, 2012)

Hey all, 

I private message brought me back to the forum and I thought I would give an update for anyone questioning the paint I decided to use. Bottom line is its great! I have had no flaking, pealing, or anything like that. I have run the boat to a dead stop by driving up on a sandbar once #-o and I have run up on a number of oyster beads. As you could imagine the combination of the two has left some deep scratches that have removed metal. I can't imagine anything would stand up to that torture. So yes, I do have some spots where the paint has scraped off. But I have tied the boat to a wooden dock without bumpers dozens of times, and run it hard all the time and the paint has held up as good, or better, than I ever expected it would. 

My GPS has died and I have not replaced it. I am using my phone with the Cabelas hunting app as a map/gps tool. I also added a front trolling motor. It is foot operated and I want to get rid of it and replace it with a hand control model. The foot control is not for me.


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## Gators5220 (Nov 20, 2012)

Hey man love the boat nice work! Are you gonna put carpet on the plywood or just leave it as is? Just curious.


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