[tigermuskie]

hello,

i have a 16ft. Zodiac with an alum. floor that comes in sections. what is the best way to install it? The two side connecting alum rails are a bastard to snap in place. any suggestions? can I install the floor in one piece?

bought the boat used with no directions.

JB
winnipeg

[Palssonater]

I just recently purchased a MKIII and if it wasn't for the guy selling them I wouldn't have had any idea how to install the floor! He spent about an hour showing us how to install and pump the boat up. You definetly need to get the technique down to make your life easy. And you'll learn to love the install in pieces.

I'm guessing you have a MKIII because of the length stated. During install, insure you do not twist the floor bladder or pinch it. And always install with no air in the boat! If its pumped up a little you will have the darndest time.

Start with your bow pieces (black wooden ones). Triangular one as tight in the front as you can. Your second bow piece must have the hole for the floor bladder lined up.

Your aluminum pieces should have little pictures on one side of them. This side should be up and shows you where on the boat they go. Easy thing for me is to find the ones with the rubber round stopper/bucks. One is for the back, one is for right after the last wooden piece. And the one without is for the middle.

So once you've found your piece that goes in the front after your bow pieces, place it there.

Then go to your rearmost piece. Place it in your transom spot. (you may have a hard time with the pontoons folding in and getting in your way. Straddling the pontoon with one foot in the boat and one foot out, pull up on the rope and it should clear the way for the floorboard)

Then you should have one more piece to go. Bring the front most alum panel up to meet the last middle panel you are putting in (while mating the back of the middle panel to the transom panel). This will form like a triangle with two boards angled. Place your foot on the seam and step down. This will push all the pieces into place and stretch everything out as long as you have everything right. Don't force it too much. Shouldn't take your whole weight just a good push.

Then its a matter of rocking in those blasted side rails, which ultimately gets easier everytime you do it. Getting them out also gets easier. My tip for this is use a paddle underneath the works for a bit of leverage and make sure you have all the panels lined up as well as possible. Make sure your rubber stopper are at both ends and you haven't put a panel in the wrong spot.

Then you are good to inflate. Does yours have stainless valves that you have inflation/navigation written on both sides?

Does this make sense? If it doesn't I can answer questions and maybe even help with a few pics.

[tigermuskie]

no totally make sense. yes it has silver knobs for inflation/navigation. They turn a bit rough can they be lubricated?

thanks for the information.

jon

[newbie38]

Jon: I have a surplus FC470; assuming the silver valves you are talking about are the same as my interconnecting valves, they can be lubricated. Zodiac makes a few tools for breaking them down/adjusting them. Or you could save the eight prices Zodiac likes to charge for their stuff and get the valves out with improvised tools. What I did was to remove the inner screw in valve, at which point you can see a nut down in the interconnecting valve itself. This can be reached with a deep socket and extension. It screws down over a spring, so remove carefully. there is a collar and a snap ring holding the "silver knob" in place. The snap ring is easy to get off; the collar is tedious but doable. There are two holes machined into the sides of the collar, set 180 degrees apart, at opposite sides of the collar. what I did was to insert two smaller allen wrenches into the holes, and twist the collar counterclockwise. Obviously, working that close to the main tube, you probably want to avoid using anything too sharp, in case the tool slips. Once you get the valve apart, clean out the old lube and any particles you find, re-lubricate, and reinstall. The spring loaded nut can be used to control how difficult it is to rotate the interconnecting valve. Hope this helps.

Also, if you know of anyone selling a used aluminum floor for an FC470 or Mk3 let me know. Thanks.