Aluminum or fiberglass hull?

halas · #1 March 23rd, 2009, 09:23 AM

I see all these problems with stringers and floors in older fiberglass boats.
I decided to look for an aluminum 17'-19' boat to use in the bigger lakes in NE Ohio.
Is there disadvantages to having aluminum boat?
I just replaced transom and painted a 14 foot alum. mirrocraft and it was fun and easy to work on.
It looks like a torture to cut out old stringers and floors from a fiberglass boat and to do all that glassing. There have to be some advantages, otherwise people would not go trough all that trouble.

Silvertip · #2 March 23rd, 2009, 10:17 AM

You will get all sorts of pros and cons over each. The glass boat lovers will tell you that rivets leak and welds break. But they don't tell you that glass boats develop gel coat cracks, get all scuffed up on beaching, and on and on on both sides. Depending on what you buy, aluminum boats tend to be lighter, tow easier which results in better fuel economy and require less power from the engine. Glass boats are prettier (to most), are a tad quieter, but generally heavier. So its merely a matter of choice. If the stringer issue bothers you, take care of the boat and it won't be. Just like not allowing water to freeze in an aluminum boat can't cause loose rivets.

Mark_VTfisherman · #3 March 23rd, 2009, 11:04 AM

Fiberglass? Aluminum?

Depends on your needs and preferences mostly. If you beach a lot, an aluminum has advantages. But you can get keel guards for glass boats. Rivets may be a pain, but no more than fiberglass work to me.

I happen to like many fiberglass boats, but I am not against aluminum. Ice in the hull of a 'glass boat can do as much or more damage than ice in an aluminum boat- just a different kind of damage.

Truth is, if I had $30K to go buy a new boat, I would likely wind up with an alumninum boat- a walleye-style boat. Lots of floorspace, vertical livewell, moveable seats. I just like the layouts and how they feel to me. The only 'glass boats in that style I like start over $50K and I don't see that ever happening!

I don't have the money to buy a new boat, but for entertainment value I went to the boat show in Burlington Vermont this year. I boarded and went through every boat that appealed to me. I did not look at the prices until after. I only climbed in one or two 16' boats, but found myself in seven or eight 17' - 18' boats, all were aluminum. Show specials and "incentives" made the 16-footers about $18K and the 17s were aluminum and ranged $22K- $29K. You might be able to do better if your requirements are less than mine or you buy a leftover. I just thought you might want to hear the numbers.

bowman316 · #4 March 23rd, 2009, 11:30 AM

I think Aluminum boats ride rougher, I choppy water , you will feel every bump. The shock just transfers to the whole boat, and will vibrate your spine.
I had to take a ride in an aluminum boat in 2 ft seas, at full throttle, and it hurt.

I don't feel those bounces as much in my fiberglass boat.

But I was sitting directly on the metal bench seat in the other boat, I think a padded seat would absorb shock.

Also, I thought fiber glass was supposed to be lighter than Alumnium, I know old layers of glass I take off, sure seem very light to me. Compared to how much that same size piece would weigh if it were metal.
I thought that was the whole point of glass, to be light weight, kinda like carbon fiber.
All carbon fiber is, is carbon fabric glassed over.

Mark_VTfisherman · #5 March 23rd, 2009, 01:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowman316

I think Aluminum boats ride rougher, I choppy water , you will feel every bump. The shock just transfers to the whole boat, and will vibrate your spine. I had to take a ride in an aluminum boat in 2 ft seas, at full throttle, and it hurt. I don't feel those bounces as much in my fiberglass boat. But I was sitting directly on the metal bench seat in the other boat, I think a padded seat would absorb shock.

How a boat rides is dependent on hull design. Better aluminum boats ride very well. Also, certain "ballast" issues come into play as well. Intermediate to smallish fiberglass boats generally have a little more dry weight (than a comparable aluminum) which makes them run a little deeper than an aluminum hull. All else being equal, that may make a fiberglass boat appear to ride better as the aluminum boat will ride higher at every wave crest.

Cheapo fiberglass boats may be able to be manufactured more efficiently and with a "better" hull architecture than a cheapo tinny may be. Many multiples of 'glass boats can be made to conform to a single mold- easy. Complex bends in aluminum are more difficult and may be skipped in cheap boats.

Quote:

Originally Posted by bowman316

I thought fiber glass was supposed to be lighter than Alumnium, I know old layers of glass I take off, sure seem very light to me. Compared to how much that same size piece would weigh if it were metal. I thought that was the whole point of glass, to be light weight, kinda like carbon fiber. All carbon fiber is, is carbon fabric glassed over.

Plastic boats and corvettes and stuff become popular because swoopey shapes and forms are easily attainable in a 'glass form/mold. But size for size, all else being equal, a 'glass boat of the same size is most often heavier. But small boats are still small boats and my 14' fiberglass will pound pretty hard into a high chop while running into the wind. A higher riding boat might do better...

bowman316 · #6 March 23rd, 2009, 01:35 PM

I think what I was feeling in the aluminum boat was the shock being transfered throughout the whole boat, which will not happen in a glass boat.

Metal just conducts anything very well.

But They are a lot simpler to work on, Jb weld will fix anything on a tinny.

5150abf · #7 March 23rd, 2009, 08:18 PM

Aluminum of coarse, you whack a submerged stump and it bends, do it in a glass boat and if you don't sink you have hundreds of dollars of repair work.

As you said, aluminum is alot easier to work with.

As to ride, my 16' tinny rides better than alot of glass boats I have been on, as someone said, hull design rather than material plays more of a roll in ride comfort, actually the aluminumhul probably flexxes more than glass so it would ride smoother, unless it is a flat bottom, then nothing will help the ride except a good chiroprator.

Of coarse I can weld aluminum which has some bearing on my choice and it smells way better than fixxing glass.

triumphrick · #8 March 23rd, 2009, 08:33 PM

Well, I went looking for a flats boat for the wife and I to use in the winters here and ended up buying a tinny. Made by Blue Fin, it was a lake boat from Michigan, 22yrs old about 16' long with a nice little 50 Evinrude on the back. Really nice back to back seats, walk thru, forward seating, sides are carpeted and the floor has a vinyl cover. Even the gunnels have carpet! It came with a vinyl bow cover, a bimini top with vinyl enclosure and lots of style!
We are going to have an iboats get together here in May, and I can justify buying and using this boat for that and in the many lakes we have nearby. It is very light and the 50 pushes it along smartly.
Our inauguration was at the same lake as the gathering will be and we had a great time there with it.
It sure has opened our eyes up to the versatility and fun of our new toy!!

Floatsum · #9 March 23rd, 2009, 09:09 PM

Basicly you're asking golf cart or pick-up truck.
But you already know that I assume.
Both are good. Depends on needs. (apples and oranges type thing)

halas · #10 March 24th, 2009, 08:53 AM

Yeah for Lake Erie fishing...
if I had the money for a newer boat I would buy a 22' fiberglass and a 4 X 4 pickup. Or even better: 25' walk around cuddy, and just pay for docking and storage.

ezmobee · #11 March 24th, 2009, 08:55 AM

This site has made me terrified of any used fiberglass boat unless it's like 2 years old. I plan to stick with aluminum.

Mark_VTfisherman · #12 March 24th, 2009, 10:14 AM

Fiberglass boats aren't scary- I love my 1972 MFG Niagara. I am planning another boat project (another fiberglass boat) and like the MFG so much I probably won't sell it even when the new one is done.

If you are not really handy with carpentry and mechanical hand and mind work, and have some experience with fiberglass (I have since my teen years) then I guess myabe that might make a 'glass boat seem a little terrifying.

But really it's not that bad. I do love the old Starcrafts - one of my favorite boats from my youth was my grandmother's 60's-era 16' Starcraft and 50hp Johnson. Her boat is what probably made me want to get into boating.

I think what matters is the questions: what boat can you maintain, and will you enjoy it?

Buy the boat you will enjoy. Then go enjoy it, grasshopper

TJLMERC330 · #13 March 24th, 2009, 11:46 AM

Mark_VTfisherman hit it right ... buy the boat that you will enjoy ... what fits your needs? Any boat regardless of what the hull/superstructure is made of requires constant maintenance. If your looking at a used boat, hire a reputable suveryer to check it out (the $$ you pay a surveyer is $$ well spent) ...

I had a 1986 18' Starcraft Aluminum CC and I loved it, in the back bays/flats it was fast and alot of fun but I was not able to get it out into the ocean most days ..it would just get pushed around by the waves/current .... At that same time I also had a 36' Pacmaker .. which a was beutiful BIG boat ..BUT that boat was great at the dock (floating condo) and in the ocean ..but could'nt just take it out for a cruise (twin 454 IB's suck ALOT of fuel) .... so now we have a 25' Grady Sailfish (T/200 Evinrude) and an 11ft Mercury RIB (9.9 HP) ... these two boats fit our needs perfectly .. the Grady is great for back bay and ocean fishing/crusing .. and thr RIB is great on the flats/ack channels ( not to mention bar hopping ..etc ....)

Tom

ondarvr · #14 March 24th, 2009, 12:58 PM

I have both, and its not really that one is good and the other one bad, it just depends on how you plan to use it.

Fiberglass can conform to just about any design or shape needed for the exact type of performance desired and the cost doesn't change all that much. The cost to do that in aluminum would be so high there's no way you could sell the finished product, but as the designs get less detailed and easier to shape, then the cost comes way down.

Aluminum can also have corrosion issues, here in the NW there is a huge number of aluminum jet boats and even if you don't take them in salt water the de-icer used on the roads will corrode it and leave white spots (pits) on any aluminum it touches. In salt water you need to pay attention to the types of metal that come in contact with each other, if you don’t you can get spots where the aluminum just corrodes away and there’s not enough material left to make a repair. Aluminum will also fatigue over time and crack, it can be re-welded, but the fatigue takes a toll on the structure and it becomes weaker and even more prone to cracking.

Glass boats have their issue too, rotten wood, stress cracks, fading, possible blisters, weight, wear from beaching, etc.

Glass typically gives a better ride, Aluminum needs less HP to go the same speed,
If no wood is used in either boat then they’re fairly equal in life span when left outside in the weather. Depending on size they may be required to have foam, the same foam gets used in both most of the time, so its equal.

I’ve gutted and redone both types of boats and if I had my choice I’d work on Aluminum, its much cleaner, no itch or smell, but I don’t know how to weld aluminum and I don’t even have a welder.

dave11 · #15 March 25th, 2009, 03:34 AM

I have a 16 ft heavy gauge aluminum boat that is a joy. I may buy other boats, but I will never get rid of this one. I am out in the Gulf all the time. Similar conditions as to what can crop up in Lake Erie. Obviously, I don't go out in bad weather, but I have had to slog back home on occasion.

If there are any disadvantages to having a small, trailerable, low mantainance, abusable boat, I sure don't know what it is. Are they a little rough riding? Yes, they will pound some, but it is a small light boat. Are they noisier? I can hear the waves on my hull. It is sweet music like a lullaby, not noise.

bowman316 · #16 March 25th, 2009, 10:31 AM

I can hear the waves crashing under my glass floor when there is a chop, and i am goin full speed.

I just hate it when the waves are over 3 ft and you can not even get on plane, cuz the ride would be very rough. But hull make up is not a factor there.