'69 offshore rebuild- BMerr

[oldhaven]

I cut most aluminum angle and flat bar up to 3/16 in thickness with a hand hacksaw. People sometimes forget how good and accurate a cut you can get if you are careful. Get a good saw frame, use sharp blades that do not wander around and are used only for aluminum, and mark all your cuts carefully on both legs of the angle so you can follow the lines. An accurate machinists combination square set to make the marks is not that expensive and will be useful for the rest of your working days. I did a lot of my compound angles and miters this way but a straight 90 degree cut is pretty easy. Use a good bench vise with padded jaws to hold the aluminum stock steady. (and remember what side of the line you want to cut on). For thicker stuff that is not 20 feet long a table saw with a metal cutting blade works, but you need to keep safety in mind with protective eye, hand and hearing equipment. A cutting fluid helps too.

 

[bunnymoney]

I'm having my own problems with rod holders. What does your arrangement look like with 8 rods in the rack?
Would it be possible to show us picture of it filled?

 

[MNhunter1]

I cut most aluminum angle and flat bar up to 3/16 in thickness with a hand hacksaw. People sometimes forget how good and accurate a cut you can get if you are careful. Get a good saw frame, use sharp blades that do not wander around and are used only for aluminum, and mark all your cuts carefully on both legs of the angle so you can follow the lines. An accurate machinists combination square set to make the marks is not that expensive and will be useful for the rest of your working days. I did a lot of my compound angles and miters this way but a straight 90 degree cut is pretty easy. Use a good bench vise with padded jaws to hold the aluminum stock steady. (and remember what side of the line you want to cut on). For thicker stuff that is not 20 feet long a table saw with a metal cutting blade works, but you need to keep safety in mind with protective eye, hand and hearing equipment. A cutting fluid helps too.

Regarding the cutting of aluminum angle...I honestly just use my miter saw. Nice clean cuts, just need to clean up all the shavings and wear your eye protection. I've used an angle grinder with metal cut-of wheel and a Sawzall with a metal blade for unistrut and steel, but aluminum has never been a problem and I treat it just like I do wood with the appropriate blades. For sheet aluminum, a skil saw or jig saw work as well, just clamp the piece to a section of scrap ply and cut through both for the best results.

 

[BMerr509]

Thanks WM- useability trumps looks!

OldHaven- i tried using my hacksaw but it's not the best. I could probably use a new one. Over the last decade or so i've really learned to use eye/ear protection for everything. even to mow my lawn. How is your 90 btw? would you have gone a different route with your motor?

BunnyMoney- i'm going to get heckled for this, but i don't even own 8 rods lol i have a trout rod, trolling rig, pike rod and ice fishing rod. same setup the last 10 years or so. One thing my friend suggested, and i ultimately did, was instead of having one big cutout down the floor, i have two small ones, one at each end of the rod holders. That way, you can feed through the rod into the second compartment, hoslter the handle, then lift the second hatch and place the rod tip in the pvc. We will see how it works. What issues are you having?

MN Hunter- miter saw sounds dangerous, don't aluminum shavings go everywhere??? i wasnt even aware that they made metal blades for them.

Thanks for stopping by yall! probably won't be much progress until next weekend since i'm just epoxying. 3/4 of the way there. Looks like i'll have only used about 2.5-3 gallons.

One question i do have, and it is a simple one. I'm going to be placing my order for my motor and i'm not sure i need a long or short shaft. The marina said i had to measure from the top of the transom, down to the bottom of the keil, which mine measured 20" or so. Long shaft right?

 

[oldhaven]

Some times a hand tool is the right tool. Power tools can make life really easy and save time, but it is also easy to get in trouble or ruin something because they work so well and can be hard to finesse. Belt sanding is a good example and I have gouges in some nice floors and mahogany trim because of it.

I have been nothing but pleased with the 90. Starts instantly, pushes the boat to near 40, is very quiet, and sips fuel (in a relative sense). I like the electronics capability too, since it really simplifies hook up of gauges, monitors performance, and ties into the multi function display I have. You pay an up front price for this, but the upside will be reliability for many years and I will not be cursing at an older motor that failed to get me home (been there). I don't think a 115 is necessary for what I wanted to do, and a 75 might have been adequate but a mite disappointing on my old bluff bowed Starchief. I did not get many hours on it before winter, but I really look forward to next summer.

 

[jbcurt00]

Yes, long shaft @ 20in transom

 

[MNhunter1]

Thanks WM- useability trumps looks!


MN Hunter- miter saw sounds dangerous, don't aluminum shavings go everywhere??? i wasnt even aware that they made metal blades for them.


One question i do have, and it is a simple one. I'm going to be placing my order for my motor and i'm not sure i need a long or short shaft. The marina said i had to measure from the top of the transom, down to the bottom of the keil, which mine measured 20" or so. Long shaft right?

Yes, there are shavings instead of saw dust. I don't use a specialty blade, just an 80 tooth count carbide blade in a 10" Skil miter saw. Any higher tooth count carbide finishing blade you would use for wood should work just fine. Cuts like butter. Long sleeves and eye protection required. I just installed 60ft of aluminum railing on my deck this past summer and used the same process for all my cuts.

20" transom would take a long shaft motor, yes.

 

[bunnymoney]

My problems stem from protecting from rod/reel rash. I always carry 4 rods on board in racks on the sides under the gunwales (2 each side). The cheap Berkley racks work well for me but the foam wears out quickly. My rods travel to and from the water in the racks. It seems I need about 6" between rods. Maybe I'll just have to accept needing to replace the racks every couple years.

 

[BMerr509]

OH- thanks for the motor info. You're rig is similar to mine. I'm torn between the yami and merc 90. my local dealers have the yami for about $1000 less but its a 2012. I really like the looks of the merc. Decisions.

Thanks about the shaft length. i found the page on iboats that helps.

MN- i'll have to try my miter saw then. Thanks for the tip!

bunny- My plan is to place two pillows (or insulation board) under the rods when i'm on the road, then two pillows on top to sandwich them in. They shouldn't move at all with that setup. Yours is more open. maybe zip ties, idk.

I will be 98% done with epoxying tonight!!!! that'll mark a milestone. then i have to put all the pieces back in the boat to mark where my seat posts are going. I think you guys might like the setup i'm gonna run. I should be able to comfortably seat 7. The splashwell will look similar to WM's newest rig.

 

[Watermann]

Good ole Japanese motor on an American made boat... nah go for the Merc!

 

[BMerr509]

I know, especially since we are thinking about naming the boat "'Merica", and my LEDs underneath the gunwhales are going to be red, white and blue lol The 115 is $800 more. Man i think i'd regret it if i didn't get the extra 25 ponies :bounce:

 

[oldhaven]

The new Merc's are not only badged here but are built in the USA too. Be sure you are talking to the dealer about the newer 2.1 liter type built after 2014 or so. they are quite a bit lighter than the previous versions and have more torque. When I priced mine the 115 was $1K more, so just $800 more is good. I was thinking about the cost of fuel for the extra 25 HP, since the 75 and 90 are detuned from the 115 and the chip asks for a lot more to get the extra oomph. Your boat is a bit more of a hotrod and I think 200 pounds heavier than my 18 foot chief (860 LB) due to the heavier hull aluminum? If so it would be worth going up a step.

 

[mbroughton02]

I also use a miter saw for aluminum angle. Same $20 dewalt blade I use for wood. As others have said, eye and ear protection are a must. I go slow, and it cuts like butter.

 

[BMerr509]

I'll keep that in mind guys. I ordered swivel eze wedge style seat bases, type b apparently. Didn't realize it until after i ordered them. I'm going to run them anyways. i read a forum blog here saying it'd be fine. Any concerns? my next step is to get the holes drilled for the bases. It's going to warm up this week so i can get the interior painted. Hopefully this weekend i can get the floor vinyled and whatnot. Order my gas tank this week too.

 

[Watermann]

Not a real good idea for a helm chair to use the B rated pedestal or if a big guy is along, he could end up on his back looking at the clouds while underway in those B rating pedestals. Attwoods site says.

http://www.attwoodmarine.com/store/p.../seat-mounts01

I have a guy that comes fishing with me and I have the 3/4" thread lock pedestal version for the deck fishing chairs in the SN and have to run this guy out of it as he thinks it's a barko lounger just about every trip out. One trip he busted out the 3/4" ply decking.

There's a monster amount of torque applied to those pedestals especially when underway. I think those are only for fishing seats on the raised decking type set ups.

 

[BMerr509]

WM- i hear your concerns and will think about this. The interesting thing is the lock n pin design that is type b rated is what's used on all the lund/alumnacraft newer boats today. It might just be for the better to send them back and get the ones that are rated properly.

 

[BMerr509]

Decided to purchase the 238 series from Swivel eze bases from iboats, Thanks iboats! Gave me a heck of a deal and $10 2-day air!!!

I'm hoping to have at least the first three floor boards down by the end of the day monday, as well as have the interior paint complete. I'm going grey and if i get ambitious i'll put a black stripe somewhere on it. Temps will be in the high 40s Thursday so that will help.

 

[BMerr509]

Primed the inside of the boat with the first coat, second coat will be tonight. Nice to see that yellow go away! Nothing too impressive here guys...Seat bases came in yesterday, so now i'm behind. still looks like i can get one floor sheet down by monday though. Couple questions, i have a fire extinguisher that reads "full" and looks newer, any idea on how i can tell if its expired or not? For trailers, i've the option to buy a perfectly fit steel shoreland'r. This boat will never see saltwater- should i be leary of the steel vs. aluminum for trailering though?

 

[Watermann]

Say goodbye to the mustard :thumb:

The fire extinguisher should be fine if the gauge shows green.

Nothing wrong with steel trailers, knock off any rust and shoot some primer/paint. Did you see my SC trailer before and after?

 

[ezmobee]

Steel is perfectly fine for freshwater. Mine is the original 1976 one and it's quite solid! That being said, I'm a little leery of used, steel, non-galvanized trailers with fully boxed frames. I got burnt on an older used one of those once. The steel on the fully boxed one wasn't anywhere near as thick as my C-channel one and was badly rusting from the inside-out.