Re: need some help here on an old lund im looking to purchase
Re: need some help here on an old lund im looking to purchase
The boat is just has ribs on the bottom and over the years someone cut out the center seat. When i got the rig 2 weeks ago it had a 3/4" plywood floor with a 2x4 under cut like a wedge to support it. they rivited tabs along the 8 feet of center area our of aluminum angle and used the right rivits then attached a 3/4" plywood rod lockers to each side of the boat.
The front was 2 layers of 3/4" plywood cut to the shape of the bow the very front small seat was removed and some brackets were again rivited to the sides under the floor down low was an oak almost 3" thick x 8" tall cut on the radius of the front end. on top of that they had built another compartment that was the height of the old seat that had the largest 2" wide steel strap hinge to make a compartment for a trolling motor battery. Needless to say this was a HEAVY HEAVY section of wood.
The rear they cut out the front of the seat and left the rear support to be the new front and decked that in 3/4" plywood and had a hatch to access the battery and
the gas tank. They butchered it perty well under all that plywood with not much thought. Now what they did was STURDY but after I have removed it all it FILLED the
back of my Dodge Ram Pickup to the dump.......
How it bought it
Hundreds of pounds of wood removed
Where I am going from here.
I have removed all the wood and rebuilt the back how I want it out of aluminum stock. This will all be welded in and then reinforced and then decked in 1/8" alum sheet.
The main 8 foot open floor will have 1 1/2 square tube for a floor support structure, that will be 12" on centers and will have 2-3 of the ribs bent to come up the sidewall to re-enforce the sides of the boat from where the seat was removed. That will also be decked in 1/8" aluminum with foam sheets underneath. This should stiffen up the boat perty good.
The front will be framed up in square tube and angle to make a full front deck the same height as the seat about. They will weld in a battery compartment for the front motor as well. They are going to weld all holes in the transom from the yeats of transducers being screwed to it as well as all holes in the sides from old bolts and stuff. The front bottom of the boat where there was some wear to the alum strip to protect the bow from rocks and ice will be fixed a bit as it is a bit worn from wear.
I have found a good fabracation shop that does this kind of work often and comes highly recomended. Lots of work to be done. I have done as much as my skills and tools allows me to do. Monday I drop it off at the fab shop and let them have at it. They are also going to bend and make a motor mount for the Minnkota I piolt motor for the bow.
This boat will be fished out of and Diver Duck hunted in the fall so I want it sturdy and simple. I think it will handle the open water well and we will get some good use out of it. I will add more pics as we go. What a mess it was so far lol.
