Intex Mariner 4 modifications and Tips

[300winmag]

Looked at that, 1 is to short and 2 is way to long. There are 2 or 3 people in the boat so I would like something that could cover the whole floor.... Impossible i know gotta be something out there though.

 

[sadarahu]

AGAIN, please see rule #6

Check your private messages

 

[atesruzgar]

Hi from Turkey,
Thank you everyone who shared their ideas on intex modifications. It is great forum with very inspirational concepts.

I did some modify on my intex excursion 4 with a marine plywood custom floor and custom Motor mount. I have 6 hp 4 stroke small shaft outboard.

Anyhow, I leave you all with a couple of pictures, Sincerely.



http://imgur.com/IfAJOSZ
http://imgur.com/4yQbJ5h
http://imgur.com/Nor0Qea

 

[1idahoguy]

Nice Excursion. I do wish I could find a small outboard for my Mariner that wouldn't set me back >$500. A Mercury 3.3 would be PERFECT for my situation.

By the way, appears you need a good bottle holder!

Cheers.

 

[Mdtakach]

I have been consumed with this thread for the last couple days and have thought how I want to modify mine when it arrives to allow for both family cruising AND comfortable fishing....as I was walking Home Depot today I came across some firm interlocking and grippy rubber floor tiles used for exercise floors and thought it would be great to put over the existing floor and would allow for some added rigidity and be easily transportable...I would lose the ability to fasten swivel chair so I thought I would build a center bench that would rest on both sides but reinforce with two 3 inch PVC to floor and mount swivel chairs to it. For all you "engineers" I would love your thoughts on this before I take the plunge. As I was reading I think the floor needs to still have some flex but also needs to be walked on....I think this covers both with little added weight. Look forward to any comments....thanks all and I love what everyone has done!

 

[TonyMIowa]

Hello again. I got the boat and built floor/bench and swivel chair. will post pictures once I test all of it. Question on batteries though - just bought new AGM battery, brought it home and charger showed 75%. Is it normal? Spent about 3 hours charging, got to 99% 13.8 V and since then (2 additional hours) it doesn't improve. Any concerns/suggestions?

 

[TonyMIowa]

I let it sit for the night. It has 12.9 V but 93% charge. Is it normal?

 

[Mr.Victor]

I have been consumed with this thread for the last couple days and have thought how I want to modify mine when it arrives to allow for both family cruising AND comfortable fishing....as I was walking Home Depot today I came across some firm interlocking and grippy rubber floor tiles used for exercise floors and thought it would be great to put over the existing floor and would allow for some added rigidity and be easily transportable...I would lose the ability to fasten swivel chair so I thought I would build a center bench that would rest on both sides but reinforce with two 3 inch PVC to floor and mount swivel chairs to it. For all you "engineers" I would love your thoughts on this before I take the plunge. As I was reading I think the floor needs to still have some flex but also needs to be walked on....I think this covers both with little added weight. Look forward to any comments....thanks all and I love what everyone has done!

Just be careful with anything that is black color cause it will get extremely hot in the summer

 

[Mr.Victor]

I let it sit for the night. It has 12.9 V but 93% charge. Is it normal?

From my experience with my marine batteries, 12.7 V is fully charged.

 

[KingPhoenix]

I have been consumed with this thread for the last couple days and have thought how I want to modify mine when it arrives to allow for both family cruising AND comfortable fishing....as I was walking Home Depot today I came across some firm interlocking and grippy rubber floor tiles used for exercise floors and thought it would be great to put over the existing floor and would allow for some added rigidity and be easily transportable...I would lose the ability to fasten swivel chair so I thought I would build a center bench that would rest on both sides but reinforce with two 3 inch PVC to floor and mount swivel chairs to it. For all you "engineers" I would love your thoughts on this before I take the plunge. As I was reading I think the floor needs to still have some flex but also needs to be walked on....I think this covers both with little added weight. Look forward to any comments....thanks all and I love what everyone has done!

I think that the problem with your idea is that the hard floor helps to distribute the weight more evenly throughout the boat and thus increases stability. I dont think that those foam tiles will do anything in the way of rigidity and certainly nothing for weight distrbution, other than making the floor a little more cushy i dont see the point. I dont quite understand you plan for mounting the seats either.

 

[1idahoguy]

I spent today building a 2-piece floor out of 1/2 inch plywood. My plywood floor will NOT lay on the existing floor. Rather it will go in the boat as a replacement floor. I think most folks on here do the same - build a floor as a replacement for the OEM one. The weight of the plywood feels significantly less than the original one. I plan to use T-nuts to mount 2 bass fishing seats. I enjoy tinkering in general and this has been a lot of fun so far. I haven't decided whether to plunk down $200 for a battery and 40-50lb electric motor, or save up for a 2-4hp gas outboard. Having both in the garage, ready to go, depending on where I take the boat on any given day would be the best of both worlds.

This thread goes back years but it has been a valuable resource in guiding me on my mods. Thanks to all of those who have contributed.

 

[Starkonian]

Three of my Boston valves are leaking. I took the cap of them and filled them with water and they are bubbling. I didn't put the caps back on to see if they still leak air but I assume they are. Is this normal? Are there better high end Boston valves available? I bought it last September and used it 3-4 times. I've sent an email to Intex but since it's beyond the 30 days I suspect they won't assist. I guess I can just give a few pumps with the hand pump every 2-3 hours but it's a little irritating the valves on this fairly expensive boat don't hold air as well as my cheap air mattress. Thanks.

 

[Brusac]

Starkonian I have seen replacement caps for the Boston Valves at Menards (local hardware store chain here in Wisconsin) for relativly cheap. If it is the flapper in the cap that is leaking it may just need a good cleaning, any little bit of dirt that gets on the flapper can keep it from sealing correctly. A cotton swap with some soapy water would be all you need to clean the flapper and the seat the flapper seals against.

 

[Starkonian]

Thanks Brusac. That makes sense. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to lubricate the flap as well since rubber components tend to dry out and lose pliability over time. I've read don't use silicone on rubber seals. Maybe something like this?

 

[sadarahu]

Rule 6 - For the final time. You have a month to think about it.

 

[Starkonian]

By the way, while researching Boston valves, I've learned they come in various sizes. So, if you want to replace one on the M-4 there's no telling if one of the countless valves found on the internet will fit. I couldn't locate a replacement on the Intex website. I found the following dimensions for Intex boats on teh web. Don't know if it's accurate but thought I'd post it here for reference since it's all I've found thus far;

"I have a raft and kayak from Intex, the world's #1 mfr. of inflatables. They use a Boston valve that is 0.893" in diameter.

 

[spokane1]

I just got a mariner 4 and have a question about the wood flooring....I see many people making the plywood floor for their boat, do most people put the plywood on top of the slat floor? If not, is there any reason why the plywood cannot go on top of factory slat floor? Seems like it would be ever more solid...would putting it on top cause damage?, thx for any info, lots of great stuff on this thread

 

[Mr.Victor]

Short answer, too thick and unnecessary...long answer, read the thread.

 

[Brusac]

spokane1 I am in the middle of a floor build myself. I will be replacing the slat floor with my plywood floor for a # of reasons - cutting down on set-up time. Less items to transport in an already crowded vehicle, and less weight to carry from vehicle to launch site when not using a boat launch among them. I also know several users have made a smaller floor to lay over the slat floor. In the end it comes down to personal preference on what is best for your needs.

 

[Starkonian]

You could and some do, With or without you still have to cut the wood flooring so the boat sides gently touch the boards to keep them form sliding around. Sand the edges well and I put a strip of duct tape all the way around to prevent any sliver damage. The consensus on using both floors however is that adds a lot of weight to the boat in general and the floor specifically. By recommendation, I removed all the slat the OEM floor but the middle one. I cut the floor boards so the seam between the two sections lie on this one board. Using the shell of the OEM floor also protects the actual floor of the boat. Only using one slat takes 20-25 lbs out of the boat which saves propulsion energy, battery or gas, and increases speed. Also, and in my opinion more importantly, it takes stress off the bottom hull seams. With this in mind, I added extensions to my trolling motor wires and stow the battery in the middle of the boat. The key is taking your time and cutting the floor so it's GENTLY snug but not so tight it stresses the floor seams. Scottish posted some cutting dimensions a few pages back which used and were fairly accurate for me though I did have to take some more off the width to fine tune it.