Re: Jon Boat Mods
Good thread going here. I just bought a 15' V-Hull and I'm building the deck for it now. I gutted the boat and took out all 3 aluminum bench seats and another front wood seat.
Built the deck out of 19/32 plywood coated 2X with polyurethane. The old aluminum benches were supported by aluminum L-brackets riveted to the hull. I'm using these brackets and two wood support beams (2x4's) to make the deck plenty sturdy. The front deck is now finished and it measures about 9 feet long and 4'4" wide at the widest point. I got outdoor carpet at Home Depot for $29 that will be more than enough to cover the deck. Four cabinet door have been cut in the deck to access underneath storage.
So far the weight of everything i took out was 54 lbs. The new deck weighs a total of 68 lbs without carpet. That's only 14 extra pounds, plus the weight of two new seats, which I haven't bought yet.
So far I've worked on this one day (Sunday) and spent $130 on materials. Still need to buy recessed cabinet handles and seats. And a boat-mount charger for the deep cycle battery.
I've been taking picture of each step and I'll post them tonight with more in-depth descriptions.