What is the best way to lay out your boat for decking?

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rusty2112

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I want to get started on decking my boat but I don't know if the best way is to leave it on the trailer and get it level or put it on the ground and level. Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
 
level ???? why do you want it LEVEL ??

on the trailer, blocks, saw horses, table or off the ground
at a comfortable height while you work on it. Kind of nice not having to bend over it all

In My Opinion - ALL measurements should be taken from the standard points . . .
i.e. - from the keel strip up the sides
or, from the gunwales to where you want your decking.
same measurements on both sides, port and starboard.

Think about it - - - once your boat is in the water, will it ever be level ???
and/if it ever reaches a point of level in the water, how long will it stay in that position ??
For those of you that insisted on your boat being "level" while adding your decking,
Did you actually work off of "level lines" ?? or, did you go with standard hull measurements ??
how did it perform for you after you got it in the water under your normal fishing conditions ??


Jus my dos centavos
 
It all makes sense. I knew it would not sit level in the water but I wanted to here some different ideas on how other members approached it. Lets keep the thoughts flowing!
 
I took a level to my trailer to see how far the bubble went out of plumb. Then tried to replicate that bubble placement on the decking. I figured I'd get close enough to level, and I probably won't notice a slight slope once on the water.
 
bcbouy said:
all my decks went off the top of the benches.

This!! Get the top of your benches level and then work from there. My factory bow deck and benches are were level to one another. Of course your boat isn't going to stay level when on the water, but you've got to have some "standard of measurement" to work from.
 
i used lines that were already present on my boat- the benches and the little stubby deck that comes on the front of lowe jon boats. i got those level (with the boat on the trailer) and then worked off of those lines as my data. i figure lowe had a pretty good idea of what their status would be when the boat is in the water, and that they were worth copying to be my "level" lines.

one thing youll find out when you start decking your boat is that very few parts of the boat are square or even built to any discernible tolerance. they may have also lived a hard life before you got it so twisting, bends, and that sort of deformation is always in play.
 
Yeah I already know that my boat is far from perfect. I noticed it when I looked at her from the stern to the bow and noticed how uneven she really is.
 
Built everything straight onto the benches and the only time I used a level was to make sure things were planar with each other.. "Level" is not applicable to any jon boat I've ever seen..
 

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