Alumacraft Model F Mod

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sworrior

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After trolling around on here for several months, I finally decided to start my Alumacraft 14' Model F Mod.
I received the boat from a relative after it had been abandoned as long as I can remember.
The boat is in pretty solid shape. A bit dirty and the transom boards are rotted/ant infested, but nothing that I can't fix with a bit of elbow grease.
The boat is ~13'9" long and roughly has a roughly 48" beam. I am looking at adding a casting platform on the bow and a bow mount trolling motor as well as nav lights, a bilge pump, and a small outboard.
I will mostly be using the boat for bass fishing on lakes, but may also fish a few rivers now and then for walleye.

I will post as often as possible with pictures and I appreciate everyone's great posts and builds that have given me the confidence to tackle this first-time boat project.
 
Welcome.

Bunch of folks love the F. I'm one of them (see build thread below). Also there's a build thread by a poster nic'd "Dman," as I recall, on an Alumacraft F-7.

Have fun.
 
Looked on the faq, but luckily I'm better at fishing than I am with computers. I have a bunch of pictures to post, but they're all too large for the message board. Finished cleaning the boat today and got it on a trailer. Pictures to follow...I hope.
 
Kismet, took a look at your Model F build. Nice! Looking at doing something similar, but I'm not sure where to mount the cigar ash tray. And as a Navy guy, boats do get named. Submarines are boats, but I'm going to try and keep mine above the surface.
 
Here is a before shotof the bottom after a hosing off and a light scrubbing.
 

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A few more pictures.
 

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Found Dman's model F thread:

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=24959

and one by JamesM56, nice guy, moved down to Florida somewhere:

viewtopic.php?f=21&t=24660&p=252164#p252164url


Enjoy and best wishes.
 
Finished the power washing of the exterior. I was suprised by how dramatic the results were.
 

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I bought some aluminum cleaner and an aluminum boat polish from my local Bass Pro Shop. I decided not to paint the boat since it cleaned up nicely.
Anyone have any experience with this?

I want to seal the interior and bought several cans of Rustoleum flex seal. Any thoughts?
 

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Your boat may have been neglected, but it sure doesn't appear to have ever been abused! Very clean for its years. You can check in with Alumacraft if you want to find out the year of manufacture. They are very gracious. Serial # is stamped on the inside transom support.

It's going to clean up wonderfully. Of course Aluminum will always oxidize. FYI, There's a product called "Sharkhide," I believe, that supposedly maintains the just-scrubbed sheen. I think it is pricey and I have never used it.

Nice work.
 
I was hoping to use this to seal the interior bottom below the waterline. Anyone have any thoughts?
 

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Took off the ant infested transom this evening. I'm going to use the old one as a template. Plan on cutting it out of a sheet of1/4' exterior plywood sealed with marine stain. I'll cut the interior transom board from 2" white oak.
Thanks k for the seriel number location. That'll help get it registered this week.
Any thoughts on the winch and strap placement. I think I'll have an aluminum padeye welded on eventually.
 

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[url=https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=359757#p359757 said:
sworrior » Today, 00:29[/url]"]I was hoping to use this to seal the interior bottom below the waterline. Anyone have any thoughts?

My personal feeling on that kind of stuff is that I try to avoid putting anything other than paint inside the belly of the beast. Anything with flexibility seems to scrape or rub off, and really, there are usually very few points where rivet leaking will occur and those are best addressed specifically, instead of doing the entire floor surface.

A fair number of folks have used truck bed liner with varying degrees of success.

Additionally, being inside a black boat on a summer day is the way microwave ovens were invented. :)

I've used "Implement Paint," sold for farmers for their equipment--tractors and such. UV safe, thick to go on, smooths to a nice surface, and available in a number of primary colors.

Others will have (probably better-informed) other opinions.

Be safe, have fun.
 
Finished wiring the trailer this evening and Im in business. Going to put it in the water and check for leaks next week. Next up is figuring out propulsion. Id like to get a bow mount trolling motor for the front deck I plan to build. Going with a 12v system and most seem to be 55lb thrust. Is 45in enough or should I go for a 48in or 54in? In this case I don't think bigger is necessarily better.
Anyone know if nav lights are required. According to COLREGS, I should only need an all round white light to be displayed in case of oncoming ships, but is it different in state waters?
 
Got an email from Alumacraft customer service:

Thank you for contacting Alumacraft customer service.  Your boat model F serial number 10181 was built in 1955.  This 14' boat was rated for a maximum of 16 HP and weighed 150 pounds.  The model F was built from 1948 until 1960, after 1960 this boat became the F7.  I have attached the specs from our 1955 catalog featuring your boat to this email for you.The transom wood that was used was typically teak or red oak, there was also a cork board installed between the wood and the aluminum.  The cork board provided a barrier and was also a noise inhibitor.Thanks,Alumacraft Customer Service Support
Wasn't planning on replacing the cork. Is it necessary? If so, I'll probably use rubberized gasket material.
 
Alumacraft also provided this original Model F brochure.
 

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Finally put the boat in the water today to check for leaks. A few leaks at the seam, but nothing that a little JB Weld and Flexseal couldn't handle. After it dries, I'll put it in again to make sure I got all the leakage.

I wire brushed the aluminum and then cleaned with denatured alcohol to prepare the surface.
 

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