My 79 Lowe 1648 project

[tinboatlover]

This is my 1979 Lowe 1648 jon boat. I have a 91 Honda 9.9 motor that will go on the boat. These pics show the rough condition of the boat when I got it. I have since stripped the boat to bare metal and I am going to be starting work on the boat again in a few weeks. I am looking forward to getting it done and on the water, but I have been so busy since I picked it up, I haven't made much progress. Any suggestions would be appreciated. Oh, by the way, I love the site. I have read the info on the site for the last year, but I just joined today.

 

[jasper60103]

This is my 1979 Lowe 1648 jon boat. I have a 91 Honda 9.9 motor that will go on the boat. These pics show the rough condition of the boat when I got it. I have since stripped the boat to bare metal and I am going to be starting work on the boat again in a few weeks. ...

That's a nice size tin, and from the looks of it, you did a lot of work already. Stripping it down is no small task. The trailer looks great. Look forward to seeing more progress. Good luck.

 

[cali27]

Nice boat man. I myself am looking to upgrade to a boat that size. Looking forward to seeing your progress. Post lots of pics

 

[tinboatlover]

I have made a little progress on my boat. I have the outside of the boat mostly stripped down and I added a new crank and wheel on the trailer. I still need to change the chains and the tires on the trailer. The boat still needs a ton of work, but at least everything is torn out and the outside can be ready for a line-x spray on liner for the bottom and paint for the remainder of the boat. I could probably get it ready in a weekend (the hull) if I could coordinate my schedule with the weather. I included a few new pics. I am going to try to work on fixing the transom which is full of holes this weekend or next. I am starting to get excited about the whole project again.

 

[River]

Looks like the transom was used for target practice, wonder who the previous owner was running from?
Good looking boat, have fun with it.....

 

[tinboatlover]

I finally made up my mind I am going to coat the boat with Line-X. It uses polyurea and I finally got to see what that stuff can do. I went to a local boat show and they had a Lowe Roughneck sprayed with Line-X. It was sprayed on the inside but he showed me a sample of what he could do on the outside. That stuff is awesome. He sprayed a balloon with it and I could stand on it. He sprayed a pop can and drove a Ford F250 on the can and parked it - it didn't collapse. It is used in bomb mitigation and it is 100% waterproof. As a matter of fact, he said the local hospitals are starting to spray their showers with a smoother version of Line-X which is the same version I would put on my boat. I can't wait! It will probably be another 3-4 weeks before it will be ready to spray because I am doing some extensive work to the transom, but I am also having him do it in blue because I saw that color and it looked awesome! Look at the Line-X website and there are 2 jon boats that have been sprayed inside and out. I think I will use Herculiner on the inside since it is a bit cheaper (a lot cheaper). It will work well over the aluminum flooring I am going to install. I can't wait to get started.

 

[tinboatlover]

I am getting ready to order aluminum to make an all aluminum transom. I don't want any wood on my boat. It should be really strong and should last longer than the boat. Hopefully it will be here by the weekend. If I do get it by Friday, hopefully I will get part if not all of the transom done this weekend. I will post pics as soon as I get the new transom done.

 

[bulldog]

Take pics of the process you use to replace the existing transom. You never know what might help the next guy and a picture is worth 1000 words.

Good luck.

 

[tinboatlover]

I will do that Bulldog. I am as curious as you are how it is going to turn out. I have a couple different plans in case something doesn't work, but either way ought to be sturdy. I just thought I would mention my aluminum for my transom ought to be here tomorrow. Knowing my luck it won't show until next week. Oh, I was able to get about $120 worth of angle for $10 at a scrapyard. It was brand new angle! He had just sold a bunch more or I would have been set. Oh well. I'll have everything I need by the end of the month to finish the boat. I am still contemplating various layouts but I pretty much have it narrowed down to 2 layouts. I am trying to make the layout versatile because I will use it primarily for bass, but I also will be using it for flatheads, muskie, and whatever else I decide to try.

 

[tinboatlover]

I finally got started on some of the build. My aluminum for my transom didn't show up because of bad weather up north, but it should be here Tuesday. Anyhow, I started on the bracing for the front deck while I wait on my transom. Here is a pic I took after my first brace was riveted. It was after dark and I called it a day since my wife was ordering, er...uhh....asking me to do something. I will get back to work tomorrow with what aluminum I have. I should be able to get about half of my front deck bracing completed tomorrow. I would get it all done tomorrow but I don't have enough aluminum. Oh, the rivets are strong as crap. VERY sturdy. I am using 3/16". Will post more pictures tomorrow.

 

[tinboatlover]

I guess I might as well write to myself.

 

[greenhead206]

looking good, should be a nice looking boat when finished.. It would be a heck of alot easier on ya if you knew anybody with a welder, putting rivets in can be a pain sometimes. them rivets should hold up pretty good tho...

 

[tinboatlover]

Greenhead206,

I am hoping it will be pretty nice when I am done with all of my craziness. I am starting to think it would have been much cheaper to just buy a new boat and forget about it. Then I think, well I would want to customize it and I would just end up spending 4x what I will on this boat. I do know a welder. My father-n-law is certified in every type of welding known to man. He is very good at what he does. Unfortunately, he does not own a TIG welder and his employer will not let him bring one home to work on my boat. My uncle is a fabricator that builds custom Nascar trailers and he used to fabricate engine parts when he was a head mechanic for various race crews. He can weld anything - especially aluminum - but he lives in Tennessee. Oh well. The rivets are really cool and easy to use. I am glad I went with aluminum instead of wood. I didn't get anything done today because of school work and running 100 places for my kids, but my supplies should be here Tuesday. Next week will begin my assault on trying to fix the boat. I'm ready to roll!!!!

 

[tinboatlover]

I am sitting here waiting on my aluminum for my transom. It should be here this evening so I am waiting by my door. I priced the sheet aluminum today and shipping is OUTRAGEOUS!!! I found a local machine shop that can order it for me and it is much more reasonable. I found a 4x8 sheet online for as cheap as $160, but then they want $480 for shipping because it is shipped via freight. That wouldn't be a bad price if I bought a lot because the shipping is the same for 1 sheet or 10. Anyhow, I found 4x8 sheets locally for $273.79 per sheet. Now here is the weird part - I can get 4x12 sheets for $264.60! I thought that was weird. I guess they need to get rid of some of the 4x12 sheets so they are cheaper. That works out really well though because I was going to need 4 sheets of 4x8 and I was going to have a lot of waste, but now I can get by with 2 sheets of 4x12 with hardly any waste. That will save me 50%. If I need a couple small pieces I can get what I need and have it shipped for under $100. That means I can finish the whole inside of my boat including bracing and 1/8" sheeting for about $650. That sounds expensive until you figure in the weight savings and the permanent nature of aluminum. I am going to be really busy the rest of the week so I can't get started until next week, but at least I will have the supplies ready to go. I MAY be able to get the inside done as well as the outside and be ready for my polyurea coating by next weekend. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

 

[tinboatlover]

I found sheet aluminum for $167 locally. I bought 3 sheets and tomorrow the work starts back up. I have been busy for so long, I have been really aggravated wanting to get busy on my boat. I am working on the transom and some of the deck bracing. I will have to wait until later in the week to finish the decking since I still don't have all the bracing I need yet. I hope to have the inside and outside done and ready for the water by next weekend. I think I can do it. I have 3 weeks off and I am ready to get busy. I will post pics tomorrow! Wish me luck! Why am I a little nervous?!

 

[Decatur]

Too bad you couldn't score some sheet aluminum like you did on the angle!

 

[tinboatlover]

I started work on my transom. I only have a few pics of the preliminary work I did, but I will post more pics tomorrow.

 

[tinboatlover]

I have done some more work to my transom. It has been slow going from the initial strip of the boat, patching leaks or holes, and now a major overhaul of the transom. I fully believe the transom will be much stronger than it was when it was new. I know it will be much better than when I got it. I plan on using a 9.9 as well as a 35 h.p. motor so it needs to be as strong as possible. I first had to strip down the old transom and what you see is me inserting a new top by sandwiching the old transom top between a 1"x1.5" and a 1.5" piece of angle. I first straighten the old piece by molding it around square tubing and clamping it to bend it. Then I place everything together with clamps and riveted the three pieces together making it incredibly strong already. What you see in these pictures is fiberglass I used on the inside and the outside of the old transom to seal all of the holes. I have cut a new transom that will be riveted over the old transom and connected to the inside bracing with rivets and 6 large bolts that will squeeze the old transom, new transom, and rectangle tubing to make an extremely stiff transom that will be waterproof and provide ample support for the 35 hp motor I plan on using. Here are some of the pics. I have everything ready to attach the new transom tomorrow and I have already cut the sheet aluminum and pieces of the bracing.

 

[tinboatlover]

Here are the pics.

 

[tinboatlover]

I did some more work to the transom. I cut out a new transom and placed it over the old transom. The red fiberglass was used inside and out to seal the old transom. The old transom is being sandwiched between the new wall and the bracing on the inside. I am riveting the new transom to the bracing on the inside by using rivets and then welding the outside of the transom to seal the new transom. It is already many times stronger than it was with the wood transom and the thin, torn, transom wall. I have 4-5 more supports to add to the transom, but I haven't attached all of the pieces yet.