1959 Alumacraft 14' to flats skiff

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FlatsStalker17

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Hey y'all, new to the sight but I've had my 1959 Alumacraft for about 5 years now. It's a family heirloom. So I want to make it in to a flats skiff (I live in Florida) and have gotten a lot of great ideas from all the boats on here. I already have a casting deck on the bow, so if y'all have any ideas throw them my way. This build will take a little while cause I work a lot and fish a lot. So I want to remove the middle bench , add a floor and side gunnels and have a grab bar in the middle.
 

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Save the family heirloom and buy a up $350 craigslist hull that's already been hacked up and devalued to the scrap price because of the cutting process. Do you really need wheelchair accessibility in a fishing tin?
 
Flatstalker, don't get discouraged. I know that may not have felt like the most welcoming response to a first time poster in the Conversion/Modifications section. There are a few members here who feel that modifications to an older hull are sins of the greatest magnitude. :LOL2:

Your request for ideas may be too broad. Do a keyword search in this same category and you will see a multitude of projects with great ideas and commentary that are similar to what you want to do. I think there is also a "sticky" that discusses when, from a stability standpoint, to add a deck and when not to add a deck. You might want to take a look at that.

Have fun and welcome to TB.
 
Nice boat! What's her beam? Isn't a big part of flats fishing (I've never done it) getting up high for sight casting and poling?

Seems like a narrow boat would be hard to get set up for that.

If I am thinking of the right thread, the sticky on decks and stability is talking about flat bottom Jon boats with hard chines. The general rules there may not apply to a round bilged v-bottom, which would have less primary stability.


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Thanks for the positive vibes guys, I think I decided to keep the middle bench and just weld on a grab bar and add two small floors. And I will check for the "sticky" for the floors. And SeaFaring you are correct I just put my Rtic 45 up on the casting deck and stand on it and pole around it's actually pretty stable. Going to start on the floors this weekend! IRMA put a little damper on the timing but not damage so it's all good
 
Glad the stability is up for it. Sadly, I don’t have any particularly inspired ideas for flats fishing, as I’ve never tried it.


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FlatsStalker17,
I have similar plans for my 14 foot Valco, primarily for fishing San Diego Bay and inshore. Working a lot of weekends so its a slow process, but getting close.
I decided to keep the decks low for more stability in my v hull. I have grab bar and tiller extension ready to install.
 

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A lot of people say to not remove the middle bench seat but it is not that big of a deal as long as you support the sides. I converted my 62 lonestar into a flats boat. I got sick of jumping over the middle bench to go up front. I converted my 15hp to remote steering(side console) instead of tiller steering which added support to one side where I removed the middle bench. The other side I ran aluminum down the length of the hull to connect the front bench to the rear bench. When doing a whole build you just have to think strategically with support and weight.
 

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wow just saw this.. very cool ! i did a 59 alumacraft fd too check it out https://tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=47182
 

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