16' PolarKraft

[cavman138]

I just bought a 16' extrawide Polarkraft with a Yamaha 9.9 four stroke. Got the 9.9 due to size restrictions in local lakes. I am going to put a deck on the front and back and add a livewell. What is the best way to go about adding the deck? I was thinking about using aluminum angle, but am second guessing that due to cost. My idea is to have a rod locker and several compartments in the front section between the front bench and the front of the boat. At the back I'm just planning on covering the area between the back bench and the transom to house the gas tank and possibly the battery(ies). In the front of the back bench I am planning to add the livewell and just build the deck around it. Obviously I have a lot to think about, just looking for a little input from the pros. Also, will there be too much wait in the back if I put the livewell in front of the back bench with the tank and batteries in the very back? Should I move the batteries to the front?

 

[Nussy]

Check out this link to my boat I was able to fit the rod locker in it. All depends on your seating configuration. I would recommend framing with aluminum because it' much lighter and will last foreever. With only a 9.9 on a 16' you'll probably want to keep the weight down as much as possible. Of course speed may not matter if you typically fish small water.

https://www.tinboats.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=21&t=10751

Here's another link where they guy shows closeups of how he built his aluminum framing.

https://userpages.sofnet.com/robertg/boat.htm

Good Luck

 

[russ010]

I think if you can move your livewell up a little further in the middle of the boat, your weight will be better. I have a 1546 with an open floor and mine is really set up for electric only lakes. I have 29 series batts in the rear, a 24 series batt in front of the rear bench, and then I'm going to put my livewell infront of that 24 batt. So my livewell will be about 10" in front of the rear bench. I planned it that way because I want to have a deck in the rear for when people fish with me.

 

[cavman138]

What is the best and cheapest paint and primer to use?

 

[danmyersmn]

What is the best and cheapest paint and primer to use?

Pick one or the other. The best isn't the cheapest.

 

[cavman138]

Ok well what is the best for the money? C'mon man its not rocket science, you know what I meant

 

[danmyersmn]

Interlux Brightside

 

[russ010]

if you're not going to leave your boat in the water... you can just use rustoleum paint that is sold in the quarts... I've seen a few boats in my club painted that way and they look good. You'd never know it wasn't a marine paint.

Interlux Brightside is a good paint as dan mentioned.. on my previous boat, I used Pettit paints and it was about $10 cheaper than Brightside because it was on sale...

No matter what paint you use, you really need to put your effort into the paint prep - sand, primer, sand, paint, sand, paint, sand, paint

do a search for the process... I think I've wrote these things like 10 times