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Aluminum or wood frame for platforms in a 15ft Vhull?
- Thread starter bass427
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MNHunter505
Well-known member
I just finished mine build and used a jig saw with 14tpi. Went through a couple blades but felt it was a cheaper route. I used 5/8" exterior plywood with three coats of spar varnish.
Country Dave
Well-known member
I used wood for framing and decking on my 1448 the first time but never again.
It only lasted about six months before it started warping and I treated the chit out of it. #-o Unless it never gets wet/exposed to the elements it’s just not going to last very long. If you don’t use the boat much and it’s stored in a closed environment you might get a couple of years out of it.
Aluminum is going to last as long as you want it to providing moister doesn’t get trapped against it and can’t evaporate. Even at that it’s probably going to last 10 to 15 years. Another issues if not the bigger issue is the weight. I see guys using wood for framing and decking on smaller Jon’s and they just about double the weight of the hull.
Yes aluminum is a bit more expensive than wood but if you’re replacing you’re decking every year or so what did you save.
Aluminum is a bit harder to work with than wood but it’s not that bad, if you can’t weld or have access to that bracket and rivets work well. I just think it’s a no brainer. If it’s an economic issues I would just wait and save a little more for the project use aluminum and know it’s going to last. Good luck with your build.
It only lasted about six months before it started warping and I treated the chit out of it. #-o Unless it never gets wet/exposed to the elements it’s just not going to last very long. If you don’t use the boat much and it’s stored in a closed environment you might get a couple of years out of it.
Aluminum is going to last as long as you want it to providing moister doesn’t get trapped against it and can’t evaporate. Even at that it’s probably going to last 10 to 15 years. Another issues if not the bigger issue is the weight. I see guys using wood for framing and decking on smaller Jon’s and they just about double the weight of the hull.
Yes aluminum is a bit more expensive than wood but if you’re replacing you’re decking every year or so what did you save.
Aluminum is a bit harder to work with than wood but it’s not that bad, if you can’t weld or have access to that bracket and rivets work well. I just think it’s a no brainer. If it’s an economic issues I would just wait and save a little more for the project use aluminum and know it’s going to last. Good luck with your build.
MNHunter505
Well-known member
Country Dave said:
Well said Dave...completely agree.
RStewart
Well-known member
I used wood for my build because of cost. Aluminum was going to be 3 times the cost. Unfortunately, it did add quite a bit of weight to my boat, but it isn't an issue. I can still pull the boat up the bank & onto the trailer if I'm at a pond. My build is going on year number 4. The front storage doors have warped some, but that's it. My boat sits outside under a cheap cover, although it was uncovered 2 years ago for about 3 months. The wood has held up extremely well considering how many times it has been soaked. Anytime it gets wet, I will leave it uncovered with the hatches open until it dries out. Aluminum would have been nice, but it wasn't in the budget & I wasn't going to let the boat sit & not use it while I was waiting for the money to get the aluminum. I have some changes in mind for my layout that I would like to make. If I do, I will probably go back with aluminum. Good luck whichever way you choose. Either way will work fine. Be sure to post pics of your build.
Captain Ahab
Well-known member
Badbagger said:
YES! Everything below decks on my boat is alum. No rot - so I do not have to worry.
Remember, add to the cost of any wood the time to seal the wood and the cost of a sealer. A proper epoxy sealant is not cheap!
Stewart, I agree with you. My starcraft is similair to your build so I think I can do it up with wood for relativley cheap but more importantly QUICKER. Its already April and could be out on lake any nice days from here on out. Even these 60degree days are killing me. I also agree with the aluminum guys and wish I had time/motivation to do it perfect.
Just my 2 cents .... growing up a "scrapper", look to local industry and what scraps may be had (usually can talk to someone and pick them up fractions of new cost). If not much luck there, I would recommend staying away from home depot and major reatailers heavy markup on metal sections.
MNHunter505
Well-known member
bass427 said:
Why are you thinking alum takes longer? it's wood that takes longer since you have to put the three coats of spar on ...a lot of extra time there.
RStewart
Well-known member
MNHunter505 said:
In my case, aluminum would take longer to get the money to do the build. All of my wood was a little over $50. The aluminum angle for the framing only is $140. There is nothing wrong with using wood as long as you go into it knowing that the wood will have to be replaced at some point. How long? NO ONE knows. It all depends on how it is cared for.
RStewart
Well-known member
bass427 said:
Yep. Do it in wood for now. Then put money back to redo it in aluminum eventually.There is a good chance that once you get it done & start using it you will find things you would like to change. When you go back with aluminum you can make those changes. At least that's been my experience. it would suck if I would've let my boat sit waiting to do it in aluminum & then realized there was some things I wanted to change. Aluminum is too expensive to be redoing it. In my opinion. Just to be clear,I would rather have aluminum over wood, but I didn't have the money at the time. Either one is easy to work with & both are just fine to use.
thewalleyehunter
Well-known member
You can use both as many people do. Use aluminum where you can and wood for the rest. I am doing aluminum for framing, but the decks will be in wood. My plan is to have the decks easily removable so if they need to be replaced down the line, it will be as simple as taking them out and installing new pieces. This way, I won't have to worry about rot on the support framing.
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