orion_134
Well-known member
After years of being pissed off at my 1648 and the previous owner's shenanigan repairs, it's time to redo it. Currently the rear of the hull drafts over 6" with no one in it leaving very little transom freeboard once loaded. To top it off, they put a ghetto addition to the top of the transom to mount the Merc higher and it is rather poorly done. Icing on the cake is that the transom board is actually peeling/breaking the transom braces that go to the floor of the boat. It looks like it's a few bumps on a dirt road away from dragging my Merc by the cables down the road.
So, the plan.
To fix the freeboard/draft issue I'm going to weld some flotation pods like ranchero50 did to his jetboat. I'm buying a Miller Spoolmate attachment for the MIG and going to town on it. I plan to mount the bilge in the pod, and drill drain holes between the boat and pods so that if the pods do leak or whatnot, the bilge is at the rear and the pods won't fill with water. The drain holes will be standard plug size so that if they do get swamped, I can plug them if needed. Aye or nay?
The transom dips down lower than the side of the boat, but the ghetto rig to lift the motor picks it back up level with the sides, so my plan is to make the transom the same height as the sides of the boat. I was going to take out all rivets and bolts going through the back of the boat, and add a sheet of aluminum to the transom to essentially reskin the back of the boat (before adding pods, obviously). Then redo any rivets or bolts going through. I figured I'd do a perimeter weld but also cut a couple holes in the skin so I can do some plug welds to keep the center of the skin attached to the original transom. I would then put a C-channel or L-shaped angle aluminum across the top as a top brace for the edge of the transom, and then add another 6"-ish sheet of aluminum under it on the inside of the boat as a clamping/mounting surface for the motor once the transom board is put in the space between. Then I was going to make new angle brackets/braces to fix the transom to the floor.
Sound like a plan?
So, the plan.
To fix the freeboard/draft issue I'm going to weld some flotation pods like ranchero50 did to his jetboat. I'm buying a Miller Spoolmate attachment for the MIG and going to town on it. I plan to mount the bilge in the pod, and drill drain holes between the boat and pods so that if the pods do leak or whatnot, the bilge is at the rear and the pods won't fill with water. The drain holes will be standard plug size so that if they do get swamped, I can plug them if needed. Aye or nay?
The transom dips down lower than the side of the boat, but the ghetto rig to lift the motor picks it back up level with the sides, so my plan is to make the transom the same height as the sides of the boat. I was going to take out all rivets and bolts going through the back of the boat, and add a sheet of aluminum to the transom to essentially reskin the back of the boat (before adding pods, obviously). Then redo any rivets or bolts going through. I figured I'd do a perimeter weld but also cut a couple holes in the skin so I can do some plug welds to keep the center of the skin attached to the original transom. I would then put a C-channel or L-shaped angle aluminum across the top as a top brace for the edge of the transom, and then add another 6"-ish sheet of aluminum under it on the inside of the boat as a clamping/mounting surface for the motor once the transom board is put in the space between. Then I was going to make new angle brackets/braces to fix the transom to the floor.
Sound like a plan?