I have a couple of cracked ribs on my jon boat. The boat is 100 gauge all welded aluminum. The ribs are not totally broken, just have some serious stress cracks. I orginially was going to tig weld some aluminum angle to the ribs, but have recently been considering riveting the angle to the ribs instead. I figured the rivet method would provide some structural strength but would also allow just a minor amound of give, and hopfully the boat would flex some rather than just breaking loose. Anyone w/ some experence with this?
Weld it… alum weld flexs just like plain old alum does. I made a all welded cat jon boat a few years ago …still no cracked welds. and I give it pure Hell…
26’ Twinvee
Suzuki 175’s
www.creeksidemetalworks.com
Holy @#@#. Is that thing for real? How about some info on the aluminum cat you built.
quote:
Originally posted by localdudeHoly @#@#. Is that thing for real? How about some info on the aluminum cat you built.
LOL… yes it’s for real. I had a 14’ Vee bottom jon boat for gigging but with me and my 2 dogs standing on one side it would almost turn over. I have a 26’ cat and love the ride and stability of it so I made a 14’-6" cat jon boat 5’-6" beam to fish in the creeks and to gig from. The boat itself is 240 lbs.I made a 16 gal. gas tank for it, 25 hp evenrude gives it a 150 mile range. WOT before anchors seats, gas tank etc was 32 mph now 25 mph. My dogs, friend (260 lbs) and I can all stand one one side gigging with no problems. Motor up draft is 3". Casting platform on the front.
PS… stonoman has seen it
26’ Twinvee
Suzuki 175’s
www.creeksidemetalworks.com
I want one. . . That is a pretty sweet setup.
Cap Ed, dude you need to make some of those things to sell. How much would a 16’ with a 25 gal tank cost me? I vizualize a duck blind mounted on that pig.
Mark
Mako 262 Twin Yammaha F200s
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
Contender…I don’t know what part of town you are in but if you need it welded let me know I’m on Johns Is
Thanks localdude
Saltydog the problem with selling them is they would have to be Coast Guard inspected, getting max load and hp rating etc etc etc There is also ALOT of work in it and a couple of hundred feet of welding selling them wouldn’t be feasible…it would make a good duck blind though
26’ Twinvee
Suzuki 175’s
www.creeksidemetalworks.com
Love it! Are those spray rails?
You could put in a helm station, rhino line the interior, hang a 50 off the back and be one badass rig.
Mark
Mako 262 Twin Yammaha F200s
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.
“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
quote:
Originally posted by saltydog235You could put in a helm station, rhino line the interior, hang a 50 off the back and be one badass rig.
Mark
Mako 262 Twin Yammaha F200s
Yeah, but do you consider a dog to be a filthy animal? I wouldn’t go so far as to call a dog filthy but they’re definitely dirty. But, a dog’s got personality. Personality goes a long way.“Life’s tough…It’s even tougher if you’re stupid” John Wayne
I will be getting a 40Hp 4 stroke for it this summer, should make it about right.
26’ Twinvee
Suzuki 175’s
www.creeksidemetalworks.com
Capt Ed. Thank you for the info and recommendation. I did a close inspection of the ribs yesterday and found they only had very minor stress cracks at this point in time, and the cracks are only on the flange part of the rib where the rib meets the floor. I marked the length of each of the cracks and plan to monitor them over the next several months. If they appear to get worse then I will pursue welding them. I have a good friend that is very experienced with aluminum & said he would fix it one weekend if need be, but thanks for the offer. By the way that is a pretty cool looking craft you got there, kinda like these guys, I am sure there is a market for an aluminum cat, but understand time plus material plus USCG inspection is a pain.
Lets say I had a MIG welder. Would it be possible to get a “kit” with some directions and how to put the boat together and weld it up?
quote:
Originally posted by localdudeLets say I had a MIG welder. Would it be possible to get a “kit” with some directions and how to put the boat together and weld it up?
…anything is possible…in 2007 the materials was $1300.00 don’t know what it would be today. If you are really serious PM me and come by one WARM day and take it for a ride. 
26’ Twinvee
Suzuki 175’s
www.creeksidemetalworks.com