River Pirate

[Chase_B]

Hello all,.. Last year I was using a 14 foot jon boat for fishing shallow rivers,. I am a disabled vet and man handling the jon boat in and out of my truck to and from the water was just too taxing for me,..so I decided to build a boat that had it's own trailer built into it,..the reason for this ,..sometimes me and a friend would do 8 to 14 mile river floats,..just fishing and drifting,..we would have a vehicle parked at the proposed exit point on the river,..building the boat with it's own mode of transport eliminated the need for 2 trailers ,..or for someone to drive the tow vehicle with trailer from the enter point to the exit point.

[BATAAN]

Good design for the waters you use it in. More people should design and build sensible boats that fit their actual needs and uses as you have done.

[Chase_B]

Thank you BATAAN,.. I built my boat,..as I build my planes,..for specific needs
I've used the boat in water as shallow as 12 inches and as deep as 100 foot ,..the thing that is in common between the depths,..it's flat water,..no waves,..a flat bottom pontoon,..or any style flat bottom boat in waves is not a joy to float on for me

[thudpucker]

I've seen two adaptions to your idea in the past.
One was a Clamp on affair.
As if you used an axle going across the boat up at the Gunn'l with two landing gear attached. Swing the gear up or down.

The other looked a little better.
It had a Stern of 'right-angle; Sheet metal, and swing up/dn Landing gear....with a boat attatched by bolts.

The Tow bar is what made a mess of both ideas.
The only one I looked at had a Sheet metal VEE in the front with the Hitch attatched with Pin's n' Clips.

[Chase_B]

Hello thudpucker,
This design, its self contained, everything stays attached to the boat, the trailer wheels retract with a flip of a switch, the hitch retracts manually by pulling a spring loaded handle up under the bow and the tongue slides under the deck

I have towed this boat for over 5000 miles on public roads, during the initial road tests , I towed it at speeds of 90mph, she towed beautifully, after the initial testing was completed, I had the mishap of a deer hitting my truck, then the boat, which the front of the pontoon actually pushed the deer down and under the boat, the trailer wheels hit the deer sending the boat into the air 06 AGL, ( that's 6 foot above ground level) and the trailer suspension handled the incedent without out fail, actually the only visual indication that I had hit a deer was the incriminating brown streak down the side of the port pontoon

[thudpucker]

Yeah, many a $40,000 Pickup has been ruined by Bambi.
Your boat idea sounds good. Anything that keeps you independent is good.

PS: I lived on a Farm West of Anderson MO all througout WWII.

[Chase_B]

I live not far from Rolla Missouri, fish the big Piney river

[Chase_B]

I tried to upload a video of how the boat transform from trailer to boat, I can explain it a little more in detail,..the main gear,..ie trailer wheels raise and lower via 12 volt actuators with limit switches on each end of the travel so you don't have to hold the switch during raising or lowering phase,.just flip the switch one way or the other and the wheels raise or lower,.. the hitch is mounted in sort of a track,..where there is a spring loaded pin that holds the tail of the tongue in position when the hitch is in trailer mode,..and an "A" frame that is hinged that folds down and forward also for trailer mode,..when you prepare to back the boat into the water,..first fold back the "A" frame ,.which sets the bow of the boat down ,..and makes the boat almost always perpendicular to the water,..so the pontoons meet the water evenly front to rear,..once the pontoons hit the water,..my 6 year old daughter usually hits the retract button and the wheels retract,..I lift the hitch off the trailer ball,..pull the release and the tongue slides back under the deck all the way so it does not stick out in front of the bow at all,..there is a sleeved hole in the tongue that once the tongue is slid back,..the spring loaded pin that holds the tongue in trailer mode position ,..now alligns with the sleeved hole to retain the hitch under the deck in boat/float mode,..I have another actuator that I am going to install on the back side of the "A" frame so that a switch will also be activated to fold it back and up out of the way to retract the tongue,..every time we take this boat out ,..it draws a crowd when I back it down into the water on wheels and then pull out with out a trailer ,.and visa versa,..when I back the truck down the ramp without a trailer and pull the boat out on wheels all ready to hit the road ,..I did install LED road lights around the parimeter and back of the boat for towing mode, as well as nav lights for when on the water,.. there are 2 marine batteries on board the boat that run the retract system as well as the 50 lb thrust trolling motor on the bow and the Nav lights,..I can go for 4 full days of using just the trolling motor to manuever the boat before they need to be charged,. the retract system doesnt draw that much from the batteries

[thudpucker]

Chase, go to PHOTOBUCKET or a site like that. Called a Photo hosting site.
Once you get your photo's there, you'll see how to move them here.

I'll never have anything like that but I have a keen interest in all kinds of Mechanical systems.

[FMS]

Youtube is the best way to upload videos - http://www.youtube.com/

[Chase_B]

Thanks Thudpucker and FMS, I'll see what I can do about getting a video uploaded, not today though, you can color me "Gone Fishin'" with my girls

[thudpucker]

Certainly a good thing to be doin!

[Wavewacker]

Great idea, really great.....I have a similar idea, lol. I'd really like to see how ya did it. I'd like a small raft type that I could put my dual sport bike on and pull the boat with the bike, that means light frame/wheels and an inflatable.

I'd also like a cruising catamaran with wheels, go down rivers, you should always be able to find someone that for a few bucks would get you around a damn or dried up areas and get you on your way again. You could do a heck of a long trip and rent a truck to go home.

The reason I don't get out more is due to the logistics of getting back alone or with the GF.

Pics please!

[thudpucker]

Springfield; The home of Outdoor world!
Yeah, they have ideas for sale.

I knew a guy in AK who put a small Two stroke engine in a Canoe, using a Jet drive.

Need and wants are the Mother of all inventions. Technology soon follows to make the inventions safer and more saleable. Capitalisim makes everything better!

Be sure to send us photos, even if you have to email the links to us.

[Chase_B]

Some more photos of the "River Pirate" didnt get a chance to do any youtube videos,.. I am scheduled for back surgery in the am ,..been trying to get everything done around the house and install a new propeller on my airplane,..got most of it done ,..Dr says I'll be down for awhile recooping ,..so maybe then I can set up youtube account and do a video