One man fishing boat

I don't know of any coating that is maintenance free on a regularly used wooden boat. Dragging, denting, chipping, rubbing, etc. eventually wear the coat away enough for water to work its way beneath that coating and cause trouble. I would pick the best compromise considering price and how rugged a coating is needed according to how the boat will be used. Rotomolded, aluminum or stainless is probably about the best construction to minimize maintenance, but costly.

Jmho.

Porta

 

I think I picked the best compromise for my little boat. Good Oil Based Porch n' Deck paint with good oil based primer.

I believe I'd do that on any wooden boat. I've owned a bunch and I learned to be wary and distrustful of any kind of Fiberglass coating.

 

"Rotomolded, aluminum or stainless is probably about the best construction to minimize maintenance, but costly."

In fresh water aluminum is good, though there are potential problems with rivets.

Never seen a stainless small boat.

Rotomolded is very low maintenance, because there isn't much you can do for it. It is subject to degradation from sun.

"I believe I'd do that on any wooden boat. I've owned a bunch and I learned to be wary and distrustful of any kind of Fiberglass coating."

There are several types of wooden boat. There are boats built of boards, or even 1088 ply, nails caulking etc... Just stupidly glassing these boats, that have large expansion and contraction ratios is a recipe for disaster. Oil paint is traditional though there is some interest these days in Latex for all the usual reasons.

The other kind of boat is normally a lot lighter weight and lower maintenance. It is a wood or ply composite construction, it gets glassed extensively with some kind of resin. Wood is never wet, never moves, it receives some kind of paint as protection from the sun. Properly done there is virtually no lifespan and maintenance cost and work is about the lowest of any type. Biggest problem is thinking far enough ahead that no penetration in the skin ever occurs. So for instance you can't just screw an eye into it for a painter, you have to plan all hardware attached carefully. There are new super synthetics that probably outperform wood composite in maintenance, earlier generations of fiberglass and core construction had a poor record. However few consumer boats are made with the high end composites.

The only experience I have with linex was as a handle material on some knives I was making. It wasn't cheap, and the surface was rough, good grip. It was a solvent release finish, which means there are pathways for water vapour.

 

Absolutely true...the best way to put a through hull in an cored boat is to overdrill the hole and fill it with thickened resin then drill the through hull in the middle of the resin plug. This guarantees that the core is never exposed to water. The next best option is to drill the hole to size, seal it with repeated coats until it quits absorbing any resin then redrill the exact same hole after the resin is cured. Hopefully the core has absorbed the resin all around the perimeter of the hole enough to seal it well. Screwing directly into the wood is the least desirable option but it can be sealed by counter sinking and filling the hole either with resin or a bung. But bungs aren't much of an option with thin plywood and you can only sink the head in so far so resin filling is usually the only really reliable option. Of course...when building the boat screws will happen (especially with mine) but these are covered with glass cloth for the most part and are not subject to exposure to water. Screwing an eye screw into the stem is a poorer choice than through drilling, sealing and through bolting an eye bolt. However...on a throw away boat...screwing in the eye screw, withdrawing and filling with resin then rescrewing...has been known to happen . Then again...throw away boats aren't planned to last a long time so shortcuts are usually made in the interest of either speed, money or both (just to keep folks from throwing my el cheapo quickie build at me )

 

Stainless boats not common, but see above.

Porta

 

Glassed the top of the WW today. Bit of a surprise there. I don't have nearly the glass I thought I had. Going to be tight as to whether there is enough to finish the boat. If not, same time next year...

24 corners to detail with the glass!!

 

here are some of my creations. the white foam will work fine if you protect it correctly, depends on what you are using the boat for. My dad has one of these boats thet is nearly 20 years old, and he still still uses the same stryofoam. the only place he has ever used his boat is on the rivers, draging across river bottoms and bangin off rocks, It has held up to everything so far.

 

I like one thing about your design. A person could lay out crossways over the seat and take a pretty good nap on that craft.
You could also scull from that seat if the power failed.

 

Hello all, I am almost done building my pontoons (sorry no pictures yet, I can't find the cable for my camera) and now my attention is turned to the deck of my boat. The deck will be 6'x4'. I was thinking of having 4-2x4s on the flat with 1/2" ply on top. What are your thoughts?
Also if I went to a sheet of 3/4" ply (or greater) would I still need the 2x4s?

 

You building a pontoon boat or a tank? I thought you wanted to move this thing? A sheet of 1/2" ply will run you around 50 lbs...4 2x4s will add another 15 or so plus whatever the pontoons weigh. Even trimming to size you will still add at least 50 lbs to whatever the pontoons weigh. Also...a sheet of 3/4" ply will run 75 lbs...trimmed down it will still come in at around 50 lbs. Get some cedar 1x2s and some 1/4" and make I beams instead of full 2x4s, use them on edge and use 1/4" ply. With 4 of these along the 4 ft width you are only spanning about 11" or so...so what if it flexes a tiny bit? If it is too much...a couple of 1xs cross pieces strategically placed will take care of it.

 

It's surprising how strong and stiff a structure you can make using light ply. The side decks of my boat double as seats and are made from 4 mm (5/32") marine ply; each is 84" x 14" and is set between 1/2" side supports with 3/8" x 3/4" softwood cross braces glued edgewise underneath the ply at 10" intervals. I don't walk on them, but they support my entire 200+ lb every time I sit on them without a creak.

Cheap 1/4" ply with 1 x 2's every 12" per Lewis's suggestion is plenty. It's not a house floor and you are not going to park a piano on it. Just make sure you glue things together properly

 

Really I could make it that thin!?! I was basing my plan on the http://www.jemwatercraft.com/pontoon.php pictures. But I think I'm catching the drift your flowing on. And I like it.

Lewisboats, how tall would I have to make the joists?

 

The boat on the Jem page has a much heavier load and wider span than is the case for my little boat - 3x load, 5x span, 2x brace spacing - no way will 4 mm ply hack it! But for one person Lewis' suggestions should be OK. If you don't want to make up I beams either double up on the 1 x 2's (6" spacing) or use 1 x 3's.

 

like 2x4s...1.5 x 3.5 or whatever...they don't have to be that big to support a lot.

 

I just had a thought. I think its stupid but I just want to bounce it off some one else. If I took a sheet of 2" styrofoam and sandwiched it between 2 sheets of 1/4" ply, using a construction adhesive.
If it is a bad idea just tell me and I'll get my sister to give me a smack up side the head.