aluminum boat help

[texasboatbuild]

i want to build a 14 foot aluminum boat for fishing in a small creek by my house i need all the info and help i can get thank u

[marshmat]

If you want aluminum, you'd be better off looking for a used one that you could fix up. If it's just for a small creek you don't need anything fancy. Aluminum hulls, either rivetted or welded, are beyond the skills of the newbie builder. Pick up a slightly leaky hull for $100 and bang the rivets tight with a friend and a couple of sledgehammers.

[oneuglyboat]

with a small alum boat you will have an ongoing problem with stability if you go to small. there are a lot of very narrow small alum boats out there. my suggestion is to go with a 16ft that is wide. it will work well on your small water, yet can be used on bigger water also. if you take a small alum boat on big water you are asking for big trouble. if you are going get a boat, why not make it as versitile as possible. you should also consider what happens if you want to take someone with you. a 16 footer can take another or two along., the only potential difficulty is getting it in the water if you dont have a trailer.

[Thunderhead19]

Matt, you impetuous boy! Tightening rivets never works for very long! Leaky rivets either need to be replaced, or the whole boat needs to be trashed. Building a light steel pram with no structure would work well here. Steel is easy to weld and in this size range it can be made light and cheap. A good paint will keep it from rusting.

[marshmat]

I should have been a bit clearer.... properly tightening the rivets can make an otherwise leaky boat perfectly OK again, provided you don't run it too hard. If you take a fixed boat into rough seas a lot, they will of course loosen again. Properly tightening the rivet involves holding a 10-20lb sledge or maul against the inside, while hitting the outside head with a similar hammer. A couple of guys can fix up a 14-footer this way in an afternoon and the result is not as good as new, but far cheaper and will suffice for a small pond or slow river. It won't hold as well as welding or new rivets in big weather.

[PAR]

Having just completed a design for a 22' aluminum sailboat, I can see building a small flats type boat for fishing or something. How good are you at handling 16 gauge aluminum, Texas? It's a touch thin to weld, though if you were really good and had lots of time on your hands and the right pulse box. Gluing or riveting are the only other options for aluminum. You doesn't have to use epoxy on this type of build . . .

[dincerd]

WE WILL START BUILDING A CAR CARRYING VESSEL ABOUT 40'' AND MY AIM IS TO LEARN ALL ABOUT ALLUMINIUM MATERIAL CHARACTERISTICS, ESP. ON WELDING, THEN WORK IN ALLUMINIUM SUPER-STRUCTURES ON YACHT INDUSTRY.

I HAVE KNOWN THAT AL IS USED IN MEGA-YACHTS ALL OVER THE WORLD, BUT WHY DOES ALLUMINIUM NOT OFTEN USED IN SAILING YACHTS RUTHER THAN FIBERGLASS, IF IT IS ABOUT LONG TERM THOUGHTS?

[PAR]

Aluminum is the primary choice among custom sailing yacht builders.

[dincerd]

I HAVE WORKED 2 YEARS ON ALUMINIUM MAST BUILDING AND WE HAVE MOUNTED TO 43 M TWO-MASTED SAILING YACHT, 27 METER CRUISING SAILING YACHT AND 2 MORE SAILING YACHTS. BUT UNFORTUNATELY I HAVENT WORKED ON AN ALUMINIUM HULL YACHT. THIS WILL BE MY FIRST EXPERIENCE ON THAT SUBJECT.

DO YOU KNOW ANY EXPERIENCED BOAT BUILDER ON ALUMINIUM HULL?

[FROMONT CHRIS]

We are manufacturing any kind of aluminium boats and they are very good quality and high performances. Christine from cmv@cmv.net located in France

Originally Posted by dincerd

I HAVE WORKED 2 YEARS ON ALUMINIUM MAST BUILDING AND WE HAVE MOUNTED TO 43 M TWO-MASTED SAILING YACHT, 27 METER CRUISING SAILING YACHT AND 2 MORE SAILING YACHTS. BUT UNFORTUNATELY I HAVENT WORKED ON AN ALUMINIUM HULL YACHT. THIS WILL BE MY FIRST EXPERIENCE ON THAT SUBJECT.

DO YOU KNOW ANY EXPERIENCED BOAT BUILDER ON ALUMINIUM HULL?

[FROMONT CHRIS]

Put your trust in France at cmv@cmv.net can give you some advises about aluminium boats
Christine

Originally Posted by texasboatbuild

i want to build a 14 foot aluminum boat for fishing in a small creek by my house i need all the info and help i can get thank u

[Fishon413]

Here is a great web-site for ideas! http://www.myjonboat.com/featured_boats.htm

[Claus Riepe]

One very innovative and very well performing aluminum boat is being built in Netherlands.
Lookup www.innovaar.nl . The boat name is 'Alife'.

That boat is even more than it seems. In particular, it has a water ballast system built in. It can be sailed, rowed -and raced- with the ballast tank dry, and it can weather a blow with the tank full.

We have seen it perform perfectly under single hand at Dorestad Raid 2005 where it won the special achievement prize in very windy conditions.

Looks good too.

Claus