16' Steel Jon Boat

He says he can weld and has a welder . His questions are about what to build. He hasn't asked for welding lessons.

 

I have seen a purse seiner that had a 16 ft launch on board. It was all stainless steel. Beautiful looking work boat. I bet it was costly though.

 

plate, or with "corrugations" ?

 

It was plate and looked heavy. Had a Hamilton jet but I don't know no what motor.

 

It would be heavy alright, probably the true stainless alloys are not suitable for boat hulls, may 'work harden' and crack with flex, there has to be a reason(s) they are never (almost) seen, apart from the material cost.

 

About 5 years, equally as much aluminum as steel. I'm no expert but I can lay even beads with good penetration. Only have one machine atm. L-tec migmaster 250

 

Also thank you guys for all the replies. Do y'all have a recommendation on a specific plan I could convert to steel? If not, where would be a good place to start my research on designs?

 

Convert to steel means new project, because is not possible take an design in plywood or fiberglass and make it in steel: the difference of load is very big even using little thicknesses.
So steel boat only 16' long, needs to be designed for steel.
The good place to start your research is here.
Maybe PAR, or someone else, expert in imperial quote, can to design it.

 

Custom plan for a steel 16' jon boat will cost more then building one out of wood.

 

Wasn't the qe 2 hull all stainless. The most expensive hull ever built at that time.

 

You might consider getting the Linde/Esab spool gun or similar after-market gun and rethink aluminum. If you're patient you might find one on fleabay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/ESAB-ST-23A-Mig-Spool-Gun-/191031923681

If you're dead set on steel, I would suggest that you test your comfort zone on welding thin material. Someone suggested 16ga. which is what say, 3" exhaust tubing is made of. You've got a great machine there to do the work so that is not going to be an issue.

Another thing about steel is that if the mill scale is not removed any paint won't last long in a marine environment. Most big boat builders use pre-abraded and primed plate. In the past it was not unusual for builders to let plate 'weather' (rust) before using because light rust is easier to deal with than scale.

 

I've got a tweco mig gun, just don't have the liner and consumables for aluminum. I would rather make an aluminum boat but I really just won't have the cash for the materials for a while. I get steel given to me at work for free and it just seems like a cool project to do. I just put a complete exhaust on my truck and welded it with the mm250. Did great on 2 1/4" exhaust. I could even downsize to .023 wire if there was an issue. I may just wait for the cash to get aluminum if y'all think steel may be too much for a first timer.

 

Steel building the ship, according to what you say, it will be easier and cheaper for you. Since then the steel is heavier than aluminum, 7850 kg / dm3 against 2700 kg / cm3, but that does not mean that the vessel is 2.9 times heavier because the thickness of steel will probably be lower than with aluminum. Anyway, you can play with the size of the boat (maybe increase a little, very little, her length) to absorb the additional weight.

 

A push only gun just doesn't work well with small dia. AL wire. A lot of the wheel builders use a push gun but a short whip (10') and large dia. wire. That's why I suggested the spool gun. You will likely only meet frustration using a push only and .035 wire, say.

OK, steel it is. So, what exactly does 'free steel' mean? Scrap and drops? Does the Co. you work for have a press brake? You mentioned 1/8" material; does that imply something?

IMO, Tansl is correct about how to look at the weight issue.

 

I got you, I was unaware of the push gun problem. We use a spool gun for our mig machines at work so that explains why. No scraps, they don't mind ordering steel when I do projects. Yes, I do have access to a brake. I work at a semi truck trailer repair shop so I may have access to several useful things. It didn't imply anything, just a real bad attempt to sound like I knew a correct thickness to use. I could definitely get a hold of a 16 ga. sheet.