How should i restore it? What wood? what should i use to seal the bottom?

15ft v-hull. how to restore it?

I have a 15ft v-hull.don't know the maker. i had just stripped it down. what now?

 

Whats the cheap wood i could use on the transom?

 

Can you give us your opinion of all the things you see that might need replacement or fixing. The general condition of the boat and what would be great is close up pictures of the boat or areas you think might be problems. Transoms are usually made from plywood using 2 layers to achieve the thickness. Exterior plywood is the cheapest but needing only 2 layers then Marine ply is the way to go---but what else is needed? Where is Oliver Springs in relation to Knoxville. Moved here a year ago from the Oregon coast.

 

Not to far from here. just about 35min. and i know i have to seal the bottom it leaks around the rivets. transom. would need new seats. thinkin about puttin a deck up front.probly paint it. The trailer needs new hubs maybe.

 

That looks to be a riveted aluminum, warped bottom powerboat, probably about 14 - 16' long. All the wood used on that boat would have been plywood, marine grade.

Since you're looking to do things on the cheap, use Lowe's/Depot plywood, but listen carefully, so you don't mess it up. The transom should have 2 layers of 3/4" ACX, with the grain running from side to side. DO NOT substitute any other plywood, such as OSB, MDF or CDX. These other grades have no business on your boat. The 2 layers of 3/4" plywood is good up to 100 HP outboards. The seats can be made with the same stuff, though this is a bit heavy, so use 3/8" on the sides and 3/4" on the top, again the grain needs to run from one side to the other, not fore and aft.

It would also be a very wise thing to build a splash well. Use 3/8" plywood for this. Glue and screw everything together with epoxy and stainless screws. It looks like you have enough tabs and stringers left to screw the wood to. Paint all the wooden surfaces with a good quality oil paint (3 coats or more of primer and 3 coats or more of colored top coat). This will get you going and not for a lot of money.

If you want your plywood to last, do not put down carpet. Carpet is for little girls and one of the fastest ways to rot out your boat.

If it's leaking around the rivets, this usually means the boat is "spent", done, **** canned, like asking for sex from your ex-wife. You can "seal" the bottom, but this doesn't fix the problem, which is "egged out" rivet holes. You could try pouring epoxy onto a freshly ground clean boat bottom, but this is the same crap shoot as sealing it. It'll work for a while, but then start leaking again, but this time it'll have a bunch of cracked, broken out and brittle epoxy around each rivet that needs to be dealt with too.

 

Well its very small leak. i just wanted to stop it before it got to be a problem. and a splash well. and could u seal the bottom with tar?

 

You seal the bottom with lots of stuff, like your aunt Millie's mashed potatoes, though some things are better then others. Tar could work, though not the best choice for Aluminum. If you know which rivet(s) are leaking you can try to re-seat them with a hammer and a bucking iron. Basically, you back up the rivet with the iron and beat the hell out of it to smash it back down, hopefully sealing up the loose seam. It works about 50% of the time, depending on how well the buck fits the rivet.

Goo is you bets choice, such as epoxy, though it likely will not last if the boat sees much service. Aluminum "moves" quite a bit with temperature changes, much more the regular epoxies. G-Flex might be an option here as it can absorb the movement and still maintain grip on the surface.

 

Ok. But how high of a hp could i put on it when its restored?

 

Without more information, it would only be a guess. Length, beam, make, year, model, etc. That type of hull shape will start to pound heavily around 30 knots, so what ever you put on it that will push it past 30 knots is just a waste of HP, because you'll throttle back to save your kidneys and dental fillings.

 

Could putting weight up front help that? like if i built deck and mounted a swivel seat. and put a trolling motor up front?

 

I would be curious to see how this stuff Aluthane works. Supposedly great for old boats. Get some of their MIO Powder and their flexible grade epoxy to have actual aluminum filler. Top coat with Aluthane (urethane base) or easily custom mix an epoxy version. The Aluthane sticks well and performs more like paint but the epoxy would make a better all around sealer (which is your main concern).

Better yet, just get a whole 1.5 gallon kit of the epoxy and big bag of aluminum powder. Go three or four coats and build it up nice.

http://www.epoxyproducts.com/aluthane.html

Read the testimonials for this stuff.





http://www.epoxyproducts.com/aluthane.html

 

I know you didn't just say 1/3 of an inch
I'm guessing 1/2 is what you meant

just following along
B

 

Yes, I did say 1/3" though I meant 3/8", which just happens to be about 1/3" anyway. It's changed to 3/8".

That product listed, is paint with aluminum oxide (filler) in it. Paint isn't going to cure anything, though it might mask it for a short time. Testimonials are like ex-wives, pleeease, they say anything just to shut you up.

Adding weight to your boat just decreases load carrying capacity and top speed. Without a boat weight, length and other general dimensions, engine size is a guess and inappropriate to suggest. From the looks of her, she's not designed for much power. A 20 HP will make it go as fast as you'll need it to, before she wants to pound herself to death. In short, it's not a high speed hull shape, so think small HP.

 

You might want to look at http://www.grizzlygrip.com/boats.asp. I don't have any experience with it but it does look like it could be what you are looking for.

 

Polyurethane coatings like truck bed liner will temporary seal up the boat, plus add a huge amount of drag with the textured coating. I can only imagine how much more effort it takes to paddle that canoe on their site.

The problem is the leaks are a mechanical issue and coatings will just band-aid it for a while.