12ft alumuim boat modifications?????

[jesse34567]

over the weekened i purchased a boat and i am starting to think about some modifications that can be done to it like storage etc if u guys could give me some ideas that would be great



i well post some pics later as this morning i have to get to school.....

[tonyflyfish]

a carpeted plywood cover over the area between the back seat and the transom to hide batteries and give me an area to lay out tackle etc. It is removable for transport. I put a carpeted plywood deck on the floor between the back and middle seat with a pedestal and elevated seat. I searched "jon boat modifcations" and got ideas. I especially like the deck at the back for laying things out. I also bought some fly box liners with sticky backs to put on the side of the boat and I put hooks there to see what I have used and might try next.

[jesse34567]

here is the boat upside down




here is the boat before steel brush



after steel brush



here is a few more pics

[Baitcaster]

If your like me with more time than money, I would suggest putting a little time into comfortable seating front and back and coat the inside for asthetics and resale. I wouldn't wait, these two items make a world of difference for the hours you will be in there.

[jesse34567]

i plan on sand blasting the inside and leaving it without paint i am going to also paint the seats blue and add some swivel seats fish finder rod holders etc..

i was also planning to build a storage compartment between the back seat and the transom for the battery and tackle boxes etc

[Baitcaster]

Sounds like a good plan.

[LacLaBicheNS]

from my experience..

I always find alum boats VERY uncomfortbale to sit and cast from if they don't have a raised pedastal seat. Without them your legs get cramped and it's hard to cast because you are so low.

That being said, build the storage compt at the back and throw on a ped seat on it. then build the same thing up front for a second seat. you will love the extra storage you will have too!

My unlce had a nice ad on to his alum boat. He boat a big cooler and put in a areator and a bilge pump and made a livewell/bait bucket. He just flopped the hose over board when he needed to fill/drain it. He built it into a casting deck/seating area in the front of his boat.

[jesse34567]

thanks that's a great idea


but at the back won't u be blocking the outboard

also how much weight to do u think the boat well hold cause i can't find the specs

[Reeves1]

Hard to say with just looking at the picture, but the transom (wood) looks rotten.....

[jesse34567]

yup i well be looking to replace the transom

[Big Red 250]

What I did with my S14 lund was I cut the wooden top of the center seat so that there was 2 openings about 16 in long by 6 or 8 in wide. Ithen removed all the styrofoam floation out. I attached the wood I had removed with piano hinges. I use the space for storage, such as tackle box, anchor, safety kit, 12 volt battery for my electric trolling motor. I don't worry about the missing styro for the floatation as I don't plan on swamping my boat (LOL). I find the hinges last about 5 years befor needing replacing as they tend to get rusty.

[pecker]

Originally Posted by jesse34567

i plan on sand blasting the inside and leaving it without paint i am going to also paint the seats blue and add some swivel seats fish finder rod holders etc..

i was also planning to build a storage compartment between the back seat and the transom for the battery and tackle boxes etc

i would do some research on sandblasting an aluminum boat . just my thought-- good luck .

[Mayhem]

When I had my SSV 14 I covered the bench seats and removable floor sections I built with with vinyl decking (home depot), cleanup is a snap. Your boat looks pretty flat on the bottom, so you probably don't need a floor.

As for storage, you probably won't have too much room for any in a 12'er but you could probably make a bow compartment using the bench seat for support. I wouldn't go with too tall a pedestal seat as smaller boats tend to rock back and forth quite a bit even in small waves. Whatever you build use stainless steel hardware, and don't use pressure treated wood, it will react with the aluminum.

Take it out fishing a few times to get a feel for what will work for you. I will try to find some pics for you.

Green 3M scrub pads work well for refurbishing aluminum

[Mayhem]

Jesse, here is a link for you. It's a bit over the top but there is some good ideas though.

http://correllconcepts.com/boat_conversion.htm

[2big4u]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

Jesse, here is a link for you. It's a bit over the top but there is some good ideas though.

http://correllconcepts.com/boat_conversion.htm

There are some great ideas there. Now I need a boat.

[Baitcaster]

That boat has inspiring ideas for sure Mayhem, I for one appreciate the reading material!

[Waxy]

Originally Posted by Mayhem

Jesse, here is a link for you. It's a bit over the top but there is some good ideas though.

http://correllconcepts.com/boat_conversion.htm

WOW.

That guy put some serious time and effort into that thing.

Seems crazy to me to do that with an 18' boat, why not just buy a fully rigged walleye boat (Pro V type) to start with? Seems to me you actually get more for around the same cost and time. To each his own though, and if that's exactly what he wants, then kudos to him for making it happen.

Now, if you're looking to maximize the "fishability" or a 12' or 14' aluminum, then I can totally understand, I did the same with my 14' aluminum. Here's some ideas for you that I did to mine, unfortunately, I don't have any pics.

- Added a bow cap that I could solidly mount a quick release bracket for my electric trolling motor onto. Bow mount is way better than transom IMHO when it comes to boat control in most situations where you'll be fishing in a 14' boat.

- Added a raised floor. BIG improvent, no more concerns about gear getting wet in the bottom of the boat, and most importantly, the floor was level and had good grip, so your footing was never in doubt when moving around the boat. I just used treated lumber and plywood. For non-slip coating, I mixed clean sand with the paint to provide traction, it works great.

- Added raised swivelling seats. A must for comfort.

- Added a "bracket" to secure the 12V battery for the trolling motor and ran permanent wires for easy in/out.

- Added a swivelling bracket for the sonar so it could be seen from everywhere in the boat and ran permanent wires to the battery for power.

Any other little things you can do to organize make a huge difference too, oar locks, anchor storage, safety gear storage, etc...

Anyhoo, hope that helps a bit, sorry about not having any pics.

Waxy

P.S. I always intended to add drawers under the seats for tackle storage, but I ended up getting a new boat before I got around to it.

[jesse34567]

thanks waxy some great ideas

[Mayhem]

Good to hear you guys enjoyed the article...just shows what can be done if you have the time and skills. I seriously considered going this route but time is money, so I ended up going to a bigger boat w/more horses and I'm happy I did.

I also did do a few mods similar to those mentioned on the 14'er I had and it greatly improved the fishability with two or three in the boat. I would have to say the raised flat floor made the biggest difference, and any kind of storage is a plus.

I realized though that if I added any more weight I wouldn't have enough power to get up on plane and also with two kids as well basically outgrew the boat.

[deanmc]

Originally Posted by Big Red 250

What I did with my S14 lund was I cut the wooden top of the center seat so that there was 2 openings about 16 in long by 6 or 8 in wide. Ithen removed all the styrofoam floation out. I attached the wood I had removed with piano hinges. I use the space for storage, such as tackle box, anchor, safety kit, 12 volt battery for my electric trolling motor. I don't worry about the missing styro for the floatation as I don't plan on swamping my boat (LOL). I find the hinges last about 5 years befor needing replacing as they tend to get rusty.

I know a few people that swamped boats. None of them planned to do it and they were all happy to have styrofoam. All the storage in the world doesnt matter if its in the bottom of the lake.