# Aluminum boat question!



## justindfish (Dec 5, 2008)

HI, guys I love yalls site I've been lurking for a few months and like what I see.  Before I start with my question heres a little background.  I live in Texas on the Texas/Louisian border baisicly the north end of Sabine Lake lots of fishy back marsh and more than enough black mud no powder white sand here.  My motor died on my 14' jon boat a few years back and I haven't messed with it since, I started using kayaks.  Well now I can't get to all of the spots that I want to get to for tailing reds (now you know why I'm here!)  I need distance capabilities and shallow water capabilites.  

So I've looked at all the skiffs from the Gheenoes to Gordon Boat works.  I love the BTX but its a little to much $$$.  So I found the CopperHead and it's awsome even talked with Mel about it.  The problem that I have is around here in the marsh where I will be fishing there is a lot of oyster and there is a lot of commercial/industrial trash in the water thanks to Rita and Ike there is even more also old piling and stuff from the years past of old docks and such with a little rebar mixed for good measures. 

So from this I have decided that I'm going with custom built aluminum.  I know they are louder and heavier but the good thing its it is a 1/8" hull so it will be much quieter than your standard boat plus it has a floor and is foam filled between the floor and hull to quiet it down more. The bow tappers for a mod V to a flat hull with a long smooth rake and has strakes like a standard aluminum boat.  My question is at 16' long and 60" wide with float boxes how well do yall think it will pole (ive never poled a boat before only mykayak) and is there anything that needs to be done to the hull to make it pole better.

These are some pics of a boat baisicly like what I'm looking at there totally custom built one at a time to customers specs anything imaginable can be done.  This boat is 16' long and 60" wide has a stepped rear hull instead of a tunnel it works just as well and the boat handles like a non tunnel boat.  I would be haveing float boxes put on mine and a poling platform in the rear.  In the front I would extend the deck out to 8' from the bow this one is only 6' then have 2' extension on each side of the deck for rod boxes since there is a 18 gallon tank in the front they wouldn't fit all the way under. Then I would put a live well between the rod boxes up against the deck a little lower that the deck to also use as a step onto the deck and for sure have the deck hatched flushed in instead of raised.  Lastly a Yeti strapped longways in the middle and sea deck on every horizonal surface on the boat for the heat and sound.  Oh and a 60hp Yamaha 4 stroke.  The boat in the pic has a 40 merc 2 stroke with no float boxes and drafts 6"  and runs in 4", with two guys loaded with decoys it will run 31-32mph, empty it will run 37 mph I figure with the big 4 stroke and float boxes I should draft about 6" and have a top speed in the low 40's empty and mid 30's loaded.  

Any comments good bad or in between would be appreciated about my ideas.


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## skinny_water (Jun 11, 2008)

Ya sound like a noe owner. Your going to run out of space on that thing! You need to think about putting something on your deck, like carpet or seadek to cut out some of the clanging. The wost thing in the world is to be sitting on the edge of a school of monster reds, and ya bump your pliers down onto the deck and CLANG!!! Redfish are gone.

Everything will pole, just how hard are you willing to work. The main thing is you need to think about weight distribution. So when you are stopped your boat is balanced in the water. If the boat isn't balanced you are going to have tracking issues, even on an easy day. You might have alot of issues just starting out with a 60 4stroke on that small of a boat. Save the weight and go with a 40.

Have fun on your project boat, and good luck.


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## pescador72 (Aug 6, 2008)

Agreed. Skinny is the on money. Think about doing Line X on the bare floor and walls which will dead sound some and then you can go with Sea dek over the areas you will walk on. I would NOT do carpet...I hate that stuff. Whatever you decide on the power plant, get a jack plate. I have had good experiences with CMC. Here some pics of my old aluminum bass rig.


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## tom_in_orl (Dec 9, 2006)

Fixed your pics for you.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Now that's a well built aluminum hull... Once you're ready to drop it in the water look closely at just how it floats (which end sits lower...) then carefully position everything you're going to use in the skiff so that it sits exactly level. Now add yourself where you'll actually sit or stand to run it (then you'll see some things will need to be moved around). The heavy items will be gas tank, batteries, and cooler. You'll get a feel for where things actually have to be for your rig to float as shallow as possible... 

Now for the fun part, poling. Some aluminum hulls actually pole better from the bow than the stern. You'll have to experiment a bit to see where it works the best for you. I'd strongly conside a little shorty platform right in front of the motor if you're going to pole from the stern...

Let us know what you come up with, that's a strong looking tin boat.


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## Flyline (Mar 3, 2008)

I wud go for a lineX then sea-deck all over it which is will be very nice.

I will go for 40hp yamaha carburator 4-stroke weigted 183lbs or 50hp yamaha 2-stroke 189 lbs or badass Tohatsu TPDI 50hp 205 lbs and tohatsu is best fuel ecomony as 4-stroke carburator ones.

My choice will be a 50hp Tohatsu 2-stroke TPDI with 4 blade predator S.S propeller with very heavy cupping. Bob's jackplate and shallow water caviation plate.

That'll run very shallow with this set-up.

Put more weight forward on your bow like batteries and trolling motor to balance the load better.


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## iMacattack (Dec 11, 2006)

First - WELCOME - I'll have a Sam Adams Please.. 

That is one stout beer can they have there. My first boat was a little jon boat. What a blast. You have a blank canvas starting with there. I would think through all the different brush strokes you plan to make. Poling boats are set up and rigged a little different than duck boats. They are not mutually exclusive but some features lend themselves to one style of boating than the other. 

Since you a Yacker, one consideration would be to make this a mother ship. You could still run it as a Poling skiff. 










Since your having it custom built now would be the time to decide some options. Flooring being one of them. There are a lot of great products out there from SeaDek which is hugly popular to a product called DECKadence Marine Flooring SeaDek would be great for casting and poling areas and the DECKadence for your cockpit area. Just a thought.

Good luck and keep us up to date with your build. Looks like a great ride for your area.

Cheers
Capt. Jan


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## justindfish (Dec 5, 2008)

Ok, guys thanks for the advice. I'm already planing on putting sea deck on every horizontal part of the boat that can be walked on and inside the storages. But this boat as you can see is not your typical aluminum boat it has a 1/8" thick hull and twice the bracing than a factory boat also it has stringers running longitudinal then cross braces verses just cross braces like most boats. This all adds up to a much quieter and stronger boat along with the space between the floor and hull being sprayed with foam. 

As for the motor I wanted to run the new Yamaha 40hp with fuel injection but I was talking to the builder and he said it will run fine with that motor but with a load in the boat you will want a little more power. Then if you go to a 50hp it weighs the same as 60hp so thats why I want the 60hp since I will be making 5-10 mile runs a lot I want the speed power for bigger water the 40 weighs 214lb and the 50/60 weighs 237lb. As for a jack plate I'm not planing on putting one for two reasons. First I really don't need to run in less than a foot and second when the boat is totally custom the motor fits right with out one since a jack plate also will move your weight back at least 4 more inches back in the boat that is another reason. Even with that big of a motor on the boat I feel fairly certain with the float boxes on the back and 60" bottom I'm going to be able to get the boat floating level.

Any more Ideas or oppinions would be greatly appreciated I know hindsight is always better than foresight.

Oh and thanks for the fixing the pictures.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

Whoever the builder/welder is, that construction is first rate.... If you can post the price range and builder contact info...


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## justindfish (Dec 5, 2008)

> Whoever the builder/welder is, that construction is first rate....  If you can post the price range and builder contact info...


PM sent and if anyone else wants to know something let me know!

Let me have some more ideas and opinions about the boat idea that I have.

On side note I got a price of $6500 drive out on a Yamaha 60hp 4 stroke tiller. Hows that compare to yalls prices in Florida.


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## WhiteDog70810 (May 6, 2008)

I just left Ft Polk, LA and I fished a little in the Sabine NWR prior to leaving. A hydraulic jack plate might be kinda nice out there. I am not big on running on plane in 6" of water, due to all the nasty lower unit eating things you mention, but it is really nice to be able to idle out of the shallow stuff once the tide drops. It can save you a mile or two of push poling and save your batteries for when you really need them.

Nice hull. What is the estimated draft? You already have the fuel and live well up front, so don't commit to where you are gonna put the batteries until you see it float with a full tank and live well and the motor on the back. Like everyone else said, balance the load. 

My dad's old bass boat is a modified vee that goes to almost flat in the rear. Like most bass boats, it is stern heavy because everything is under the stern deck. You have to push pole from the bow, which makes it kinda hard to maintain a straight line. It probably drafts 6" in the rear. If it were properly balanced, it would probably draft 3-4", but it isn't my boat to overhaul.

Nate


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