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| I'm in final negotiations to buy my dad's "extra" boat, a 14-15 foot Lund with an 8 horse Yamaha, with bench seats.
I think I want to "remodel" it this winter--maybe pull out the benchs,add a floor, seats, add a depth finder. Anyway, I've been looking for some internet resources (or books) that provide some guidance. So far I haven't run across anything helpful.
Or, if anyone has done this who has any pointers or pitfalls to avoid, etc., it would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks,
Bill |
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| Take a look at the seats to make sure that they aren''t the only floatation in the boat. The seats maybe reinforcing the
boat''s sidewalls. You take away the seats the sides may be very flimsy. All the hardware that you choose to use must be stainless steel, bolts, washers, nuts, screws, hinges, pins, etc.
The stainless steel costs a little more but is well worth it to eliminate rusting. The decking should be marine plywood and atleast 1/2" thick if not more. Consider the overall balance of the finished product so that you make the boat front end heavy or tail heavy. You may have to relocate your gas tank to help balance out the new boat. Good Luck. |
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| A buddy of mine had a 16' starcraft and just laid a treated floor between the seats. I am not sure you want to cut and modify it too much. Like steve said, weight, flotation and strucure strength can all be altered for the worse not to mention resale. I would not do anything to it that you cannot undo to it. |
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| I have to agree that cutting any of the seats out would probably end up being a big mistake. I used to have an old Appleby 14.5'' rowboat with a 9.9HP that I put treated 3/4" plywood from the front seat to the second seat to make a casting deck. I attached it with hinges so I could lift it up to get access underneath for storage area. I also put the plywood on the floor in between all the remaining seats for a flat comfortable area to stand and cast from. I added some cheap marine grade carpeting to all the plywood pieces and it worked out great. I also bought some seats with swivel bases and bolted one to the back seat and one with a 9" pedistel base to the new front deck. Like the other post mentioned, use ALL stainless steel hardware in your modifications. Good luck. |
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| check this book out. I believe it has what you are looking for. I would suggest you get the downloaded version-it has better pictures.
http://www.hydrillagorilla.com/ |
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| I have an Aluma Craft model "K" that I had completely done over by Custom Rigging's at White Bear Lake, Minnesota. I purchased my boat during the mid sixties. It's a 16 footer and through the years I've really become attached to it. Custom Rigging's is operated by Stan Berry. I found the add in last year's Minnesota Fishing Regulation Book. I noticed when purchasing my Minnesota License this season that it's advertised again in the regulations. They really did a first class job. I had a casting deck added in the front. The middle bench seat was removed, and pedestal seats, a carpeted floor, and a jack plate were installed. My boat was designed for a short shaft motor and I purchased a new long shaft before having it modified. I wasn't sure if I'd keep the boat or not but after the great job they did with it I wouldn't think of getting rid of it. To me it was well worth the trip down there to have the work done. |
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| Thanks for the help/suggestions guys. I'm at least alerted to some of the issues I'll face. I'll still probably do some remodeling, but maybe not as much as I originally thought.
Thanks,
Bill[:bigsmile:] |
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