This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009 at 9:55 pm and is filed under boat building. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
any boat building tips?
i am building a 8 ft jon boat any tips its wooden and im kinda on a low budget 
one tip, make sure you have enough life jackets on board when you take it out. Another is that since you’re on a budget I’m guessing your not going to seal the wood with epoxy, so make sure you get a GOOD Marine finish/paint for the boat. This is one spot you don’t want to be conservative with. I’m also guessing you’re not going to be steaming and bending the wood very much, so try to keep your curves to an absolute minimum. Seal every joint well during the construction, and put some sealer at every fastner, so if you’re putting a screw in, put a drop of whatever sealant you’re using there before you start the screw, this way you take the sealant into the hole with the screw. Make sure to put a center board down the middle of the keel, this will help the boat track straight, and also if you’re running it onto the beach, it will take the wear instead of the bottom of the boat, a piece of 2×2 trimmed up should work well.
Good luck with it
5 Responses to “any boat building tips?”
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December 24th, 2009 at 3:08 am
one tip, make sure you have enough life jackets on board when you take it out. Another is that since you’re on a budget I’m guessing your not going to seal the wood with epoxy, so make sure you get a GOOD Marine finish/paint for the boat. This is one spot you don’t want to be conservative with. I’m also guessing you’re not going to be steaming and bending the wood very much, so try to keep your curves to an absolute minimum. Seal every joint well during the construction, and put some sealer at every fastner, so if you’re putting a screw in, put a drop of whatever sealant you’re using there before you start the screw, this way you take the sealant into the hole with the screw. Make sure to put a center board down the middle of the keel, this will help the boat track straight, and also if you’re running it onto the beach, it will take the wear instead of the bottom of the boat, a piece of 2×2 trimmed up should work well.
Good luck with it
References :
December 24th, 2009 at 3:21 am
As the other guy mentioned,be sure to seal all the joints real good..I built one years ago from plywood and it lasted a long time.I can
t remember what the glue was,but it was a powder type and you mixed it with water..It worked very well..Then I used a high quality marine paint..
Have fun with it and be safe..
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December 24th, 2009 at 3:41 am
1. Work off a set of plans, your own never works out.
2. Don’t build it in your basement
3. Be sure to short sail on first voyage.
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December 24th, 2009 at 3:58 am
2"x8"x8′ pine wood, put 3 braces in the bottom plus the seats, use metal for the bottom,[galvanized sheet tin]
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maint man
December 24th, 2009 at 4:47 am
Although it is not the cheapest, I would suggest White Oak.
It is the most rot-resistant wood out there.
Many of the classic and antique boats are made of Philippine or Honduran Mahogany, but that might be overkill for your project. However, you would have the classiest looking jonboat out there.
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