middle seat structural integrity 16' Starcraft

[msasso]

I have a 16' starcraft that I am adding a main deck and upper deck to. I have taken out the middle seat for more space and will be running a 25hp on it. On the left side I am building a box that will tie the front and back seat together. it will hold spearguns and take some of the twist out of the center of the boat once tied to the two bench seats and the floor. My questions is: will this be sufficient or shouuld I also brace the right side of the boat to the floor and subfloor since I took the middle seat out? I can always add it in later after I run it. But I'd like to hear from folks who have done something similar.

this boat will be running the back bays of Long Island and up into some of the inlets on decent days.

https://ibb.co/0YjZs5d click this to see the pic

 

[DaleH]

You should be OK if you add some fore-to-aft rigidity back in. See more here: https://forum.tinboats.net/viewtopic.php?p=486538

Just BEWARE of the potential or 'oil canning' ... if not supported.

...

 

[thill]

Dale said it nicely, with diagrams and everything. If you are adding a front and back deck, you MAY be able to get away without the center seat, especially if you have a sturdy side console similar to the 2nd diagram above, and if the distance between the decks isn't too great.

What HP is your boat rated for, and how much are you going to put on it? If your boat is rated for a 40, and you are going with a 9.9, it won't matter as much unless you sell the boat to an unsuspecting buyer. If it's rated for a 40 and you are putting on a 40, you really need to support it well, or flexing will become a problem. Some boats like that don't have gunwales, and will be all over the place when you hit a wake or chop. A 4" gunwale adds a lot of rigidity to the sides of the boat.

I'm working on a 16' Starcraft also. Mine initially looked like picture 1, but with no center bunk. When I got it, it looked like picture #3. But mine has the wide gunwales, so it opens up my options. I just installed the main deck on mine, and am considering decking and seating options.

Whatever you choose, I hope it works out great for you.