Another one of "The Poormans" Mods

Whats up guys, Its Rod again with another boat mod. Due to the USW strike going on here at Marathon Refinery in Texas City, I had to place ads on the web to generate some work for me at my shop. I have had a few hits, but mostly just price quotes. Anyhow, I got this 18'er to work on, its a nice rig, but it has been beat up. The owner wants me to fix cracked welds and reinforce with more weld in places. He also wants a front casting/bow hunting deck put on with rails. Here's what I've come up with so far.

Looks a a some! Cant wait to see how it turns out.

Thanks malaki, OK, I got some progress done today on this guys boat, I worked on the front decks rails and I capped the front of the boat with a skin of aluminum plate, the original material was beat up, bent and holes drilled into it, a new layer of plate sure made a difference. The rails are 24" high, he didn't want to go no higher as this is going to be a bow fishing front deck, any higher would get in the way of their bows, I guess, I don't bow fish! Anyway here is the updated pics.

Looks great man, or WICKED AWESOME as only a guy from Bahstin (Boston) can say it ...

And good luck to you for surviving the strike ... been there ... done that ...

Thanx DaleH, For the compliment, hows the weather over there in Boston?

I got a good start on the boat today, then the owners came over and started to quarrel amongst themselves what they wanted to do next. They were happy with the work
I've done so far, but as they were arguing I just sat back n listened, then I started drinkin' beer and lost a few hours of fab time. So overall I didn't get a whole lot done but
thats what happens when you start drinkin' beers. Here's today's progress.

Very nice work indeed. It's always fun to watch other people argue ain't.

TNtroller, yes it is fun to sit back n watch, p.s. thanx for the compliment.
I got back to work on the boat today, I transferred the decks end cap pattern onto the aluminum plate and got that cut out. I then welded the end cap on then the entire deck. It was a nice tight fit along the edges of the hull, made for a nice finished piece. With a little time to spare I started to tig weld the miter welds on the rails, I didn't get finished welding though, will continue tomorrow. Stay tuned, rear deck area is next.

Rainy here in Texas City, hard to get much done. I went to the shop today to work on the boat and try to start on the rear transom area. First off it was full of muck which I had to clean out. My plan is to put a floor in for the gas tank and batteries to rest on, then cover that with a deck. I didn't want to cover the boat floor with out inspecting its integrity and sealing it with some paint or some form of protection. After cleaning/washing out all of the muck, I found the hull to be in real good condition. I only had to weld the rib where the transom support meets as it was cracked. After cleaning,sanding and wire brushing the floor area was ready for a coat of primer which was as far as I got to today. It will be ready for a topcoat then I can begin to cover it up. Also in the last pic check out this 22', 1/4" thick monster that came in for work.

OK, I got started on the rear floor area for the batteries and gas tank. The floor is in and the top bracing is off to a good start. Here's updated pics.

any new pics of progress? cant wait to see how this turns out.

I completed the work these guys wanted, I cant tell you how many hours I had in this build. I went the extra mile to do an exceptional job for these guys as I know, and work with one of them. Lord and behold when it came time for my fee, they balked, geez talk about taking the wind out of you sail, I did this job way way cheap as it was, but to have em question my fee, really shows how people are. He was even saying I was too high without even seeing the final product. Had no idea what all was done. Anyway here's my finished work. They are going to have to find someone else to do their work from now on.

Hope you got enough $$ up front.

Dude, that is amazing work and yes, people are screwed up. No one realizes how much goes into doing projects like this until they have actually done the work themselves.

It's sad how many people don't have respect for things done by hand and the amount of time and skill involved. They see all the shoddy cheap crap from overseas and think everything should be that cheap.

There's a guy around me that has about 100 boats in a few acre lot, I asked if any were for sale because of the few good looking tins I've seen sitting there for years and it turns out that all of the boats on the yard are boats that he worked on that were never paid in full. I say you keep that good looking work you have until they come up with the money!

100 boats?, I don't feel so bad now................LOL

If I can get a pic I'll post it up, it's seriously amazing. I've driven through it a few times and looked at some nice antique tins on It

In Eastern TN, near Crossville, there is a boat dealer who also has 50 or 75 tinnys in his yard. When I asked the yard guys what was going on....they told me that many of them were brand new, but had never been sold. Strange, but true. richg99

Man that's sick work, you've got great fab & welding skills bud.

derek, yea see if ya can get some pics of that yard, that is amazing.

Rich, how ya been? ya think some of those tins can still be had?

Gators, thanx for the compliment.