My adventure to Arkansas...

I didnt come home empty tonight!

To all those that encouraged the 16' I am So happy I went with the 16' seems like it has lots of room, a wide 48" floor. just needs some cleaning. No paint job so no stripping paint. But i do want to paint it. I was worried the old raggedy tires would blow on my 1 hour 20 min drive but they held up, getting ready to hit walmart to see if i can snag some new. It just barely fits in the garage so i can work on it at home. But my dad has a barn on some land outside of town that will be it home eventually.

He said there was some minor leaks like after fishing for a day a small amount of water would be in the floor. I'll run some test tomorrow. I want to do this right and get it fixed up so no issues at all.

Now for the fun, planning and deciding what i am going to do! My front deck will be huge! well compared to what i was fishing out of in my two man. haha but i will have plenty o space!

A boat this size I am tempted to put a console and steering wheel... but i also dont want to over complicate my project and concentrate on decking, painting, storage, maybe a live well (in case of jackpots) and then fishing!

Again thank you to everyone who helped with info on my dozen posts about different boats, and questions.

Turns out the trailer had 2 different size thirds on it. Lol solved that problem with two new ones.

They trailer needs a little lovin so I'm tackeling that first. I'm gonna get that white paint off the fenders and replace some old rusted bolts. Then repaint, which will be good practice for the boat.

good lookin' hull.. congrats on the new addition!

Nice job - please do not paint that boat - it is perfect as is!


Rather then spend hours out of your life painting fix up the rest of it with nice decks, etc, and go fishing!


2/3 of the boat is gonna be in the water anyway and the fish do not care if it has new paint.

Plus, once you paint that you have to maintain that paint - it is gonna chip., fade and get scuzzy


NO PAINT!




BTW - do paint the trailer as that is not aluminum so the paint helps protect it

Congrats Trapper! Patience paid off! Can't wait to see what you do with her!

=D> \/ =D> \/

Thanks guys!

I seen to many good looking boats with nice shiny paint jobs. Plus that's the first thing the wife asked if I was going to paint it. Hehe

Well I'm off to work on the trailer today. Checking the bearings and installing those new tires.

That's a real nice blank canvas to work with!

I wouldn't paint it, paint is just some junk you've got to remove and then fix when you have to work on your boat.

Nice tin.
Are you thinking gas or electric motor?
Looking forward to following your thread.

I know the paint will slow me down and just tempted to give it that fesh clean look... that would last one fishing trip. haha

I want to eventually get a gas motor on the back and foot pedal trolling on the front.

Right now the trailer is kicking my butt. Need new hubs but cant currently find the right ones. Can only get one side off, the other side is overly rusted. if you have any info on finding the right replacement hubs hit my thread " Working on my Boat Trailer"

Nice tin, I would leave it the natural color. Unless your going to duck hunt out of it there is no reason to put paint on it. Can't wait so see how you deiced to mod it. Plenty of ideas here at tinboats to get your jucies flowing.

I can't remember where I saw it,but I saw an un-painted tin that the owner hits with a buffer a few times a year.It looks like chrome!Not my style,but if you're looking for shiny,there you go!

Good job Trapper, I am sure the 16 is gonna be good for ya. The hardest part is patience. I thought I would be done with mine by now, but the more I study this site, the more I take my time and try to do it right. In the end you will be happy with your boat, because you took you time, learned from your mistakes and correct when you can. I would not even be worried about the paint right now. Get all your mod done then decide on the paint. Nothing like a blank pallet to start with...use your imagination....and do it the way you want it. =D>