Idontnadeau
Member
- Messages
- 3
- Reaction score
- 0
- Points
- 10
- Boat Make
- Other
- Year
- 2014
- Boat Model
- Other
- Boat Length
- 14
Hello all,
My name is Mike and I am new to this forum, or any forum to be honest. Thank you very much for having me. I’m located up in Northern BC Canada. I apologize for the long winded questions but I wanted to give as much information as possible.
I’m new to the jet boating scene and am hoping to gain some insight and recommendations from this forum. Thank you in advance for any advice and knowledge passed on.
I recently took a chance and purchased an all welded aluminum boat sight unseen and had it delivered up to me prior to viewing it.
The boat is 14.5 ft long, 60” bottom, 72” beam with a tunnel Hull. The boat has 5 degree reverse chines. The bottom is fabricated with 3/16” and the sides are .100 thou. It came on a 2013 Karavan boat trailer and included a 1994 Mercury 35 HP outboard with a jet leg. The seller informed me that the boat was built in 2014 as a side project by a welder/fabricator who builds ocean boats in southern BC.
I purchased this boat as a replacement to my 1978 Lund C-12 that my wife and I loved to fish out of. We now have a brand new son and wanted to continue fishing in something more stable with more room for diapers lol.
My intention for this boat is to mainly use it as a fishing/family outing boat, as well as take it hunting down the various rivers in my area.
My first question is in regards to the correct transom height. From the top of the transom mount to the bottom of the original designed tunnel is 20”. The previous owner found that the jet was cavitating as the leg was too low below the tunnel. Rather than installing a jack plate or raising the transom, he fabricated a modified tunnel and welded it over the existing tunnel himself. This lowered the tunnel by approximately 2 inches and fits the jet leg well as you can see in the photos.
I’d like to purchase a long leg 9.9 outboard prop motor and have that installed on the transom 90% of the time as there are many fishing lakes in my area with a 10 hp engine maximum. Then, when I plan on hunting or exploring the rivers I intend on putting the old merc 35 jet back on. Will a 9.9 long leg work on this tunnel Hull if adjusted to the right height for fishing purposes ? I’m no speed demon, but I do want to ensure my boat is operating efficiently
Would you recommend that I leave the modified tunnel in place which extends the transom to 22” to the bottom of the tunnel? Would it be better to cut the modified tunnel out and install a jack plate so I may adjust the different motors accordingly ? If I do cut out the modified tunnel and return the boat to its original design, will it leave the Hull in a weaker state as it has been previously welded? I have very little experience working with aluminum. Is this something that I can cut out using a Zip disk and clean it up flush with an aluminum flapper wheel? Or does it need to go to a boat fabricator to complete ?
I’ve included photos of my transom. The top plate of the transom is a single layer of .100 thou aluminum. This seems strange to me as most of the boats I’ve been on have a 1.5”-2.5” transom thickness. Does my transom need to be reinforced or do you figure it’ll do it’s job in the state it’s in? The 35 hp jet hangs off the transom with the clamps and is then bolted on the bottom.
Thanks for all the insight, I really appreciate any help or expert advice I can get on this boat. I’m eager to learn more about this topic.
My name is Mike and I am new to this forum, or any forum to be honest. Thank you very much for having me. I’m located up in Northern BC Canada. I apologize for the long winded questions but I wanted to give as much information as possible.
I’m new to the jet boating scene and am hoping to gain some insight and recommendations from this forum. Thank you in advance for any advice and knowledge passed on.
I recently took a chance and purchased an all welded aluminum boat sight unseen and had it delivered up to me prior to viewing it.
The boat is 14.5 ft long, 60” bottom, 72” beam with a tunnel Hull. The boat has 5 degree reverse chines. The bottom is fabricated with 3/16” and the sides are .100 thou. It came on a 2013 Karavan boat trailer and included a 1994 Mercury 35 HP outboard with a jet leg. The seller informed me that the boat was built in 2014 as a side project by a welder/fabricator who builds ocean boats in southern BC.
I purchased this boat as a replacement to my 1978 Lund C-12 that my wife and I loved to fish out of. We now have a brand new son and wanted to continue fishing in something more stable with more room for diapers lol.
My intention for this boat is to mainly use it as a fishing/family outing boat, as well as take it hunting down the various rivers in my area.
My first question is in regards to the correct transom height. From the top of the transom mount to the bottom of the original designed tunnel is 20”. The previous owner found that the jet was cavitating as the leg was too low below the tunnel. Rather than installing a jack plate or raising the transom, he fabricated a modified tunnel and welded it over the existing tunnel himself. This lowered the tunnel by approximately 2 inches and fits the jet leg well as you can see in the photos.
I’d like to purchase a long leg 9.9 outboard prop motor and have that installed on the transom 90% of the time as there are many fishing lakes in my area with a 10 hp engine maximum. Then, when I plan on hunting or exploring the rivers I intend on putting the old merc 35 jet back on. Will a 9.9 long leg work on this tunnel Hull if adjusted to the right height for fishing purposes ? I’m no speed demon, but I do want to ensure my boat is operating efficiently
Would you recommend that I leave the modified tunnel in place which extends the transom to 22” to the bottom of the tunnel? Would it be better to cut the modified tunnel out and install a jack plate so I may adjust the different motors accordingly ? If I do cut out the modified tunnel and return the boat to its original design, will it leave the Hull in a weaker state as it has been previously welded? I have very little experience working with aluminum. Is this something that I can cut out using a Zip disk and clean it up flush with an aluminum flapper wheel? Or does it need to go to a boat fabricator to complete ?
I’ve included photos of my transom. The top plate of the transom is a single layer of .100 thou aluminum. This seems strange to me as most of the boats I’ve been on have a 1.5”-2.5” transom thickness. Does my transom need to be reinforced or do you figure it’ll do it’s job in the state it’s in? The 35 hp jet hangs off the transom with the clamps and is then bolted on the bottom.
Thanks for all the insight, I really appreciate any help or expert advice I can get on this boat. I’m eager to learn more about this topic.
