Hi, gang!

I'm trying to figure out the best way to paint my aluminum surface in the salt air environment.

Initially I used this method:

1. Alumiprep 33

2. Alodine (Bonderite 1201)

3. Wash primer

However, I noticed that after some time the wash primer layer began flaking off.  

So I'm thinking about using alternate way to prime:

1. 99% Alcohol cleaning

2. a coat of Self-etching primer

3. a coat of Sherwin Williams High Solids Corrosion Resistant Epoxy Primer CM0483928.

Can anyone point me the right way? This seems like an easy topic, but the more I research, the more I'm confused about this topic.

Holy mother of ham someone help me please.

No amount of googling can help me

Please, I just want to know what the windrush boat (yeah that one from 1948) windows were made out of

I am crying rn

I need to find out for apart of my homework

If im in the wrong group or whaever these fandom circlee things are just say

Hello fellow boaters,

I have a question regarding the Boesch Acapulco 580 shaft log.

https://preview.redd.it/kqmspaenzs3e1.jpg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=2089720738a48f3696928d99c7c3284ac1485713

Does anyone know what is the purpose of a small tube marked with a red circle? It goes from the bottom of the boat through hull and comes out here on the shaft log.

Thank you!

Has anyone had luck with 2 stroke outboards from alibaba or similar suppliers throughout Asia?

Hello guys these came up on my marketplace. I want to turn it into a fishing boat is this any good for that? Its a old frence army boat. 5 meter x 1.8 meter.

Anyone know how I can clean this brush? Really appreciate and help.

hey all!

first of all, I know this is a subreddit for boats, but I figured you guys would know the most about wood and how to proof it for water use.

I'm designing a floating platform for festival. The design involves ramps that descend into the water, so that people can crawl onto the raft rather than using ladders. The skeleton will be made of steel, with only the upper deck made of lark wood planks.

this will be tricky as the raft will be constantly tilting as people get on/off it, so the ramp parts will be submerging/surfacing repeatedly, and therefore is more prone to deterioration. the plan is to leave this raft floating on the lake for the rest of the year, under the sun, too.

what kind of treatments can you recommend to keep this wood water proof? any tips? natural finished are prefered.

thank you :)

I purchased a cheap Jon boat recently and it came with a 1988 7.5hp Gamefisher.
I put a new primer bulb on the fuel line when I got it home and put fuel in the tank using 50:1 mix like I read online.
I can get it started and it idles, but idles pretty high. I put a tub of water that barely submerged the propeller and what I think is the exhaust? I let it idle for a few seconds then tried to move the switch into forward to see if it would go into gear. Both times I tried that it would kick and shut off before fully engaging into forward gear. Is this because it’s not fully in water? I have no clue about boats, but I wanted to make sure it would work before putting it in the lake. 
The handle throttle has Slow, Shift, Start, Fast on the base of the handle. I get it started with it cranked all the way on fast then when I let it idle its at the start option. Do I need to turn it to the shift option when I try to put it into forward gear? I can’t remember if I tried that it seemed like as soon as I went down past the start option it just wanted to die. Am I not letting it idle long enough? Previous owner hadn’t used it in a couple of years should I let it idle and warm up for awhile before trying to shift into gear?

I’m totally lost on what to do as this is my first ever boat and I’m learning everything online which is coming to be more difficult than it needs to be. Any help would be appreciated just remember I’m completely clueless on all of this so I’m probably screwing up somewhere.

Thanks in advance!

I'm an amateur woodworker in college right now interested in trying my hand at boat building. I have been woodworking for almost 5 years now and am going to try to build a racing shell. I row crew in college so I'm very experienced with this type of boat and what the layout should be for plans. However I can't find any plans that suit my vision. There is one article by a boat builder who created something that fits what I'm looking to build. However I can't find any plans for something similar. I have tried to get into contact with the builder a couple times for advice on molds but have gotten no response. I'm proficient with autoCAD and made a simple model of it, but I don't want to rush into spending a lot of money on something I'm not sure will work out. Any advice for creating my own plans or for trying to build a replica of a boat based off of a picture? Anyone else choose this route?

Here are some more articles about the boat I'm interested in building

https://www.diy-wood-boat.com/single-scull-boanne.html

https://www.woodenboat.com/boat-launchings/boann

I have an alumaweld with an open bow.

There is storage beneath the bow where the anchor loosely sits now.

I'd like to install an anchor winch and have it hooked up to my battery.

What type of anchor winch is ideal for an open bow aluminum boat used in rivers lakes and coastal ocean. Do I need to have a box welded for the winch to sit in?

Hoping to find someone here who has a manual for the above model that they might be willing to part with or share digitally. Quite happy to pay for postage to New Zealand or something for your time.

I recently bought my first Jon boat and it came with a Yamaha 4Hp 2 stroke motor 2011. I changed out the carburetor . But I’m stuck on which way the fuel valve needs to be turned to. I had it turned to the right and it turned on 3 times and idles then turned off. I can’t seem to find anywhere which way the valve needs to turn to . I’m a newbie at this.

I’m considering the option of experimenting with custom composite safety rails bonded to the deck of a trimaran I’m currently refitting. I wanted to get others' opinions on the idea.

The boat is currently fitted with stainless steel rails, which are nice in many ways. However, the stanchions are wobbly and have allowed water intrusion, leading to some deck rot in certain spots. While it’s not catastrophic, it got me thinking.

Does anyone have examples they can point me toward?

I’m still playing with the idea. I understand the cost will be a significant investment, but the concept seems simple enough. My plan is to build a core model of the rails I want to create and use fiberglass/epoxy prefabbed fiberglass tubing (or carbon tubing if I decide to go fancy) between the custom rail arms.

In theory, this should eliminate the need for future servicing and hopefully solve the issue of water intrusion since the rails will be bonded directly into the deck. My only concern is the potential for flex, which could impact my laminating schedule. Other than that, I’m curious to hear your thoughts

For years now, I've been itching like crazy to dip my toes into boat building. I've found a few easy designs that I like, but they call for marine grade plywood.

I'm not expecting my first boat to be an heirloom piece, carefully preserved in a museum some years after my death as an example of the works of a great shipwright. I just want something that will float, not hurt me, and let me practice some of the things I've been reading about for years.

Varnish lovers, here's your chance to keep me from going to the dark side (paint)!

TLDR: Can I varnish over existing coats if I don't know the type/brand of varnish used previously? How will that look?

I bought a used boat, plywood construction. The boat is mainly varnished (except below the waterline and the bilge). I don't know the brand of varnish. I've reached out to the former owner but he has moved on. It's a light color, a bit orange for my liking. So all I know is it is not a matte or more oily formula.

As I restore this, I am considering varnishing the deck. Currently 80% or so of the deck is nicely varnished and would only need a touch up. I've done a little sanding and the varnish is solidly adhered. The remaining is either peeling or would be areas that I need to remove or move hardware around.

The easiest thing to do would be to scrape the peeling areas, sand everything else a bit, and paint over the varnish. I've checked with the paint company and they say this is okay. This would save me a lot of scraping, and I think adding 2-3 coats of paint would be faster than 8 coats of varnish.

But, can I get away with scraping the peeling areas, building those up, and then re-coating the rest of the deck as in an annual maintenance varnish? Can I do this if I don't know the brand of the existing varnish? Is there any way to figure out how this would look other than buying a small can of my preferred varnish and testing it out?