• If you log in, the ads disappear in the forum and gallery. If you need help logging in or getting registered, send request to: webmaster@southernairboat.com

Riveted hulls

Southern Airboat Gallery Archives

Motor pimped out
new generation
image1208
Scrap Metal at Everglades Holiday Park
FROGS BY SWAMPFOX
Spiker's Rig
M

marshmaster pat

Well-known member
Anyone do any major repairs to a riveted hull? Like replacing a entire bottom sheet of aluminum.

I have done some riveting before and some repairs here and there, but I found an old 12 foot palm beach hull that has some major corrosion on the bottom sheets of aluminum. Runners, ribs, and everything with the frame is in excellent shape. The stand and cage are shot due to rust, but that is not a problem. I think it could be picked up cheap as it has been sitting for a while. Just don't know whether you just seal it with some of the metal body work cements or trust good silicone caulking.

Any hints or suggestions.
 
Is it a full deck?
Is the transom ok?
Does it have polymer on it?
Those questions would impact the difficulty of the repair job.
If the hull is still basically sound, then the bottom could have a new sheet capped down the middle of the hull.
Must of those style boats have two bottom sheets that meet at the center of the hull under the center t-bar, and form the hulls chines and sides.. Usually you can tell this by that bar having twice as many rivets installed, when compared to the other t-bars. This is why it would probably just get a bottom cap installed.
It might be worth fixing if you really want a Palm Beach style boat, as a new 12' full deck can cost as much as 8K for just the hull.
 
It is what we call a 3/4 or 2/3 decked boat, with a front deck and back deck (cage backwards).

It has polymer on it and I replaced polymer before with rivets and bolts, so that is not an issue.

It has two sheets that are riveted down the center, all that seems to be in good shape. It is the front bottom corners, where they splice the side to the bottom and where the two bottom sheet meet the deck sheet metal. It is capped with a stainless steel in each place and that is where the corrosion when crazy. Don't know what is going under the polymer.

Have the air tools. It would just be a long term project, that would produce a fine little boat.

Just don't know what they use to seal the hull in areas where the sheet metal joins together. Any ideas anyone.
 
Pat,

Below is a copy of an add in the trader. He mentions that he has the sealer, so he knows what to use I guess. Maybe you want the whole project. The 7075 T6 is strong stuff.

Jim

Asking_Price: 3,000.00
Owner: BILLY PINKSTON
Address: 12101 188 TH. NORTH
City: JUPITER
State: FL
Zip_Code: 33407
Phone: 561-882-9444\ 561-575-074
Cell_Phone: 561-818-0401
Date: November 25, 2004

I HAVE ENOUGH AIRCRAFT ALUMINUM TO BUILD A 14ft.full deck palm beach type hull, including 2 4x14x.090 7075t6 shts. 24x12x.0502024t3, 2-4x12x.040, 1 4x12x.o63,2 5x10x.250 polymer 100ft. of 2.5x2.5x.090x7075t6 T bar,70ft. 1.25x1x.090 2024t6 ang. and assorted 6061t6 extrusions. approx.20lb.of aircraft rivets, sealer, epoxy coating, patterns, and tec. advice if needed.
 
Jim - I had seen that add and forgot it mentioned sealer. I would be interested, but shaping the T-bars(ribs) made of 7075 T-6 is beyond my ability at this time.

I may call him and ask what he was planning to use as sealer.

What I would like to do one day is completely build a riveted hull for myself. Maybe down the road a few years. Figured this would be a good learning project.

Thanks Pat
 
I like the wide, short, back covered palm beach style just because of the manuverability. Riveted hull with the tall Glades style seating.

Have got to play around with riveting on planes some and done some repairs on boats: one that kissed piling while at cruise and another that flew off a levee in the middle of the night. The second one require us to replace the gunnel, and framing for the front deck and covered transom. It was fun and that 7075 and 6061 T-6 aluminum sheet metal is not bad to work with. Just take it real slow and tap softly. The riveting just requires either older kids that can listen well or a real good buddy.

I have always figured I could hire a wetback and would get a better helper than I could with most my buddies. Getting one of them to back up the bucking bars for more than 30 minutes is just asking to much.
 
Yeah Marshmaster,
Fix that thing.
You might try calling Don Tooten in West Palm. (561)686-2486 "Don's aircraft"
He builds the finest Palm Beach hulls around, and did one fine job on a hull we have that had issues similar to what you've got.
He won't try to rob you, but gets a fair price for high quality work.
I'll post a picture of one of the hulls out of his shop in my gallery.

He may offer some of the best advice, and you may be able to help you get some of what you need. If you need to have the work done, then I am sure he would have to look at it first.
 
Pat,

I like your idea, let's talk numbers. How long, how wide, and how deep, for the ideal Palm Beach hull.

Jim
 
The first rivited airboat that I helped put together had a SPECIAL sealer to use on the seams and where the top and bottom attach to t-bar supports. It was rubbery and had a familiar smell to it. After getting to know some of the old timers, the secret sealer was revealed to be CONTACT CEMENT. It is cheap, easy to use, easy to clean up, and available just about anywhere.
 
Jim,

I want this boat to be a nimble hull with manuverability the top priority. With an 0-540 there will be power to spare. This idea is for a two man rig, very light weight, and high Everglades seating.

Looking at about 12 feet (+ 3 to 6 inches over). Using 2 - 4 X 12 sheets of 0.09 or 0.1 aluminum for the bottom. Thinking of either 6061 or 7075 T-6 for all the sheet metal. According to the engineering specs, that is as strong or stronger than 3/16 marine aluminum (near 1/4's strength) and quite a bit lighter. I would join the bottom sheets to the front deck just prior to the bend for the bow using a double sheet joint of aluminum riveted together with zinc chromate primer to stop corrosion. Working with that gauge is tough but can be done. The width will be about 7 feet (or probably less), with gentle slope on the sides. Would have about 14 inch sides. Front deck would be about 42 deep, and back deck have about 54 inches covered. A 30 inch solid grass rack with another 12 inches SS tubing to help run the tall grass. Got the rivet gun, fans, rivet sets, rivet cutter, cleco fasteners, drills, bits, and assortment of rivets. These might change over time. As I run into other partly covered deck riveted hulls, they think I have nuts taking pictures and a few times measurements.

7 T-bars for runners about 3/16 thick. All the angle for the gunnel, front deck, and supports would be 3/16 thick as well. It will give some additional strength. All hardware will be Stainless.

All aluminum prepped with Alodine, primed with zinc chromate, and then a good double coat of polyuerathane.

Stand and cage would all be stainless.

Only thing holding me back at this point is the ability to bend the T-bars and angle for the hull bottom. That shape is too critical to mess with. And then doing the engine stand. Might end up using Mark's or American for that. So until I learn alittle more about those, I will doing lots of reading and harrassing airboat builders. :lol:

I like the 13 footers, with the extra foot width (or more) added, just for the extra weight carrying capacity. But that requires another sheet or two of aluminum (at around $300 each) and lots more time for fitting and the riveting of the seams.
 
Pat,

Hard chines (square) or soft (rounded)?
Flat sides or rounded?
Will the bottom be flat or some rocker?

Jim
 
Rounded sides and chimes to increase the ease in the turns in grass and ability to slide.

That 7075 and 6061 sheet can handle the slight curve bending while still retaining strength. It also handles repeated flexing much better than most structual aluminum.

The best handling boats seem to have a slightly rounded bottom so I would have a slight curve to the bottom. The flat bottom boats are barges in the dry marsh.

But shaping that T-bars correctly will be tough.
 
Pat,

I seem to have misplaced my pocket engineering guide, but I think 7075T6 is about the same strength as mild steel. It's good stuff.

edit,
I looked it up, 7075T6 is stronger than mild steel, but not as strong as 4130.

When you say rounded bottom, do you mean that looking at the transom from the rear it is rounded as in some dead rise.

Or, do you mean rounded when viewed from the side as in profile view, whcih would be rocker if convex, or hook if concave.

Jim
 
Jim,

Guess it is what you are calling a rocker bottom. The best handling boats I have gotten a chance to get serious hands on, you could set on a concrete shop floor and pivot by hand (maybe some serious pushing, but one man could do it).

Yea, it is some strong stuff, I think the 7075 is slightly more resistant to corrosion.
 
Pat,

Try going to:

http://www.luminum.com/

I didn't mis-spell it. It will tell you all you want to know about the various alloys. You have to navigate their site. I'm sure you can figure it out.

I see your problem with the stringers if you want rocker. They would have a gentle curve. Do the builders actually form T6 stringers? That would not be easy.

Jim
 
Jim - I know of at least two that do, but neither are big name builders. They just build a excellent boat that is custom, but charge a price that is just to high for me to consider (unless I win the Lottery).

That T-6 makes a seriously tough boat. I came off the back side of a levee one night that was supposed to be marked, the only problem my "Guide" had mistaken which marker was his. He had walked the levee about a week earlier and flagged it, we were trying to cover a lot of country and I ignored my gut instint to climb the levee myself. But as I cleared the crest there was no slope of the back side. The hull was from one of those two builders and there was a vertical drop of about 9 feet onto about 6 inches of water. The boat hit on the right side stern, the gunnel and some of the support bars in the back gave alittle, but we drove her home. She is still running fine. The T-bars kept their shape, but the angle for the supports and gunnel had to be replaced. After that I am a believer.

Was considering building a heavy duty wooden jig for the runners and figuring a way to use a hydraulic press to shape them to the jig. But like I said it will be a while before I start.

That is why I started looking for an old hull I could overhaul or rebuild first.

Thanks for the link.

pat
 
I don't know anything about building boats, but we have a Roundo similiar to this one in our shop in Central Florida. You anywhere close?
RoundoRS_AngleLegOut.jpg
 
I have a thurman fulldeckover the angle aluminum is 1/8 thick X 1 X1
the curve your refering to is made by simply using a hacksaw and slicing
the angle then bending slightly and tig welding the slice doing this
about every 2 -3 inches gives a nice semetricial curve. the angles
are 6061 t6 the bottom and sides are 1/16 thick
7075 t6 it is extremly light 11 1/2 foot hull with polymere rivited to the bottom weighing in at less then 200 lbs with the rigging.
The corrision problem your refering to is caused from electrolisis.
stainless and aluminum do not like each other so i would stay
with aluminum if possible. also make certain to have a ground strap
from the rigging and engine stand to the hull to avoid the electrolisis from causing corrision in other words the ground from the battery causes electrolisis from the rigging to the hull. when the boat is in water the
electrical current finds its way thru least resistance to water causing corriosion. so its smart to have a disconnect switch to the battery. turning it off whenever your not running.
if the water your running in is suspected of being acidic or salt better (everglades and lake okeechobee) rinse the hull as best you can when finished running.
I am considering adding zink to my hull so the electrolisis will attack the zink first. Just a few things I have learned in 30 years of fabricating.
hope it helps.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top