Koditten's ZT mower-guided ramblings-shop journal

Got her cleaned up.

Pulled the old flooring and floatation. It was all water logged.

This thing has been a pine needle storage unit for far, too long.

I might flood it tomorrow to see where there are leaks...

 

You need flex seal!

 

Only once you replace the hull with screen doors

 

I have aluminum welding abilities. Flex seal is not something I will ever have on hand.

 

Looks like it’s gonna clean up good

 

Need to find some oars and I'm taking it out on the river!

(Decent drift boat oars start around $200 each!)

 

You gonna sell it?

 

I don't think so. I really like doing a river drift. We don't do it often, but it really is an amazingly relaxing afternoon when we do a float.

Of course, if someone offers me the right number, more than likely it will be gone. Lol.

If I get caught up, I'll build me another, then this one will be back burnered. There are things about this one that I'm not completely happy with, so if I get a replacement, it won't be needed so much.

I dunno if I'm describing my thoughts correctly, but hopefully you all get an idea.

 

Random pics pending.

 

How bad of shape is the trailer in?

 

It's solid. Will need stripped or blasted. New wiring and lights of course.

Tires won't even make a good spare. They are only good for rolling it around the shop .

 

10-4

 

I should have put each pic in it's own post so I could edit and add text.

1st pic is of replacement "floatation". I actually laughed to myself seeing 4 square feet of 1" foam was enough floatation to earn the coast guard approval for this boat. The only thing that tiny amount of foam will do is keep your feet warm. 1" came out so 1" went back in.

 

I installed the treated plywood over the foam.

I think I'm going to skip using the plastic tread plate tiles that you saw earlier. I can get a piece of indoor/outdoor carpet that I think will work better. It's cheaper and I can have the piece cut to size when I buy it.

 

Was gonna ask you about carpet or something over the plywood

 

Last 2 pics show the boat on my HF furniture dollies. I can move it in and out of the shop easy.

I can then start working on the trailer.

We will see how easy the paint removes with a wire wheel. If it goes decent, I'll give it a quick paint job. The trailer is solid, but it will never look "showroom" pretty. No sense in throwing good money (or time) after bad.

 

I opened up the hubs.

I was very surprised to find that bearings and races show no sign of wear or rust. Rust is usually what kills these boat trailer bearings.

My theory is that no trailer seals will keep the water out. But if a boat is travelled a long distance then parked, the water in the hub cavities has a chance to evaporate during that couple hour trip. It's the boat trailer that travel 20 miles from the water to being parked are the ones that have a higher risk of bearing failure. The water and grease are mixed, then they separate over the next 6 months. The grease floats and the raw metal parts are now sitting in water. Results are rusted races and bearings.

In short, these boats that live in my area have to make a 100+ mile trek to float a river they were designed for.

Could be bullshit, but I've rebuilt enough trailer spindle/hubs to think it makes sense.