18' Toon build

[RACER J]

Picked up this basket case yesterday. It actually has all the parts to it, but will probably shit can most of it. Any suggestions from the guys who have re-built these before will be appreciated.
It's an 18' bass buggy with a 75hp mariner, doubt it ever ran with that motor because of the hack job of mounting it and the angle would never work. I plan on building a center pod for it and mounting the motor off it, probably set it back 18" from where it is now. Looks like it's gonna be a long winter and I'll post pictures as I go. My list of things to do is
Add center pod
New wood on the deck and probably build new railing
All new seats
Add lifting strakes to the logs
Re-paint trailer and add another axle.
Underskin the bottom.

 

[Waffles]

Underskin the bottom while you're down there. That's my next add on my 25ftr

 

[AzGeo]

Most "short motor pods" are shaped so badly that they slow the boat's speed a great amount .

It takes quite a bit of "imaginering" to get the short pods to have minimal drag and not lift the transom too high, at speed .

Good luck .

Note; flat bottom center pod, with motor mount . Lowered "chines" hold the water under the flat bottom, and it runs pretty good for just a 140 .

SORRY, the water mark covers it .........

 

[RACER J]

Underskin the bottom while you're down there. That's my next add on my 25ftr

Yep. Forgot to put that on the list!!

 

[RACER J]

Most "short motor pods" are shaped so badly that they slow the boat's speed a great amount .

It takes quite a bit of "imaginering" to get the short pods to have minimal drag and not lift the transom too high, at speed .

Good luck .

Note; flat bottom center pod, with motor mount . Lowered "chines" hold the water under the flat bottom, and it runs pretty good for just a 140 .

SORRY, the water mark covers it .........

I'm planning on forming the center pod like yours with the flat bottom, but more like the way you did the sides with a little angle at the bottom. \__/
Do you have any suggestions on how low to put the chines on the outer pods?

 

[Waffles]

What route are you going with this thing? Party barge? Lounger? All around performance? You have one hell of a clean slate to work off of and the possibilities are endless. Looking forward to seeing this project unfold 🤙

 

[RACER J]

What route are you going with this thing? Party barge? Lounger? All around performance? You have one hell of a clean slate to work off of and the possibilities are endless. Looking forward to seeing this project unfold 🤙

More of a lounger but want as much performance as i can squeeze out of it. Its mostly just me the wife and dog so I figured I didn't need anything bigger than a 18'. Plus I need to be able to tow in behind my 5th wheel and that puts me right at 75'.
The wife already has the new seats picked out and that I had to put in a good stereo system for her, should be a fun build. Probably start tearing it the rest of the way down in a couple of weeks and ordering the aluminum sheets for the center log. Think I'll leave most of the woodwork to my dad, he's a retired contractor and needs something to keep him busy. The plan is to build a new console and put it on the side to free up some floor space instead of having it in the middle like is was.

 

[wsuwrhr]

Lets see some more pictures of the Camaro.

 

[blue2184]

I think they should have used longer screws to put the floor down... [emoji15]

 

[RACER J]

Lets see some more pictures of the Camaro.

Lol. That's my 10 year project!! [emoji57] I started building it for a buddy of mine but he's lost interest in it, working on buying it back from him. Just need come up with a price.

 

[RACER J]

I think they should have used longer screws to put the floor down... [emoji15]

Haha. Ya think!! Sad part is, he put all new wood on it then let it sit outside. [emoji107]

 

[AzGeo]

FLAT on the bottom with the vertical sides going down past the bottom to create "a trapped column of pressurized water", that lifts the whole boat at speed .

My center pod is 27' long, with a rear half of 20' of flat lifting surface (of lesser depth) and a removable "bow piece", that is 7' long with lifting planes and a beaching keel . In this way I can "unbolt, repair, and re-install" when the front portion has damage .

Adding "strakes" will place MORE STRESS on the mounting brackets, tubes, and cross members, where all the LIFTING and TWISTING STRESSES meet the floor/frame .

On that short of a tube, I would get 10' flat aluminum pieces (5052) bent into 110 degree angles (8" bent into 3" by 5" angles) . Four 10' pieces on the front of the tubes (one inner left, one outer left, one inner right, one outer right) about 6" from the lowest part of the tubes lowest point . (mount them BOTH at the same height)

Have them welded 100% on the bottom sides and "chain welded" on the tops . Just add a small (cut and folded) piece to the leading edge of the front ones to make the water flow under them, the 5' pieces also need the fronts closed, but leave all the rears of the strakes open.

Then behind those 4 strakes, I would add 4 more strakes that are 5' long, and mount them 8" high (2"higher than the forward ones) Think like a "stepped bottom boat" . .

Four or three cylinder O/B will require about a 5' to 6' (overall) long pod . Go 24" wide with a 15 to 18 degree transom angle, mount the motor's "ride plate" even with the pod bottom, BUT mount the motor using THE THIRD BOLT HOLES DOWN, so you can raise or lower it in the future .

I would make the new center pod as a "flat bottom", with the leading edge GRADUALLY rolling up to the floor bottom . Any time you make these pods in a "wedge" or "pie shaped" leading edge, they PLOW WATER out to the sides and FLOOD the FLOOR BOTTOM and the OUTER TUBES . (a ton of drag) Just look at how badly Trackers run with their poor pods . (I had one, I know)

IF you mount the outer strakes as I listed (6" and 8") I would mount the new flat bottomed center pod at 4" above the lowest keel of the outer tubes . Mounted this low will allow it to hold all the motor and fuel tanks weights at rest, also allowing some practical use of the motor's power trim . (you wanted to move the motor back, right ?)

Skin the floor bottom, like "shingles on a roof", balance the gross weight about 6' to 8' forward of the transom .

IF the outer tubes have "wings", you need to water test to see if they "spray the floor bottom" while underway .

You NEVER want water SPRAYING all under the floor, tube mounts and braces, around motor pod, or motor mounting/leg . It just makes more DRAG and slows the boat considerably .

Good luck .

 

[AzGeo]

OMG .

That is exactly what I was talking about above .

That angles all the way back to the motor mounting board, so that thing is "dragging and splashing", but never helping lift the boat level . that only lifts the transom at speeds and drives the bow down and slows the boat even more .

My center pod (s) with the vertical sides and the ramp like entry give off very little spray or drag .

Your "bow wings" should be no problem, when the strakes are installed, they will be dry, under normal conditions .

 

[RACER J]

FLAT on the bottom with the vertical sides going down past the bottom to create "a trapped column of pressurized water", that lifts the whole boat at speed .

My center pod is 27' long, with a rear half of 20' of flat lifting surface (of lesser depth) and a removable "bow piece", that is 7' long with lifting planes and a beaching keel . In this way I can "unbolt, repair, and re-install" when the front portion has damage .

Adding "strakes" will place MORE STRESS on the mounting brackets, tubes, and cross members, where all the LIFTING and TWISTING STRESSES meet the floor/frame .

On that short of a tube, I would get 10' flat aluminum pieces (5052) bent into 110 degree angles (8" bent into 3" by 5" angles) . Four 10' pieces on the front of the tubes (one inner left, one outer left, one inner right, one outer right) about 6" from the lowest part of the tubes lowest point . (mount them BOTH at the same height)

Have them welded 100% on the bottom sides and "chain welded" on the tops . Just add a small (cut and folded) piece to the leading edge of the front ones to make the water flow under them, the 5' pieces also need the fronts closed, but leave all the rears of the strakes open.

Then behind those 4 strakes, I would add 4 more strakes that are 5' long, and mount them 8" high (2"higher than the forward ones) Think like a "stepped bottom boat" . .

Four or three cylinder O/B will require about a 5' to 6' (overall) long pod . Go 24" wide with a 15 to 18 degree transom angle, mount the motor's "ride plate" even with the pod bottom, BUT mount the motor using THE THIRD BOLT HOLES DOWN, so you can raise or lower it in the future .

I would make the new center pod as a "flat bottom", with the leading edge GRADUALLY rolling up to the floor bottom . Any time you make these pods in a "wedge" or "pie shaped" leading edge, they PLOW WATER out to the sides and FLOOD the FLOOR BOTTOM and the OUTER TUBES . (a ton of drag) Just look at how badly Trackers run with their poor pods . (I had one, I know)

IF you mount the outer strakes as I listed (6" and 8") I would mount the new flat bottomed center pod at 4" above the lowest keel of the outer tubes . Mounted this low will allow it to hold all the motor and fuel tanks weights at rest, also allowing some practical use of the motor's power trim . (you wanted to move the motor back, right ?)

Skin the floor bottom, like "shingles on a roof", balance the gross weight about 6' to 8' forward of the transom .

IF the outer tubes have "wings", you need to water test to see if they "spray the floor bottom" while underway .

You NEVER want water SPRAYING all under the floor, tube mounts and braces, around motor pod, or motor mounting/leg . It just makes more DRAG and slows the boat considerably .

Good luck .

Thanks for the info. I plan on building the center pod (motor mount) full length of the boat, like a tri-toon. I'll go with the vertical sides as you suggested. How thick is your center pod? I was thinking about using 10ga. For the rear five feet to hold the motor, then two five foot sections of 12 or 14ga for the front.

 

[AzGeo]

I think mine is .083" on the sides, and .120" on the bottom (6061 T6, no major bends) The nose piece is mostly (5052) a number of "bent to fit" parts .

Flat, square structures will require 'bulkheads", to keep their shape .

Once I get back working on it, I'll be building a new nose piece, to "cut" more than "lift" the way the old one did .

 

[MrMayhem]

I know someone with a similar sized toon. They took an old V bottom hull, cut it to proper height, and glassed it to the bottom of the toon. Mounted the motor to the transom and boat picked up 10 mph. I think it went from 20mph to 30 mph. No lifting strakes on toons needed.

 

[RACER J]

I know someone with a similar sized toon. They took an old V bottom hull, cut it to proper height, and glassed it to the bottom of the toon. Mounted the motor to the transom and boat picked up 10 mph. I think it went from 20mph to 30 mph. No lifting strakes on toons needed.

Wonder what he would have picked up by just adding another log in the center.
I can weld aluminum, don't know shit about glass work!!

 

[MrMayhem]

My guess is lift.

 

[MrMayhem]

Maybe look for an old aluminum fishing boat and use that bottom.

 

[RACER J]

Ok. Slight change of plans, came across an old boat for 100 bucks. Looks like the project is gonna be getting an I.O instead of the outboard. Good thing I hadn't started on the center log yet!!

 

[RACER J]

Made a template for the new center log so I can mock up the engine and drive, not sure about the shape of the bottom yet but I think it should work.

 

[RACER J]

Also the new seating came in yesterday.

 

[Cole Trickle]

where did you get the seats?

 

[RACER J]

where did you get the seats?

Pontoonstuff.com

 

[oldschool]

That will be the fastest pontoon on Kaweah. Cool project .

 

[RACER J]

That will be the fastest pontoon on Kaweah. Cool project .

Lol. As long as I can out run the rentals the marina has, I'll be happy.