I'm in the market for a pre-owned boat and in the process of looking around, I'm wondering if I could save money by adding my own decks to one.  I've looked at all the threads where folks have done it, but I would need a step-by-step tutorial.

Some questions...

1) How much weight (on average) would a front and rear deck add in a 14'-16' V bottomed boat?  It would get most use on 10HP and EMO limit lakes.  Would a trolling motor push this boat?  I also have tow limits with my daily vehicle, but do have a F150 to use if I need to.  

2) How do I know the boat I buy would be stable enough to stand on after adding decks?  Should I look for a certain depth or width?

3) If I buy a bare bones boat, by the time I add decks, carpet, wiring, seats and seat hardware, fish finder, storage areas, motor, etc., will I really save much by doing this myself?

Thanks for any help!

Michelle

Wow. Lots of questions. To get started, you can save or add as much weight as you need to keep. I probably added 50 pounds to mine with my project which is totally unnoticable with a 20 horse and my 55 lb TM but I'm not sure how it would play out on a 10. The thing is that its weight in the front which can ruin your planeout etc. Fortunately for me it didn't. Moneywise you can save or spend a wide range too. I spent quite a bit on my boat start to finish. I'd estimate that with the TM, electronics and everything else that went into it it came out in the 2k region. I wasn't too concerned moneywise and I know you can get it done for MUCH less than that. I was most concerned with quality and longevity which (obviously) carries a price tag. Oh and stability didn't change at all on my boat but there are many boats that will be like walking a tightrope when you deck them so go as wide as possible and length helps too. Here's a link to my project.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1205883728/0#0

Feel free to post your questions throughout the project. I would have made some stupid mistakes myself without these guys. One thing that you might want to know going into it is that you can't use wolminized wood because it will corrode the aluminum hull. I almost did that so there's a heads up. Have fun!

Thanks, Xco...I'm sure I'll have plenty of questions once I find a workable  boat.  I love the job you did on yours...I've been admiring it for the past two days.    And, my concern isn't as much about actual cost as it sounds.  It was more about effort vs. cost.  I'll also have to buy or borrow tools to do the job.

I think the thing I understand the least is the bracing.  Do you have to drill into the hull?

  I am in the middle of my own build presently. I didn't consider anything used, as I orginally thought I would spend  $500-$600 on a 10' new Jon Boat that I could toss on the top of my TrailBlazer.

  However, after browsing this forum, and talking to a salesman at BPS I came to the realization that I would have to upgrade my roof rack $$$. After I priced those custom component racks I almost died. Then, something to small would not give me the weight capacity I needed to make modifications.

  So I brokedown and bought a Tracker 1436LW and Trailer. This model had the thicker guage metal and greater weight capacity.

  Just somethings to think about.

Bruce

Hey Kayak,  

There is Jon boat club in Hampton Roads, Virginia that has a pretty good website (http://www.bassjons.com/mycustompage0025.htm) with modifications of different small boats.  Lot of good ideas there.  Check out some of the links too.  I used it when decking out my 1436.