Question:
Has anyone built an aluminum boat, and if so where do you get the plans?
I bought a new 26' aluminum V-bottom hull, and I need to weld in a floor. I
want to use 1/8 sheets do to cost. How big an area of 1/8" sheet can be
unsupported? In other words how far can the angle "joists" be spaced under
the floor which support the sheets. This will all be welded. Would a 2' X 2'
area be too much? I will need 7 sheets for the floor.
Answer:
-You need to talk to a designer (what about the guys that built the
hull?) about what the intended use is. 2' spacing may _waste_ money
and time by being way too small, or be way to far apart! When you say
2' are you talking 2'*2' squares, or simply 2' spacing of frames?
etc etc
etc
If you are using 1/8th just due to cost, then that is a daft way to
decide what way to design a boat, especially in aluminium.
Do you know how to weld aluminium? Do you know what sort of aluminium
should be used for boats, and why? Are you able to design for
stiffness/flex/fatigue?
At the very least I would get some aluminium and build a platform,
then jump up and down on it and drop things on its, to see what it
would take....and that is the very least.
-I have to agree with everyone else, 1/8" plate with supports
as much as 2' apart is going to cause trouble. The deck of
my boat uses 1/8" steel plate over 1 1/4" x 1/4" stringers
spaced at 12" apart. You'll need to keep your supports no
more than 12" apart. I would also use at least 3/16"
plate. If money is a problem, buy half of what you need.
By the time you get the half installed you may have the
money to buy the other half. Buy the best you can afford.
It's cheaper in the long run.
