Hello all...

[Chulke]

So I'm new to the board here and I recently ordered my first UJ''s Jon boat plan. I'm getting really excited to start this build...I am a fairly experienced wood worker but have never built a boat. I plan on building the 15' 8" version of the Jon boat...beefing up the transom and making some other minor mods to the plans. I am also an experienced fiberglass worker as well having worked on airplanes for the past 17 years and know tons of tips and tricks for glassing. But, any additional tips and tricks concerning the actual wood part of the boat would be greatly appreciated. I look forward to reading anything you have to impart.

 

[oldsparkey]

The best thing I can tell you is to read the instructions and then re-read them several more time working each step out in your mind. Do this till you know the steps and when you start the build you will know what the next few steps are in making it. It definitely helps in understanding what is being done and why.
By doing that you will know where and when you want to make the modifications to the boat.

Take you time on the build and don't rush it , preparation and planning are boring but essential to the building. As things come together most folks tend to rush things to get it completed , not the best thing to do.

One word of warning , no matter what you do when the boat is completed you will look at it and think ....If I would of done this or that. For some reason after it is done there is always something that will make you say ... Why didn't I do this or that. That is why a lot of us have more then one boat and in fact several more boats that we built. :wink:

When working with the epoxy make sure you have some plastic drop cloth on your work bench to keep from epoxying the pieces to the work table.

 

[Chulke]

Thanks for the reply and I can say that what you are saying rings true with all wood working projects. I've already got my glass just waiting to have the money to buy the epoxy and will probably be going to a local home improvement store soon to pick out my plywood in the next week or so...planning on 3/8 ply for the sides and bottom and 3/4 for bow and transom. I'm also going to use extreme weather 5/4 and 2x6 or 8 for beefing up the transom and the gussets...I want the option to install up to a 25hp motor although at first I will probably just use a 30# thrust trolling motor but it's always nice to have a little flexibility. Do you think 3/8 is to bulky for what I'm thinking about or can I get away with 1/4 ply? Thanks in advance...

 

[oldsparkey]

1st let me say that I have not built one of Uncle Johns Jon Boats but sure have looked at the plans a lot , thinking about it.

I'm not sure about the wood you are using but with a 25hp motor it needs to strong.
The transom will have the weight of the motor plus the thrust of it against the boat. Not even thinking of when the drive unit of the motor hits something in the water and flips up then back down with a lot of force. Or if you have it locked down and it hits something and transfers all of that to the transom.
The bottom and bow will take the abuse from hitting things in the water so some extra there would not hurt anything.
Uncle John has all of that figured out in his plans for a normal build that will handle the HP of the motor he suggests to use.

As far as building it your way ......... His pirogues have the suggested 1/4 inch wood for them and I have built several out of 1/8th inch wood and so far they do everything I want from them. I used the thinner wood since I wanted them lighter then what he suggested. I made one as suggested ( my 1st one ) and it was just over 50 pounds , the thinner wood they came out at 30 pounds. Especially since they are only one person ( geezer ) powered. :roll:

You have some thinking to do. I would err on the side of caution when not sure.

 

[jpsaxnc]

john boat

Hi Chulke, Your aircraft and fiber glass experience will probably get you the boat you want since most of these boats are composites, the fiberglass contributing as much strenght to the finished boat as the wood. If you want to end up with a light strong boat, I would build it using the same weight and strenght tecniques as a plane. hth. james

 

[Chulke]

Thanks James, I purchased aircraft grade fiberglass...well not that's there is any real difference from an aircraft grade to a marine grade fiberglass...fiberglass is fiberglass really...I just knew the numbers. I got 121 cloth for all the seems and then a 181 cloth to glass the whole bottom and up the sideboards about 1/2 way. 121 cloth is a real thin weave cloth, it probably equates to about 2-4 oz cloth and 181 cloth is 8 oz cloth. I checked out my local Wally world here in Arkansas and was surprised to find that they sell all the boating accessories I need except the resin. Of course cost is an issue...going for cheap but strong...I think I can pull it off for around $600. The resin is going to be my biggest expense though. I was surprised to see how much it costs. I've been looking at polyester resin but the price difference isn't enough for me to make the sacrifice, so I'm going to go with the epoxy. As far as engineering, and modifying the design to suit my needs....the sky seems to be the limit....I could really go all out and design a super strong boat that if you strapped wings on it, it would fly but I don't want to go overboard and produce a boat so heavy that I can't man handle it when necessary. I'm still thinking about the supports and how many and all that. When I complete it though I will post a picture here if possible. Thanks for post.

 

[JEM]

Thanks James, I purchased aircraft grade fiberglass...well not that's there is any real difference from an aircraft grade to a marine grade fiberglass...fiberglass is fiberglass really...I just knew the numbers..

Aircraft grade is typically s-glass which is about 25% strong than e-glass.

 

[Chulke]

Thanks for the info there Matt...I guess I never really thought about glass in a strength mindset...I knew what I bought was an "s" glass...but never thought about its strength characteristics. I just am comfortable working with it and know that sometimes it can be a pain to impregnate...but thankfully I know some tricks for that. However thanks for the strength info it's good to know that I got some strong stuff.

 

[BEARS BUDDY]

Welcome to the dark side. The urge to build another boat will strike just before you finish the first in severe cases of addiction. Milder cases usually mean you take the first one out once or twice before building another. Most cases are of the severe variety.

 

[Chulke]

I can't wait to get started...maybe by the end of summer it'll be done.