jon boat help putting in a deck

[anthony95]

hello,
i have a 14ft jon boat and i am planning to put in a deck in it and was wondering if i used aluminum square tubeing 1x1 can i just solder it to the boat or will it hurt the boat in any way , the boat is thick aluminum on the sides and stuff



THANKS!!!!!

 

[55evinrude]

Re: jon boat help putting in a deck

well you wouldn't be able to solder it but you could find someone who does aluminum welding and have the tubes welded in. but it would be more inclined to just use wood stringers layed width ways in the boat with a plywood deck screwed to it. it would be cheaper and easier!

Nathan

 

[jigngrub]

Re: jon boat help putting in a deck

Here's some stuff about soldering aluminum:

soldering aluminum - Google Search

But I don't think it will hold for long in a boat, and 1x1" tubing is too small.

Rivets are the way to go with aluminum, and you can use pop rivets if you use the right ones.

Post some pics of your boat and explain what areas you want to deck and we'll see what we can come up with.

 

[fishrdan]

Re: jon boat help putting in a deck

Solder? I think you're probably talking about the aluminum brazing rods and I wouldn't suggest using them as they are hard to use and the material is very brittle, not something you want in a jon boat that flexes a LOT.

What are your plans and how are you going to deck it?

I low decked my 1436 with 3/8" plywood, 1"x1" pine ribs below deck to match the height of the boat's ribs and a couple of 1x1 aluminum angle pieces to hold the deck in the boat. The aluminum angle pieces were screwed to the seat bulkheads (below deck) and the decks screw to the brackets. When I need to clean out below deck, it's just a couple of screws to remove the panel.