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Up Topic Welding Industry / General Welding Discussion / Building A Boat Hull thickness?
- - By pceditorpro Date 06-12-2018 01:10
I just gotten into welding last winter doing little things here and there. I wanted to try my hand at a real project and spending the last 7 years working in a boat yard plus a life time of sailing. My first project will be a trailer for work that I have drawn out plans for then I want to try to build a boat if all goes well. I am thinking of using steel with a design similar to 24ft skiff mooring tender. They where always my favorite boat in the yard and are fairly simple hull. My main concern is what thickness should the hull be? Doing some reading online I have seen some with 1 inch think hulls and others saying it only needs to be a sheet thin. Personally I would like to stay to the thicker side because I want to be able to run it up on the rocky beaches, tend my mooring and work my lobster pots. All are pretty abusive to a boat hull in general.
Parent - - By 803056 (*****) Date 06-12-2018 02:33
If your are very poor at boat handling or if you intend to use the boat as an icebreaker, the 1-inch thick plate is probably a good idea.

Have you ever checked the thickness of the hulls of the steel boats in the yard where you work. I think you'll be surprised at how thin the hulls actually are. I'm not talking 16 gauge, but I suspect 1/8-inch to 1/4-inch is probably more the norm.

They say you can find anything on the internet. Maybe you can find some plans for a steel hull on the internet. It will probably be less expensive to purchase a set of plans than to learn by trial and error.

Just a thought.

Al
Parent - - By pceditorpro Date 06-13-2018 01:22
I'm a pretty good at driving boats. The environment that it will be operating is very abusive. I plan on running this thing up on the rocky beaches a lot and picking up moorings. Honestly I would not be against building an ice breaker I think I could definitely make some money breaking ice for the shell-fisherman. I'm more concerned with having the bouncy if I used too thick of steel and there was to much weight. Knowing a 4x8 plate of steel can weigh over 1,000lb seams like it could easily be an issue.
Parent - - By 803056 (*****) Date 06-13-2018 02:20
As long as the heavy plate is used below the water line it will add "ballast" and help stabilize the vessel. It is the weight above the waterline that will cause instability. However, the heavier the vessel, the more power needed to propel it through the water. If I remember correctly, if one doubles the weight, the power has to be increased exponentially.

Are you considering a flat bottom boat? Characteristics: rough rider, shallow draft, slow moving, hard to maneuver.

I'm sure you've given this a lot of thought and I'm sure you know what characteristics you want. Good luck. I had a friend that built several fishing boats that were up to 120 feet in length. He would build one, sell it and build a bigger one. He was on the last boat build when he died in a car accident.

Al
Parent - - By Lawrence (*****) Date 06-13-2018 11:40
Home build Ice breaker ??!?!?

Dude, you are ambitious and maybe a little crazy :)

Keep us posted on your progress...

I wanna see pictures.
Parent - - By pceditorpro Date 06-14-2018 03:36
I don't know what I really want to build. I want to keep it pretty simple because this is my first steel boat I will have attempted. I have done a few small wood ones just for fun but the whole idea of this project is to do something big and complex. My plan for the summer is to do as much research as I can about steel boat building so when December rolls around I can start building it. Since you mentioned the idea of an ice beaker it sounds cool and right up my alley. So using a really think steel for the bottom of the hull then thinner for the sides would be good. This looks cool but without the front landing gate and maybe a bit smaller. The hull shape is simple and the design could be easily scaled bigger or smaller. A lot of the boats we work on are required to replace the motors every 4-5 years so we just have them piled up. At one point last year we where just giving away some of the smaller ones because we just don't have the room to keep them. They do have a lot of hours on them. Some are run 24/7 all year round only stopping for fuel and service.

Parent - - By 803056 (*****) Date 06-14-2018 15:34
That's quite an ambitious project to start with. That is a major project even for a seasoned welder.
Have you a way to handle the material and move the vessel when it is ready to put it into the water?
I think we would all like to see photographs of your work and progress as you build this project.
Al
Parent - - By pceditorpro Date 06-15-2018 02:02
In the off season I go to school for engineering in Ohio. There I have access to a shop where I can build this. the place was for large scale decorative metal fabrication work but the school bought it and now students just build stuff in there. The shop manager is cool with me doing what ever I help out fixing things and with the school sponsored projects a lot so I have a lot of freedom to do what I want.  It has a few forklifts that only he and a few other staff can drive but if I complete the required training I can use that. Then just build the entire thing on jacks so I can lower it onto a flatbed and move it a few miles to the river then just float it down the river to the Mississippi out to the gulf and make my way up  to Boston.
Parent - By 803056 (*****) Date 06-15-2018 03:53
Should be a snap.

Photos please.

Al
Parent - By albertomartinez Date 06-26-2018 20:22
Take a look at this youtube channel. This guy has been building a boat in his backyard for some time now. You might find some useful info there.

https://www.youtube.com/user/submarineboat/videos
Up Topic Welding Industry / General Welding Discussion / Building A Boat Hull thickness?

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