Jon boat modifications

[John J.]

I understand that many people have took a 14 foot jon boat and made it into a decent bass fishing boat loaded with storage and livewell compartments. I was wondering if the same can be done with a 12' v hull?

I have a 12' V hull metal jon but I was possibly thinking about modifying it (decking it). How would I go about doing this and would anyone recommend modifications on a 12' or should I buy a 14'?

Here's my boat pictures...

PS: The boat is 12' long by 48 inches wide. and I bought some brand new seats from cabelas.

[snapperd1]

Maybe a floor but not a deck.  It would be way to unstable.  I would go with the bigger boat.  Also a flat bottom Jon is going to be way more stable on the lake.

tomD

[John J.]

Thanks for the reply.

Yeah I thought it wouldn't work out, I was just curious.

[fisherdave]

take a picture of the top side you might be able to do a little to it.

[fisherdave]

also if you do anything to it you might look at getting you a little bigger motor is that a 17 lbs thrust if so you might get you a 40 lbs or maybe even a 4 or 5 horse gas motor. I wouldnt deck it maybe a floor and make that middle seat a storage and a live well i think i have found the perfect thing for live wells for these boats inexpensive and easy to make.

[fisherdave]

one more thing do you have a trailer because if not this thing will get a little heavier once yo start adding stuff to it.

[John J.]

I found a trailer online, decent price but it only holds boats up to 600 pounds.

with nothing on it my boat weighs about 150 pounds. And I plan on adding all my stuff to it (batteries, trolling motor, etc.) so it is going to weigh it down. I shopped around town and I found some other trailers but they were asking too much for them. ($700-900)

As far as the troller motor goes it is a 27# thrust and it came with the boat when I bought it. I am planning on upgrading, but if I buy a new motor now, plus the trailer I will have no money left to modify the boat.

I've only got about $1,000 in bank so I am tight budgeted. A new motor I looked at bass pro shops for a 50# thruster was about $200 for a transom mount. The trailer is about $450 (with shipping) so that's about $700 and then I doubt I can remodel my boat and have money left over for gas, etc.

I think I'll just get the necessities first (trailer and new motor) then worry about modifying...

Thanks for the replies though!  

[fisherdave]

If you look at what I did with my 14 ft what i have done so far it has only cost me about $300 and you want need as much stuff as I did one thing on the trailer be careful because I got a little 15 ft trailer and I am trying to find bearings for the hubs and they are nearlly impossible to find.

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

You CAN do it but it would be a much more comfortable and safe boat if you did floors instead of decks.

[John J.]

The trailer I am getting is from Northerntool:

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_1063_1063

I agree, I think if I was going to modify my boat I'd get a flat bottom jon at least 14 foot...

I might just add perhaps a livewell and that's it. I will think about what I will do...

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

John, Adding floors, to an alum "V" is VERY easy, VERY cheap and makes a HUGE difference in comfort.  Having a level floor is priceless.  I would try this first before dumping that boat and getting a flat bottom.

[John J.]

I guess I could give it a try. The only difficult part is the ribs on the bottom. But I am sure I can manage.

Thanks russ!  8-)

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

What issues do you have with the ribs?  The floors go ON TOP of the ribs.  This allows any leaking water or water from the anchor, to flow UNDER the decks, thusly keeping your gear, or anything on the floor,dry.

Where the ribs come from the floor and go up the sides, you simply notch out the wood to allow for them.  Now they serve to keep the floor from shifting also

Be sure to cut a 1/4 inch extra off the perimeter of the board to allow for the carpet to wrap under, this includes the notches cut for the ribs.

I use a big piece of cardboard to make a template first.

Good luck.

[John J.]

What issues do you have with the ribs? The floors go ON TOP of the ribs. This allows any leaking water or water from the anchor, to flow UNDER the decks, thusly keeping your gear, or anything on the floor,dry.

Where the ribs come from the floor and go up the sides, you simply notch out the wood to allow for them. Now they serve to keep the floor from shifting also

Be sure to cut a 1/4 inch extra off the perimeter of the board to allow for the carpet to wrap under, this includes the notches cut for the ribs.

I use a big piece of cardboard to make a template first.

Good luck.

Yeah that's what I was thinking as being a issue, having to do it all. What would I use to secure the plywood onto the bottom (glue, screws, etc.)?

The boat is made out of a heavy duty aluminum.

[CGH]

That a very clean 12er by the way.  You happen to know what year it is?

"What would I use to secure the plywood onto the bottom (glue, screws, etc.)?"

If you knotch them as LBH stated not only will the ribbs keep them from slidding back and forth and also side to side you will have no need to screw or glue them down.  They, your floors will sit happly at the bottom of your boat till you need to take them out to retrive Hooks, sinkers, and what-not after your fishing trip.  It will make life simpler when it comes times to clean the inside bottom of the boat or the carpet for that matter.

Check your local pawn shops for Trollowing motors during the off season.  You can get some great deal during that time!

CGH

[John J.]

That a very clean 12er by the way. You happen to know what year it is?

"What would I use to secure the plywood onto the bottom (glue, screws, etc.)?"

If you knotch them as LBH stated not only will the ribbs keep them from slidding back and forth and also side to side you will have no need to screw or glue them down. They, your floors will sit happly at the bottom of your boat till you need to take them out to retrive Hooks, sinkers, and what-not after your fishing trip. It will make life simpler when it comes times to clean the inside bottom of the boat or the carpet for that matter.

Check your local pawn shops for Trollowing motors during the off season. You can get some great deal during that time!

CGH

Believe it or not it is a 1950 model Alumacraft jon. I cleaned it out that day in the pictures (last Feb.; you can see the bucket of water and rag beside it in the picture)

I got it in Waynesboro, Va for $375 and it came with the trolling motor. It is a nice boat, but I would like to make it better.

I found a brand new 50# thruster (transom mounted) on Bass Pro Shops for $230. So I might order that one.

What kind of plywood should I use? I've got 1/2" and 3/4" plywood that my parents are never going to use (I need to replace the transom anyway), will that work? or should I get a marine grade?

[Low_Budget_Hooker]

3/8 cdx, cheap stuff, that's all you need.  Coat it a few times with polyurethane and carpet it.  Using the thinner plywood keeps it light.

Keeping them removable is the way to go.  

[John J.]

yeah true...if I add the 3/4" board it will make it heavy lol. But also you don't want it too thin that it rots out underneath you...

And I know I can get carpet from Cabelas.

Thanks LBH! I will post pictures when I do it. I will start possibly this weekend.

God bless  8-)

[James Heddon]

John

check out this link. Scroll about half way down the page.

http://www.bassjons.com/mycustompage0025.htm

The boat number is 2812 JJ

Good Luck With Your Mods!

[bowtech_182]

here is a link to the floors in my 14'v.  I have since made the front part that is lower the same height as the rest of the floor.  I can post pics later if you are interested.  1/2" plywood primed and painted with polyurethane.  The benches are removed to be replaced with 1 swivel seat in back and a tall leaning seat up front.

http://www.bassresource.com/bass_fishing_forums/YaBB.pl?num=1183418037/25#25

[Hung up Paul]

Perfect!

This thread pretty much answered all my questions for the time being.

I'll most likely be buying this 14 ft v-hull next week:

I'd rather have a flat bottom jon, but this one should get me through a couple seasons.  Price seems reasonable at $600.

I'm sure I'm going to have more questions about modifications, but this thread should get me started in the right direction.  Thanks!

Paul

[John J.]

Few other questions I have:

1.) Should I connect the carpet into one length over the plywood? or should I section the carpet to each individual plywood piece?

2.) Should I use marine carpet (like at cabelas) or can I get away with carpet bought at Lowe's or Home Depot?

3.) Should I add a drainage plug at the back? That way any water that is under the plywood can be removed by draining, and if so how would I go about doing so? (I am a rookie when it comes to boat modifications lol)  

4.) I bought some new seats from cabelas. They are high backed and they are in the colors of Green/Tan. Would it be a cool idea to pain the entire boat green and then have the tan stripe down the side or should I leave the boat as is?

Pkschul that's a nice looking boat! I gurantee you won't be dissappointed with that one (unless it has holes, etc.)

[bowtech_182]

I would not carpet over any woods seams.  The wood will flex at the joint and it will look bad very quickly..  I used Lowes carpet for two reasons one was that I bought enough on a remnant sale to do my entire boat for somewhere around $20.  Second is that this boat  is only temporary for me.  I plan on getting a 14-16ft flat bottom or a bass tracker in 2-3 years.  I just could not pass on the deal for the boat and trailer.  I have zreo problems with the carpet and am very happy with it so far.  I would highly recommend adding a plug to the back of the boat.  I believe they sell kits you can bolt on after you drill a hole.  My drain hole was stripped out on my boat so I cut out a 3" circle out of 1/2"aluminum plate with a 1" hole in it and riveted it to the bottom of the boat.  I use a brass expanding plug

[John J.]

Thanks. I just heard from my folks that there is some left over carpet from building my grandparents house. So that may work. And like you, I am using this boat temporarily until I graduate college and get a better paying job and can afford a decent boat.

I am indecisive about the plug though. Because that would be a possible leak spot (if not done correctly) and I am not quite a handy-type person lol.

The plywood and carpet I can do. But Idk about the plug...

God bless  8-)

[bowtech_182]

here is a couple pics