big poppa Posted June 11, 2014 Posted June 11, 2014 I have a 14ft tracker jon boat and currently have a plywood platform that needs to be rebuilt. Id like to lose some weight from the rebuild to gain some speed. I was wondering what would be better, plywood or aluminum? Quote
Super User BrianinMD Posted June 11, 2014 Super User Posted June 11, 2014 If possible I would personally go aluminum, can be done lighter and it will last forever. Quote
sparky241 Posted June 11, 2014 Posted June 11, 2014 I plan on going sandwiched aluminum, sheets if I can find them locally, if not I'll just go plywood Quote
big poppa Posted June 11, 2014 Author Posted June 11, 2014 Thanks for your response. Definitely going with aluminum for the deck. What is sandwich aluminum? Quote
Christian M Posted June 11, 2014 Posted June 11, 2014 Check out Starboard, its a polyethylene that can be cut, sanded, drilled, glued...you can do everything with Starboard that you can do with plywood. It comes in different thickness, and is very light. I found it while looking for a backing plate for my Kicker bracket. Its a bit expensive, but when you consider the fact that it literally lasts forever, its worth the extra $$. Quote
Super User WIGuide Posted June 11, 2014 Super User Posted June 11, 2014 Aluminum is noisy. You'll probably want to foam underneath it to quiet it down. 1 Quote
big poppa Posted June 11, 2014 Author Posted June 11, 2014 Check out Starboard, its a polyethylene that can be cut, sanded, drilled, glued...you can do everything with Starboard that you can do with plywood. It comes in different thickness, and is very light. I found it while looking for a backing plate for my Kicker bracket. Its a bit expensive, but when you consider the fact that it literally lasts forever, its worth the extra $$. Its a little too pricey for the amount I would need. It looks amazing though. Quote
quanjig Posted June 11, 2014 Posted June 11, 2014 Not sure you would save any weight with the starboard stuff. Did mine last year with aluminum, like slo said, it is a little noisier but I like how mine turned out just fine. Top speed 27mph! That's pretty fast for the res!! 1 Quote
big poppa Posted June 12, 2014 Author Posted June 12, 2014 Thats crazy quan. After i got passed by a fully loaded bass tracker I decided to cut some wieght and its easier to cut weight from the boat then from me hahaha 1 Quote
quanjig Posted June 12, 2014 Posted June 12, 2014 Few guys can get 25mph two people, all their gear and full livewell! My speed is just me, gear and empty livewell. Quote
Super User Catt Posted June 12, 2014 Super User Posted June 12, 2014 Aluminum is noisy. Only if installed wrong. Quote
mudkart Posted June 13, 2014 Posted June 13, 2014 I went through this w/ my boat. I was surprised at the difference in weight of 1/2" un-treated plywood versus the same volume of 1/8" aluminum sheet. I stuck the plywood deck on a scale and did the math for the aluminum using a density value for the alloy. I don't remember the exact numbers, but the difference was not as much as you would think and was not worth the price and aggravation (finding aluminum sheet locally) to me. YMMV. Quote
Big Fish Rice Posted June 15, 2014 Posted June 15, 2014 The biggest thing is the longevity. You'll eventually have to change out the plywood....but it is much easier to work with and less expensive. We used aluminum in our jon boat and it's strong as could be. It was worth the cost on our side because we also trailer the boat down miles of dirt roads.I wouldn't think too much about it. Sounds like you have your plan...so go fishin' Quote
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