Corky's Build

[aerokirk]

The push pole is a great thing to have aboard. The duck bill end works well in soft bottom and the pole extends for use in deeper water. I spent my first year cruising around wherever I could go and really didn't think much about the possibility of getting stranded. Being the only airboat within a hundred miles of here has caused me to re-think that strategy as I could end up somewhere where only a kayak could get to me.

[Corky]

I finished up the inner transom gusset bracing...And what I did was to add an angle to the inner gussets...It's the 1 1/4 x 1 1/4 x .025 angle so it does'nt really add any weight to the tally but what it does do is make a nice,wide edge for two reasons...First is I just don't want the sharp,narrow gussets twards the seating compartment incase I have a stumbling attack and somehow land on them...Second is it makes a good surface to slide the fishing line if I happen to throw one of my wild casts...I've been known to take the hat off my fishing partner every once in a while and there's no telling where my line will end up... I'm actually going to radius all the angle in the boat eventually....But anyhow here's the finished product back there...

[Corky]

And here's the front deck framing welded in...As you can see I added 2 uprights to help with the weight bearing duties...I kept picturing two guys on this deck at some point so the two upright supports won the design..There's a few things I need to do before the deck flooring goes on...I have a through-the-hull horn I was going to add up here somewhere on one of the sidewalls and there's the pedistal for the deck fishing seat...I need to make the wiring access holes under the deck for the nav lights,horn, also I may end up adding a power anchor winch down the road...So as much as I'd love to just slap the deck on I still need to do some work... Also, I added the lower gussets to the sidewall supports where the floor support meets the upright...I used a wedge shaped piece of the 3 inch structural channel and then radiused the edges for a nice,smooth transition..As you can see I'm trying to design this to be as user friendly as possible..

[Doozit20]

Looking good bud. What thickness decking are you going to be using?? And that frame work should be plenty strong for two guys up on there I think..

keep up the good work.
steve

[Corky]

Hi Steve...It's the last large piece of the 1/8th inch sheeting I have from the original 3 pieces...I'm like a big old bear I weigh about 230-240 in the summer when I'm active and weigh about 250-260 during the winter hibernation......So I know a good way to shed some pounds off the build if I feel like it...The link between the seat and the stick...

[kent]

Hi Corky,
The bow deck bracing is looking very good. Should be strong enough to support you without any flexing. Have you looked into or decided on the style/type of pedestal seat socket base? Suggest you do that before you weld the deck sheet into position in the event you undermount the socket rather than top mount it. The rear corner braces look good. Like that you used the angle to dress the face of the gusset plate.
kent

[Corky]

Well Kent, I got excited today and welded the deck on........The pedistal seat I was looking at has the top mount with a 3/4 inch pin ...And if worst comes to worst I'll crawl under there and light myself on fire...I do have wiring access holes on each side both front and back by the rear angle...If I don't use a few I'll just cover it with some aluminum tape...Also, the deck will get some marine sealer along the edges and under where the supports ride to keep any vibration/noises to a minimun....Anyhow here's some pics of the deck...I think it turned out nice...

[Papee]

I got my sockets at Walmart Corky and they are holding up well. If you order them online they are like $3 cheaper for some reason. I also got the extention and seat mounts from Wally World. The seats came from Bass Pro. My winch is also. Bass Pro brand.


If you haven't ordered your gauges yet I can look up where I got them for the green boat. I got them as a package deal with all gauges and sending units. I think the were $180.

oh and your deck will be fine, it looks to be about the same as mine. I'd like to come down and visit some time you're working now that I'm feeling a little better. I can run the benders down if you need them.

[Corky]

Yes, Papee that would be great we'll have to set up a time for you to swing by....A few gussets for the rear tray and I'm ready for the float test... The river jumped quite a few feet with the rain we had upstate so I may just go ahead and drop it in from the back yard ramp while it's an easy float... Then it's on to the rigging...

[Corky]

I tried to go back in and edit my previous post but it would'nt let me do what I needed to do so....On the subject of gauges I did buy my faria tach and matching gauges...I ended up with the faria Kronos style I thought they had the best styling ....Here's a sneak peek at the style...

[Papee]

As far as leaks, it's easier to fill the boat with water. I put water in it to chase my leaks then just jacked the boat up on one side to weld then let it back down to test. Hopefully you won't have any.

[Corky]

You know, I'll probably just do that for now...You would'nt believe all the debris floating down the river today...I was shocked when I got up...The water looks terrible and I'd create alot of clean-up on the hull putting it in there....I may just run the hose out to the shop and fill it up....

[Corky]

Well the hull has passed the water test !! I've been fine tuning different areas around the boat this past week...Grinding here, welding there...Just basically a general clean-up of the hull...The shop is cleaned up and ready for the next stage which will be the engine stand and rigging... I'm waiting patiently for my Circle S redrive and other paid-in full goodies to come from Airboat Pros...Until then the project is on standby...I ordered and paid for the parts Feb 4th and have been less than happy with the customer service from there...So anyone wanting one of these redrives take note on what's happening here....

[Doozit20]

Wow that is a little long of a wait. Then again maybe they are doing some of the upgrades and fixing the little bugs that are starting to arise with that unit before they get it to you....I dont know just thinking out loud thats all. Hope you get your parts soon. I guess while you wait you can make stuff like rudders and a console and maybe a bottom coat to help pass the time????

[Corky]

Steve, yes that's too long of a wait...But here's the good news my parts from Airboat Pros came from UPS the last two days !!! So in honest review of the events I would have liked my parts to come sooner but the Circle S CNC machine did go down for the count which left everyone involved hanging...The only advice I can give to anyone ordering one of these is to MAKE SURE the redrive is ready and in hand at Airboat Pros...



Anyhow, enough with that it's time to move on and keep the fun rolling along....Here's what the redrive looks like out of the box...

[Corky]

I'm not seeing any revisions/improvements of the redrive and they've left out/forgot? the locking nut on the tensioner with this unit also...I'm not going to be shy about this I'll just tell everyone the redrive and starter was $1450.00 PLUS shipping I was expecting some improvements with the higher price but it looks like it did'nt happen...

[Corky]

Here's my billit gas peddle and the engine mounts...The engine mounts are mild steel for welding to the EMT tubing...

[Corky]

I called Whirlwind and had them release my 67 inch Razor X prop today...I had it on hold until I physically had the redrive in my hands...As usual Patti was very nice and the transaction as a whole was perfect it should be here in a few days for the mock-up... In the meantime I visited Papee yesterday to shoot the breeze and borrowed his conduit benders {Thanks Papee !!} It looks like he's ready for spring too and brought his boat up from storage to begin the festivities.. Hopefully I can make a run by Lowes and load up my EMT conduit on the way home from work tomorrow so that's here...

So I'm back on track with the build now I need to do alot of planning and measuring...

[aerokirk]

Glad to hear you finally got your parts! In reviewing your pictures it looks as though your reducer is like mine except for a few modifications, most notably, they cut the center out of the top spacer block and the idler bushings look different. Must be an attempt at lightening it up. No mod to your idler arm (Bruce must have been blowing smoke about that) ... disappointing to say the least . I can't believe they left out the lock washer on yours too ... inexcusable! Without it, you may have suffered prop damage like I did.

Looks like it's full speed ahead for you!

[aerokirk]

Oh .. just noticed that you said they left out the locknut, not lock washer. They left out the lock washer on mine which caused the problem. Not sure if a nylon locknut is required but I guess it can't hurt. Without the lock WASHER the vibration on the threaded adjustment bolt causes it to loosen the nut and it all vibrates out. The lock washer (I see you have one) should prevent that.