Building own Plate alloy

[stuart]

Thought I would share with you guy’s a boat that I’m building at work. It’s a 7.4mtr plate alloy. I think many would be interested on this site as to what is involved and how it’s done building your own plate alloy boat. A bit about the boat first. I sought the help from a Naval Architect and engineer first and for most and Adam schwetz was the man I chose for this project. I new exactly what I wanted in a boat as I specialise mostly in game and reef fishing. We went back and forth for several months refining the boat to the point were I could comftably fish and utilize all the space. The boat is 7.4mtr over all with a beam of 2.5mtr’s, the bottom sheets are 5mm and the side’s are 4mm. The floor is 4mm, transom 6mm, stringer’s 6mm, keel 6mm, frames 6 and 5mm.

The boat has a raised deck of 200mm which has helped to open the bow up for much more fishing space. The centre console has been kept small enough for the fundamentals to save on room. She only needs a 150hp and with this hp it will get 35knts with 4 guys on board. I opted for 250 ltrs under floor fuel tank which will give me a huge range. I wanted plenty of free board so I went with 800mm which is much safer in my mind than those that only come up or just above your knees. I have a 70ltr live bait tank moulded into the transom and a 150ltr full length kill tank that could almost hold a whale. I have to say that it’s one thing talking with a boat builder but it’s something completely different dealing with a Naval Architect. The in depth information you receive is phenomenal to say the lest. I must say I learnt more than what I could have imagined dealing with Adam. Building such a boat is not just the realm of large plate alloy boat builders, and I can assure you that what you build can most of the times be much better quality. When your happy with the design, the Architect will send the nest’s of to the cutting facility then its shipped to you on a pallet, just like the big guy’s. I will keep you guy’s updated as I progress along. PS have a look at www.nomadmarinekits.com, Adam can supply you with a kit or you can start from the ground up like I did. He is patient and extremly helpful.

Stuart

[stuart]

First pick.

Stu

[jeffo]

good to see she turned up stewie, ill have to drop round next week sometime to have a look.

[stuart]

photo 2

[FNQCairns]

Wow! wish I could weld alloy, I would be right in there doing something like that myself.
If you don't consider it personally rude could you include rough costs as you go along makes the dream a little more - or less :( realistic, look forward to your updates.

cheers fnq

[stuart]

photo 2

[stuart]

photo 3

[stuart]

FNQCairns

The complete boat it self cost me around 15K which considering the cost of the same hull built from a dealer would be 4 times that. I already had the Mig welder 270 amps but still cost my around $800 to set up for alloy welding. Im using Saphro high tensile wire in 1.6 with a teflon liner and a 4mtr lead and tourch. Argon gas and new light weight helmet. The finished hull will have set me back under 20K not including a trailer or engine, still very cheap if you ask me. Im building the trailer from structural grade alloy to help keep the weight down, even so the whole BMT will come to around 2300kg. I will be doing the fairing and painting using a atomotive two pack in a midnight purple. It's very affordable and most if not all with patience can build such a boat. Having said that it's a good start to understand alloy welding and how quick alloy plate can warp and buckle with to much concentrated heat. Be prepered to swear and curse alot, and yes the blood will flow along with much sweet.

Stu

[stuart]

What it will look like upon completion.

[Fishin_Dan]

Stuart - I can't wait for the progress on this project. It looks like it should be a good one!

[Smithy]

Good one Stuie. Good to know it is finally underway after all these years. Missed the Club Marine Magazine edition that had Monroe's boat in it but would be good to know how it turned out.

[Johnson_Jack]

Looks very good.

Will follow with great interest, I'm sure it will become a much viewed post here.

I wish you every success

Jack

[crazboutfishin]

Stuart

What are the specs for the boat? Also what is the approx finish time? I'm sure it will turn out great.
Good luck!!

Cheers
Crazy

[stuart]

All specs are above. As for the finish time, well how long is a ball of string. I anticipate around december for completion but then I will have to save some coin for the donk.

Stu

[stuart]

next shot

[stuart]

Here is my mig welder

[GAD]

Good stuff bloke , what a project ,should be great to build your own, hope you keep the updates up for us, like to see the progress.

[Blackened]

G'day
Great project, I'd love to do a 4.5 or 5M tiller myself. Just one thing. When you're painting the boat... paint that bloody helmet and put a southern cross on it ;)
Dave

[finga64]

Excellent, keep the story going stuart.
It's going to be a beauty :)
All the best
Scott

[crazboutfishin]

Hi stewart

The main thing i was after was the deadrise.

Cheers
Crazy

[DALEPRICE]

good on ya bloke, will be a big feather in ya cap
when she is on the water.
cheers dale
looking foward to the next load of pics

[NeilD]

Looking forward to seeing your progress. Its a big project but should get you into a mighty fine boat for the right price

Neil

[blaze]

gota love a project and people prepared to have a go. Nice lines on the pic but have a question. Does it dip down on the gunnels in the middle or is it an alusion, if it dips why?
cheers
blaze

[nicko233]

gday stuart, we build alloy ferries 12 to 20 meters , we use steel frames bolted to the floor to keep everything square and to reduce movement from welding is that something you thought of ?


nicko

[23-sharkcat]

In the last photo you missed a weld.

I am a biolermaker by trade and was going to ask the question about your wire size of 1.6mm. Do you find that a little big for only 4-6mm ally?

[stuart]

Blackend

I know the helmet may offend but I did whant a Southern Cross, O well it keeps me from going blind.

Crazboutfishin

Yes I forgot to mention that part. It has a 50 degree entry point and 18 degrees at the transom. Nice and sharp just how I like them.

Blaz

Its no illusion mate, it does dip down a bit. It will help keep me a bit dryer as well as the raised floor up front the gunnels need to be that bit higher.


Nicko233

I have asked the Architect that question many times and he has stated it will pull up evenly with no problems. I have trusted his intuition as he is a trained pro at this. Thus far I have had no worries about warping and twisting in the hull. I double check every thing as I proceed. I know many other plate boat builders are doing the same thing these days.


23-Sharcat

Sorry mate, my mistake, it’s in fact Safra 1.2mm which seems to work extremely well.

Stu

[StevenM]

Stu

Bloody fantastic, keep the posts comming.

Is adam from sydney and what were his costs approx.

Cheers

Steven

[stuart]

Hi-Yo

Adam is based in Sydney mate. I honestly cant remember his costs for designing the boat, I payed that ages ago. I will have to see if I can dig it out from home.

Stu

[Slient]

Great story and forward to see the final touch... ;)

Like your welding helemt... 8-)

Happy building
Silent

[scottk]

Hi stuart my dad has built a plate alloy boat that is almost complete. Its 6.5 hardtop and he has built it off a plan from scratch. Ill post some pics soon.
hope all goes well
cheers
Scotty

[scottv50]

Yes definitely keep the story and pictures coming. This is something I have thought about before so to see this from start to finish will be a big inspiration.

[young_mind]

:o love the design good one looking forward to end it ;).
I would love to build myself I am motor body builder and been looking for a kits up to 6.0 with more open allround to do it at home.
where you get the kits and like to have more detail ta :) THAT TOPS

[stuart]

Young_mind

Have a look at www.nomadmarinekits.com. Adam is great to deal with and has more patience than a nun. You can buy a kit or have one designed from the ground up.

Stu

[finding_time]

Stuart

Really looking foward to this mate!! I have interested in doing something like this for a long long time!!

Could i ask how much welding experience you have had? If i had to put a box trailer together i would have no worries but i would baulk at this sort of stuff, i'm probably being over cautious. I would be very interested how you attack the problem of weld quality :D

Ian

[stuart]

Finding Time

Yes I know what your saying mate. I haven't had all that much experience welding but have been shown by some extremly experienced welders which helps to no end. I'm confident in welding non structural sections but when it comes to the hull I'm leaving that to the expert, my boiler maker Friend with a billion years experience in alloy welding. I'm taking it all together with no prob's and welding other section myself with out any heart failure just yet. Once you have been shown by a good welder its common sense to some degree. I suppose its important to have the right amps set along with gas flow per minute, and wire feed. Have any of these out to far and the weld wont stick or even worse it wont penetrate. I wouldnt be held back from building a boat based on your lack of welding experiance, their are Tafe courses and amny people to help if you ask. I cant tell you how much satisfaction you get out of building a boat.

Stu

[stuart]

Another up date. I have finished placing all the fames in and the stringers, The chines went on today in a matter of 20 minutes, no real fuss. I did how ever have to pay a visit to the doctor to stich my hand back up. Looking at bone and ligaments cant be good. I had the 5mm plate bottom pulled up hard and ready to spot weld when the clamp slipped and stopped on top of my knuckle. Pulling the bow up on my own was a bit of a headache but its don and all is straight as a die and all measurements are with in 2 mm overall. I now have to run a straight edge in between each frame with a spirit level and place timber blocks under each frame to keep that level. Once the hull is spot on over all then I will be dropping the side sheets on then it’s time to roll it over. Its no were near as hard as what I thought and I would encourage anyone with some degree of mechanical aptitude.

Stu

[stuart]

Another

[StevenM]

Thanks for the progress report mate

hope the hand dont slow you down

cheers

Steven

[BrandonH]

Looking good mate!!!!!! hope your had is ok and as Hi-Yo said hope it dosn't slow you down ;)


Tight Lines
Brandon...

[sid_fishes]

stuart,mate hows the hand[ all good i hope and welcome to the world of what a metalworker does for a living]i do hope that it is all good.. so how,s the boat comming along where,s the pics and if i can give you a hand just yell ... cheers ian

[young_mind]

:o Oh mate! :'(careful next time and wear gloves as alloy sharp edge can be pain Love to see more ;)next time.
Got some info from normadmarine very keen and nice design. Keep up your good work :)

[stuart]

Ian,

May take you up on that mate, sure could use some expert hands when it comes to forming some of this thick alloy. The hand coped a bit of a wack and needed some stitches, I just took them out myself, the dam things kept getting in my way. I got the wife to hold them up and sniped them out. She did almost faint but that was part of the fun. Young mind, Adam is a nice guy and knows his stuff. I will be posting some more pics in the next day or two so stay tuned.

Stu

[stuart]

Finished taking up the bow and placed the last two frames in. Here is the first of the horizontal frames in the bow.

[stuart]

The last of the horizontal frames. The bow isnt going any where in a hurry.

[BrandonH]

Looking good ;) its great to be able to watch as you build this from scratch ;) never knew how they did the pressed tinnys..

Looking forward to the next update :)

Cheers N
Tight Lines

Brandon...

[stuart]

Another update. The hull has been leveled ready for the sides. I ran the spirit level over every frame and bulk head and placed chokes under each frame.

Stu

[stuart]

And another.

Stu

[mark221263]

Great story, keep the updates and pics coming.

As a Mech Engineer who did a fitting and turning trade 1st building my own boat has always been a topic I've been interested in.

Of interest what suburb are you building the boat in?

Thanks again
Mark

[stuart]

Mark

Im building the boat at my factory in Warana, Sunshine Coast. If you are near by; by all means drop in.
Stu

[Ian_Reeders]

Hi Stuart

Am following your story with interest as I am contemplating building my own platey. I noticed the frames are not fully welded to the bottom plates. Will they be fully welded or is this done to stop distortion. Have you had many problems with distortion from welding. This is one of my main concerns with building. Is there any info availlable on welding alloy. ie gas types and flow rates etc. I have welded plenty of steel but never alloy and would need some guidance if I did take on the project. Does anyone know where I could find that sort of info.
keep the updates coming.

Thanks

Ian

[stuart]

Ian,

I'm only taking things in place first and then after the sides are on, the transom, gunnel's then its time to flip the boat over for the the full welding to Begin. Once the bottom is fully welded then we roll her back over and we Begin to weld the frames and the stringers. This isn't done haphazardly either. The Naval architect has given me a welding sequence to follow for each section. This helps to stop distortion but it still comes down do how much heat you pump into it,to much and you may end up with a wobble Bord. Although I'm getting through this boat fairly quick considering I'm doing this all on my own i'm still checking and double checking every thing I do. I dont rush the welding as I always keep heat and distortion at the front of my mind. I make small welds at either end of the section and work my way back and forth letting things cool before moving on. Argon gas is the only way for alloy, I think my flow rate is around 14 liters per minute. I'm using Safra high tensile alloy wire which helps with avoiding the dreaded birds nest on the wire spool and drive. Mate, I'm no expert at welding or even boat building, however I have a very good working knowledge of how things should go together, a very good eye for detail and patience. To be realistic. any one that can use tools and read detailed construction drawings will be able to build a boat. I think the biggest, most important aspect is not to rush into it. I read and studied the drawings for near 2 months before I even got the boat. Its in-beaded in my head, I can look at parts and automatically know what its for and were it goes. If your the kind of guy who cant wait and must rush into it to get it done, then I would say avoid building a boat and just buy one ready made. I have used plumb bobs, straight edges, spirit levels, string lines and thus far every thing is exact. Get the bottom true and the rest of the boat comes together like a charm.

Stu

[Ian_Reeders]

Stu

Thanks for the reply. Will be following with interest. Have to sell the boat I have now first.

Cheers

Ian

[stuart]

The sides are starting to go on, here is the first side that we put on.

Stu

[stuart]

and another.

[StevenM]

Stuart

All looking great mate.

Must be bloody hard not to rush like a bull at a gate as you can see it coming together.

Keep it coming

Cheers

Steven

[stuart]

Here is another update. We placed the other side on which wasnt all that hard, how ever up at the bow got a bit tricky having to cut the green off, or the over lapping alloy. I still havent done this yet as Im running a few straight edges and plumb bobs to get it spot on.

[stuart]

From the transom looking foward.

[Rod_Bender]

Mate your doing an awesome job. Enjoying the step by step pics.

[Ian_Reeders]

Stu

Looks beaut mate. Your making me jealous!!

Ian

[rubba]

how much to biuld this mate

[Owen]

Hi Stuart

Is there any info availlable on welding alloy. ie gas types and flow rates etc. I have welded plenty of steel but never alloy and would need some guidance if I did take on the project. Does anyone know where I could find that sort of info.
keep the updates coming.

Thanks

Ian

Ian,
You need pure argon. Flow rates of about 15-18 litres per minute.
I did years of ally work, so if you want some advice, just give me a yell.
These days I just sell the gear.
Advice only --- No amount of money would get me back on the tools ;)

cheers,
Owen

[stuart]

The bow is welded up and the top is about to go on.

Stu

[DALEPRICE]

looks unreal stu !!!
looks like a real good lookin hull.
cheers dale

[Blackened]

G'day
thats one hell of a nice rig coming togeather now.

Any ideas on a paint scheme and a name?

Dave

[suzygs1000]

Hi guys,

Wasn't much like this forum around 5 years ago when I built my first. It is a Curran 6.1 (WA designer). Pic attached. Only trailer building experience with welder. Went well.

Don't be afraid to try. This Curran hull cost me about $8k painted (no fittings).

Learnt a hell of a lot from this, and am now nearly finished second boat - a PlateAlloy 5.8 Centre console. Shorter but wider and heavier.

Only place you will get much distortion is on side plates, and they are usually large areas of flat unsupported plate. 4mm topsides distort less than 3mm. The duck tail at the back also distorts readily. Boat is for sale to fund new 140hp Suzy for new hull.

Approx build time for new boat about 4 months of 30 hour weeks. (I am retired)

Pic of new boat in following thread.

Suzygs1000 (Ingham)

[suzygs1000]

HI again,

Re welding gear - I built the first boat with an el cheapo Unimig 240 amp single phase.
I now have a 250 Cigweld with remote hanging from the roof and running on a rail.
This has made the job much easier, as it is bloody hell welding down in the hull when your 4 metre lead has to run from the welder up over the side and then down. Massive wire feed problems.
These were both kit boats ie the parts were already cut and just hanging in the sheets. The biggest problem is shipping. Pretty dear to ship 9 metre al sheets from Perth. This kit came from Plate Alloy Melbourne. I believe some firms will sell the cad files, and you can get someone like Onesteel in Cairns to provide the plates and router cut the sheets.

Suzygs1000

[suzygs1000]

Hi,
Sorry about the size of that preceding pic. Here's a smaller one.

Dave Morgan.

[stuart]

Gunnels are on.

Stu

[stuart]

Another

[stuart]

another

[F1SH_BOY]

looks great!

[young_mind]

:D Wow getting there good work ;)

[stuart]

The gunnel capping is on.

[murf]

comming along nice. You will be proud of the finished product.
how long is the line up to get a fish out in her?? ;)
all the best with her
Murf

[indy]

Looking real good, geez you dont muck around nice work.

[a_big_red_1]

have been watching this thread and thinking "WOW"
comming along very nice 8-)
you should be hell proud of it when you have it all finished..
and haveing most of the work done yourself, well done
keep them pics commimg


Daz

[Deiter]

Good stuff Stu, ;) coming along nicely. Bloody gracious of ya to share it all with us too. :) :)
looking forward to see how it all ends up.

Also, just wondering if you are going to build a trailer for it too, ally perhaps????

cheers,
Damo

[stuart]

Thanks for the kind workds guy's. Yes I will be building my own alloy trailer to try and keep the weight down plus it look great.

Stu

[stuart]

Transom and towo pod parts are in.

[stuart]

Another shot of the top sides.

[F1SH_BOY]

looking gooood ;)

[peterreb]

Any more updates :) very interesting thread

Cheers Peter

[plat-a-puss]

your doing a great job stu .are u a welder or have u done any tech coarses to learn how to weld aluminium?
im a welder by trade and i love welding aluminium, may i suggest a couple of things? 1st if u have the time u should think about fully welding your stringers and so on (ali hates vibration,welds might crack and u dont want that)2nd if u want this boat to look the goods tig weld the pretty parts lol ur transom,console,hand rails,vertually all the topside of ur boat .i know tig is slow but man it is pretty u will have every1 commenting of how great it looks, .
have u ever checked out a stabi craft there tig welded in parts and they look great where they r tiged
any stu best of luck ill b watching ur progress, u have done a great job so far

[a_big_red_1]

any more update/pics on how the boats comming along Stu?


Daz

[JasonT]

Nice work mate
Have been following this keenly....
Have you had a couple of weeks off? :-)

JT

[Mr__Bean]

If I can just offer one suggestion.

When I fitted out my platey I found it extremely difficult to remove sharp edges within the structure where I had to run wires and hydraulic steering hose etc.

If you can, have about where you are going to run all your wires and things (fuel tank wires, aerials, bilge pump, transducer, hoses etc) and do all the holesaw work now. Then think about how you are going to run the looms and ensure you have removed all sharp edges along the route.

Just a thought.....

- Darren

[Reef_fisher]

Man that is one kick ass looking boat. Been watching the progress. Can't wait for more pics.

[GAD]

Yeah Stuart, more photos and updates please.

[seabug]

Hi Stuart,
A router will leave a perfect finish on welds on gunnels etc.
My Cousin used one on his 6.8 home-built walkaround.

Regards
Seabug

[murf]

Hi Seabug
do the router bits have to be special type? or can you use standard T/T bits?
Cheers Murf

[StevenM]

Stu

Looks great and keep th eprogrees pics comming

[seabug]

Hi Murf,
The cousin is interstate at present .
But I should have an answer early next week.
I will post result here.
Regards
Seabug

[seabug]

Hi Murf
I checked with the cousin.
Router bit was one that was also used for wood.
He said that there were no problems.
I saw the finish,it was smooth as glass .

Regards
Seabug

[murf]

Thanks for that Seabug ;)
I will have to try it out
Cheers Murf

[stuart]

Sorry I havent kept you guys up to date on this project but I have been flat out moving factory. The boat is now at home on the front lawn, not the best place but it will have to live their until I get it into the new place. I will have more pics to upload in the next two days so stay tuned.

Stu

[Reef_fisher]

Can't wait.

[Reef_fisher]

Anymore progress? Sorry, having withdrawal symptoms.


Cheers Andy.

[stuart]

Sorry fellas still no updates. I have been quite sick and unable to work on the boat, better now so I will go down and take some more shots. Here is a shot of the pod sections sitting in place, not much I know. I will update today or tomorrow.

Stu

[stuart]

Finally some fresh updates guy's. I had a hard time with this photo because it kept going sid eon in my camera. I have turned it up the right way but it looks a Lot narrower in the bow than what it actually is. The keel seams a bit skew if but I can assure it it is as straight as a dye.

[stuart]

another

[stuart]

As you can see on the side of the hull I have added these 20 by 40mm box sections as stiffners. It took a bit of stuffing around to shap them to the curve of the boat in each section. Its an over kill but I have seen large black marlin bills go through things that shouldnt be penetrated.

[stuart]

You can see in this photo a ribbed tube at the front just in front of the raised deck. This is my idea of some good protection for the wiring look that will travel under floor. You wont see any wires on my boat, all hidden but accessible. Every thing works and people will wounder how.

Stu

[stuart]

In this photo you can see I have started to sand the raised sections from the welding on the inside. When you weld alloy you get a raised area on the opposite side. All alloy boat builders normally sand this off before fairing and painting.

Stu

[wessel]

Looking good there,

How many complaints have you had from the neighbours with you grinding metal sheeting in the back yard??? ;D

Wessel

[Blackened]

G'day

Looking brilliant, keep up the great work

Dave

[REEDA]

Nice Lines!

[StevenM]

Thanks for the Update Stewart

Keep them Coming

Regards

Steven

[stuart]

I have finally rolled the boat over so I can finnish welding the bottom.

[stuart]

Another

[stuart]

Another

[Deiter]

Looking good Stu.

My, I can certainly appreciate the size of it now!!
Nice lofting setup too - bush mechanics at its finest. ;)

Damo

[wessel]

Stuart

As a safety engineer by profession, that setup would have given me a heart attack at work, or just in general whenver I see things like that......but at least you now have a structure overhead that can be used to provide shade. ;D

Coming along nicely there.

Wessel

[stuart]

Wessel

I thought you would appreciate the fine structural set up I came up with. Honestly mate I couldn't find any thing else more safer than that. Once the boat was half way over my heart wasn't just in my mouth I'm sure it stopped beating several times. I couldn't believe that I was rolling this monster in a front yard with very little space and me between the boat and the fence. If the boat had of gone I didn't have any place to run or jump. I can see how bad accident happen looking back on what we did and how we did it. Stupidity comes to mind. By the way Wessel, do you think a small crane operation should be able to turn the boat right way up once I have finished the welding?.

Stu

[wessel]

Not sure if you would be able to get a crane in there between the house, the light pole and the shrubs. Unless you can get hold of one with a capacity of about 3 ton at 12 to 14 meters. (Those things are expensive unfortunately.)

Whatever you decide on how to right it again: a boat can be rebuilt, you on the other hand do not come with a full replacement warranty ;)

Wessel

[stuart]

I have now fitted the keel guards on the hull, Im yet to fully weld them on.

[seatime]

looking good stuart,

a tractor crane may be able to get in there and take it out to a more open space, roll it, then put it back in?
alternatively, a longer reach jib would be able to end-for-end it in-situ?

keep up the great work

[northernblue]

Very impressive project stuart.

[nicko233]

gday stuart,what is the idea behind the pipe,is this a silly question?


nicko

[stuart]

Nicko

Its more cosmetic than any thing mate. The way my hull has been designed the keel goes all th way through to the outer side. This way I can get 4 welds on each side rather than 2 or three welds only. I got 38mm round by 3mm tube and market that on both sides using a piece of 50 mm angle and then cut along the lines. I feel 38 half tube is far better on the eye than say 50mm half tube. It will absorb some very good impacts if need be, better on the half round than on the keel itself, not that my keel will split in time soon.

Stu

[sid_fishes]

stu,mate its comming along very well and the over crane worked a treat i see. as for turning her again you could try a franna, they go just about anywhere, give a local guy a call he,ll come out and say yes or no. keep up the good work and i,ll give a ring as soon as i can get a break in my work load[ hopefully before you finish] cheers ian

[PinHead]

stuart..a franna with a fly can reach about 17 metres..usually about $120 an hour...would flip the boat no worries.

[dnej]

Stuart,
Pic of what a Franna looks like.This is the AT 15.
Regards david

[lee8sec]

Stuart thanks for the great story and photos. Have thought about building one for a while now and you just got me going again. Once i moove up your way and will hopefully have the room i will look at it again. Leigh

[stuart]

So a Franna looks the goods to me, how ever.... It looks like its a one man show to me, the driver only. Are these guys pretty good at their jobs? I don't mean to sound condescending, its my baby and I don't want a scratch on here. Would their be any one on this site that operates one. Could they turn this boat with out damage and with out me having to weld lugs on the boat?

Stu

[stuart]

Leigh

Do it mate you wont look back. I have had a blast the whole way along. Where abouts you moving to mate? You could always drop in and have a look at mine.

Stu

[PinHead]

stuart..they should be able to put slings around the boat and lift and roll using them.

[PinHead]

I must mention...I do like your backyard gantry setup...wonderful piece of engineering.

[dnej]

http://www.revcranes.com.au/about.html

Stuart, this is just an example of costing, with a driver.I dont know where you are situated.
$ 115 per hour minimum.
Job over and done, no worries
David

[lee8sec]

Leigh

Do it mate you wont look back. I have had a blast the whole way along. Where abouts you moving to mate? You could always drop in and have a look at mine.

Stu
Looking around bruce hwy area of sunshine coast, want to get around 1 to 2 acres, still a fair way of as a have to clean up my place and sell. Coming up in May to spend 2 weeks looking around differant areas and see what / where we like up there. Leigh

[stuart]

Leigh

Out near the Ettamogah pub "spelling"is the place mate. Beautiful and quite with large parcels of land.

[stuart]

David

Im on the Sunshine Coast mate. Do you think would take around 30 to 1 hour to roll it over?

Stu

[stuart]

Pinhead

Yes, I was proud of it, a bit of a master piece I do say. Although I was proud of it I wont be doing it again hence the Franna. Engineering side of it was great in my minds eye, how ever the safety factor or lack their off was a bit mind blowing looking back on it.

[plat-a-puss]

stu a franna driver has to hold a dogging and rigging ticket so yes they r skilled in what they do he should b able to use soft woven slings that wont harm ur boat in any way, and if there a good operation they will provide a dogman with the crane so it wont b a 1 man operation , thing s u will need to point out to the crane driver is the weight if u know it ,any powerlines near the house or boat and what exactly u want done and where u want it, and if ur interested the franna driver will b able to tell u exactly how heavy the boat is once he has it in the air

[dnej]

Stuart,
These guys are on the Sunshine Coast

http://www.precisioncranehire.com.au/our-fleet/mobile-cranes/14-franna/

I dont know what they are like, but it is a starting pont at least
David

[FNQCairns]

I used to fit the hyd/elec/air and just about everything else at some stage for a small while to those cranes lot's of years ago, dont think you will have much problem with the driver's coordination - it's pretty simple. The 12 tonne crane not the 15 in the pic would be big enough and less expnsive - if they still make them?

cheers fnq

[stuart]

Droped Precision crane hire an email.

Stu

[Smithy]

Precision Crane Hire, Precision Rods - where will it end? LOL!

[stuart]

I was thinking the same Smithy. ;D

[madmackrel]

8-) G day Stew, mate great read enjoying every post. Mate want to build one like yours but was wondering if when shes completed i might be able to go for a run and if all works well maybe buy a copy of the plans? Hope i'm not being to up front. Can also assist if you need any tig work done have fronius ac/ dc
Thanks MM 8-)

[stuart]

More than welcome to come for a run mate, have to think about the plans though. Took me 3 -4 months working and paying the Architect. Check PM.

[cbs]

Stuart,

I could be wrong, but my guess it that you probably don't own the plans and therefore can't sell them. Check with your architect to be sure though.

cbs.

[Wahoo]

Stuart, how is your project comming along?, any update reports/pics?


Daz

[Stuart]

Will post some more pics today with some luck. I have wqelded the keel guards on, the water pick up is cut and welded in position. Other than that, it's been way to hot to do anything.

Stu

[Lobster48]

Man, I read this with interest. Certainly something I have longed to do for a long time. Very keen the see the final product!

[sid_fishes]

stu, way to hot,,, give me a break[ bloody rod builders, geez]

[Stuart]

Should work in the my rod building factory for a day in mid summer mate. It use to get upto 53 C. Now thats hot.:(

Stu

[vertico]

thinking about building a 6.8 centre cab from nomad marine boats in 5 months time (have to save som coin) I would love to have a ride in yours if it is built before this time.

[Smithy]

Sean,

latest is he is selling the hull when finished. Check out the MB. Could be a good buy for you!

[Stuart]

Due to unforseen family problems I have to sell the love of my life, the boat. It’s almost complete in terms of the bar hull. Will be finishing it off and that includes fairing and painting, ready to site on a trailer and bolt an engine on. If this is some thing you may think you would like to do please don’t hesitate to email me. I’m not interested in making a buck I just want what I have spent on her. Please, no tyre kickers. If you need any info let me know.:'(

Stuart

[Stuart]

It sucks big time, I hadn’t planed at all for this to happen, completely out of my hands. I was planning on building this boat and slowly fitting her out as and when I can afford it. It’s the only way I could afford a boat like this anyway. The price they want for a rig of this calibre is unbelievable. Anyway, some specs on the boat so you know what your up for if anyone should decide to go ahead with it. By the way I will finish the boat of to the painted stage. The boat is a naval architect designed hull, 5mm bottom, 4 mm sides, 6mm stringers x 9, 6mm keel, 6mm frames x 10, 6mm transom, 4mm floor, 4mm raised plate form up in the bow, 4mm gunnels, 6mm gussets inside transom pods, Centre console is 3mm. Passenger seats in front of console is 6mm and 5mm. Fuel tank is made from 4mm alloy and holds 250ltrs.


The boat has a total length of 7.4 meters and a standard length of 7.1meters. The beam is 2.5 meters max. Ample storage in the raised deck area, enough for a grown man to sit in.180ltr kill tank, and a 90-100ltr live bait tank. It comes with an alloy 38mm tube bimini top “not covered” but bent up and welded in. The bow or entry point is 48.9 degrees and the transom at 18 degrees. Freeboard is set at 850mm high so you will feel very safe indeed. Freeboard at the bow is around 1100mm high. The boat will be faired and sprayed in a pearl matador red, if you want another colour let me know.

The bottom of the hull will be polished to a mirror finish along with the inside paint work as well. The boat has also been designed to Australian standards and conforms to the USL code, the boat has also been welded to AS 1665 standard on all structural areas. The boat has been designed “believe it or not” for a 150hp. However I would run a 175 for that bit more grunt. This boat is bullet proof in every way shape and form, a must see.

Stu

[murf]

What the?

sorry to here of the loss of the love of your life :(

was very interested watching this thread

Hope all works out in the future and you get going again soon on another project :)

Cheers Murf

[vertico]

sounds great but i really want a centre cab so i can get out of the elements a little. Its sad that you will be selling mate, still would love to have a look at what you have done and how you have gone about it.

[MyWay]

stuart i bolive it is nice boat and u doing good job
but i can not see one single photo

cheers no_luck

[Stuart]

All the photos are gooooooone with the upgrade, out of my hands mate.

Stu

[MyWay]

ooo nooo :'(
i wish we can see it :'(

[Az]

can you post up some more pics since the others are gone?

[Stuart]

Trying to find the right photos for the right section would take me hours. I think I will just post some pics and then you can see it coming together step by step. Im also trying to sell this rig at present, so I even though its for sale I will keep going on her until sold.

Stu

[sid_fishes]

well, after being at the rbw, it was great to be able to help stu out with work to the boat, which is sitting on the front lawn atm, so after picking up the flat sections that were pre-cut they now look like this[ see pics] centre console, baittank ,fuel tank, bow sprit and the front seat which will be a part of the console. the hull itself looks the goods and whoever is after a well designed /built boat you should do yourself a favour and have a chat to stu cheers ian

[sid_fishes]

front page again

[Stuart]

I have decided to keep the rig and will finish it off. I will keep all posted as this project goes through to completion. A big thanks to Ian for the folding all this stuff up for me.

Stu

[seawasp6666]

can any one help i dont get any the photos that stuart is posting its killing me

[Stuart]

For those that missed the start of this boat I will post a heap of pics to bring you up to date. The pics speak for them selves.

[Stuart]

For those that don’t know. I payed a naval Architect to design the exact boat I wanted. I draw up some rough ideas and then he went at it. We went back and forwards for around 3 months until it was exactly what I wanted. This boat wasn’t a stock design from some kit; it was a custom design from ground up. Although the boat turned up as a flat pack so to do the majority of other boat manufacturer I wanted a boat that could hit a brick wall and nock the wall to pieces. With the shear amount of structure in the design of this boat it would nock many walls down. If I’m going to hit some thing, I don’t want to go over it; I want to go through it.

The boats stats are as follows. Its length is 7.1mtrs and has an overall length of 7.4mtrs. Raised bow with a raised floor of 200mm. 800mm freeboard with 1 meter sides and 1.3meters high sides in the bow. The hull is 5mm while the sides are 4mm. All frames and stringers are 5 and 6mm. The floor is 4mm and the centre console 3mm which has a 2 person passenger seat in front of it. Fuel tank is 4mm and can hold 250ltrs. Live bait tank is near 95litrs which turns over 250ltrs per minute. This boat was set up for my style of game fishing. Heavy tackle from the Sunshine Coast through to Cairns. Every thing is hidden and can’t be seen, no batteries, no wires, no pumps, no hoses, all hidden from view. I want tell what else I’m doing until its done then I will put photos of that up as well.

Stu

[Stuart]

Here is some more plus a 3D Cad drawing of the finished product.

Stu

[STUIE63]

Nice boat mate good to hear you are going to keep it and get the enjoyment of it
Stuie

[Wahoo]

good to see you still have the boat and going to have it finished, keep the pics coming

Daz

[branchy]

Nice looking boat mate. It is not a sure craft is it?

[Stuart]

No, its been designed from the ground up by the naval architect and myself. She isnt a kit you order online.

Stu