Alloy is the way to go...

[welder]

Yes Prowler, I am in your general area so was it salt or out waters, what did you dislike about the alloy?

I worry about them in the salt , can't use reg bottom paint , don't ride as well , noisy ( goes for steel as well) what if you do damage it ? how do you make it look good ? easy on wood or glass even steel as its painted .

maybe a great boat for some but not for me

Yer right, can't use bottom paint with COPPER in it. We have some now that ride as good or better than glass [ see Rocksalt and MetalShark boats ] If you damage it [ Alloy ] just weld in a new piece grind/sand smooth and buff or paint , with a open mid it's a lot easier to work on than a glass or wood boat.

Typically Alloy boats are painted above the water line and raw below.

[welder]

what do you paint them with? Why don't they ride well, too light?. I'm looking for something to pound around in the bay which as you know is quite choppy. I like the low maintenance angle but is it so in warm salt water? Have not seen any around or in SC or Fla. I am sure there are some but why have they not caught on here like in the North and on the left coast

Just look at your local Coast station for alloy in the water in Sc or FLA , been using it for YEARS.

Typically Alloy hulls are a little lighter for the same size boats BUT that means less power to push them , and they carry more weight/load .

[welder]

I think alloy boats have a lot of positives. From a marketing standpoint, I always assumed the biggest hurtles to overcome were the lack of alloy to take on sexy compound curves and the noise/sound of the boats in rough water. They are certainly tough and are well suited to lots of applications. What is the pricing like on a welded aluminum boat versus the same hull build in a female mold for glass?

Most that buy Alloy Fishing boats are not looking for SEXY , there looking for FUNCTIONAL . If you want sexy bring lots of money because it takes lots of linear weld to produce sexy curves because the alloy plate used is so tough [ almost Armor plate] it does not bend in tight radius's.

The sound deal is mainly when at rest you hear the small slap of water on the hull at high speed it's no big deal and the sound can be deadened with spray in bed liner and the right [ I said the RIGHT ] foam and installed correctly .

Build price , well, the material is expensive and it requires SKILLED labor to build . A alloy boat can be built in a simple jig as where a glass hull, Deck and cap has to be laid up in molds that can cost Hundreds of thousands of dollars and of course there is NO wood in a Plate Alloy hull.

Lots of new designs have came about in the last few years making for Better ride and more user friendly features.

[prowlersfish]

" ] If you damage it [ Alloy ] just weld in a new piece grind/sand smooth and buff or paint , with a open mid it's a lot easier to work on than a glass or wood boat.

Typically Alloy boats are painted above the water line and raw below. "

Once you weld and patch It will not look that great unless its painted , do you really think its easier to weld and patch then to do a repair in glass or even wood ? It takes a good welder to do that type of work not the average boat owner .

Alloy boats have their pros and cons like any other boat

Edited April 25, 2011 by prowlersfish

[welder]

Here is a link to a 34' alloy boat that is all welded and has been ground on then painted.

http://www.aluminumalloyboats.com/viewtopic.php?p=14513#p14513

[prowlersfish]

Here is a link to a 34' alloy boat that is all welded and has been ground on then painted.

http://www.aluminumalloyboats.com/viewtopic.php?p=14513#p14513

Thanks for the link , I found it interesting I more I read the more I know glass boats are still for me .

different boats for different folks

[welder]

Paul , thanks for the conversation so far , It's cool that we can talk and not bash each other and this is what this forum is all about . I off to start another thread.

[prowlersfish]

Hey I think we both have nice boats you got your tin and I have my plastic ( I bashed my self so its cool) think about how boring it would be if all boat were the same. My first boat was alum. and thats what got me started so it can't be too bad as I have been hooked ever since

[welder]

Hey I think we both have nice boats you got your tin and I have my plastic ( I bashed my self so its cool) think about how boring it would be if all boat were the same. My first boat was alum. and thats what got me started so it can't be too bad as I have been hooked ever since

BINGO, we ALL have something in common , BOATS, and they all serve a purpose for us .

What we all need is three boats , that way we can pretty much cover all of our boating/fishing needs.

[yottyboy]

The major drawback to fiberglass is that there is very little control over the quality of the layup. I will grant that manufacturing techniques are improving, but those are available only in very expensive boats. Resin infusion being one of those. Most FRP boats are still made the same way they were decades ago.

With plate alloy construction there is no deviation in the strength of the material...it is uniform throughout. Additionally the metal alloy's properties are pre engineered so that there is zero guesswork about how best to construct the hull.

So many advantages. Other than not being shiny and white, which can be made to happen, there's no contest