After completing the rim I then used the platform as a template to cut the rim to the correct size. Because the platform was a bit larger than the router table it had a tendency to wiggle out toward the edges. If this were fine furniture I would have to be a little more careful but the epoxy will fill any imperfections.

After making the template cut, I marked a line on the inside about ½ inch from the outer edge of the rim and cut it with a jigsaw. I took my time on this part. One slip and wham! I would cut right through the wood and really lose some strength. The rim turned out really nice. I'm almost ready to glue it to the platform.

However, there needs to be a lip added to the top that allows the user to feel the edge of the platform with their feet while wearing flats boots, tennis shoes, flip flops or something similar to Crocks. I’m still working on how to go about manufacturing this part and having it look aesthetically pleasing. The platform will still need to drain so the lip will not be continuous all the way around. I’m indecisive on the height. We will see how it turns out. I'll ask the guys over at the forum.

I purchased a couple sheets of this BS 1088. Was it a mistake? I guess we will see what the builders over at Bateau have to say.

1/10/10 - Update: The wood was taken back to Wood World of Dallas. It was not the Okoume I was wanting but still would have worked out fine on the boat. Since I want to stick with Okoume I plan to order from Bateau. Wood World was helpful and credited back all my money. I then picked up a couple Jet clamps for the build. They have quite a nice selection and I wanted to give them some business for being so helpful.

The progress on the push pole platform is coming along quite nicely. Here are some of the pictures below. The top is made marine plywood and the rim that supports the top and creates an ascetic boarder around the platform is also made up of three layers of marine plywood. All layers go different directions to give strength and rigidity.

To determine the height of the boarder I followed my father’s advice of using the 2/3rds rule, 2/3 thirds wood revealing 1/3 aluminum. Since he is a very accomplished architect I figured he would know best. The first picture is of the mock up I made to determine the thickness of the boarder. The following pictures show the progress of the top and the boarder and the last picture shows the router table I will use with a template bit to cut the boarder flush with the top (template bit not shown). I plan for that to be my next post and it will show the new bit I picked up at Woodcraft for routing the template. Oh yeah… and pray I get to feeling better. I have the flu. It is going around here in Texas. My little boy has it too. Thankfully my wife does not.

A flats boat is unique to most other boats. Like a canoe it will draft in very shallow water yet has a large enough beam to be very stable. Like a bass boat it will quickly get up on plane but has a much shallower V in the hull, thus allowing it to traverse over very “skinny” water. It is unique because of the tall platform that rests just above the motor. This poling platform is sometimes seen on Pangas. However, a quick Goggle search resulted in my finding only one Panga with a platform on it. I fished in Belize with one of my best friends for 6 straight days on a Panga with a platform. All of my other flats fishing experiences have been on traditional flats boats with this kind of poling platform. The platform allows the angler’s partner, or guide, to push the boat quietly through the shallow water with a long pole. It also aids in the spotting of cruising and tailing fish.

I was fortunate to find the platform back in 2006. A marine store in Michigan sold it to me via eBay for about one eight the cost. Flats boats are typically used in the Gulf or the Caribbean so this item was quite a long way from home. I think its location added to its low cost – I mean who is going to take a flats boat out on Lake Michigan with a poling platform? It appears that one of the legs is out of alignment and will need some adjusting. I should be able to straighten it up with a mig welder. Nothing appears to be damaged, just out of alignment.

Poling Platforms of this kind, made by Blue Point Fabrication, usually sell for around $950, but I picked this one up for only $99! What a blessing! The seller wanted more for shipping than they did for the product. They wanted $150, which was no surprise considering its awkward size. I asked them to hold onto it for me while I shopped around for a lower shipping service. Greyhound was the ticket. This company shipped it to the local station for only $56 bucks! Keep that in mind next time you purchase something awkward in size.

The only problem I can see with this platform is that one of the legs seems to be welded on a little crooked. This may be another reason why I picked it up for so cheap. Once I get a little closer to its install on the deck I may try to re-weld the original seam just under the top platform with my dad’s new Lincoln Electric mig welder. I will soon upload another post documenting the construction of the wooden platform that bolts on top of the aluminum frame. It is coming along quite nicely… so stay tuned!

Original 18' Schematic.

The fuel tanks have arrived. I purchased these two tanks from The Grate Lakes Skipper. After talking them into reducing their already low price, I made my purchase. The tanks will be mounted under the front deck between bulkheads A and B and will be accessible by a hatch door in bulkhead B.

Here is a picture of Colton checking out the sending unit (the part that tells you when you are low on fuel). The two cardboard tape bodies found on top of the tanks are there to protect the 1/4" NPT aluminum withdrawal. The fill line and the vent are located on the very top and each have a small yellow plug in them. I guess to keep the critters out. The dimensions of the tanks are 29 X 13 X 10 and both will perfectly fit between the cockpit sole and the underside of the deck, while still allowing for storage between.

Hull modification for reduced spray.



Rubrail modification for reduced spray.


Hull modification for reduced spray.



This is another designers boat and is plank on frame, not a stitch and glue. I like the paint job and how sleek the boat looks. I am considering modifying the bow under the stern to look a little longer like the boat in this photo.



Deck modification. I am considering making the front deck swing more into the cockpit and also widening the gunwales to 13 inches instead of 12.

To get a better idea of how this boat will be made I decided to build a 1/12 scale model. It turned out very well and was easy because most of the plans are printed as a 1/12 scale. I ran up to Hobby Lobby and purchased a couple small sheets of balsa wood. I simply traced the stringers, bulkheads and hull onto the wood and cut it out with an exacto knife.

I was then able to assemble the inside structure, consisting of the bulkheads and stringers, in no time at all. I then sheeted this inside structure with the pieces of the hull. All but the very tip hull near the bow were fairly easy to glue into place. The balsa wood did not bend to well near the bow so I had to build this section up with additional pieces of wood to give the balsa the strength to bend without breaking.

I modified the deck near the bow and the motor well quite a bit from the actual plans. The deck on this boat will look much more like that of a Mitzi Skiff, round in the front, not pointed like a traditional flats boat. This larger bow makes casting a fly rod much easier by allowing ample room for the fly-line to rest on the deck between casts to tailing reds.

After building the center console and fairing out some deep spots in the balsa wood, I painted the boat white and added a blue stripe. The rub rail around this boat will be about 1.5 inches tick, the plans call for a rub rail of only ¾ inch. I like the appearance of the thicker rub rail and this allows for the installation of an actual rubber rub rail. I am interested in the Taco style rub rail. The inside strip of a window wiper, the part of the blade you never see because it is in the metal track, worked perfectly as a small version of the actual rail. I installed it with little straight pens and colored the heads black with a permanent market. This made a very realistic rub rail. To top it all off I built a small wooden boat stand so the model could be displayed on the bookshelf.

Now that I have built the model I know what other areas of the boat I would like to tweak. I am considering building a second model to get a feel for what they would look like. Maybe this next one will be red.

I was browsing on eBay when I came across a steal! A gentleman was selling some plywood that he had leftover from building his own boat. He dropped the price easily 65% from retail. Unfortunately it was in California, so I listed my shipment on an online auction and was able to get the eleven pieces of wood from California to Texas for only $200. After a few more negotiations of price I made the purchase. To top it off my father paid for the delivery! He offered to pay for the whole thing but I felt bad doing that. I have wasted enough of his money over the years.


The guy who delivered the wood primarily ships motorcycles, however on this delivery he had a cat in the cab for some woman in Florida, my plywood, and bunch of junk for some person in Austin and a ¼ scale Ferrari – the real deal! This cool little car was actually made by Ferrari down to the last bolt. The only part that was not Ferrari was the engine –it was a Ducati motorcycle engine that would allow this tiny vehicle to travel up to 70 MPH. The buyer paid over $40,000 for it. You gotta really like go carts to pay $40 G for one.


The wood needed to build a boat like the one I'm working on is very specific. The lumber I purchased originally came all the way from France. It is constructed with a special marine glue and void less laminates and must conform to a specific standard – the British Standard 1088. There can be no compromise when it comes to the wood. Bad wood will rot and fall apart.




My friend Javier helped me move the wood into the house. I originally planned to cut the wood with a circular saw and purchased a 4 x 8 sheet of insulation on which to lay the wood while cutting.

However, my father came to town and after lofting out the dimensions, we were able to knock out the cuts on the bandsaw in no time. This allowed for a very true cut on the stringers. We then smoothed out any wobble in our cuts with a low level plane.




As for the bulkheads, we used a new Bosch 1590 EVSK jig saw equipped with a fine tooth wood cutting blade. A large drywall T-square purchased at Lowes did just the trick for achieving near perfect cuts. If you clamp the T-square toward the inside of the bulkhead then any missed cuts always happen away from your work. If you make a mistake you simply back up and start again adjacent to the T-square, thus cutting the mistake right off the bulkhead.

To cut the slots needed to join the bulkheads and the stringers, I simply set up the T-square for the first cut and then placed another piece along the T-square, being the exact width as the slot, minus the saw blade kerf thickness.


Once all of the bulkheads and stringers were cut, I set the cut wood up in my den. In this picture you are able to see the size in comparison to Summer, my wife, hiding behind one of the bulkheads in the picture. Everything came out very well for this first group of cuts. I am very pleased.