Texas Flats Boat

[BB Sig]

That's awesome! Great job on a huge build.

[Reid]

Lookin good buddy!
-Reid

[wwsmith]

Thanks, all. I think the photos make her look a little larger than she really is. Still good sized though. Regarding build pace, I have a hunch its about to slow way down! Sanding is not nearly as much fun as assembling the hull!

[Explorer 19TV]

Ha ha looking good!!! Yup here comes the real fun.

Lots of 36 and 60, you can't beat the porter cable orbital... in my opinion... take it down with the 36 and finish it off with the 60-80.

I'm guessing your graphiting the bottom??? If so make sure to do it on the hottest day you can stand roll it with 1/4 - 3/8 nap clean roller with tape berfore you start and have fun. I had the best luck using a propane torch to remove bubbles afterwards, move steady with torch and you will see the bubbles disappear and it will lay flat as paint.

Looking great!!!!

[wwsmith]

I sanded for 8 hours this past weekend using 60 grit on a 6" random orbital sander. Only got the bottom and transom! There was dust everywhere. I moved the cars to the front of the house about 100 feet away and they still got a good coating. I wouldn't want to do it every day, but it's really not all that bad. Hoping to finish the sides this weekend.

Regarding the graphite, I'm glad you asked. I'm leaning towards going that route, but would love another option. That is probably the part of the LM18 I was least satisfied with. I followed the advice of our friends on the forum and it worked perfectly. Installed on a hot day, thin coats, and cooked the off with a propane torch. The result was pretty good. Then on the very first fishing trip, we drifted over oysters and they lightly scratched the bottom. I looked at the bottom later on and they had cut right through the graphite like it wasn't even there but not through the S3 primer. It was funny to think of all the time spent agonizing over fairing and graphite coating only to have it ruined on the first trip! The bottom now had tons more scratches and nobody sees them or cares. I won't spend nearly as much time thinking about the bottom of this next boat.

There must be better options, but I don't know what. The primer and EMC paint seems much more durable than the graphite. I had my mind made up to just paint the bottom but a couple people tell me if I don't use bottom paint, I'll regret that decision. What's not clear is the sides of the LM do not have graphite and the bottom several inches remain below the waterline when in use. No problems there. Why not paint the whole bottom and skip the graphite?

Photos of graphite application and scratches included.

[Jaysen]

You can use EMC on the bottom for trailered boats. Just expect eventual wear-through where the bunks/rollers touch the hull.

The EMC will not fare much better than the graphite on oysters. At least not in my experience. I think it is easier (cheaper) to repair the graphite than the EMC (and it takes much less prep).

[Fuzz]

One of the guys used a product called Gator Glide and was pleased with it. That is all I know about it but you might want to check it out.

[wwsmith]

Great. Thank you both. Will definitely look into it.

[Explorer 19TV]

I looked into the gator but the cost was pretty unbearable in my opinion for what it was... My thoughts are oysters are pretty much gonna tear up whatever just be glad it was there. It is simple to repair as per gelcoat or others. To me the abrasion resistance comes in the glass, more glass more resistant... I put 6-7 layers of epoxy graphite on mine for added assurance....

[wwsmith]

Yes, it never occurred to me to look into products like that. Gave me something new to read about last night. I like the idea of the gator glide and wetlander, but it looks like they have some texture to them from what I see in videos. I like how the graphite goes on really nice and smooth/slick. Maybe more coats is the answer. Trying to keep circling back to the original goal of keeping it simple, light, and not overthinking it.