See full version: Quick Fix for Leaky Boats
Two products that work well for leaky boats are Epoxy Putty Sticks and Marine Adhesive Sealant. The latter is best used for filling in joint seams that have lifted or when sealing transducer holes. Epoxy is an excellent product for rivets, small cracks, or holes. more
Keep your boat level and hooked up to your tow vehicle for this step. With a garden hose, fill the boat with an inch or two of water, paying careful attention to the aluminum underside for any drips or leaks. Once found, use a waterproof marker to highlight areas that need attention. If none noticed, continue with the filling process. [links]
Ascertaining where water seeps in can be a tough chore. Problematic areas are often not noticed with a visual inspection, meaning a water test is your best bet. [links]
Following the product directions is crucial for best results. Epoxy requires hand kneading for one minute in order for the two compounds to mix. It then must be forced and flattened on to the aluminum within two minutes. The work time allowed is quite short, so knowing where you are applying it and how should be figured out in advance. Once cured, a permanent steel hard shell is left. [links]
A common problem affecting aluminum boats are leaks. Collisions with underwater obstructions, beaching boats, and years of pounding waves are the likely causes of loose or missing rivets, widening of seams, and hairline cracks and tears.
I'll give you another one: John Cox. The guy is, in my opinion, the best shallow-water angler in the world right now. You can put him in a mud puddle and he'll find a way to catch an 18-pound limit. To the best of my knowledge, he was the first one to fully commit to running a tin rig a few years ago. He chose to run a Crestliner because it allowed him to access such shallow water, which of course, is his biggest strength. I haven't been keeping an exact talley of how many trophies that man has won in an ol' tin rig, but I can guarantee you he could pay off my house a couple of times over with the money he's made in that dern boat. [links]
In case you missed it, Elite Series pro Jason Christie announced on Wednesday that he was going to be running an Xpress X21. This man is undoubtedly one of the best bass anglers in the entire world. He could have run any fiberglass boat he wanted to; take that to the bank. here
The first professional tournament that really opened my eyes to the possibilities of a tin boat, however, was when Elite Series pro Mark Menendez dominated Lake Dardanelle in 2009 using a little 17-foot G3 with a 90-horsepower motor. While it took him over an hour to get to his primary area, he was able to get where nobody else could reach. He would manually push his way through a culvert in order to reach a desolate backwater. Because of his boat choice, he had every single fish all to himself.
But man, there's a trend happening in recent years that we can't really ignore much longer. A bunch of anglers, whether they're weekend guys or full-time touring professionals, are flocking to aluminum bass boats. The number of newer tin boats I'm seeing on my local fisheries is absolutely blowing my mind. I've talked to boat dealers and they're having to drive thousands of miles to other states just to pick up aluminum boats for committed buyers. They agree that it's unlike anything they've ever seen.
I've been a bass boat owner for the majority of my life. I've restored older fiberglass boats because of my limited budget and I've also been able to save to buy a shiny, 21-foot fiberglass rig that made me feel like a total hotshot. I got to thinking the other day and for whatever reason, I grew up thinking that you had to have a fiberglass bass boat to be a "real" bass fisherman. It's what I saw on television and in the magazines, so it's really all I knew to be honest.
A decade or two ago, that would have been completely unheard of. But Christie has tested the boat extensively and feels like it's going to give him a clear competitive advantage in upcoming seasons, per his announcement on our Facebook page. I think this is a clear testament to the technology and effort put into manufacturing aluminum bass boats these days. There is so much competition that these companies are having to do everything imaginable to make their boats the best they can.