I'm ordering my wood this week and since there's so many broadbill owners here I thought I'd ask. This is a pretty shallow boat and for a little more room under the decks I'm thinking I'll add 2" to the depth unless someone knows of a design flaw this would cause. Also has anyone lengthened the cockpit to allow for a little more room and to reduce the reach to the motor tiller? I'm also planning to have the fuel tank under the front deck. The motor I'm looking at isn't electric start but if I would go that route is there enough room for both a battery box and 6 gal fuel tank under the front deck or would that be too much weight to plane with a 15hp?

Since building yours what would you add, delete, revise.

Thanks,

Ed L.

Take care,

Ed L.
East Moline,
Illinois
_________________________________________
If I'd had asked what they wanted they would have said faster horses" - Henry Ford

I'm waiting on replies too..I want to get mine underway in the next couple months. I have had the plywood, 3mm Okuume for a couple years now. The Broadbill will give me enough more size that hunting with the grandson will be nicer. I thought I would give 3"-4" more side height to mine and extend the cockpit back so I don't have to have a long tiller extension. Even wondered about a small motor well..say maybe 6". I know Jim Staudachers Broadbills FLY with 15hp motors so I think if you want electric start..go fer it. I'll use my 9.8 merc that I got from Jim on mine. After looking at that Honker with the TDB decks..I have been thinking maybe that is the way to go.

Ed have built the armstorng one and my own design boats are similar so maybe some of my answers will help .

these are designed as a low profile type boat I do not like the idea of raising the side but what I have found and do like it raising the deck area by the cockpit and I have found that if you bubble or round the deck it hides better this way when you set down in the water you have a rounded deck instead of any hard lines

15 ,18,25 are good motors for this boat your tank in the bow is fine provide you find one to fit (I have been using old jetski tanks) battery would depend on if it was small or large. I have recently done away with the large battery and was using a walmart speacil jet ski battery to run belige pump , nav lights, and spot light there is so much less weight in that small battery compared to the hugh marine battery it isn't funny

I streacthed one boat to 16 feet and enlarged the cock pit, you have no poblems with doing that.

I do recommend you build it with pod and leave the splash well between the cockpit and the transom!

I know this pictures are metal intead of wood but you can get a idea form them about the bubbleing of the deck and building the pod in line with the hull during construction




Death and taxes may be the only things certain in life, but at least death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.

Support waterfowls future and take a kid duck hunting!

lets try pictures agian




Death and taxes may be the only things certain in life, but at least death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.

Support waterfowls future and take a kid duck hunting!

nope sorry I cant get them to post for some reason




Death and taxes may be the only things certain in life, but at least death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.

Support waterfowls future and take a kid duck hunting!

You didn't put the needed tags in after you uploaded [inline filename.jpg]. If you use the advanced editor click the framed mountain and select inline and then select your uploaded pics. If you don't want to mess with tags then uncheck the inline option and the pics will be attachements at the bottom of your post.

Lee

Howcome the Broadbill if you have the MLB sneakbox? They seem similar to me.

Eric, I believe the Broadbill is quite a bit wider and the cockpit can be made so Blake and I will not be so cramped. The Broadbill also has a planing hull with no "skeg" to catch while pulling through thin water. I also think I can build it to be lighter..which with my sore ass lower back would mean a lot.. I think if I do it the way we talked about..a long time ago..with the thin Okuume I have, that it would be plenty strong. I have just recently thought of doing the "TDB" type sides on it and adding a small motor well to bring the motor forward a bit..the extension on the Zackbox is a pain in the ass as it flops around getting in the way. Wish I had a cad system to draw out what I am thinking.

Ed

I stretched my Broadbill to 11' even by adding a tad more between the lofting stations. I also added 1" to the side panels and 1 1/2" to the deck height which gave my boat 2 1/2" more in profile. I also put a bottom to the storage area bulkheads which really helps stuff from sliding out when motoring or trailering. The 2 1/2" increase in total height has worked out wonderfully. I can now stack decoys two high and that greatly increases storage capacity with minimal effort and materials. If I were to build another Broadbill I don't think I'd make a single change from they way it is now. For me and my situtation it's perfect.

What size boot do you wear? Could you sit crossways in the boat and have your toes pointing up?Legs stretched out? I wish I had raised the sides on my BB2 2"..it would have made a huge difference when sitting on the floor...for me anyway. I like the zackbox fine when I am alone by the way..it is pretty much full then with a dozen e-allens,gear and gas tank.

Size 10. Can't remember sitting sideways with my feet under the side decks. Not sure about that. Sometimes I sit on the front or rear deck with feet in the cockpit. Sometimes I use a back rest and recline facing the front or rear with Cassie to one side.

Congrats on getting started on your boat, Ed. This is the fun stuff!!

You're looking at the Broadbill, correct? Some of the responses made me wonder if you are looking at the Bluebill....

Anywho, I lengthened mine by a total of 4" to an even 11'-0". I did it by simply adding 1/2" to the normal 12" spacing of the lofting stations. I started at the transom and worked forward, that way the bow lofting station positions were not affected at all. The cockpit grew a nice 6", by simply adjusting the fore and aft bulkhead positions slightly, (each by an inch) and with the additional 4" of stretch.
I added about 3/4" to the top of the bulkheads to add more rounded curve to the decks. I did not adjust the side heights of the hull, as I didn't think of that. I wish now that I had an extra inch, as I would like the extra storage under the decks. (not a big deal on the side decks but it is for the fore and aft storage...)
I would not add more than 2" though. Probably only 1.5" would be all I'd add. And another reason to not go too far, you would need to be careful about too much height added, as that could effect the distance from the top of the transom motor mount to the top of the aft deck. You could potentially run out of motor tilt clearance.
Depending the size of battery and gas tank you plan to use, you could get both under the foredeck, (or not, if they are too large) and the weight up front would be fine. I'm always try to get all my gear to the front. My boat is stern heavy with the motor, me and the dog (she HAS to sit between my legs) so I think distributing weight up front is ok.

This is fun stuff!!

Good luck to you.

Best,
Brian F.

In Reply To

This is exactly how I hunt my Broadbill.

Brian F.

You hunt with a dog named Cassie too? :)

I forgot to mention that I also added "knees" to the sides to help support the side decks and to add gun racks. Also, I added floor suports to help give the hull a bit of rigidity. There are 3 floor supports, the center one is hidden in the pic by the foreward cockpit bulkhead. Both these add-ons have helped a great deal.

Ha! I was going to edit out Cassie to read (dog) but I figured she is more than a dog to you, just as Bella is more than a dog to me. ;-)

My two-bit advice...(I don't hold a candle to you two). You're headed down the right track using okoume. I built the kit from Clark Craft and am quite unhappy with the quality of the "marine grade" plywood. It has checked and has voids all through it. I love my boat and miss it dearly...do yourself right, buy the best and don't squirm at the price!

Bradley

Thanks for posting that. I've seen people suggest, mostly on other sites, to use domestic ply, sometimes exterior grade, standing behind the justification "the epoxy is what gives the boat all its strength."

Lee, I thought that the "3mm" was a typo, but you really are planning on using this stuff based on your second mention of it.

I have used the 3mm stuff to make a light weight boat (still under construction and some photos were posted in the old forum) and found that it needs a lot of support. The 3mm is not nearly as floppy as door skins, but almost as bad. You will need to build a frame to support this stuff prior to glassing or stitching. After stitching the pieces together, we had to use water jugs as weights to keep the 3mm from buckling. It was not a lot of fun. This problem didn't become apparent until we cut and stitched the pieces together.

If you use the bulkheads as a frame system like building the original Widgeon (zackbox) and attach the knees to some frames to help support the 3mm then the buckling might not become an issue.

The link shows two photos of the boat during the construction process. You can see the bendy twisty aspect of the 3mm and the water jug holding the bow bulge down.

http://www.duckhuntingchat.com/viewtopic.php?t=17998



"Where all men think alike, no one thinks very much......It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf." -- Walter Lippmann

Hi Ray, I know it's floppy. What I will do is glass both sides before cutting it out. I was planning on a layer of 3-4oz on each side ,then after cutting the pieces, putting another layer at the stitch areas. After getting it together, I will put 6oz on the exterior and if there is a concern with oil canning I can put longitudinal strips of glass on the inside of the hull. It will make it a bit heavier than I want it..probably...but should be very stiff. I can see where your bottom can cavitate, it's flat...the Broadbill has a V bottom most of the way back which gives a modicum of rigidity.

eric ,
I am still not doing something rght I just went ahead an unchecked the inline box




Death and taxes may be the only things certain in life, but at least death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets.

Support waterfowls future and take a kid duck hunting!

Well the wife is on a business trip to sunny Californy and it’s fend for yourself around here. SO…I have a nice little fire going in the fireplace just finished a venison steak smothered in mushrooms and onions, salad and baked potato and I have a Canadian Mist and seven-up and the Broadbill plans laid out on the coffee table. I fired up the ‘puter and man oh man all the replies.

Lee, I thought long and hard about getting a hold of Pastor Larry when I seen he had is MLB widgeon for sale but like you I like the Broadbill being 4’ 61/2” wide over the 4’ the widgeon is. I did talk to Dave Simon and he suggested I not deviate from the 3/8” bottom. That will help me keep the boat fair and square rather than using something thinner that doesn’t have much rigidity. Also since I'm on the river with lots of submerged hazards, the thicker the better. I never thought about glassing both sides before cutting. I have been thinking about laying the boat out in cad. That way I could make DXF files and have the various panels laser cut by a friend of mine that has that business. I had also thought I would just add material to the side panels for extra height but I like the idea of adding to the decks to. I’m a little worried about the compound angles that would be created at the bow.

Thanks.

Ed

Take care,

Ed L.
East Moline,
Illinois
_________________________________________
If I'd had asked what they wanted they would have said faster horses" - Henry Ford

Eric,

I'm going to stretch this out to 11' also. I can get the MDO board in 12' lengths and thought about going to 12' but I'm afraid that's a little long without adding stringers of some sort to the bottom. I like the idea of adding height to the deck and increasing the radius. I can see where it'll give some body to any grassing rather that just looking flat. Adding material to the bottom of the bulkheads adds a lot of strength but is the opening still wide enough to get a fuel tank in and out? I have been thinking of a stationary tank with a fillcap mounted on the top deck then getting the tank in and out wouldn't be an issue.

Thanks,

Ed

Take care,

Ed L.
East Moline,
Illinois
_________________________________________
If I'd had asked what they wanted they would have said faster horses" - Henry Ford

Robert,

Thanks for thoughts. I do like the thought of a more radiused deck rather than flat. I never even consider a jet ski battery before. What are the cranking amps verses a marine battery. I may have to look into this further. I sure like somthing lighter for the aquapod if nothing else. By the way, didn't I see this boat on ebay. Did you sell it?

Ed

Take care,

Ed L.
East Moline,
Illinois
_________________________________________
If I'd had asked what they wanted they would have said faster horses" - Henry Ford

Hi Brian,

How was your season this year. Did you manage to hunt all the great lakes this year?

I was sittin here sipping on my Canadian mist and seven-up wonding how much Eric added in between the stations to get the 11' foot. Now I know. It was either last fall or this spring you posted several pictures of your build. I had them saved but not backed up then I had a harddrive fail. Would you mind emailing them to me at ejlydic@hotmail.com That was a great pictorial. You know what they say about pictures.

Thanks,

Ed

Take care,

Ed L.
East Moline,
Illinois
_________________________________________
If I'd had asked what they wanted they would have said faster horses" - Henry Ford