Jesse Ronnow's Page

Jesse,

I remember you very well and believe you brought the boat to the show. I wasn't trying to pick on you but in my opinion.the truck bed liner thing is the classic example of possible confusion among neophite builders/restorers in how the bottoms work in framed boats as oppossed to stick and glue.

The truck bed liner is very good for the stitch and glue guys since it creates a buffer between brittle glassed chines and the inevitable rock. The chine is vulnerable in the S&G boat. The framed boat has an easily replaced sacraficial chine cap. It is installed in such a way as to facilitate removal and replacement. Putting truck bed liner on it takes "easy" out of the procedure. More often than not the truck liner is an attempt to stop a leak in the chine joint. Seems like a good idea and probably works for some folks for a while. The real cause of the leak is most likely a breakdown of bedding at the chine joint. The routine replacement and rebedding of the cap likely solves the problem at the source. I have seen several framed boats with the coating. Some have worked while others became an expensive failure making the proper fix even more daunting. That stuff is very tough and was never intended to be removed from the truck bed.

Don't take it personal, just trying to give advice as I see fit. All the really good frame boat builders would agree with me. If your boat works for you then you have done good.
That is always the bottom line but nitpicking is a bit of a hobby for the forum community. It's great to see different views.

Hope to see you over this way for the show. Hope you can stay for the boat parade and beer drinking festivities at camp in the later afternoon.

Cheers,

AJ

Jesse,
Im in the prossess of building my PCR web site. I have some rod photos posted on the site
but thats about it for now. Go to: www.snakeriverrods.com and check it out.
talk to you later.
Chad

Jesse,
Im the one. I sold out to my Brother, and his partners. Im living in Swan Valley, working
as a EMT for the Swan Valley Fire Dept. I allso reopened my Custom Fishing Fishing Rod
Bussiness. Powell Custom Rodbuilding. Its going big guns in the swan valley area.
are you going to attend the snake river boat show?

I looked on the map where you live. I will be comeing by your back yard to go deer hunting. We take the Palisades road to Alpine Wyoming, hunt the Greys river

The frame i copied had no bevel,added 16" and the frame,every thing else stayed the same.

I bought the plan from Don Hill. It's the ten foot mini drifter. I duplicated the center frame and added 16 inches to the center of the boat. It is very quick and is a great low water boat.

Jesse, Sorry I did not get back to you sooner... out of town for a wedding this weekend. I know nothing about river boating I just like the lines of the drift boat. I did not wnat just a flat bench seat. I turned the end of a patio park bench, that we have, up on its edge and traced the lines on to a pattern and then using the dimensions in the plans from Don Hill, approximated the seat to the confines of that space. I was going to use a long hinge and a tapererd seat back but changed that to this hinge peice. I wanted the seat back to be attached and if I wanted to step over it I could lay the back rest down. It was along winter project ... seat of the pants quessing . I did sit in the seat , placed in the boat the other day and was very pleased. Thanks steve

Thanks Jesse for the comment on the Line-X on the bottoms of the boat. Not sure what river I will float... there is the Arkansas river, pronounced ark kansas. I mainly builtt it to take my dad and own children fishing ... and the lines of the drift boat was the main attraction . Thanks again Steve

Jesse,

something like this? http://www.rei.com/product/737298

Did you just pinch the ends to get it through the turnbuckle? About 50 feet do it?

thanks for the feed back, it really helps!

mitchell