Cutting the cross braces at an angle seems like it would be a great idea for getting that professional finish. Nice project so far, keep up the excellent work!
If you want to cover up those ends just use aluminum angle and weld to every other crossmember. Easier than cutting them back. And would give you and outer ledge for wiring or some small led lights.
I was going to say cut it back, I was thinking this earlier in the video before you even mentioned it. As seeing this comment this seems like the best bet! Strength, looks and less work. Only draw back it I can see is if you paint edge trim black it won’t blend anymore
Hey I am a boat builder and welder. For aluminum welds cleaned up fine. Add WD40 to your sanding disc to not gunk up your pads and get cleaner shaping on welds.
You might try truck bed liner. It can be brushed or sprayed and is very difficult to scratch. It’ll leave a nice texture that’ll look kind of like your corner pieces
Not to beat the floor issue to death but you could always use PVC sheets. Cheaper than Marin plywood and available at Home Depot. And will never rot. Love the projects
Zack I was looking at the rear welded section and actually thought how amazing it looked. It looks way better then so called professional boats I have seen built, it’s amazing what you do don’t ever lose sight of that.
So glad to see you on another pontoon project. Two years ago you inspired me to rebuild my own pontoon. Since them my family has been enjoying weekends out on the lake. Now I know my next pontoon I'll be building from scratch. Already looking forward to the project. Keep up the great work!
For the side pieces you were thinking about black paint/poder coat, what about bed liner. Its tough and black. just a thought. Love the lights in the pontoon.
Watching your channel makes me remember that THIS is how most YT (re)building channels used to be. You still actually show the work being done and discuss your thought process instead of turning the channel into another fake reality TV show about pretend drama and acting like some "online personality" with a catch phrase. Keep doing your own thing. 👍🏼
I wasn't annoyed by the exposed cross beams until you pointed them out. 😂 I agree with some others here on putting a piece of angled aluminum over them. Bedliner would work great over those rails, easy to touch up if damaged and hides all sorts of sins.
Cerakote the trim pieces. You can get a variety of colors, doesn’t require baking and is cheaper than powder coating. Austin Niemala does a lot on his channel. Take a look and consider it an option.
If you cut the ends when you bump the edges they may dent easily and start to look bad. You might want to add a mid-cleat in addition to the bow and stern cleats. If you ever get towed, having that mid cleat makes it much easier to rig the forward and backing lines. They don't have to run the bow and stern lines across the boat to reach the far side cleats.
Neighbor re-floored his pontoon boat about 8 or so years ago. He layed down a really thick rubber mat, then plastic decking long ways . He never wanted to deal with wood or carpet ever again.
Connect the first 3 cross members with a strap bolted to each one on either side of the center toon. That will give enough support for that bow eye in case someone tries to really crank on the winch.
Most of the pontoons that I’ve seen that are that big are running twin 200 to 300’s. A single 250-300 would still push it across the water but you aren’t getting anywhere very quickly and won’t want to be out in any kind of weather without the extra horsepower. We had to assist pull one back that was only slightly smaller than this one that had a single 150 with my grandfathers quad motor boat when a pretty crazy rain/wind storm rolled in unexpectedly.
looking great. i built a party pontoon 34 foot by 11.5 foot wide & we used king starboard marine-grade high-density polyethylene as flooring expensive but never ever have to replace it
Another nice video. You did a great job demonstrating and explaining. Was a little surprised with everything exposed you did not use Split Wire Loom Tubing Wire Conduit to protect the wiring. Keep up the great work.
Yea just paint the trim and put clear on top of it. Looking good man! I think cutting all those cross members at an angle would help the appearance. Lotta work but worth it in the end I think!
I would trim those beams down for a couple of reasons. 1 for the better look and 2 for safety. The sharp edges could pose an issue of cutting someone or possibly damaging boats that are tied up with ya. When I refitted my boat i made sure to got rid of any sharp area or corner.
I would try to find some rubber molding to run under the deck edge kinda like you have around the edge of the jet skis.. it would give you some protection if you decide to paint the trim and also hide the c channel.. keep up the great work.
Excellent work. It looks great. I would definitely angle cut the ends of the cross beams not only for looks but for safety. Those ends have some pretty angular corners that could be dangerous to swimmers etc.
Love this build. Just not sure I would put the fuel tank vent so close to the water line. Maybe extend it up the fence/playpen supports. Looks great though.
I'd cut the ends of the floor joist. The majority of the ends are covered by the side rails/caps so you don't have to cut a 45* from the top so cut at 45* from half the height back.
I know this video was posted few months ago so this comment is probably worthless now, but the fuel tank vent is ment to be installed sideways with the 90° elbow facing up so no water will go in while still allowing to vent. The way you installed will allow water to get into the full tank, and boy, that is a whole different story! Good luck, and keep up the good work.
Another option for your trim would be something like Raptor liner. It's tintable (so you can color it whatever you want) and it's really tough stuff... Plus you can do it yourself, saving some money. It'll be cheaper than anodizing. Also, your welds on that rear trim piece looks fine. Especially if you paint over it (or Raptor line it).
I love the idea of the light up pontoons, it would be great to get an idea of what is costs to build this boat. It would be great to see a video of re-building one with an electric motor instead of gas.
Maybe try messing with vinyl house siding to form over the metal channels at the lower edges around the deck. Its pretty forgivable and will bend to a curved accurate shape at a cheap price. Or use it to attach some custom additional lights such as even those cheap LED garden lights because its essentially a boat of light mods. Or use the metal channels to keep adding more platforms together until you have your own floating ultimate rebuilt city!
You should check out cerakote for painting your side rails…. It’s pricey but it’s used on fire arms…. And they make a air cure coating that is sprayable with an HLVP.
For the decking on the sides you could do some sort of led track light around it to cover up the cross beams. Like some sort of pulsing light to separate the light up toons. Looks good man.
I Vinyl wrapped my trip and it's lasted the last 6 years and still looks like I just did it yesterday. I recommend doing that for different color and how tough it actually is. Also cut your deck braces at an angle it'll make it look super clean.
I really enjoy this build and can't wait until the next video. That pontoon is going to be nice with all the led lights. Can't wait to see the finished product
Thank you for sharing Zak. Is the transom the things holding the center pontoon in place? Or is the pontoon touching the transom? You may want to hold those separate or put something to prevent the transom from chaffing through the plastic pontoon.
Only a suggestion but do you think it could be a good idea that down the middle of the pontoon that you make too cuts length ways for maintenance purposes in case you have problems , its only a suggestion Very impressed with your work ethic and quality of your work
I wouldnt cut the the cross members from the top, I would cut them about an 1/8th inch up from where you can see it, and make the slope gradual. That way, those cross members will still give the trim support from the sides and you would barely notice them.
Love the build. The trim being black would be cool but like you said, the scratches could ruin that quickly. I'm in favor of cutting back the aluminum under the trim. I was also wondering if you were planning on doing a cost breakdown of this build?
If you’re looking to build an aluminum grab handle for the ladder you should look at electrical aluminum conduit. And buy a bender and form it how you want might be an idea.
Cut the corners or cover them with some angle iron and then attach a rubber bumper or something of the like so you have a little cushion before scratching the boat when you come in to dock. I also am no expert, but it seems that fuel fill would be slightly inconvenient when filling at a station, or filling on the water. I personally think putting the fuel cap on the same side of the boat that your truck has its cap as itll make it much easier for filling up before hitting the water. At that rate i'd put one on each side, giving you options. Pretty cheap to add and would be very convenient on the water or on the trailer at the gas station.
That looks beautiful so far. I think I would have made a hatch so I could access that center pontoon for minor repairs to those tanks, but that's just me.
Wow nice job. I would only paint the flat side part of the aluminum railing and leaving the round corner and top raw aluminum. This way you will still have a black accent and it would would be protected since it recess.
try using some silver stair noise caping you can get it at any carpet or home improvement store just put it upside down and put some screws in it but that looks awsome so far
If you cut the cross member cut them AT the end of the trim, not way up under it. Reason is when the trim gets bumped, the cross members will keep the trip straight and nice. If it’s cut toward the top of the trim, the trim will have nothing behind it and will push and flex and the only thing holding it will be the screws at the top. Enough force will roll it and pull the screws out of the wood.
Cut the crossbraces but not at 45 degrees,I would cut it just at the edge of the side trim to a taper, oh and please put a spacer under the filler cap assembly so that it sits flush with the deck
I would cut the cross braces, just so that it is more pleasing to the eye. but I would make the angle such that there is still support for the outer walls of the cover. That make sense?
What about adding an alum angle to the bottom end of the cross beams and putting the edge trim over it which would provide an extra visual detail and cover the ends.
Cutting the cross braces at an angle seems like it would be a great idea for getting that professional finish. Nice project so far, keep up the excellent work!
If you want to cover up those ends just use aluminum angle and weld to every other crossmember. Easier than cutting them back. And would give you and outer ledge for wiring or some small led lights.
Yes! And it will add some rigidity too
I second this
I was going to say cut it back, I was thinking this earlier in the video before you even mentioned it. As seeing this comment this seems like the best bet! Strength, looks and less work.
Only draw back it I can see is if you paint edge trim black it won’t blend anymore
Cover the ends with aluminum and put led light strips along the aluminum
@@lupastuffmight be too much with the pontoons themselves lighting up
Hey I am a boat builder and welder. For aluminum welds cleaned up fine. Add WD40 to your sanding disc to not gunk up your pads and get cleaner shaping on welds.
You might try truck bed liner. It can be brushed or sprayed and is very difficult to scratch. It’ll leave a nice texture that’ll look kind of like your corner pieces
Was thinking the same. Bedliner is super tough and easy to touch up.
That’s a good option, just not sure how the texture would look.
Rustolium spray can truck bedliner has minimal texture.
@@davidfink4963 can confirm this, however it's not as long lasting as a roll-on application.
Not to beat the floor issue to death but you could always use PVC sheets. Cheaper than Marin plywood and available at Home Depot. And will never rot. Love the projects
What’s the price difference?
It's not often I recommend cutting corners but this is a good exception. You'll be glad you did it before attaching the trim!
Extra work, but I think cutting the beams at an angle would look great!
Keep up the great work !! Watching the video now !!
Zack I was looking at the rear welded section and actually thought how amazing it looked. It looks way better then so called professional boats I have seen built, it’s amazing what you do don’t ever lose sight of that.
So glad to see you on another pontoon project. Two years ago you inspired me to rebuild my own pontoon. Since them my family has been enjoying weekends out on the lake. Now I know my next pontoon I'll be building from scratch. Already looking forward to the project. Keep up the great work!
Same here👊🏻
For the side pieces you were thinking about black paint/poder coat, what about bed liner. Its tough and black. just a thought. Love the lights in the pontoon.
Watching your channel makes me remember that THIS is how most YT (re)building channels used to be. You still actually show the work being done and discuss your thought process instead of turning the channel into another fake reality TV show about pretend drama and acting like some "online personality" with a catch phrase. Keep doing your own thing. 👍🏼
I miss those channels too
I wasn't annoyed by the exposed cross beams until you pointed them out. 😂 I agree with some others here on putting a piece of angled aluminum over them.
Bedliner would work great over those rails, easy to touch up if damaged and hides all sorts of sins.
Cerakote the trim pieces. You can get a variety of colors, doesn’t require baking and is cheaper than powder coating. Austin Niemala does a lot on his channel. Take a look and consider it an option.
I love you creativity. That’s going to be one cool boat.
Great build. Definitely agree with angle cutting the sides to give it a cleaner look
Yes. Cut those end pieces at an angle, it'll give you a more polished look.
Agree with cutting the angles on cross pieces. Flooring looks awesome.
If you cut the ends when you bump the edges they may dent easily and start to look bad. You might want to add a mid-cleat in addition to the bow and stern cleats. If you ever get towed, having that mid cleat makes it much easier to rig the forward and backing lines. They don't have to run the bow and stern lines across the boat to reach the far side cleats.
Neighbor re-floored his pontoon boat about 8 or so years ago. He layed down a really thick rubber mat, then plastic decking long ways . He never wanted to deal with wood or carpet ever again.
Connect the first 3 cross members with a strap bolted to each one on either side of the center toon. That will give enough support for that bow eye in case someone tries to really crank on the winch.
Most of the pontoons that I’ve seen that are that big are running twin 200 to 300’s. A single 250-300 would still push it across the water but you aren’t getting anywhere very quickly and won’t want to be out in any kind of weather without the extra horsepower. We had to assist pull one back that was only slightly smaller than this one that had a single 150 with my grandfathers quad motor boat when a pretty crazy rain/wind storm rolled in unexpectedly.
I would cut the edges below the floor.
The rear looks fine. Would powder coat if it was me
Enjoy watching your videos👊🏻
looking great. i built a party pontoon 34 foot by 11.5 foot wide & we used king starboard marine-grade high-density polyethylene as flooring expensive but never ever have to replace it
Another nice video. You did a great job demonstrating and explaining. Was a little surprised with everything exposed you did not use Split Wire Loom Tubing Wire Conduit to protect the wiring. Keep up the great work.
Yea just paint the trim and put clear on top of it. Looking good man! I think cutting all those cross members at an angle would help the appearance. Lotta work but worth it in the end I think!
I would trim those beams down for a couple of reasons. 1 for the better look and 2 for safety. The sharp edges could pose an issue of cutting someone or possibly damaging boats that are tied up with ya. When I refitted my boat i made sure to got rid of any sharp area or corner.
Really enjoying this project! Zach, you are one very clever man!!!
I would try to find some rubber molding to run under the deck edge kinda like you have around the edge of the jet skis.. it would give you some protection if you decide to paint the trim and also hide the c channel.. keep up the great work.
That is an awesome ladder that is only available with a new boat and I think they cost a lot more than $600. Build is looking awesome!
I would try a plastic flat rub rail to hide the metal framing under your metal trim. Cutting it at a angle is a lot of work!
Excellent work. It looks great. I would definitely angle cut the ends of the cross beams not only for looks but for safety. Those ends have some pretty angular corners that could be dangerous to swimmers etc.
*Outstanding work. I'm looking forward to the next video.*
Cutting the cross members at an angle is a good idea!
This is going to be an excellent watercraft
Powder coat all exposed aluminum black would look badass. Great work!!
Try sandblasting the aluminum. That can help match the welded parts with the factory finish. Can set it up pretty cheap with harbor freight products
Love this build. Just not sure I would put the fuel tank vent so close to the water line. Maybe extend it up the fence/playpen supports. Looks great though.
I'd cut the ends of the floor joist. The majority of the ends are covered by the side rails/caps so you don't have to cut a 45* from the top so cut at 45* from half the height back.
I know this video was posted few months ago so this comment is probably worthless now, but the fuel tank vent is ment to be installed sideways with the 90° elbow facing up so no water will go in while still allowing to vent. The way you installed will allow water to get into the full tank, and boy, that is a whole different story! Good luck, and keep up the good work.
Use cerakote. Buy that air dry paint. It works great. Plus you can get it in any color like powder coat
Another option for your trim would be something like Raptor liner. It's tintable (so you can color it whatever you want) and it's really tough stuff... Plus you can do it yourself, saving some money. It'll be cheaper than anodizing. Also, your welds on that rear trim piece looks fine. Especially if you paint over it (or Raptor line it).
I love the idea of the light up pontoons, it would be great to get an idea of what is costs to build this boat. It would be great to see a video of re-building one with an electric motor instead of gas.
Maybe try messing with vinyl house siding to form over the metal channels at the lower edges around the deck. Its pretty forgivable and will bend to a curved accurate shape at a cheap price.
Or use it to attach some custom additional lights such as even those cheap LED garden lights because its essentially a boat of light mods.
Or use the metal channels to keep adding more platforms together until you have your own floating ultimate rebuilt city!
I would cut those supports on an angle so make it cleaner. The gas filler nozel I would cut the trim so the nozel sits flush rather then on a slant.
Maybe colored truck bed liner on the edges? Would handle scratching etc.
Coming along GR8 Zach!!! Excited to see the completed project!!! Looks like a 115 HP might be in the works for her! :)
You should check out cerakote for painting your side rails…. It’s pricey but it’s used on fire arms…. And they make a air cure coating that is sprayable with an HLVP.
Those lights look sick! Great idea to light it like that. Definitely one of a kind!!!
Zach, you're the hardest working man on CZcams 😊
For the decking on the sides you could do some sort of led track light around it to cover up the cross beams. Like some sort of pulsing light to separate the light up toons. Looks good man.
I Vinyl wrapped my trip and it's lasted the last 6 years and still looks like I just did it yesterday. I recommend doing that for different color and how tough it actually is. Also cut your deck braces at an angle it'll make it look super clean.
I'd love to have one of your tri-toons. Maybe some day.
Northern Nevada is a bit far but I think it's worth it.
Awesome Zach! You always make awesome content and your skills are unmatched
It's really cool too see you do a ground up build and push the limits of what you have done before.
You make it look pretty easy! Very interesting to watch! Thanks!
I really enjoy this build and can't wait until the next video. That pontoon is going to be nice with all the led lights. Can't wait to see the finished product
You are so talented! ❤
Thank you for sharing Zak. Is the transom the things holding the center pontoon in place? Or is the pontoon touching the transom? You may want to hold those separate or put something to prevent the transom from chaffing through the plastic pontoon.
Great Job, I wouldn't change/modify anything. It looks great.
Looks awesome I can't wait to see the next episode keep up the hard work. 👍👍👍👍
Only a suggestion but do you think it could be a good idea that down the middle of the pontoon that you make too cuts length ways for maintenance purposes in case you have problems , its only a suggestion
Very impressed with your work ethic and quality of your work
I wouldnt cut the the cross members from the top, I would cut them about an 1/8th inch up from where you can see it, and make the slope gradual. That way, those cross members will still give the trim support from the sides and you would barely notice them.
Love the build. The trim being black would be cool but like you said, the scratches could ruin that quickly. I'm in favor of cutting back the aluminum under the trim.
I was also wondering if you were planning on doing a cost breakdown of this build?
Funny I was watching this video as I passed by your house. I Always enjoy your videos.
If you’re looking to build an aluminum grab handle for the ladder you should look at electrical aluminum conduit. And buy a bender and form it how you want might be an idea.
I`m enjoying this build !
I was saying paint the trim black before you even suggested it lol. If you are worried about scratches, you can raptor line it. That’d look sick.
use pvc piping, fill with cement and use that as a roller for the carpet. less work on your knees and wont have to worry about bubbles
Cut the corners or cover them with some angle iron and then attach a rubber bumper or something of the like so you have a little cushion before scratching the boat when you come in to dock. I also am no expert, but it seems that fuel fill would be slightly inconvenient when filling at a station, or filling on the water. I personally think putting the fuel cap on the same side of the boat that your truck has its cap as itll make it much easier for filling up before hitting the water. At that rate i'd put one on each side, giving you options. Pretty cheap to add and would be very convenient on the water or on the trailer at the gas station.
That looks beautiful so far. I think I would have made a hatch so I could access that center pontoon for minor repairs to those tanks, but that's just me.
I would place the side rail and mark the exposed parts. Removed side rail. Then draw a curve. Remove just enough and grind all sharp edges.
Wow nice job. I would only paint the flat side part of the aluminum railing and leaving the round corner and top raw aluminum. This way you will still have a black accent and it would would be protected since it recess.
Cut cross bracing at an angle, and instead of powder coat put a strip of black vinyl on the flat part between top and bottom of the edge trim.
I see you are doing the two different flooring again, just like The Mullet. Still I wonder what other goodie’s you will be adding to this build.
Great Video. Love watching this!
Nice work man!
try using some silver stair noise caping you can get it at any carpet or home improvement store just put it upside down and put some screws in it but that looks awsome so far
If you cut the cross member cut them AT the end of the trim, not way up under it.
Reason is when the trim gets bumped, the cross members will keep the trip straight and nice. If it’s cut toward the top of the trim, the trim will have nothing behind it and will push and flex and the only thing holding it will be the screws at the top. Enough force will roll it and pull the screws out of the wood.
It's looking great so far
Cut the crossbraces but not at 45 degrees,I would cut it just at the edge of the side trim to a taper, oh and please put a spacer under the filler cap assembly so that it sits flush with the deck
Agree, the filler cap looks off.
Looking good!
would love to see you do an all electric pontoon boat with a solar canopy
Maybe try cerakote. They have a C series that is air cure and doesn't need to be baked. I have used it on a few atv/dirt bike engines
another awesome video Zack....keep it up
Love this series!!
Looks great, I wonder how black anodizing would be and if it’s cost efficient for that trim?
i would do the angle cut thingee.... would look sweet dude.
Raptor coat bed liner would work great for the trim.
Put a rubber bumper over the exposed rails . Attach the.strips to the under side of the aluminum edge rail
I would cut the cross braces, just so that it is more pleasing to the eye. but I would make the angle such that there is still support for the outer walls of the cover. That make sense?
Love the cutting board squeegee 😂
Great job, brother!
We're going to lose Zach to Bennington soon. You are becoming the worlds leading expert in pontoon building and design. Nice work and in the heat.
What about adding an alum angle to the bottom end of the cross beams and putting the edge trim over it which would provide an extra visual detail and cover the ends.
There's likely a very good reason why nobody cuts off the ends of cross braces right below the fence.
Mom: Honey, where is my cutting board?
Dad: Zach is installing flooring on a pontoon boat.
Mom: ohhhh, of course.
Killin it dude! Per the norm
The aluminum transom pressed against the plastic tube will cause a leak thru engine vibration.
I would paint or put some sort of protection on the wood edges just to stop them rotting out