Aluminum Boat Casting Deck Build and Helpful Mods

I have been asked to go over my custom casting deck and boat build a few times now so I finally made a video that all of you out there looking to make your own casting deck mods or just upgrade your starter boats can use to get started! I hope this helps more people get out on the water and enjoy catching more fish! #BoatBuild #CastingDeck #CustomBoatDeck #DIY #AluminumBoatBuild #FishingBoatDeck #howto
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Here is the first video of the structure of the boat:
• 14ft Aluminum Boat Dec...
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[@tomhuynh7556]

Dude, thanks for the video. I wish you could describe more details how to support front deck. I have a deep V front. It is hard to build support b/c it 's curved. Therefore, it gives me little room to build based. In other videos, they can build rectangular based to support deck. My boat has a little flat at the based.

[@DWSOutdoors]

tom huynh If you watch the other video I did a little overview of the framing I basically build a bracket out of wood or screwed directly into the front bench for the support then build off of that to the front mini step that would be directly under my trolling motor!

[@DWSOutdoors]

tom huynh this older video has the build overview kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y56cfY2fhtZmhdk

[@largemammaloutdoors4503]

I’ve done a couple before. The first one I did I used joist hangers and used 2x4s like floor joists and it worked out great. I’m gonna do the same thing with the boat I have now

[@DWSOutdoors]

This video will show everything I did: kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y56cfY2fhtZmhdk

[@michaelprevost1229]

Good tips video.Nice job

[@ChasingGiants23]

Great Vid. well done dude. Hope your slaying them in it. Top job

[@DanielJones-nv3my]

New to the channel as I just purchased a 14ft. aluminum deep V. last night for a great price. Thanks for the great info as I'm sure I'll be using in the future. Tight lines my friend

[@joshuamcgovern6803]

Awesome thanks 👍

[@kalealicoldwell6307]

Awesome video, I have the exact same boat but just a 16’ I’m going to use a lot of your ideas as I have a young family I have always wanted to put a flat floor in it. Thanks for the ideas and I will post some videos or pics when I am compete.

[@largemammaloutdoors4503]

That looks sweet. Exactly what I want to do with mine

[@marcelahurtado4100]

2015 because of good reviews and and a great price for 55 pound ...

[@josephcox4720]

Great video, I have the same boat! Gave me some great ideas!

[@DWSOutdoors]

One thing I very much suggest if you cant keep it inside most times is to use Marine Grade Plywood and paint it also with some kind of weather sealer before using outdoor grade carpet of vinyl!

[@keverc]

I bought a 14 aluminum boat with a trailer off a friend for 300$. Gonna put a mud skipper twister with a 13hp motor on it. Gonna build a casting deck on the front. She needs a little love but it's gonna be awesome!

[@aaronshuforddroid]

Awesome man! This helps a ton. I'm actually trying to buy my first little fishing boat. And this is exactly what I plan on doing. Thanks for this video!!

[@DWSOutdoors]

Aaron Shuford just a reminder that you REALLY want to save your money and use marine grade Wood! Also if you can swing the money in the fabrication use aluminum for the supports!

[@aaronshuforddroid]

Will do! I plan on carpeting it too. Just need to find a decent boat. I like the idea of the led lights too. Probably save power on the battery and last forever. And the anchor mate will probably one of the first things I do. Thanks!

[@DWSOutdoors]

+Aaron Shuford you definitely want the anchor mate! And leds are a great investment 👊🏼

[@robertlamoureux3085]

Great build, makes it affordable, I’m in the process of doing pretty much the same thing, only difference is I treated all my wood with 3 coats of quality stain to slow the rotting of the wood, my boat is a 14 princraft deep and wide, I have a lot of different builds than you but close enough, but some of your ideas are great and easy, great job.

[@sc0tthonkonen288]

Deal. I might do this to mine also

[@randylanhart1796]

Nice job. Having a deep v hull is a bonus. It rides deeper in the water. My boat is a 62 shallow v hull so stability is a big issue. So I'm not sure if casting decks are the best idea for me at this time. But I am going to install a flat floor and some storage compartments.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Randy Lanhart that flat floor is a BIG PLUS! Good luck on your build👊🏼🎣

[@albertoerto2152]

I’ve had a 14ft mirrocraft deep fisherman all of my life, I’ve had it out on Lake Michigan caught in storms with 5.5ft waves and I was able to safely escape, Ive had it in marshes with not even 6inches of water to float in, Ive fished the Muskegon river and manistee river in it. I’ve also owned a 18ft Lund deep v row boat with benches and a little side console and a 16.5ft Starcraft deep v boat for fishing bigger water and I sold both, but I’ll never get rid of my 14ft deep fisherman. It’s the best all around fishing boat a sportsman can own. If you do upgrade hold on to that little boat cause you may miss having a nice little low maintenance aluminum boat.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Alberto Erto I have come to that same conclusion 👊🏼😎 I love my Tiny Boat!

[@tylergarber3334]

Good video dude, I’m going to do something very similar and this is a very helpful video for gathering ideas

[@DWSOutdoors]

Glad I can help! Enjoy your build 👊🏼😎

[@StagArmslower]

I have deep V 15 footer 1973 Sears boat so very similar to yours. I built middle deck from 1/2" plywood and made the support from multiple 1" PVC tube with the dowels on both end glued inside the tube. These ends gave me area to glue and screw it to the underside of the deck and also reinforce the PVC edge from braking. I still used 4 2x2", 2 attached to the bench as low as possible and 2 longitudinally for framing just enough to give me reference to cut PVC pipe to fit. Of course floor was waterproofed and carpeted. I used PVC so there is no contact with water if boat takes water from rain and it's very light. This year I will build front deck as yours plus shelf for electric motor on bow. I have Evinrude 18HP motor from 1967 and this thing flies if I'm not on city lakes

[@DWSOutdoors]

That sounds like a really good start to a very functional boat! I love little boat mods!

[@scottgorski7931]

I have basically the same boat; 1981 Mirro 14' deep-v, but it's the resorter model which means the seats are formed slightly different and the max H P motor is a 25hp. I think you would like the way I put the floor between the seats in. Simply put aluminum 3/4" L channel along the lower lip of each seat, then cut plywood to fit between the seats while resting on the L channel. Add two cross braces to the bottom of each floor section for stiffness in the center of the panel (no need for braces close to the seat the L channel is screwed to the seat and gives plenty of support). Cover the plywood with whatever you prefer and drop them in. The great thing about this system is they pop out easy to clean the space below where dead minnows, worms and other garbage always seems to get to.

[@DWSOutdoors]

I really like this idea!!! Where were you when I was building mine!?!?!? Lol

[@paulnokio1199]

Good ideas!! I'm gonna do this to my tender boat for ducks

[@scottgorski7931]

A tender boat for ducks, sounds like your talking about layout hunting. That means colder weather and cold water. It's amazing the difference in comfort that adding a floor raised from the hull makes. I'm from Wisconsin and I can't imagine going spring fishing on the Wisconsin or Mississippi rivers with my feet on the actual bottom of the boat, even with Sorel pack boots on my feet would get cold. Now a good pair of socks and some comfortable hiking boots is all I need. Another plus to the floor is that water runs underneath keeping you dryer.

[@paulnokio1199]

@@scottgorski7931 , all true. I live in upper michigan. Lbdn in November is no joke.

[@paulnokio1199]

Nice mod, I still have my old 12 ft mirro craft, same color! Its not always my first choice to fish out of but dammit it fits in The back of my truck and I can take it anywhere! And where I grew up it was a dam walleye killer. Tight lines

[@DWSOutdoors]

The ability to get where others can't is why I love this boat!

[@paulnokio1199]

All true, every one up here loves trolling, cover lots of water, 6-8 boards. That takes a big boat. I'm one of the select few who prefers pitching jigs and slip bobbers. That's why I prefer a tiller

[@DWSOutdoors]

Paul nokio exactly !

[@robertlamoureux3085]

Hey you have a power drive, just add a copilot, then launch the boat and use the remote to bring your boat to the dock, you’ll get a lot of people talking to you, just makes it fun.

[@calvinborer6572]

We absolutely love our 14ft mirror craft boat!! You may think I'm crazy but it handles rough water better than our 20 fiberglass ski boat did! Used to run a 9.9 on her and got a 25hp on it now and it's a whole new animal!

[@5smoothstonesproject740]

That is an awesome build. I have a 16 ft Starcraft Aluminum V-Hull and wondering if you do boat rebuild? Thanks for sharing!

[@DWSOutdoors]

😂 thanks but I’m not trying to get into the boat building Business! Just trying to inspire 👊🏼🎣

[@5smoothstonesproject740]

@@DWSOutdoors I understand thank you again. This is so informative. I wish my brother /fishing buddy since age 14 was here to tackle this build on both boats.

[@fishinncrapoutdoors4651]

I like that idea for the stern light. Probably even bright enough to see what you're doing and don't use nearly as much power as a commercially made stern all around light.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Jeff Krake SUPER BRIGHT!!! 😂 I stay up on the front casting chair at night and can still see my line for jigging 😂

[@fishinncrapoutdoors4651]

DWS Outdoors I have a 12' Mirro that I use as a second boat and it's a very light weight and versatile boat. If you took a guess, how much weight do you figure it added with the floor and casting deck? Another question is did you use pressure treated lumber and plywood?

[@DWSOutdoors]

It probably added about 150-200lbs tops and it was treated wood but I made sure any contact point where cushioned against the metal with strips of carpet so as not to wear on the metal

[@DWSOutdoors]

Jeff Krake but a big thing I made sure of was all of my heavy weight was below the bottom of the seats to keep the boat balanced if that makes sense

[@fishinncrapoutdoors4651]

DWS Outdoors yes to keep the center of gravity lower so the boat isn't so tippy with you up on the casting deck. Don't want to feel like you're in a canoe 🤣

[@robertlamoureux3085]

Add copilot no ropes required lol, I’ll send you picks of my build, if you would like, you gave me some good ideas, thx

[@tyrant357.]

Can you explain your front trolling motor mount?

[@DWSOutdoors]

If you are talking about the board it is mounted to I basically had to drill through there top of the rail first then run bolts from the top through the board to the boat then make mounting holes for the TM itself like you would any other boat!

[@danlaminger5265]

Can you stand fishing in front of your seat? Is there enough room to run trolling motor also?

[@DWSOutdoors]

I can but I am not that big if you are tall it would be tight!

[@williamt9984]

Yea I just got a jonboat I think it's either. 14 or 16 feet not to sure

[@DWSOutdoors]

William t if you have a 16ft boat a 50lb - 65lb would be what I’d go with

[@azclimberszone]

What length shaft trolling motor are you running? Thanks!

[@DWSOutdoors]

azclimberszone 50 something I think 🤔

[@mkodude2002]

Do you have a video of it on the water? Would like to see how stable.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Mark Olson I used to somewhere 🤔 it runs and fishes like it was built that way from the factory 👊🏼😎

[@toddhawkins8392]

How did you attach the wood plate that holds your trolling motor? Is it simply screwed into the side rails of the boat? How many screws did you use? Thanks in advance for the tips!

[@DWSOutdoors]

Mark your holes on the boat rails, Drill them out, Cut board to fit, Mark holes underneath with pen or like I did sticking a nail up from the bottom into the board, Drill then use bolts to hold everything together!

[@fishlovme]

I figured your boat was modified by you and that you had a video on it! My only comment about it is the trolling motor up front. Why didn't you mount a plug on the front of your boat, right under the trolling motor, which would eliminate the need to have the wire exposed and going into the compartment?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Stephen Peterson I wanted everything easy to remove if I ever need to

[@SonsofWadd]

What thickness is your deck wood?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Sons of Wadd 1/2

[@Hawaiibohntr]

Does adding the straight small raised floor make the boat more stable?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Yeah it does! You want to try to have at least 40-60% of your weight at the lowest point you can put it!

[@Hawaiibohntr]

I should have said a 12' Gamefisher V bottom hull.. sorry it's really needing to be a heck of a lot more stable

[@kyleigh2643]

I like your build. But I would like to remove the middle bench permanently if possible. Not sure if this is feasible? Thanks for any input. I have a 14' Sears Sea Nymph 1974 model v-bottom. Thanks.

[@DWSOutdoors]

David M it’s possible but you need to build a type of under floor gusset! Basically if you put storage on the sides and box it into the floor and have it attached where the seat mounts on the sides I think you should be ok!

[@kyleigh2643]

@@DWSOutdoors OK thanks for the reply. Have you ever thought about taking yours out?

[@DWSOutdoors]

I liked the idea of having it there for fishing 2 people

[@kyleigh2643]

@@DWSOutdoors I'm thinking that I would like to take mine out and put like a post type seat or something else that I can walk around it instead of having to step over the bench

[@ThinkB4uPK]

what type of wood did you use for your deck?

[@DWSOutdoors]

You should use marine grade ply and 2x2s but I just used treated wood for outdoor use as it was my first time building a full deck set up!

[@ThinkB4uPK]

thank you !

[@DWSOutdoors]

No Problem! Have fun building one and making it your own!

[@yargerstrong]

The max rating on that boat is actually 35 hp I believe

[@williamt9984]

Wat size bow trolling motor

[@DWSOutdoors]

William Grier 40lb moves you pretty fast I wouldn’t go bigger on that light of a boat

[@cjgroote3599]

How thick of ply wood did you use?

[@DWSOutdoors]

1/2 in

[@hulkhuggett]

Dude, what brand of boat is that? I think I have the same boat, and was the same color. I have totally redone mine tho. I took the benches out and designed mine exactly like the alumacraft competitor. Live well, electronics, bilge pump, rod lockers etc. The bottom half is rino lined.

[@DWSOutdoors]

hulkhuggett It’s an 80s MirroCraft and sounds like you have one heck of a rig now!

[@hulkhuggett]

DWS Outdoors mine is a '78 mirrocraft. I have not seen another one. My rig is awesome. However, I made a mistake by using wood. It weighs so much now I only get about 9.5 mph. I would highly recommend spending the extra and using aluminum for the decks. Only problem is finding the aluminum. Cool boat bro! And mine doesn't leak a drop after all these years.

[@paulnokio1199]

I kept mine light as I just keep it on the beach or haul it to federal forest lakes, thankfully my other boat came fully equipped with all the goodies.

[@chriscolston1114]

How is it with tipping? I have the same boat but 16ft deep v in sea foam green. I want a flat floor but it’s already so tipsy I’m worried a higher floor and casting deck will make it worse?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Chris Colston I am pretty sure because of the weight I added down low it made it less tipsy! Just remember though that the deck up on top the front seat will have you at about 2ft off of the water!

[@chriscolston1114]

DWS Outdoors hmm good point about the weight. I’m wanting to do this to mine too. Thanks!

[@DWSOutdoors]

Good luck! BIG TIP! Use Marine Grade Plywood and if you can swing it use aluminum bracing!

[@calebpayne7927]

Do you fun two batteries

[@DWSOutdoors]

I run one big one for the trolling motor that I believe is linked in the description and one big one in back for my rear locator but I also have a smaller 12v up in that front little cubby to just run my front locator off of that I used ice fishing as well!

[@branonedwards7128]

I just got a boat today with that same fuel tank. How large is it?

[@DWSOutdoors]

I think its a 5 gallon but not completely sure lol

[@robcochran1558]

How can you charge all of those batteries without removing them from the boat?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Lol I take them out! Thats why I bought the lighter ones with the handles! I have 2 deep cycle! One for my trolling motor up front and one for my electronics in back! I power the front graph off of my ice fishing batteries to keep them healthy all year as you need to charge them often to get them to last a long time!

[@robcochran1558]

Yeah I figured you would take them out. I’m surprised that they don’t make a battery charger that you can daisy chain all of the batteries inside of the boat to charge them simultaneously

[@DWSOutdoors]

@@robcochran1558 I actually think they do but I didn't like the idea of trying to run electricity to my garage when I first did the boat so I never invested in one....

[@powderaddicts6364]

Is this a 14ft?

[@DWSOutdoors]

Yep!

[@powderaddicts6364]

DWS Outdoors thnx for the response!

[@dltorres17]

Is your carpet glued down to the floor?

[@DWSOutdoors]

I used professional carpet tape and made a checker grid and stapled it to the back side around the edges

[@dltorres17]

@@DWSOutdoors did u have a plywood base or no?

[@pahanin2480]

I have a 250 hp 21’ ski and fish boat that has all the bells and whistles with gps ipilot and I also have a 1977 12’ forester aluminum fishing boat that is bare bones with a 9.9 kicker. The big boat has high upkeep cost but the 12’ has almost zero upkeep. I’ll sell the 21’ boat before I sell the 12’ boat.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Pahanin I’ve run them all and love my little boat 90% of the time! I just need that big rig for the waters I like to fish and bad weather I tend to end up in!😂

[@Fishing2day]

47

[@TheEighthDay0]

"Never use 2x4s because it'll be too heavy" Uses 2 2x2s, puts in a marine battery, anchor, seat, and trolling motor...

[@DWSOutdoors]

You probably don’t know this but if I would have used 2x4s for everything that I used 2x2s to build the front of the boat would’ve been 100-150lbs heavier 🤦🏼‍♂️

[@adventurefishing3190]

I hate my tiny boat

[@DWSOutdoors]

Adventure Fishing make it better 👊🏼🎣

[@adventurefishing3190]

@@DWSOutdoors i did, its still a 14ft 63in beam 9.9hp lol, nothing can change that. Im on the great lakes and boats like these just dont cut it.

[@DWSOutdoors]

Adventure Fishing I actually found my exact boat last year in an 18fter!!!! Almost bought it to build up and throw like a 90hp on the back! I bet if you throw a 25hp on yours you’ll like it a lot more

[@adventurefishing3190]

@@DWSOutdoors i need a 18ft 90in beam minimal. I fish great lakes.

[@DWSOutdoors]

I am pretty positive that the boat I seen was big enough to hit Green Bay on a medium wind day!