Boats For Sale:
swim platform |
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richardsoncd 
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Joined: April-27-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 12 |
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 Topic: swim platformPosted: May-08-2005 at 8:44pm |
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Does anyone have any advice on building a swim platform?
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DJ77skier
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Joined: April-27-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 37 |
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Posted: May-08-2005 at 10:41pm |
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hey what do you need to know i just finisher mine and it looks so sweet. you dont have to use teak you can use a wood that is in your price range. if you need help with any part let me know ill be glad to help
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richardsoncd
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Posted: May-08-2005 at 10:48pm |
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Pretty much how difficult it is to build and install, and the cost. I am looking at a '71 skier and it needs one but I don't know what I am in for...research before buying the boat.
Thanks for the help |
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64 Skier
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Joined: February-08-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 415 |
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 4:04am |
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richard. email me at mark.blanche@dvn.com
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DJ77skier
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 4:18am |
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well first you need to find what wood you will use. i used burch or something. wood cost was 50 or 60 dollars. 1inch stainless wood screws and wood gleu. i had a friend do the brackets. we used 1/4inch flat bar and 2inch tube all stianless.
i made mine 48" wide and 20" deep. i laid it out 48"x22" the rear board against the transom was 6" and the rest was 4".run braces in the middle and the sides double up the rear piece. once you get it square glue and screw from the bottom(pre drill and fill holes with wood filler). once all together block it up to the height you want it and get it as close to the transom you'll have to measure nd get the ends the same distance off the boat.from their take a compass(circle drawer)and extend it about 3". put the neddle along the transom and run it across. now you should have a perfect templat of the transom. now cut with a gig saw. i made mine have the rounder look like on most of the newer boats. just find a round trash can lid,and a meter stick. make the arch that you like,cut and sand. now you should have a nice shaped platform.i routerd mine with a half inch round over bit an all the edges(makes it smoth and less harsh. just sand,stain,and urethan. one other thing make your top planks about an inch apart so you can get your fingers in and pull yourself on it. as for the mounting brackets ebay or your local fab shop. if you need anymore help just let me know. hope i helped all together maybe 125 dollars. i had only 60 dollars less brackets. |
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Bill336
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Joined: October-12-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 106 |
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 1:18pm |
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My platform looks like it has some wolmanized, possibly some teak, and some Home depot stuff in it. It's in really nasty shape and was held on with 4 brackets with a wedge between the brackets and platform to make it level.
I bought some removeable brackets off ebay from 99moomba99 and had him make them at 95 degrees to keep them level without the wedge. It took a while to get them, but they are very heavy duty and solid. My only problem is that the mounting holes to attach to the transom are 1/2", which is pretty big and complete overkill. Plus SS bolts are going to be pretty pricy. I think I'm going to put a spacer in and use 3/8" hardware. I priced out teak for the platform. Ouch. I found a tropical hardwood called Ipe that I'm going to use that's supposed to be great for decks and extremely hard. The cost for the wood will be about $60, $80-85 shipped. I'm going for a more solid look like some newer platforms. I'll use 3" boards with a 1/4" gap and maybe a couple 1" slots for handholds. I'll be starting this job in a week or two, just pulled out stringers yesterday... |
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Alan-S
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 1:36pm |
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Every newer Nautique I have been on, including my 2001 SAN does not have any spacing in the boards, its no different without handholds, and makes sanding and staining a lot easier.
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bkhallpass
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Joined: March-29-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 4723 |
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 3:42pm |
Correct Craft and others companies have specifically removed the spacing between planks for safety reasons. Several lawsuits were filed by folks foolishly riding on the back of the boat who endured carbon monoxide poisoning. If you will recall, at first, Correct mounted a piece of black plastic on the bottom of the platform to cover up the holes. Later, they redesigned the platforms to fill in the gaps completely. The removal of the gaps has also made it very difficult to do "teak surfing" another dangerous practice which has resulted in carbon monoxide deaths. BKH |
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Livin' the Dream
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BigAir
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Joined: March-01-2004 Location: Wis. Rapids, WI Status: Offline Points: 155 |
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Posted: May-09-2005 at 4:26pm |
Don't use birch.Birch will rot out in very short order. It's one of the fastest rotting hardwoods in North America. |
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David F
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Joined: June-11-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1770 |
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Posted: May-10-2005 at 1:56pm |
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I would use only Teak, Mahogany or IPE. Use IPE (three times the density of oak and it does not float) if you want the added weight for wakeboarding, otherwise use one of the first two. If you urethane or varnish the platform, you are asking for high maintenance. All of the above woods can be oiled and wil remain rot resistant. Teak and IPE will be more dimensionally stable than Mahogany.
This is only my oppinion, so take it for what it is worth. I am sure others will have had good experiences doing things differently. |
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Bill336
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Posted: May-10-2005 at 4:56pm |
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I'm planning on using ipe based on the cost and durability. It's basically half to a third the cost of teak. Based on research I found that ipe weighs 6.5# per board-foot and teak weighs 3.58#/bf. The difference between the two would be a swim platform that weighs 15-17# more for ipe, which I don't think would change the wake much, if at all.
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David F
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Posted: May-10-2005 at 5:09pm |
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Good choice. IPE is not called "iron wood" for nothing. If left unfinished, it will weather to a drift wood grey and last decades. If maintained with oils, IPE will remain brown. The one drawback with IPE is that the boards will check on the ends. Sealing the ends with wax or oil is sometimes sucessful. Stay away from 2x thick IPE has it very often checks throughout the board (not that you would use it on a platform). Also, you MUST pre-drill for screws.
Good luck and please provide pictures of the finished product. |
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Jim_In_Houston
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Joined: September-06-2004 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1120 |
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Posted: May-10-2005 at 6:18pm |
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OK. I give up. What is "IPE"?
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Happy owner of a '66 and a '68 Mustang
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David F
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Posted: May-10-2005 at 6:30pm |
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Jim:
IPE is a Brazilian (or is it African) hardwood that was once considered a trash wood due to its abundance. It was originally used to make dock and piers due to its rot and insect resistant properties. Then, the world decided it would make great decking material and all of a sudden it has become main stream over the past several years. Consequently, the price has really jumped up. The beauty of IPE is that it is very hard/dense (hence durable), rot resistant, insect resistant, dimensionally stable (hence no warp or curl) and pretty. The most well known IPE application is the Alantic Ciy Boardwalk. IPE is so dense that it sinks in water. It natural color is chocolate brown to reddish brown, but turns a driftwood gray when left unfinished and exposed to the weather. IPE does not produce splinters even after prolonged unfinished exposure to the elements. |
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Mojoman
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Joined: October-31-2005 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 553 |
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 10:27am |
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Resurecting this topic,,, Where is the best place to find this IPE material in the right type board dimensions to make a platform?? A specialty wood distributor perhaps?
Is the weight vs. cost of Teak really a good trade off? Just wondering?? Thanks Mojo |
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81nautique
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Joined: September-03-2005 Location: Big Rock, Il Status: Offline Points: 5767 |
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 11:08am |
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Mojo, Check these guys out. owl hardwood
I didn't see Ipe on their website but I have seen it in their warehouse before. If anyone here has an exotic wood fetish this place will do it for ya. Before I got hooked on this boat thing I used to play around with woodworking and their selection is unbelievable |
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81nautique
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 11:11am |
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Ok here it is Ipe'
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Bill336
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 11:15am |
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Here's the site of a place close to me in Detroit. Check their price list.
www.publiclumber.com |
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Mojoman
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 2:00pm |
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OH, Ok so it's not that hard to find... Kool !!! Thanks for the info. Although I have no strange fetishes, I would like to know that I can say I sit my butt on some exotic African Wood on my boat .... Doh'
Moj' |
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79nautique
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 2:12pm |
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that would be BRAZILIAN exotic wood. I don't know if I would advertise sitting on african WOOD
 sounds like a personal choice. 
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Darrel
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 7:07pm |
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thats the funniest thing i've ever read 79n say.
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scott8370
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Posted: February-02-2006 at 7:29pm |
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I almost pissed my pants when I read that
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Scott
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Mojoman
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Posted: February-03-2006 at 2:55pm |
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Hey hey,,, No "Broke Back Mountain" thing going on here 79'.... Oh hell, I think I would stick to teak, Bwahahahaha...
Moj' |
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73SN
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Posted: February-07-2006 at 11:29pm |
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Tell me again how many is a brazilian?
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tabogott
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Posted: February-08-2006 at 5:44pm |
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Plan on sacrificing one electric saw and one electric drill during fabrication. IPE is tough stuff.
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T.A.Bogott
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DJ77skier wrote: