Building of an Aussie Riptide plate alloy

[Riptide]

The process of looking for a new plate boat has been on going for sometime with so many manufactures all offering something different and sometimes unique. It soon came to my attention that it was hard to find a good all round boat that had everything I wished for in a good custom built boat. While some brands had their good points they soon were let down with equally as many bad points whether this be in the ride, stability, build strength/quality or general layout. The boat in mind had to offer a good ride, superior stability, user friendly deck, spacious cabin layout, strong build quality, full length under floor air tanks, self draining deck, lot’s of storage areas, large underfloor kill tank/esky, large underfloor fuel capacity, large transom area to house built in live bait tank, fibre glassed bait and food eskies, Batteries, fuel filter, tackle boxes and finally great after sales service. Sound easy well I think not because out of the many plate boat builders out there most have a good percentage of the above missing from their package. It wasn’t until I looked at Riptide Alloy Boats that I found an honest good all round boat that boasted all the criteria I wished for including a 2.5mtr beam which makes a huge difference in overall boat size and something many other manufactures don’t have. Riptide is a small operation of 4 people that Dave the owner prefers to have which enables him to build and oversee every boat that goes out the door ensuring that they are built 100% right. Not bad quality assurance if you ask me. The boat of choice is a 7.0m (7.6 loa) cuddy cab hardtop with 5mm bottom 4mm sides and after some great information and advice given by Suzuki will be powering it by either a Suzuki DF225 four stroke. The main objective of the build is to have a place for everything used during fishing trips and to keep a clean deck space whilst making the boat practical with a good look. Hope you enjoy another Aussie built plate boat.


Pic 1 - The pointy end




Shell done


Fully welded bulk heads at every 600 mm


another


Closer look


fully sheeted and welded to form floatation/air tanks on either side of the hull which is pressure tested. Soapie water is then run over every weld to ensure no pin holes. The centre rear section will be for the 380ltr fuel tank. The section in front of that will be for an insulated/glassed under floor esky/kill tank which is bloody huge. (does not show the real size in the pics) and section front of that will be the walk in/step down cabin area with storage in front of that



Cabin section before bunk frame work and storage areas go in.


Riptide uses various templates/jigs to form the shape along with a couple big chain tensiors to form the bow angles. The sides are basicly welded on a 45 degree angle and then tensioned up to the gunnels to create a rounding effect on the side sheets.

The shell is the easy part I'm told but it's when all the under floor structural work and floor gets welded in that is can cause issue's. The welding sequence required to avoid distortion is an example of years of trial and experience but as you can see in the pics I have attached he welds on various supports under the hull to really make sure their is no problems.

The side sheets get a brace welded on while the floor is welded in to once again avoid any distortion. Dave prides himself on making a very straight boat with next to no distortion and I would have to say there's not to many other buliders who get them as straight as he does. The painters love painting his boats because they need such little work to get them straight.





Transom going togethor

another


bunk frame work in and raised for plenty of storage underneath them.

another from a top view


underfloor killtank/icebox all sheeted off and large alloy screw in bung will let the water straight out the bottom of hull with a reverse style cup creating a suction to drain the tank whilst underway.


Transom again with trim tab plates welded and he has also welded alloy tubes from these plates through the air tanks and upto the floor just to make sure the air tanks are still fully sealed incase a tab is smashed off and water floods the air tank. The tabs are Volvo QL electronic tabs so all that runs through the tubes is a wiring loom.

[Riptide]

chines, strakes and keel guard on.


bow sprit going on


Even a little strip of aluminium running from the bow sprit to the hull can change the look of these boats.



A lot of thought went into the large Transom area to not only make it practical but to also give a nice clean look.


folding door that will turn into a padded seat


Slide out battery cradles. Gives a clean look on the inside of the transom with access to batterys via the bottom middle hinged door.




Three rod holders and a deck winch mount on each side plus a nicely rounded side pocket for storage.


Curved bait board not only makes for a good look but also makes it possible to view and access contents in the large bait esky under it. The two cuts out in front of that are storage for knives and pliers.



Rounded seat boxes with hinged lids



Finished seat boxes with larged hinged doors


Half in half out feet rests were made to reduce the risk of shins hitting which can happen it normal sized rests whilst it takes up very little room in the cab. The outer space between the cab and seat box usually has nothing or only a very little shelf so we sheeted the lot and made a good sized pocket. ( has shelf 3/4 of the way down)


Rear bollards were custom made to give for a sleek look and I thought I would help by smoothing them out but after 2 days of grinding, shaping, sanding and polishing I may have got a little carried away



Some of Riptides great engineering. Recessed handles made into a slightly curved transom area.


another rear transom look

[Riptide]

Moving onto the cabin and hardtop design which undoubtedly was the hardest part of the boat to get right and this was mainly due to the fact we wanted fixed front glass screens with glass sliders on the sides. Normally most plate boats fitted with glass screens look out of proportion so it was a bit of a challenge to get this looking good but the clear vision with glass front screens alone is amazing and eliminates the common problem of leaking clears and that annoying front bar that usually runs through the middle of the screen area which separates the Perspex screen from the clears. I took pictures of many boats over the years and with the help of my computer was able to cut and shut the cabins and work out what made the cabin look good while using glass screens. The main things we changed was the increased rake/angle of the screens and positioning the centre screen support as far forward as possible which gave it a better look. We also raised the cabin side sheets 50mm from standard, which made the front and side screens smaller and gave the look of being a lot longer. An effort was made to keep all angles on the cabin the same and several curved areas were also used on the back of the cab where it joins between the gunnels and hardtop to give the cab an overall sleek look







The hard top with eight-rod holders was also extended back giving enough area to fish in the shade while allowing plenty of room to get well clear of the hardtop when needed. Handrails on top of the roof run the full length for easy access around the cab while a sleek rear wing set up on the roof allows for good placement of a radar dome in the future and also gets the aerials higher for better reception.




The dash layout consisted of a custom alloy wrap around style arrangement for flush mounted gps, sounder and engine gauges. We also made up a dash cover for the flush mount electronics. The four tangs go through into the cabin which will be pad locked to slow thiefs down. The cabin will also have a lockable door.


Lockable dash cover
http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg16 ... _20027.jpg




seat box with slide anchor box. The corner of the box where the hinged lid will shut has a scolloped corner to allow for the door to shut even when the rope hangs out the door once it has been tied off on the front bollard.





All the hotwork finished



it's got a mean look from the front



Finally home

[http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg16 ... cs_012.jpg[/img]
My father standing in front of it.





The boats now home (just over a week ago) and the huge process of painting and fitout begins. A custom made alloy trailer gets made next week (will post pics) and hoping to have it on the water by mid May.

Regards
Greg

[JETTYWOLF]

.....Now here's a man who knows how to post a photo or two!
GREAT JOB, RIPTIDE!!!!!

Just what we love to see here.

But, wheres your ballast tubes?? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

That may be the only thing your new boat doesn't have! (I'm joking)

Wow, that beauty has some mighty fine attentions to detail.

Many thanks for the tutorial. Can't wait to see more.

[spoiled one]

Great pics Riptide! I love seeing the different build proceses. I love the lines. She looks fast even on the trailer. I cannot wait to see the finished product.

[welder]

Boys , that's how ya post build pictures ! :D

[peterbo3]

Hi Greg,
Thought you might turn up here. Great series of pics & some really novel ideas.
Regards,
Pete

[Daddy'O]

WOW!

Thanks for the photos.

Very nice boat.

Wayne

[Ironwoodtuna]

Riptide,

Very, Very Nice!

It is always great to see how each builder takes to different tasks, to different ends, to get similar or different results. I like a lot of the ideas used in the boat.

The only thing that I question at all is I only wonder why the DownUnder boats like to paint their aluminum boats verses leaving bare aluminum to a more maintenance free vessel. Don't get me wrong, they look great especially when black or dark blue is used on the hull sides.

I have seen the aluminum boats up here in the Northeast that have been painted, get moisture under the paint through a chip and them the boat rots out from under the paint.

What is the ful capacity you ended up with?
What are you going to power her with?
What color are you going to paint her?
What do you prime her with and what paint are you going to use?

Great job, thanks for the post, look forward to the continuing project picture posts and welcome to the club! Marty

[Riptide]

Thanks for the comments guys. I figured a site like deserves step by step pics to help others with ideas and I wished I found a site like this to help me make decisions while mine was being made.

Marty
I suppose here downunder most get there plate boats painted to give for a premium finish and give the glass boats a real run for there money in the looks. The platey's look great with a decent paint job but like you say corrosion is the biggest problem although if done well can last along time with very little corrosion issue's. A good paint job on a 6-7m platey will cost around $8000 to $10,000 over here so I'm surprised more don't go for an unpainted or nylac finish although a painted boat is a major reselling point for most.

I have had guidance from a guy who has painted boats all his life and works for one of the most highly regarded finished alloy plate boat builders in OZ so it's been a great help.

First steps are to cut,drill and tap the boat to suit all accessories which basically means you need to fit out the whole boat and then take it all back out again.

You then acid wash the whole boat to clean the alloy surface followed by spraying on a product called Alodine and washing it off as well. The alodine is like a anodizing product which seals off the alloy and gets into all the holes and threads you have created and acts in the aid of corrosion resistance. Alodine is widely used in the aircraft industry and seemed by far the best product to use under the paint. It also cuts out the step of etch primer as you can bog over the alodine and then spray on the epoxy based high build primer (jotun penguard) and then paint straight over that. The brand of primer and paint used will be Jotun 2k which is highly regarded in the marine industry. The inside, cabin and transom will painted white while the sides will be a metallic greenie/blue.

We did some quick calculations the other day of the fuel tank size and it will hold around 380ltrs (100 gallons)

It will be powered by a 225 Suzuki four stroke.

Regards,
Greg

[Desert Dog]

Riptide,
That is one beautiful boat!! If your boat and Peterbo3s boat are typical examples of Aussie plate boat building I may have to fly down to pick up my next ride. Really beautiful work and lots of innovative ideas!
Desert Dog

[Riptide]

Well it finally hit the water and I'm stoked with the end result. The painting process took close to 3 months and was a massive task to get a premium result and not something I will tackle again that's for sure.

It was a major rush to finish it for a Fishing Comp held on Fraser Island and we were still working on it the night before we left. Everything went extremely well and no problems were encounted during our week on the worlds largest sand Island. (will put a report in the fishing section)

It does 41 knots at 5600 rpm with 4 blokes and a full tank of fuel (360ltrs)

Electronics are Furuno 585 sounder with a 600w through hull transducer which works fantastic giving a clear picture through all conditions and at any speed whilst still keeping the gain up around the 10% mark which captures live bottom and fish with ease at high speeds.

GPS is a Lowrance 7200C and will soon be interfaced to the Suzuki for real time fuel flow figures.

The front windows are 8mm toughened glass and the sliding side windows are 6mm toughened glass.


All that needs doing now is for the V berth cushions to be made and the cabin to be carpeted.


The trailer was built by the boat builder and compliments the boat beautifully. It's structural grade alloy 11mm thick x 250mm C channel and solid as hell. He has built over 10 now with some being over 4 years old and is yet to see any fatigue cracks or problems occur.

Anyway I could go on all day long but If there are any questions please feel free to fire away.

Regards,
Greg
























Thanks
Greg

[mojomizer]

Just one word.........................WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Speechless
Mark

Now on to the Fraser Island tournament pictures please.

[Bullshipper]

That boat is bone.

[Daddy'O]

Holy Cow! Beautiful boat Riptide!

Question, what is the function of the trailer ball on the side of the trailer in the next to last photo? It looks like its part of a swing arm/trailer tounge extender, but for some reason I'm not seeing how it works - sorry it's early & I am not fully awake yet. :)

Thanks!

Wayne

[Greg P]

Wayne - I am sure Greg will correct me if I am wrong but I believe it just helps firm up the beach launch extension by locking into the main hitch connector and creates the pivot point for reversing etc at the front of the trailer hitch instead of the hinge mounts.

[Daddy'O]

OK, now I see. :oops:

Thanks Greg!

Wayne