might be a silly question,

[Dexter's Shed]

someone posted up an old tv doc video, and....

 

as a non NB owner, thoroughly enjoyed watching that, now don't laugh as It made me think of a question to ask, after seeing the bit on the sea otter..... what would be the difference or complexity of having your steel NB re-covered in ali ? I suppose the initial outlay would be high, but if you own a boat for a long time, how would that compare to having to blacken it every x amount of years or even replating

 

[Ray T]

Not that I am an expert but you may get electrolytic action between the differing metals.

[Tony Brooks]

I suspect you would end up with a load of perforated alloy plates caused by the galvanic action between the steel and alloy.

 

Anyone remember when the chrome trims were help onto cars by clips fixed with ally pop rivets?

 

 

not quick enough, Ray beat me to an answer.

Edited February 3, 2017 by Tony Brooks

[Bee]

I think the best thing would be to find some sort of fantastic epoxy and fibreglass the thing.

[Chewbacka]

If money was no object you could build it out of stainless

[Phil Ambrose]

I think the best thing would be to find some sort of fantastic epoxy and fibreglass the thing.

I've mentioned this before, there is s saying om The Broads that "the last thing you do to a boat before it dies is clad it with GRP"

Phil

[Murflynn]

carbon fibre or titanium - the dog's b*ll*x.

[Peter X]

If money was no object you could build it out of stainless

I'm not sure I'd want to see that go by on a sunny day. But it raises an interesting question, could a stainless steel boat be economic? After all, it should last a lot longer and not require blacking or painting? It's probably been considered before and rejected for a reason other than a requirement for everyone around to wear sunglasses. For example I don't think anyone makes engines and prop shafts out of stainless steel, so would there be corrosion where they meet?

 

A quick Google tells me that wholesale stainless steel prices are about two to three thousand US$ per ton depending on what form it comes in, but I don't have a clue what "hot rolled coil" is. Maybe the price per ton gets a lot higher by the time it's delivered to a boatyard in nice plates ready to weld together. I wouldn't know, I'm from London, we don't do that heavy industrial stuff down here. Does anyone who does know care to translate all that into the cost of a boat shell? Note: I am not a serious potential buyer!

[Peter X]

There was of course this topic two years ago about a man who built a boat with a Celotex hull:

http://www.canalworld.net/forums/index.php?showtopic=75246

Maybe get him to do a bigger version, clad in aluminium to make it a bit stronger?

[Dexter's Shed]

thanks for all the replies

[beerbeerbeerbeerbeer]

If money was no object you could build it out of stainless

If money was no object I'd replace the boat everytime the ashpan was full.

[Neil Smith]

There was a stainless shell for sale a few years ago, 60 foot cruiser i think, i nearly had a look as it was only about £30,000 and cost trebble that to build.

 

Neil

[magictime]

I don't know about covering your boat with a layer of aluminium, but you can add a layer of zinc through the process of 'metal spraying':

 

http://www.debdalewharf.co.uk/zinc-metal-spraying/

 

I suppose the basic idea is the same: prevent corrosion of the steel by putting a layer of another metal between it and the water. There's a painted-on product called Zinga that I think is a variation on this idea too.

[cuthound]

I don't know about covering your boat with a layer of aluminium, but you can add a layer of zinc through the process of 'metal spraying':

 

http://www.debdalewharf.co.uk/zinc-metal-spraying/

 

I suppose the basic idea is the same: prevent corrosion of the steel by putting a layer of another metal between it and the water. There's a painted-on product called Zinga that I think is a variation on this idea too.

 

Zinc protects steel (and many other metals) because it is less noble on the galvanic scale, and thus sacrifices itself to protect the steel. It is a protective form of galvanic corrosion, in the same way that aluminium anodes sacrifice themselves to protect the steel hull.

[stegra]

Wouldn't the necessary thickness of stainless steel be significantly thinner if a properly engineered 'monocoque' type hull was built? I assumed that part of the reason for the thickness of the steel was because of erosion. There's no incentive to engineer a boat in thinner mild steel because it'll rot. If a stainless boat could be strengthened at the points where it would be likely to take impacts, through folds and box sections etc., the shell could be thinner. After all, cars are built from steel not much thicker than bean cans but are able to withstand high speed impacts; albeit with severe deformation. I can't imagine that a one-off design would be cost effective; this is just a theory.

[MtB]

Wouldn't the necessary thickness of stainless steel be significantly thinner if a properly engineered 'monocoque' type hull was built? I assumed that part of the reason for the thickness of the steel was because of erosion. There's no incentive to engineer a boat in thinner mild steel because it'll rot. If a stainless boat could be strengthened at the points where it would be likely to take impacts, through folds and box sections etc., the shell could be thinner. After all, cars are built from steel not much thicker than bean cans but are able to withstand high speed impacts; albeit with severe deformation. I can't imagine that a one-off design would be cost effective; this is just a theory.

 

 

Good point, but the edges of a hull get physically worn away with use. Not sure SS will be any more resistant to mechanical abrasion against banks, the bottom etc than mild steel.

I was shocked at how badly the rivet heads had been worn away on my boat in three years between dockings.

[system 4-50]

Isn't stainless an iron mix with a lot of chromium in it? Would it be possible to take a normal steel boat and chrome plate it?

[MtB]

Isn't stainless an iron mix with a lot of chromium in it? Would it be possible to take a normal steel boat and chrome plate it?

 

Yes, and no respectively.

(The electrolyte would feck up the furnishings.)

[Murflynn]

Wouldn't the necessary thickness of stainless steel be significantly thinner if a properly engineered 'monocoque' type hull was built?

or even use thick but light material like Aluminium - Sea Otter.

[dmr]

Why not make a boat out of mild steel which is cheap, easy to work with, and slightly flexible to cope with bumps and bangs? It could be protected by a very thin layer of a non metallic substance that also comes in various colours to give the boat a pleasing appearance.

 

............Dave

[stegra]

Why not make a boat out of mild steel which is cheap, easy to work with, and slightly flexible to cope with bumps and bangs? It could be protected by a very thin layer of a non metallic substance that also comes in various colours to give the boat a pleasing appearance.

 

............Dave

 

Can't see that catching on!

[MtB]

Why not make a boat out of mild steel which is cheap, easy to work with, and slightly flexible to cope with bumps and bangs? It could be protected by a very thin layer of a non metallic substance that also comes in various colours to give the boat a pleasing appearance.

 

............Dave

 

 

Ridiculous suggestion, otherwise it would have been done already...

 

[system 4-50]

Why not make a boat out of mild steel which is cheap, easy to work with, and slightly flexible to cope with bumps and bangs? It could be protected by a very thin layer of a non metallic substance that also comes in various colours to give the boat a pleasing appearance.

 

............Dave

Patent it, quick!

[Murflynn]

I expect by now that OP wishes he hadn't asked the question in the first place.

[ditchcrawler]

Why not use wood?