Texas Fishing Forum

Beavertail Installation

Posted By: spazm09

Beavertail Installation - 06/07/21 03:06 PM

Does anyone have any experience with installing "beavertail" pods on their jon boat? I guess the idea is to increase buoyancy at the motor. I've watched some youtube videos and I don't know that I want to mess with installing them myself. How much would something like that cost to have installed? Do they work pretty well? Any info yall could provide would be appreciated.

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Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/15/21 11:19 PM

I'm looking at pods from Backwater since Beavertail quit making pods for boats below 18 feet and mine is a 14. I'm just waiting on a quote from a local welder for installation. How about you? Any luck in pricing an install?

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Posted By: spazm09

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/16/21 01:57 AM

I haven't really done much research yet. Focusing on researching a motor first since all I have right now is the hull and trailer. Just figured I would post on here to see if anyone had some info.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/17/21 09:44 AM

Roger that I'll drop a line in here when I find out anything.
Posted By: spazm09

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/17/21 03:41 PM

Same here.
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/19/21 11:41 PM

Being a metal fabricator, I made my own. I also did structural warranty repair for several boating mfgs in the Texas region for a couple of years. But I'm no longer in the business of building for others. Went back into the aircraft industry. And to near retirement. roflmao

But I will make some suggestions: Figure out how much lift you want/need. Lift is about water displacement. That is what a hull does and what makes it float. Next, determine if you have enough clearance to steer your motor without hitting the pods.

Here's a few pics of what I designed with SketchUp, and built. They provide 220lbs of lift for my G3 1648 Jon. That's more than the 189 lb motor I have on the back. thumb

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Posted By: spazm09

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/22/21 02:22 PM

That very nice work TG. Great job.

I'm gonna need you to go ahead and come out of retirement for me and steve lol.

Can't speak for steve but for me, I don't need a ton of extra lift as I'll be putting a smaller 5-15 hp motor on mine. So I think the smaller pods will be more than enough.
Posted By: spazm09

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/22/21 06:50 PM

Originally Posted by SteveBob
Roger that I'll drop a line in here when I find out anything.


Hey Steve, just an fyi, I was quoted $350 for installation of the pods from a local welder. That would be for the smaller pods from backwater that you posted earlier in the thread. This guy was recommended to me by a friend and he apparently does top notch work.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/26/21 03:29 AM

Texasgrown, Nice pods and good advice. Does it get the boat on plane as fast as I have been told? Also do the pods effect the boat while turning? If so.... How?

spasm09, thanks for the update and that's pretty much the same answers I got around here $350 to $450. And 1 to 3 months wait due to backlog. As an alternative I was recommended 3M 1751 epoxy. I was told I would tear off the transom before the epoxy would give way. I was told to use one tube kit (1 kit $50) per pod after sanding off the transom paint and prepping the area on the pods and transom. Then seal around the edges of both pods to waterproof. The epoxy has aluminum in it which makes it as tough as a weld or that is at least what I was told by 3M. So $300 for the pods, $100 for the epoxy, add a wire drill brush, a pint of rubbing alcohol and some sand paper (all in my shop) and I'll have em mounted and painted for less than $450 and never have to leave the house. The two pods together are supposed to provide 118 lbs of floatation and the motor weighs 106 lbs. So adding them would make it float with the motor like the boat would float now with no motor on the back. That and they are 20" in length basically adding almost 2 feet in length to the boat or making it 15' 8" rather than a 14'. Sounds like stability to me.
Posted By: spazm09

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/26/21 05:27 PM

Yeah I've seen the epoxy method on YouTube I'm just a little skeptical. Have you made the final decision to go that route?
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/27/21 01:36 AM

Before I added the pods, I had a lot of problem getting my bow down. I had 130 lbs of batteries in the back, 190 lbs of motor, and a 6 gallon tank back there. Plus, I was sitting on the bench right in front of it all. No problem getting the boat up on top with that motor. The problem was getting the bow down. After adding the pods, it's no problem trimming the boat out on plane (with power T&T). But pods will slow you down some. Cause they add drag to the hull. I've got mine slanted upward going back to reduce the drag as I move faster. Before I put them on, and despite raising the transom height for the long shaft motor, I could reach over the transom to get a fish from the motor area while anchored, and I'd have about 6" clearance before water was coming over the transom. I was afraid somebody's wake would wash over if they got to close. Now I don't have to worry about that. Plus, I can get up pretty skinny (6") where I duck hunt in the fall/winter. I don't do high speed sharp turns. And they don't affect my turning when running slow at all. And I haven't noticed any steering issues with them at normal conditions. Where I hear the most complaints is when folks try to back up, or putting boat in reverse. They do create more resistance, and for some folks when in reverse, harder steering pending hull style, motor, and pod combo. I haven't had a problem with mine. They do what I need them to do like I designed them to do. There are advantages and disadvantages to having them. I needed the lift so I wouldn't get swamped in the back.
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 06/27/21 01:42 AM

Trim Tabs can be a good thing if you're having planing issues. They generally don't have as much drag either.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 07/03/21 07:04 PM

Trim tabs won't help my situation. I have the same issue as you did with the top of the transom being too close to the water. Having added a deck in front and a 3/4" floor the bow levels out pretty well. With my belly, battery, fuel tank, and motor I'm borderline sinking while sitting still on calm water with only 3 to 4 inches of transom out of the water. I moved the battery and fuel tank forward but that hardly made any noticeable difference.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 07/15/21 02:13 AM

I found some bolt on pods. Similar to the ones I was looking at but the studs are welded to the pods so no pod cutting or welding to the transom is required. Best of all The pods are ready to install and are less expensive than buying pods and having them welded.

https://riverrunmarine.com/product/medium-boat-pods-with-stud-bolt-mount-copy/
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 07/31/21 09:01 AM

I am getting the bolt on pods from the guys above. I just sent him the geometry so that he may get started fabing mine up custom for my boat. I woulda gotten started on it sooner but as always other things came up. But this time I don't have to pay for them. Directly lol!!! My wife is getting them for my birthday. I'm a lucky guy....
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 07/31/21 07:51 PM

Well then, Happy B-day SteveBob! happybday thumb
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/01/21 09:58 PM

Thanks TG,

The cool thing is since They are being built to my specs, The builder is adding tabs for my fish finder transducer, and grab handles. I may also add an anchor rope guide to one.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/03/21 09:49 PM

The planned deal fell through

So much for the plan of making my boat work. Anyone want a free14' aluminum jon boat?

Are there any boat dealers (anywhere in Texas) that can tell me when the 2022 aluminum boats twill be available?
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/14/21 09:21 PM

I just ordered some pods. They are pretty much the same as the Beavertail units but are available in the size I need for my boat.

I have seen these type pods mounted in several ways. Well of course with me being me, I had to come up with an easier installation means than what I
have seen thus far.

But how?

The price of welding was more expensive than the boat was worth, Pop rivets seemed pretty weak to me, I was not going to cut a huge hole in the tops of the pods in order to bolt them on, and there is no marine adhesive I could find that is strong enough to bond the pods securely to the transom on it's own. So I decided to go with waterproof 3/8"-16 rivnuts in the pods and then bolt the pods on with stainless 3/8" bolts & washers and then seal the project with 3M marine adhesive. The whole cost installed complete with a rattle canned paint job will be less than $500 for the pair (pods included). It will take about 2 weeks for the pods to arrive, but once here I'm thinking maybe 2 days before being water ready. I'll start posting pics as I progress once the pods arrive.

The pods I'll be using will provide about 118 lbs of buoyancy right at the transom and add approximately 2' in length to the boat. The buoyancy should more than compensate for the complete weight of the motor 106 lbs. So "empty" the boat with pods and motor should float as if it was just the hull with no motor. That alone will make the install worth the investment. Their length should have a similar effect as putting wheelie bars on a dragster. Thus getting on plain a little faster while keeping the front end lower at speed. That should also have a similar effect to putting weight up front while moving.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/20/21 03:14 AM

I ordered my pods on the 14th of August and according to UPS, they should be here tomorrow. Under a week.... That's great. Now all I need is my rivnut installation tool to arrive and I'm in business. I could be on the lake by next weekend.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/21/21 12:23 AM

Here are the pods

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And here is the tool I got to mount them.

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And the rivnuts.

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I'll begin the process in the morning.
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/21/21 02:06 AM

banana
Posted By: CCTX

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/22/21 12:12 PM

Having the trolling motor batteries, anchors, and accessory battery up front will get the bow down and transom up. smile
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/24/21 07:35 AM

These pods already have the angle built in. So they will mount flush with the transom. The rivnuts I'm using are blind and are closed on the blind end making them waterproof. I intend to install the rivnuts into the pods.
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Then I will put bolts through the transom and into the pods. I will not be putting the rivnuts in the transom. I will then seal around each rivnut, along the outer edges of the pods, and at the bolt holes in the transom with heavy duty marine adhesive/sealant. I cannot understand why some of you think this will not work. If you do think it will not work, please tell me why. What is the mechanical justification for failure of this setup? If it will leak.... Why - Where? If it is not strong enough Why - How? I'm reasonable and open to any common sense responses.

I was otherwise occupied, so I have yet to perform any installation of the pods thus far.

Thank you.
SteveBob
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/25/21 10:50 PM

As it stands now the rivnuts won't work, but not for any of the reasons listed above. Compressing the steel nuts in the aluminum firmly enough to keep them from spinning, crushes/pinches the aluminum. It does it enough to weaken the metal that they were installed in. Due to the beveled flange on the steel nuts, the 0.100" thick aluminum crushes paper thin on the sides of the hole. One good kick could rip them right out of the pods. So for safety sake I am back to square one in rethinking my mounting options. When using these in the past I always used them with plate or angle steel. I thought aluminum would/could have handled the rivnuts better. I think they could still work if I was able to place a washer on the rivnuts inside of the pod. That would require me to put a big hole in the pod. If I was to do that, I'd probably just bolt them on the regular way. Something I still do not want to do.

Oh well.... I can admit it when I'm wrong. Even if it sucks to do so.

At least I did the test on a piece of aluminum I had in my workshop first rather than molesting the pods.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/28/21 08:09 AM

Has anyone here done any low temperature welding? Would that be an option? Or is it more like soldering than welding?
Posted By: Texas Grown

Re: Beavertail Installation - 08/31/21 12:21 AM

"Low temp welding". If your referring to silver soldering, I personally wouldn't trust it. But that's just me. There will be a lot of force on those pods from buoyancy.

One of the things I thought about while building my pods and mounting: When the pods are in the water, buoyancy forces the pods up. This means there is force applied to the top edge of the pod where it meets the transom, and it wants to push into the transom. And buoyancy causes a pull on the lower edge, making the bottom edge on the transom side want to pull away from the transom. This is all because of the back edge of the pod is unattached to anything. Kinda like a "lever" with the force being applied from the back edge.

Therefore, I made sure I had a good strong attachment point on the bottom transom side. As it is the most critical side for strength. The pods would want to tear away from the transom from the bottom edge due to the upward force. The next strongest side needs to be the outside edge, Port and Starboard. As water passing down the side of the hull when underway at lower speeds, will want to push them to the inside until you get up on plane where the force is reduced and again is on the back edge pushing up. But when stagnant, or at moor, there is no force on the outside edge pushing inward. Just up.


Nothing against engineers. But I've worked with enough of them over my lifetime that they may have rubbed off on me some over the years. eeks roflmao
Some have brilliant minds. And I'm always waiting to see what they come up with next. smile
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/09/21 02:30 AM

Well after exhausting every concept I have come up with, I have decided that I can't ignore the elephant in the room any longer. It comes down to weld them on or bolt them on. I refuse to pay a welder $120 an hour with a 4 hour minimum (best price I could find around here). So the only other option I can see is my least favorite. Cutting big holes in the pods and bolting them on. I ordered a pair of round 6" waterproof service hatches with "O" ring seals that I will be mounting on top of the pods. I will incorporate 2 pieces of angle aluminum inside each of the pods and inside the boat to strengthen the bolt on connections. I'll use 3/8" stainless hardware to mount the pods and 3M 5200 sealant/adhesive to keep things watertight.

So maybe before long I should be placing the boat once more in the lake besides just leaving it sitting on the side of my house.
Posted By: Tommar

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/13/21 09:48 PM

Can you get some aluminum angle tabs welded on the the pods and bolt them on?
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/14/21 08:03 AM

Originally Posted by Tommar
Can you get some aluminum angle tabs welded on the the pods and bolt them on?


(shaking my head) As I said in the post you just replied to, "I refuse to pay a welder $120 an hour with a 4 hour minimum (best price I could find around here)". Come on..... $500+ after taxes just to weld a few tabs on a $300 pair of pods? REALLY???????
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/15/21 05:37 AM

I am going out to purchase the nuts-bolts-washers to mount the pods in the AM. I already have the 3M 5200. I'm still hesitant to cut the holes in the pods, but I already purchased the watertight service hatches. So I'm pretty much at the point of no return now. I'll take pics of the installation as it proceeds. Will a jig saw with a metal blade be good enough to cut the 6" round holes in the pods? I have never used a jig saw on aluminum. Also will I need to oil the cut as I go? If so, will WD-40 suffice? Or do I need a more viscus oil of some kind?
Posted By: Tommar

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/15/21 02:11 PM

Take it easy SB. I was just thinking they wouldn’t charge that much for a few tabs as opposed to welding the whole pod on.

I’d look into a hole saw instead of a jig saw for a 6” hole. It’ll come out much cleaner.

Well, for me anyway. bolt
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/17/21 05:50 AM

I am calm. But before the welder will even touch my pods, I must agree to pay him a flat rate of 4 hours at $120 an hour for "ANY" work done from 0 to 4 hours in duration. Then he charges another $120 an hour thereafter. That was a huge pill to swallow and made me hot..



Sorry if my reply came across as angry at you. I just measured and the service hatches have a 1 1/2" wide mounting ring and matching gasket around the outside of the base that will completely cover the hole. It also has a sleeve that extends 1/2" into the hole to protect me from sharp edges on the aluminum. So it only needs to be "pretty close", not perfect. So my jig saw should do just fine.
Posted By: SteveBob

Re: Beavertail Installation - 09/20/21 01:49 AM

I just measured the hatch hole and looked at the install instructions. The instructions say cut a 6" hole but I measured a 6 5/8" hole requirement to fit the outer portion of the hatch sleeve. The inner diameter of the hatch sleeve is 6 1/4". I'm sure glad I did not buy a 6" hole saw.
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