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Aluminum Fishing Boats

from: Rob Lore

The top reasons for purchasing aluminum fishing boats are their durability and ease of repair if it ever becomes necessary. A welded, aluminum fishing boat hull is stronger and will last longer than a fiberglass fishing boat. In addition, aluminum fishing boats are easier to customize, repair, and retrofit to meet changing needs than fiberglass fishing boats.

Aluminum construction is the top choice of many boating enthusiasts. Approximately half of all boats built in the United States are made of aluminum. Aluminum is a versatile material for boat building. Aluminum has a higher strength to weight ratio than most other boat building materials. Aluminum is more dent resistance than most other boat building materials.

Aluminum fishing boats are used as small to medium sized fishing boats and are also a long accepted standard material for high end luxury yachts. Some aluminum fishing boats are small, thin hulled boats fastened with rivets. Other aluminum fishing boats have thick sections welded on that are made of aluminum.Aluminum fishing boats are also a lighter overall boat.

The lighter weights of economic aluminum fishing boats give the boat great performance. Economic aluminum fishing boats give greater speed, reduced fuel consumption, and a greater payload. Aluminum as a metal has great toughness. Economic aluminum fishing boats will survive impacts that neither steel nor fiberglass can withstand. When fashioned into a boat hull, some blows that would cause a steel or fiberglass boat to rupture only cause aluminum to dent. Fiberglass is particularly susceptible to cracking and fracture during impact due to its brittle nature.

Economic aluminum fishing boats are also much easier to repair than fiberglass fishing boats. Aluminum fishing boats are particularly easier to fix than fiberglass fishing boats with a foam liner. Aluminum fishing boat dents often can be pounded out with a hammer. If it is absolutely necessary, sections of a plate can be cut out with a saw and replaced. These repairs are both economically feasible for aluminum fishing boats owners and also require much less time to complete.

Furthermore, aluminum fishing boats are not flammable, while fiberglass fishing boats contain petroleum based resins that make them burn easily once ignited. Though most fiberglass fishing boats are treated with a flame retardant resin, if fiberglass fishing boats do catch fire, fiberglass fishing boats will burn readily, whereas aluminum fishing boats will not. Aluminum as a metal also resists corrosion, making economic aluminum fishing boats perfect for salt water fishing expeditions.

Another advantage of aluminum fishing boats over fiberglass fishing boats is the ease of customizing aluminum fishing boats. Fiberglass fishing boats are built from molds, making changes costly and difficult. Design alterations on aluminum fishing boats, however, are simple. Cutting and welding or drilling and bolting new sections to aluminum fishing boats is relatively simple and less costly than changes to fiberglass fishing boats are to make. In addition, with the advent of computer aided drafting and design, custom hull shapes can be generated easily and made efficiently out of aluminum.