Last year I was sitting with my boat in flooded cattails. The water was only about waist deep, and sitting in the boat wasn't necessary. The boat was mainly used just to haul my decoys and gear in and out of the marsh. Much easier than carrying everything, and I can hop in the boat to get over deep spots. One of the places that I hunt has one big pool, and each side along the levees are cattail patches. The shallow water weaving in and out of the cattails allows for great cover and hunting. However by December the ducks have become smart, and they avoid flying within gun range along the cattails. To the other side of the pool it's nearly 200 yards (if not more,) and unreachable with shotgun loads. In the middle of the pool there are thick mats of smart weed. However the middle is well over my head in water depth, so it's impossible to hunt by foot. As I hunted I watched hundreds of ducks dump into the middle, I kept thinking that I have to get out there. Not many hunters around here have layout boats, and I sure don't have $1,200 for one either. I asked myself how can I get the affect of a layout boat without spending so much money? The answer was sitting next to me holding all my gear.
Build Your Own Willowpine Marsh Boat
Article By: Joey W. Buttram
Instructions By: Joey W. Buttram & Dan New
Ready to tackle the task of making your own marsh boat? Here are all the tools and materials I used in converting my boat.
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Now that you've assembled your tools and materials.... Lets get started!
Picture 1 & 2 are of the boat in its original form. First thing you want to do is clean the boat really well. Use the Shop Vac to clean out the inside and outside of the boat. I took mine to the self-serve car wash, and power washed the entire boat leaving nothing untouched.
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Picture 3,4,& 5 are of the floor of the boat. I didn't get a picture of the carpet in the boat because I took it out before I planned to do this rebuild. When I put the carpet in I used quite a bit of carpet adhesive. This adhesive became my arch-enemy during this project. For best results you'll have to remove all carpet remnants and adhesive.
I used the Oscillating Multi-Tool with Scraper Attachment to get the big chucks of carpet. This worked pretty well, but I couldn't get it all. Once I had removed all the big chunks I had to get down and dirty. I used the Power drill with Sanding Wheel and Rust & Paint Remover Wheel attachments, which removed most of the adhesive on the floor. This is relentless work, so you'll have to really dig into the job. I had to use the Scrapers to get some of the corners and hard spots. Once all the big chunks were removed, I used the Power Sander to get the rest of the little stuff, which cleared up the floor to bright silver aluminum. I found that putting some Goo Gone and WD40 on the adhesive chunks helped break it up a little quicker and more smoothly.
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In image 6,7,8,9 you'll notice that all the carpet and adhesive is removed. Use Power Sander to sand down the floor before applying paint. This will help the paint grab to the aluminum a little better. Before you grab your spray paint, you got to knock the existing paint off the inside walls and seats. You'll use the same process as getting the paint off the floor, but you'll be spending more time sanding rather than scraping. For removing the sidewall paint I used the Paint and Rust Remover Wheel the most. The wheel attaches to your drill like any other drill bit. I recommend a power drill over a portable battery operated drill for the paint removal. You'll be charging your battery many times before getting the paint off with a cordless.
As you'll see in image 10 & 11 you'll see that all the old paint is removed. The inside of your boat is ready for new paint. I didn't do the middle seat as at the time I was planning to remove the seat entirely. If you're planning to keep all the bench seats, then you'll do the seats same as the sides and floor.
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For this step we're going to replace the wooden handle base. You'll start by using your wrenches to remove the old hardware, wood handle base, and the handle itself. Next you'll measure the old wooden handle base, and with those measurements, cut your new plywood to match the size and shape of the old board. Then drill holes for your hardware in the new wooden base. If your old hardware is heavily worn or rusty, then you can replace them for only a couple bucks with new hardware. Once your handle is remounted to the new wooden base, hold of on remounting to the boat. We'll paint the new board and handle off the boat. This will allow you to clean, sand, and paint the area behind the handle and wooden base on the boat.
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When I started plugging holes in my boat I only knew of two holes that needed patched. I found a third, and decided I better check the entire boat. So I turned the boat over, turned on a flashlight under the boat, and found where light was coming through. With this I found 3 holes that I previously didn't know about. Follow the instructions that comes on the JB Weld package, and apply to both sides of the boat. I used the scraper to apply. Let sit overnight, and return to the boat the next day.
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Luckily just a couple years ago I sanded down and repainted the outside of my boat. If your boat has chipping paint, rust, or debris, then I recommend sanding down to remove the paint on the outside like you did on the inside. Before applying paint use the Shop Vac and do a really good job of getting all the debris out of and off the boat. In addition to vacuuming the boat, I took mine to the self-serve car wash for a second time. You'll want a clean and clear surface for painting.
The base layer of paint will be strips of light and dark green. The strips can be 6''-8'' wide depending on your preference. Since this is your base layer, you'll want to put on several coats of paint. You'll run this pattern on the inside and outside of the boat.
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Use the Tree Bark Stencil and cover the entire boat inside and out. I started with a dark brown paint for the tree bark, but soon decided that I wanted it darker. Therefore I switched to black paint.
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Use the Shadow Grass Stencil and cover the entire boat inside and out. This stencil is a little tricky due to its definition. You may benefit from making this stencil out of cardboard. I used an old filing folder.
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Once your handle is painted, go ahead and remount it back on the boat. I recommend a washer on both the outside and inside. Use your Marine Silicone Caulk and apply around the wooden gap as in picture 26. On both the inside and outside of the boat apply the silicone to your nut, bolt, and washer. This will prevent water from getting through the gaps created by the handle bolts.
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Once your handle is mounted, and the entire boat is painted, then you finished with all the sanding, scraping, and countless scrubbing of paint off your fingers! Congrats you should have a good looking, duck killing, parking lot conversation machine!
There is a 4th stencil which I didn't use, but you may like to use it. It's just of free falling leaves. If you choose to use the 4th stencil apply it last with the color you prefer. Lets get the blind frame put together cause teal season is right around the corner!!
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Measure your boat and follow the above pictures. You'll have to cut your 2''x 2'' lumber to match the length and width of your boat. You'll want to make sure the frame will sit down in the boat, and not on top of the sides. Make sure to drill pilot holes before putting in the wood screws, and I put two screws in each place I drilled. The straps can be made out of any piece of aluminum you have laying around. They're simply extra protecting from your frame twisting and breaking. We used an extra piece of the Angle Aluminum used in a step coming up. We put the straps on the 2 front and 2 back corners of the frame.
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Use wire cutters to cut the Fencing in one big rectangle that covers the entire frame. Then go through and cut out the fencing to match the outside of your wood frame. Once it is the correct size, use the U-Nails to nail the fencing in place. Make sure to hammer in the sharp points of the fence that you made from your cuts. Take a pair of pliers to make a slight twists in each cross section of the fencing. This will tighten up the wire.
Once the frame is secure, no sharp edges are present, and all is well.... Then it's time to once again get out your paint cans. Paint the frame the same as you painted the boat.
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This step is the most important as it will be the item that holds the frame on the boat. If you removed your middle seat, you'll need a brace to go across the boat. This will keep the boat from twisting and breaking. Cut a 2''x 2'' piece of wood and attach to the boat with either a Strap or L-Bracket. In picture 37 you'll notice the piece of wood going across the boat in the same spot the middle seat was located.
The Angle Aluminum I found was actually for a door step in your home. It's what holds the carpet down on a step. I mention this in case you're having trouble finding this part. You'll want to cut your Angle Aluminum the same width as the bench seat top. Once cut you'll use the drill and drill bits to make your rivet pilots. Then use the Rivet Gun and Rivets to attach to the boat. You'll need 6 total pieces of angle aluminum. As you see in picture 36 I had to add a small extension due to me pushing the sides of the boat when I get out. When I pushed out on the side the frame would fall into the boat, so it was easy to just add a slight extension. Bend the corners of the aluminum to again fight off cut waders. Once installed paint the aluminum parts. If your rivet holes are in a place where they may take on water, use the marine silicone to fill the holes.
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You're truly almost done, and your very own Willowpine Marsh Boat is almost complete!
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The Cabelas Northern Flight Marsh Grass comes in 4' x 4' mats. There were 5 total mats in the box we received. This should cover two boats no problem, so find a buddy to split it with. The mats laid perfectly on the frame, and we tied it down with the Zip Ties. Cut the excess piece of the zip tie with your wire cutters, and your marsh boat now has a blind. Over the course of the season we found that we used the frames as ground blinds also, we didn't expect that they'd be multi-purpose.
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The final step is to make your seat, and add all your personalized accessories. For the seat you'll need a plywood base that keeps you off the bottom of the boat. We cut the Plywood into a 18'' Wide x 24'' Long piece. We then cut 2 pieces of 2''x 2'' lumber at 18'' wide. We put the 2 pieces of the 2''x 2'' lumber on the floor of the boat, and then screwed the plywood on top of them. This gets you up a little and out of the water that you may have in the bottom of the boat from getting in and out. If you have a boat seat, then just attach the boat seat to the plywood. Some boats have a metal brace that runs along the floor between each seat, you can eliminate one of the 2''x 2'' lumber pieces and just use a self-tapping screw into that metal brace. On one boat we built we used the excess plywood as a back rest as seen in picture 44. Screw in any other accessories, and you're ready to hunt!
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I hope you have as good of a time as we did building our Willowpine Marsh Boats. They've come in quite handy in the 2012-13 season, and I can see myself having a small boat like this forever. We even took the boats on days we didn't plan to hunt out of them. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to email us at willowpineoutdoors@gmail.com. We'll be sure to answer and help you along the way if needed. Check back for updates we make to designs, and eventually for the Willowpine Marsh Boat Double Decker Trailer Build coming up this summer.
Below are the stencil downloads. We received permission to post these stencils via OutdoorWriter.net. We made a few slight changes to the stencils that made for cutting out of the patterns, but the patters are all still theirs. If you build your own marsh boat, then please send us a picture!
