ENGINE BEARERS

[1949huey]

Merry christmas everyone. one question... How far forward do the engine bearers go? I'm restoring a twin cockpit mid engine boat,can i finish the bearers under the front seat or do i have to continue further? thanks ..regards Stuart

[ED174]

The longer the better ! The more u can spread the load then obviously less pressure points on the hull, hope I worded that right .Mine go from the transom all the way through to about 1 m from the nose. My boats 4.6m in length so that makes the bearers at least 3/4 the length of the boat. Solid block between the bearers to hold them rigid 1 up front & 1 down the back. Sounds like our boats are of similar set out.
Get cracking, Eddy.

[Bob Vic]

I agree - the longer the better. Think of your bearers in the context that they are there to support the hull and give it correct shape. Where the bearers ain't means no support. It is a bit of an exercise in geometry too. The taller the bearers the longer they will be up and under the deck. Good luck.

Bob

[bauchy]

totally agree, i made mine 7 inches tall by and inch and half. the old ones were 6 inchs tall but adding the extra inche in height gave me an extra 400mm of length like bob says. i also used old origin which i got machined to the size i wanted. no new timber is as good as the old stuff so hunt around for some old stuff, plenty of second hand timber yards have big long lengths of origin that ya can get realy good lengths out of.

brian

[bootlegger]

Ive got 2 12"x3" Clear Oregan 9 metres long put away for the fantasy boat I want to build one day.

[Sunbeam11]

tell me if i'm of the mark.....this seems to be a compromise... would the following have to be taken in consideration, drive setup..i.e.. direct drive, dog clutch,"V" or "Z" drive. Deeper joists can increase/decrease engine/drive shaft angle, which the less angle the better is the way to go isn'nt it??? The compromise being extra strength up front or propulsion angle/drive of the prop....

[Bob Vic]

Your engine and the engine mounts should sit INSIDE the bearers not on top of them. When set up this way, it makes no difference to shaft engles etc as to whether the bearers are 6" tall or 8" tall. If you like, send your email address to me bobcarter@connexionpr.com.au and I can send you some photos to illustrate.

Bob

[Sunbeam11]

this is a toughy for me........if you have a drive set up where engine mounts sit directly on bearers...you have two options....."deep bearers" will increase prop shaft angle...(not favourable), and to compensate... cut engine mounts into joists to lower engine profile ( my boat is done this way)......a matter of how deep to cut without weaking bearers I guess. If engine mounts are in between bearers, maybe not such a problem ........i've still a loot learning..

[Batesy]

how are the bearers normally attached to the hull? Mine are bolted through the bottom of the boat, but they look bodgey. Is this normal way to do it??
Thanks,
Andrew

[Sunbeam11]

yeh, Im thinking the same thing..... the bearers on my boat are just bolted through the keelson (i think the middle plank is called that)and the cross members between the bearers, and vitually no other fixings to the hull, basically 4/ 13mm X 200mm SS bolts hold the bearers that carry all the stress and forces placed on the hull by the engine etc.

Just another thought...... the higher/deeper the bearers also usually determines the floor level.....which I think is called freeboard height...anyway....then the follow on from that will usually determine the seating height which needs to factor in seat design and upholstery/cushioning thickness etc..... it all adds up I guess......you could end up looking like the driver of one of those swamp boats sitting high up on a high chair...