What makes aluminum so good for boat construction?

If aluminum is so great, why are so many boats made of fiberglass?

What has changed to make them more affordable?

Aluminum has long been recognized as the premier boat building material. From America's Cup yachts and US Coast Guard patrol boats to mega and super yachts, aluminum has been the material of choice for decades.

Fiberglass is inexpensive and construction of fiberglass boats does not necessarily require skilled craftsmen. Fiberglass boats are built from molds. Fiberglass material is simply saturated with epoxy either sprayed, or laid within the mold and left to dry. A "high quality" fiberlgass boat simply uses more fiberglass to make a stronger boat.

Marine-grade, plate aluminum alloy boats have traditionally been too expensive for the average consumer. Each quality aluminum boat (and we're not talking about the cheap, thin-skinned riveted boats) had to be hand cut, staged and welded by experienced craftsmen. In a real sense, each boat is a custom boat with a hefty price tag.
A 20-foot center console plate aluminum boat can easily cost more than $50,000.

In a word, computers. Computer numerical control milling machines and advanced naval architecture have drastically reduced the most time consuming part of building quality boats. Pacific Boats orders many precision pre-cut boat parts that meet tight specifications. The boat parts are individually welded by experts in our factory meeting our quality controls. There is no wasted material, nor time-consuming hand cutting. We concentrate on assembling the finest 19 to 29-foot aluminum center console boats on the market.

What makes aluminum the ideal boat building material?

As a boat material, aluminum excels in every important category...

WEIGHT: An all-welded aluminum boat weights 35 to 50% less than a well "laid-up" fiberglass boat

PERFORMANCE: Less weight means better performance, fuel efficiency and easier trailering.

DURABILITY: You can do things with a quality aluminum boat that you would never dream of doing with a fiberglass boat. Dock it against your favorite ledge, repeatedly beach it hard on shore, plunk your anchor onto the deck. Unlike brittle fiberglass, aluminum can take repeated abuse given the forgiving and yielding nature of the metal. Bang it, smack it, bounce, bonk and bump it into rocks, docks, beaches and even other boats and your aluminum boat will last and last!

SAFETY: The two most dangerous hazards in boating are sinking and fire. Our boats are virtually unsinkable and fireproof. If you have ever seen a fiberglass hull burn to the waterline, you already know the safety advantages of an aluminum boat.

COMFORT: A naval architect once said the hardest thing to design into a boat is usable deck space. Our hulls have 1/4 inch bottom plate and 3/16 inch sides and deck allowing us to easily exceed fiberglass boats when it comes to usable space inside the boat. Fiberglass boats commonly lose up to 6" of deck space over the entire length of the boat due to the thick sides and coaming.

REPAIRABILITY: In the unlikely event you find a way to pierce or tear the hull of an aluminum boat, it is easily repaired by welding.

To have an electrolysis problem, certain conditions must be present. You must have two different metals in contact with the water. All of our boats are made out of a single metal, so they don't have this problem. The only metals in contact in the water are the aluminum of the engine and the boat. Since the aluminum of the engine is "softer" it is the metal that will be consumed by electrolysis. The sacrificial zinc anodes supplied with your engine will protect it, but should be checked and replaced as needed. We place a very large sacrificial zinc anode designed specifically for aluminum boats on the transom as a secondary protection.

What about electrolysis?

How are Pacific Boats different from other aluminum boats on the market?

The riveted boats are made from thin .080 aluminum. Rivets work loose as the thin metal flexes and leaks. Pacific Boats are completely welded out of marine-grade plate aluminum alloy. There are no rivets to pop, no wood to rot and no plastic or fiberglass to break. Our boats have a unique one-piece bottom plate. We are the only manufacturer of heavy plate aluminum boats to form in the planing strakes, eliminating all exterior welds.

How do I know that what you're saying is true?

Don't take our word for it - ask those who truly depend on their boats. Some of our customers include the US Navy, the US Coast Guard, law enforcement agencies, harbormasters, fisheries, commercial divers and fishermen. These professionals trust their lives to the performance of Pacific Boats. Our customers know our boats are the safetst and sturdiest money can buy.

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