290CC Design Finalized!

We have finalized our 290 Center Console design and have begun constructing the necessary tooling to build the next boat in our 290 Series. We intend to have our initial prototype complete in time for the Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show in October.

Many of our customers have been looking to upgrade from their 250SF, 270SF, and 270TE center console fishing boats. Many have stepped up to our 330 Tournament Edition, but others have been waiting for a product in the 29-30' range.

With forward wrap-around seating and a flip-down forward facing seat for two on the front of the console passengers will be able to relax comfortably or convert the area for hard-core fishing. And the wrap-around windshield with wiper and washdown ensure that the crew will be protected from the elements.

Some of the highlights of this model will include:

• Expansive wrap-around bow seating for (4) adults
• (2) insulated 225-quart storage tubs w/ overboard drains
  
• (1) insulated 105-quart cooler w/ overboard drain
• Flip-up forward console seat for two
• Wrap-around windshield w/ integrated hardtop
• Dual helm seating w/ flip-up bolster seats
  
• Marine head w/ 15-gallon holding tank
• Fiberglass leaning post w/ 42-gallon livewell
• (2) insulated 300-quart macerated floor fishboxes
  
• Option fold-down transom seating
  
• Euro transom w/ walk-through and transom shower
  
• Extensive tackle and bulk storage compartments
• Easy access to service areas

Visit our website to view complete specs on the 290CC

290 Express Cabin Moving Along

The 290EC continues to move forward, we now have the stringers and bulkheads installed in the hull and are starting to fit the hull with tanks and rigging... I'll get some photos to update the stiffening and rigging processes. Everything is fitting together nicely so far, we're working hard on the head/cabin liner plug, which is the most difficult part of the project. I've included a photo of that process here, it's tedious and not too exciting... but extremely important to designing and bringing to life a high end boat.

Once we're done with the head/cabin liner, we'll build the mold and pull the first part to be included in our first prototype. A few more weeks until that is done, but we're building the hull liner, the dash, and lids mold next week... so stay tuned for updates on those processes. Next week will be a busy one!

Be sure to email us at pde@worldcat.com if there are any items you have questions on how we go through the boat design and boat construction process, hopefully everyone is finding this blog informative and interesting.

Happy Easter to All!

Additional 290 Hull Mold

We've completed our second 290 series hull mold... this will be a welcome addition to our plant and quickly become a necessity with the addition of the Express Cabin and Center Console models in order to meet retail demand.

If we continued with only one hull mold this would mean that we could only build a 290 series boat every other start. This is because we build our hulls over a two-day period in order to maximize the benefits of a properly cured skin coat.

Day one consists of spraying gelcoat, and skinning the hull to approx 70 mils. We allow this to cure overnight in order to ensure that the proper hardness is reached in the skin coat which protects the finished surface.

Day two consists of adding the bulk laminate which consists of layers of bi-axial and tri-axial materials, and foam coring above the waterline. Once they are done with bulk laminate, they finish day two by installing the transom, stringers, and the bulkheads.

Adding this second mold we mean that we can start a 290 series boat every single day, and considering we build one boat per day, that's a lot of capacity! Once we get the metal framework glassed onto the hull mold for rigidity, mold care will then properly bring it up for the first two production parts by buffing, sealing, and applying release agent. After building the first two parts we'll perform final tooling to take the mold to 1000-grit finish, and it'll be ready for years of high-quality production parts.

290EC Deck Mold Framed

The metal framework was added to the World Cat 290EC deck mold and it was pulled Monday... we've templated our patterns for coring and glass kits, and the mold has now entered mold care.

In mold care they will tape off all non-skid to protect, buff the mold using three separate buffing compounds to bring out the shine in the mold for production, and then add two coats of sealer, and five coats of release agent.

Once we complete mold care, we will mount the mold to it's spindle to allow for easy lamination. We will then build the first two parts! Part #1 will be for the first prototype 290EC, and part #2 will remain in the mold to build the fiberglass cabin headliner. Building the headliner in the mold takes much more time than simply milling a plug and building a mold, however, yields a part that is perfectly mated to the deck. Details like this will show show up in the final product.

Both deck parts will be built next week, and then we can simultaneously start the prototyping process on the 290EC deck and begin building the 290EC cabin headliner.

Once we complete the headliner mold, the deck mold will be sent back to mold care to perform final tooling on the mold and take it to 1000 grit in order to ensure the highest quality parts will be built using the deck tooling.

We're also working on splashes for use as cutting templates on the deck plug before we send it off to Ashley Welding to build the hardtop frame and bow rail...

All in all this is the busiest couple weeks of the project... did I mention that we're building 290 hull mold #2? More on that later... stay tuned.

290EC Deck Mold Complete

We finished building our 290EC deck mold last Friday while I was at the Miami Boat Show. The flange has been trimmed and the mold (sitting atop of the plug) has been sent over to maintenance to add the steel framework. The steel framework will give the mold rigidity to ensure that each part comes out per our design specification and also that the mold is structurally sound enough to last many years.

This mold looks great! At World Cat, we have a dedicated in-house team that builds our molds and takes their job very seriously as leaders in charge of our future. Many manufacturers outsource the mold making process, we believe that we're best suited to build our most valuable assets!

When building our molds we use a 100% vinyl-ester tooling resin that is specifically designed to build tooling and to withstand heat and shrinkage. After the plug is completed, we wax and prep the mold and spray one layer of black tooling gelcoat (the outside layer), and one layer of green tooling gelcoat (the inner layer). We do this so that we can see problem areas that need fixed on the mold before they become real problems in production. On hulls and decks, once the gelcoat has become tacky, we buildup the mold by hand-laying 12 layers of chopped strand mat which results in a 21-ounce buildup. This is allowed to cure completely, and that's where we are at now... time to add metal!

Hope you found this interesting, stay tuned for future updates to the 290EC and our other projects, we'll finish building the metal framework this week and pull the mold next week to begin prepping it for the first deck!