How to Make a Jon Boat Cover From Canvas

Making a cover for your Jon boat from canvas is a weekend project. Sunlight, leaves and rain can cause the boats interior to fade or corrode and value will be lost for this shallow water boat. Canvas is a relative inexpensive material that can be cut with scissors and sewn on a sewing machine. The canvas can also be treated with a water repellent.

Things You'll Need

• Waterproof Canvas
• Tape Measure
• White Chalk
• Scissors
• 1/4-inch diameter plastic rope
• Sewing Machine
• Heavy Duty Sewing Machine Needle
• Canvas Thread

Instructions

1. Measure the overall dimension of the boat and purchase enough material so it covers the entire boat. The edges of the canvas should be long enough so it hangs down at least sixteen inches past the gunwale or the top edge of the Jon boat.

2. Lay the waterproof canvas material over the boat so the all the edges extend well over the sides of the gunwale. Pull the material tight so no major sags are in the middle of the boat.

3. Use the tape measure and chalk to make repetitive marks around the Jon boat fourteen inches from the top rail. It will be helpful to make these marks every one-foot. Take the marked canvas and lay out the material on a flat surface, fully spreading out the canvas. Draw a consecutive line between the chalk marks. You should have a chalked outline of the boats shape.

4. Cut out the canvas using the scissors. Be sure to keep the larger cutouts from the bow end as these can be used to make a separate cover for the outboard motor by following this same method.

5. Install the heavy-duty sewing machine needle in the sewing machine and load the bobbin spool with the canvas thread. Be sure to use the same heavy-duty thread for sewing the canvas cover. You will want the sewing machine to have plenty of room around it to manipulate the canvas cover.

6. Fold over the cut edge of the canvas one inch from the bottom to form a pocket loop in the cover. Sew approximately four inches of the pocket loop and stop. Feed the ¼ inch rope through this loop and pull the majority of the rope through this fabric pocket.

7. Continue to sew the loop around the cut edge of the cover and feed the rope in the middle of the folded over loop. When you are finished the rope should run the entirety of the bottom edge of the canvas cover. At one corner, in the rear of the boat cover, both rope ends should be left hanging out. This rope will be pulled tight to hold the cover on the Jon boat.

Tips & Warnings

• If the canvas is not large enough to cover the entire boat you can join the pieces together and sew them to form one large piece.

• To remove deep sags from the center interior of the Jon boat you can construct a small wood board to sit on the floor and rise to a height of six inches above the gunwale. The boards can be constructed in the shape of the letter I.