Re: 1982 Glastron Hpv165 bass boat restoration.
I think you are missing what WOG's saying.
Having a couple layers of glass on the plywood, would strengthen the plywood, but in WOG's (mine too) opinion, extra strength on the plywood isn't needed. It is however needed to make the hull envelope complete & structurally similar to how it was before.
So treat the plywood as a form, as suggested. Using the suggested layup schedule posted earlier, layup the exterior transom hull skin. This will make the hull whole again but not real strong. Remove the transom plywood form & layup the interior transom hull skin.
Now the HULL is whole, substantial & strong. Once you install the prepped transom plywood, tab it in place, layup the full coverage glass, and add a final layer or 2 of glass on the exterior, you'll have more then compensated for the previous owner's errors & poor workmanship.
Think of it this way:
You have a hole in the drywall (D/W) at home that is too large to skim w/ just tape & mud. You have the correct thickness D/W on hand, it's 1/2" (in this example the paper face on each side is the resin & CSM you've applied to your transom plywood).
You wouldn't put any mesh tape or D/W mud on the patch piece BEFORE you install it in the wall, correct? You'd make some cleats or whatever to keep the patch from falling INTO the hole, and you'd install the patch piece. Once fastened in place, you'd tape the joints & mud them. When it's dry, you'd skim the entire patch & overlap the previous layer of tape & mud. After it's dry, you'd feather an even larger area of mud coverage to further eliminate the hump created by your repair. Sure the patch might be stronger if you added an extra layer of tape & mud to either the front or the back, but it wouldn't be necessary. And the surrounding area would still only be standard 1/2" D/W.
Essentially, you are doing the same thing w/ plywood, resin, glass & the existing hull. Tying the layers together, laying up multiple layers, making each next layer extend further out on the hull, is how you build the strength needed. NOT just extra layers on the plywood prior to installation. Often more is not better, it's just more.... Seen an At&T commercial lately? :watermelon:
What really happened is that I followed after a youtube tutorial to get a visual on how to do it. First he put his resin in a cup. So did I. Second he added a certain amount of chopped strand. So did I. Third he mixed it around to let the resin soak into the chopped strand and gained a certain consistency out of it, but when I did it it turned into a big glob! I didn't even get to the part where you add hardener or cabosil.
