Re: 1961 Glasspar Citation Project
I double checked my measurements last night, and realized that I didn't need another layer of plywood after all. The old transom was just shy of 1 1/2 in thick, counting the outer and inner fiberglass. BUT- It was also swollen & delaminated- Making it 'appear' thicker than it really was.
When I checked, the old transom was 3 layers of ply- It appears to be 3/8" like I am using now. So, I don't need 4 layers of ply after all- only 3. 3 x 3/8" will give me about 1 1/8", plus the thickness of the outer fiberglass (A little over 1/8", and a few layers of inside fiberglass (Probably a little over 1/8" once I'm done), and I'll have 1 3/8" total- Just shy of what I had measured on the original transom. 1/8" isn't going to make a difference, especially since my lamination is stronger than the original- So I am certainly not worried about it.
Here is the new transom, now that all the clamps are off- Ready for Fiberglass-
The filler around the edges is Epoxy mixed with Phenolic- I used this to laminate everything together, and where it 'oozed' out it filled any gap between the fiberglass and the wood nicely.
I used a saber saw to rough cut the wood around the transom, and then cleaned it up with a grinder-
Next, A layer of fiberglass over the whole thing- Wet out with Epoxy. This is the first time I have had the 'proper' tools, I bought resin rollers for this job (all of my other jobs were done on VERY tight budgets
), they make life a lot easier.
I'll be adding a layer of 4" tape around the edge, then another layer of fiberglass, then another layer or two of tape. This transom is WAY more solid than the old one- It is VERY solid.
While I am working on projects like the transom, I have small 'other' projects waiting to be completed in case I mix too much resin... Which I almost ALWAYS do. I'd rather have too much than not quite enough! The epoxy has a long enough pot life that I can usually get my main job done, and also knock a few small ones out, so I don't let the epoxy go to waste. I have glued a few pieces of new ply onto the deck, where I removed the old, rotten ones-
And, The areas around where the seats are mounted as well-
The centers of them will be cut out later.
I double checked my measurements last night, and realized that I didn't need another layer of plywood after all. The old transom was just shy of 1 1/2 in thick, counting the outer and inner fiberglass. BUT- It was also swollen & delaminated- Making it 'appear' thicker than it really was.
When I checked, the old transom was 3 layers of ply- It appears to be 3/8" like I am using now. So, I don't need 4 layers of ply after all- only 3. 3 x 3/8" will give me about 1 1/8", plus the thickness of the outer fiberglass (A little over 1/8", and a few layers of inside fiberglass (Probably a little over 1/8" once I'm done), and I'll have 1 3/8" total- Just shy of what I had measured on the original transom. 1/8" isn't going to make a difference, especially since my lamination is stronger than the original- So I am certainly not worried about it.
Here is the new transom, now that all the clamps are off- Ready for Fiberglass-
The filler around the edges is Epoxy mixed with Phenolic- I used this to laminate everything together, and where it 'oozed' out it filled any gap between the fiberglass and the wood nicely.
I used a saber saw to rough cut the wood around the transom, and then cleaned it up with a grinder-
Next, A layer of fiberglass over the whole thing- Wet out with Epoxy. This is the first time I have had the 'proper' tools, I bought resin rollers for this job (all of my other jobs were done on VERY tight budgets
), they make life a lot easier.
I'll be adding a layer of 4" tape around the edge, then another layer of fiberglass, then another layer or two of tape. This transom is WAY more solid than the old one- It is VERY solid.
While I am working on projects like the transom, I have small 'other' projects waiting to be completed in case I mix too much resin... Which I almost ALWAYS do. I'd rather have too much than not quite enough! The epoxy has a long enough pot life that I can usually get my main job done, and also knock a few small ones out, so I don't let the epoxy go to waste. I have glued a few pieces of new ply onto the deck, where I removed the old, rotten ones-
And, The areas around where the seats are mounted as well-
The centers of them will be cut out later.
