Transom Repairs

[SgtMaj]

Well I spent the last couple of days getting into the transom repair. I was originally going to go with the seacast method because I thought the wood was so dissentegrated that I could easily remove what's left with a pressure washer. But that only got me down about 4 inches. After 4 inches the wood is still rotten, but firm enough to not be easily removed. Now I'm wondering wether it would just be easier to cut the center out of the transom with a sawzall and re-glass it entirely.

I havn't bought the seacast yet, so I'm not locked into anything financially.

 

[oops!]

Re: Transom Repairs

ob or i/o?

you might want to keep elbow greasing it till you get down to the glass. it aint gonna be easy of fast.

oops

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

It's an outboard engine transom.

It's really not going to come out with the pressure washer right now. I worked on it for a few hours and got virtually nowhere after the initial few inches. I maybe could try putting a high nitrogen fertilizer on it to speed up the decomp of the wood, but that would still take roughly a year or so to get the rest of it to decompose enough to spray out like I had hoped to.

PS - I'm no good with chainsaws, plus the two boards inside were nailed together, so I really don't want to try the chainsaw method that they described on their site.

 

[oops!]

Re: Transom Repairs

hang in there sarg.
helps comin!

i havent done it yet but am about to. im told to just keep on diggin at it!. did you pull the cap- deck off the boat?

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

Yup. It's off.

 

[Ezrider_92356]

Re: Transom Repairs

i would remove the inner skin and do it the old fasion way, just my .02

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

i would remove the inner skin and do it the old fasion way, just my .02

Hmm, I hadn't even considered that. That's a pretty good idea though. Surely it would be easier than cutting through both sides, and it would keep the dimensions and shape. I like it. Thanks. That's what I'll do.

Another question, when I do go to rebuild it, is it ok to use BC grade marine plywood or does it need to be AB or AA grade?

 

[Bondo]

Re: Transom Repairs

If you're going to encapusule the Plywood in resin,......

You can use CDX if you want........

 

[tallcanadian]

Re: Transom Repairs

hey sgt, take a look at my site. i replaced the transom in my boat. i used to pieces of 5/8 marine grade plywood for the transom. fiberglassed in between. i think it would be easier than the way you are doing it. just my 2 cents.

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Transom Repairs

Take a look at this if you are still interested in Seacast,
http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=206019

 

[BillP]

Re: Transom Repairs

If you follow the past 60+ yrs of boat mfg standards few glass between transom layers. Most clamp and tack the wood with poly resin to the outer skin after the hull glass is kicked a day or so, then lay in the 2nd or 3rd layers of ply and glass them in. Some glue and screw between the layers and others don't but yrs of use doesn't show one method better than the other. I usually glue and/or screw them together and then glass in. The clamping pressure of an outboard motor on the back considerably helps the situation too.

bp

 

[TerryMSU]

Re: Transom Repairs

"Well I spent the last couple of days getting into the transom repair. I was originally going to go with the seacast method because I thought the wood was so dissentegrated that I could easily remove what's left with a pressure washer. But that only got me down about 4 inches. After 4 inches the wood is still rotten, but firm enough to not be easily removed. Now I'm wondering wether it would just be easier to cut the center out of the transom with a sawzall and re-glass it entirely.

I havn't bought the seacast yet, so I'm not locked into anything financially."


Could you perhaps drill several relatively large holes into the plywould from the edge? I think that would help to break up the old transom.

TerryMSU

 

[oops!]

Re: Transom Repairs

i bought a book called runabout renovation. it is quite good.
a quick little read.

removal of the old is with a pry bar, chisel, grinder, and any other means you have avalible. termites not included. he (the author) does not say to remove the old glass shell. (i can only guess that it is NOT RECCOMENDED) (your weakening the origonal hull.

like stated its not gonna be fast or easy. keep chippen away. it will come.
after your close to the skin... use the grinder to remove the resin beads still remaining.... then when your done removing the ply. cleanup real good, and use acitone to clean the area.
new resin wont stick to dirt or moisture.

if the transom is rotted. how bout the floor and stringers? is the foam wet?

dont get discouraged.
keep chippen away!

oops

 

[BigB9000]

Re: Transom Repairs

Dont use a sawzal on fiberglass.

use a high speed uni-directional saw.

the in and out motion of the sawzal will grab other glass layeres and rip them apart. not a good idea.

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

if the transom is rotted. how bout the floor and stringers? is the foam wet?

The deck was rotten, but I've already removed it. The stringers didn't have any wood in them for some strange reason, and also there isn't any foam in the boat (although I plan to add it as part of this restoration).



2nd reply:

Hey Gary, I really like your transom. I will probably use a combination of wood and seacast. The seacast will definately make it easier to mold the wood into place, and will fill any flaws or gaps. I'm thinking I'll use one three quarter inch piece of marine plywood and lightly coat it with seacast, then I'll place it on the inside edge, and re-glass over that to recreate my inner transom glasswork. The rest of the space will be filled with seacast. I think that will make the strongest and most durable transom while maintaining the original shape. Once I'm done I'll also glass over the top so there's nothing exposed.

I definately think now that removing the inside of the transom is going to be the best way to go. that will really give me the access I need to clean up the inside of the outer transom glass.

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

Ok, well I cut the inside of the transom out and got a LOT of the wood out now. Still have a couple (3-4) days worth of work to get the rest of it out, but at least I can make progress now.

Anyway, I'm going to glass a 3/4 piece of marine ply, then attach it to the inside of the back transom, and glass it into the back of the transom to make the transom whole again. After that there will still be about a half-inch gap that will need to be filled. I plan to fill that with Seacast. I've estimated that one 5-gallon kit should give me more than enough.

But I have a couple of questions about seacast before I get it. I know they have their own forum, but it's admin authorization only, and their admin seems to be M.I.A.. So I figure someone here has used it before. What I'm wondering is how runny is it when you're applying it (consistency of water, oil, sludge, or clay)? What kind of prep needs to be done to the inside of the transom prior to application (even though the inside is vastly opened up, there are still areas that I will not be able to reach to sand. Though I can probably wrap a cloth around a stick and saturate it with acetone to clean it.)? Does anything in particular need to be done to get air bubbles out? And, without getting too technical, what's the difference between the self-leveling and regular seacast?

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Transom Repairs

The self leveling is made for stringers.To prepare the inside of the fiberglass skin it needs to be roughed up with sandpaper or a wire brush,then acetone washed.
The Seacast gets pretty thick,depending how much of the glass fibers you mix in.I used a dowel rod and a long funnel to pack it into the corners and top of the transom.You will need to keep tapping the outside of the transom with a rubber mallet to work the air out.Remember the more glass shreds you can add the stronger it is.
Not sure how strong it will be if its only a half inch thick.
I mixed a small amount up in a bucket and it did not have enough chemical reaction to cook it hard like it does when you pour a bunch in the transom.
You may want to call and ask them how well it will work in a thinner layer.
If i understand you its going to have wood then a thin layer of Seacast? Then fiberglass over that?

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

If i understand you its going to have wood then a thin layer of Seacast? Then fiberglass over that?

Working from the outside of the transom in, it will be fiberglass, seacast, fiberglass encased wood, then fiberglass.

Do I need to buy the glass fibers seperately or do they come with the kit?

 

[Gary H NC]

Re: Transom Repairs

Working from the outside of the transom in, it will be fiberglass, seacast, fiberglass encased wood, then fiberglass.

Do I need to buy the glass fibers seperately or do they come with the kit?

You will get 2 bags with each 5 gallon bucket.You will need a half inch drive heavy duty drill with a paint mixing paddle to mix it.It has plenty of working time so mix it well.I would just coat the wood in polyester resin leaving as much room as possible for the Seacast.Remember it will not bond with epoxy,only use poly.

 

[SgtMaj]

Re: Transom Repairs

Well, I ordered my seacast and a few of the other supplies that I'll be needing (boat plug and drain holes, as well as some fiberglass mat to rebuild some of the area that I cut away on the inside of the transom)...

The shipping was less than I expected by close to $10, so that's great, and of course I got that 10% discount on the 5gal bucket kit. So that added up to about $30 extra left in the budget, yaay.


Anyway, I'm about to order the rest of the fiberglass supplies (resin, which will have to be poly due to seacast not bonding well with epoxy, and of course the woven roving and fiberglass itself). I was wondering though, I was kinda planning on ordering from fiberglasssite.com but was wondering if anyone else had ordered from there and if so, was everything good? Their website just seems a little mom-and-pop so was looking for some assurance that they are a good legit place to get those supplies from. I'm wanting to order from them because I can get 2 gal. poly resin, 25 linear yds of 45" wide 6oz fiberglass cloth, and 5 linear yds of 45" wide woven roving for only $239.00. Of course if you know of a cheaper deal, I'm ALL ears. I love stretching a dollar and this is the time of year to do it.