Rebuilding the transom on my Aluminum boat

[unmanaged]

Well I went looking for the results to my post a couple of months ago, but its been lost.

14' princecraft Aluminum.

I'm in the middle of rebuilding the transom on the boat and I want to know the best way to quickly ( i Mean in the next two days) plywood for the back end. Specific products if you know them please. The last guy who did the transom made it last only 2 seasons before it warped..


Cheers,

C

[mblaney]

Use marine plywood. I suggest "the wood source" near Manotick Station (5 min east of Manotick) for the plywood. They can probably cut you the size you need.

[Troller]

It sounds like you are doing the same job I did on my old princecraft 14ft aluminum about 12 years ago. I did a template out of cardboard and cut a piece of marine oak using the template. I don't know how many coats of wood hardner I put on it but It was quite a few. lol It worked out okay for me and it looked nice too. I sold the boat about 7 years ago. One thing to watch out for is to make sure the wood you use is not so thick that you cannot screw the the vice of your motor to it because the transom is now is too wide at the back.
Good luck
Dave

[lape0019]

To bad it was lost but Cprince had a pretty good solid way of using Fiberglass resin with regular plywood that would last a lifetime.

Coat it and screw it to a wall until it cures so it doesnt warp. Nothing would penetrate it so there is no way it could rot out.

[RobM]

You don't need marine plywood. If you have the $$$, go for it. Otherwise, just use a quality plywood from Home Depot. Usually it would be 1.5", so sandwich two pieces of plywood together. Use PL premium and screws.

The important thing is to seal the plywood. I used West System epoxy, 3 coats per side. All holes, etc should be pre-drilled in the wood a little larger then necessary, then coated with epoxy on the inside. So cut the wood out and test fit it in the transom, then mark all the holes while it is sitting in position, then remove and drill the wood. Then epoxy the inside of the holes. Basically, you want the entire piece of plywood sealed. Don't leave anywhere for water to penetrate the wood.

For the hardware going through the hull, use stainless steel bolts and coat the heads with 3M 5200 Marine Sealant. Pricey stuff, but silicon won't do the job. You can get small tubes at canadian tire.

Marine plywood is resistant to mildew (some natural inhibitor in the wood they use), but it is not waterproof. Even marine plywood must be sealed.

Hope this helps! Will last much much longer then marine plywood left untreated. Should cost you less $$$ as well.

[Wallyboss]

Find a place that sells Restaurant equipment and ask if they sell white plastic to make cutting boards. They have different thickness. I got 2 cut to size for my boat and ity cost me like $25.00. I'll never need to replce them. My transom came in 2 pieces.

Can't seem to be able to post pictures????

[Wallyboss]

[cprince]

OMG THAT ROCKS!!!!

You also have a great place to clean the fish if your make your benches out of it!!!

Craig

[unmanaged]

Thanks Guys! you rock

Fishing the White Lake this weekend once I complete this project!

[unmanaged]

While we are on the subject of rebuilding...

I have a 1976 Johnson 25hp tiller that will not remain up when tilted. Is there supposed to be a spring on the outside or like my old Envinrude have a slide bar with a seat in it to hold it up when tilted? There is literally nothing to hold it up right now in the tilted position. It seems to be missing a couple of parts... The Envinrude site shown a tilt spring but it it inside the shaft? or is it exposed on the outside?

the price you pay when you get a great deal on a motor....

I have scoured the internet to find an answer but to no avail, perhaps it may take a few pictures to accurately describe. If you guys don't have any good ideas by then I will post them later tonight.

Thanks again gents!

C

[scarkner]

I am in Ottawa and have half a sheet (2x8') of high quality 3/4 inch pressure treated plywood which is great for doing boat transoms. I would be happy to cut off a piece for you. PM me if interested. It's from Home Depot, not too expensive, but you get more than you need if you buy a whole sheet!

Suggestions:
-Screw a piece of thin aluminum to the face of the wood where the motor clamps go, this will prevent constant damage to the wood.
-If the existing transom had wood all the way to the bottom of the boat, then don't copy it, leave a few inches at the bottom as water sitting in the boat will rot the bottom of the plywood and travel upwards eventually rotting the whole thing.

Steve

[unmanaged]

Hi Steve,

Thanks for the offer but we got a piece last night and made it work. It will be the best looking part of my boat, by far...
I have aluminum plat going on both sides as well. It will be super strong now when I put it together tonight .
We also have to rebuild portions of the transom brace as the rivets have worn through.... ugh more work.



Thanks

Chris

[clint]

pressure treated plywood which is great for doing boat transoms.

i was under the impression that you never wanted to use pressure treated wood with aluminum, some thing about the chemicals used to pressure treat reacting with the aluminum.

[unmanaged]

lol It's high grade plywood, not pressure treated

[FishToLive]

I should be going to Jordash http://jordash.com/blog/ this week, I will ask for the cutting board material. I will post prices.