SURVEYING AND REPAIRING CORED TRANSOMS Water entered e trensom of the powerbot pictured here trough the unsealed foanrcore edges of to hawsopipe cutouts, Thats not the enly problem, though. The hull sustained severe damage when a forward bettom pane! oaninated as the boat pounded In waves offsiore. The impact ruptured the blackwater tank, the contents of which made ther way 48° through tho unfiled ‘8018 inthe foam core back to the transom, ‘0 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER by Bruce Pfund eplacing wet or rotten transom-core material may well he the most common wge-related major repair ‘made to small- and medium-sized composite powerboats. In an IBEX 2000 seminar on transom repair, Vie Duppenthaler, vice-president of adden Creck Marine (Bellingham, Washington), and I looked at the steps involved in the repair process, including surveying the camaze, removing deteriorated core, work- ing with plywood and foam cores, and bedding fasteners. The follow: ing article is based in part on that Survey Serious transom-meisture prob- Jems on small outbosrd-powered boats are easy to spots With the boat hauled, remove a fastener below the waterline and check the color and tell of the geyser that nips. Dark-colored, foul-amelling ‘water indicate trouble, Ifthe trailer or bull supports are sesure, tilt the outtoard up, lower the locking clg, and then rock the engine back end fort, Pulsing in the water-fow mate from the open fastener hole isa bad sign. Sometimes, you don't even have to pull a seew or bott: there will be drol trails and stains fom ‘ack fastener that ha fs its seal “There are other clues, tbo. Vie Duppentialer notes, "Lock for tll tale fractures in the gelcoa at the transom fhe, Line, aod matorwel comers, Visually check for shepe changes, hogging or any indications Powerboat transoms have a dozen or more holes drilled or cut into them to receive drives, trim tabs, and electronic gear. Here's a look at how to ensure this highly loaded area's structural andcf flexing or weakness, such as impling around througi-hull fas- teners of washers.” ‘On bigger boats, finding trouble can be more complicated. Thicker laminates mean that moisture-meter readings should be interpteted with reat caution; thick skins, although Gry, may mask a wet core under- neath. Bronze through-hulls. will throw off the meter readings, but right around skin penetrations such a through-hulls is exactly where you want t look. Fitings may need to be pulled, cleaned, and then re- bedded. Add a pair of new clamps for the hose, plas a check and lube of the attached teacock or ball valve, "There's another location, inside the hull,” Duppenthaler says, "that's also got'to be checked ifyou find ‘et transom core. If the trarsom's really in bad shape, i's aot uncom- ‘mon for the aft ends ofthe stringers to be deteriorated where they con- uct the inner face of the transom. ‘The stringer ends may have beea ‘butted up against the bare plywood face of the transom before being tabbed or chopped in place, per- haps for the sake of production effi- ciency. Or, the limber holes in the ‘ransverses aft let in water that ran ‘back to the transom's plywood core ‘These are good examples of the inisuse of plywood asa core material. When we rebuild a boat that suffers fom this problem, we make sure that the tansom's ‘inner-face lami- nates isolate the transom structure and core from the stringer's cores before we tab them together.” ‘Above—tts a good idea to meter around thrugh-ull tings when surveying a cored ransom. Interpret the resuts wit caution, though: brenze throug wil ‘ve a false high reading. Bslow-—A transonrs top edge is yoically @ problem area, 'n par because the hull liner doesnt usualy completely ovefap the hul shel, as 2 does around the rest ofthe hulHo-dechjoiat. In the photo ofthe transom stown ‘ere with ts cap malig removed, note a couple of faut: the bare, unsealed ‘plywood edges: and only a thin bead of silcane caulk to seal the molding. ‘Yet another problem area is the vxansom’s top edge. This is a tough location to finish off correctly. W's one of the few places where the hull liner does not usually completely overlap the hull shell, as it does around the rest of the hull-o-deck joint. On an ouboard- powered hull, this edge often as bare, unsealed core showing between the hull and liner moldings ‘when the hull leaves the factory. FEBRUARYIMARCH 201 TLRRight—This powerboat's liner overaps conto the transom, covering the top of the tansom cor with no sdtional ‘moldings required, Bolow-Untortunatoly, thie good design feeture caused the moor to be Instated cccked. There sheuid bo 2 shim plate—equal in thickness t thet ofthe tiers overlapping lp—under the ful length ofeach bracket bg ‘The difficulty for the surveyor is that this area is usually covered with an aluminum cap molding. Good luck trying to extract thote Little stainless stes! self-tepping fasteners attaching the moléing ‘0 the transom. After a few years of service, the galvanic corrosion between molding and fasteners will allow you to snap off the fastener heads without even breaking a On any boat that’s commissioned or in service, there's a far greater challenge than removing the mold- ing: You'll frst have to pull one of more heavy outboards. For larger two-stroke _outboard-powered boats—especially twins with hydraulic steering—multiple ystems will have to be disconnested, recon- tavisable, If wont be a small yard bil. On older boats, the trip 10 explore ander the transom cap molding ean be worth the effort and expense. After a decade (not long for a well-built and well-maiatained composite boat), whatever bedding or caulking the factory originally ‘pplied under the molding will 20 doubt be tired out. You may well destroy the motding in removing ie 72 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER but you'll have a chance to change the old bedding once the molding’s removed. Transom Core Materials Although high-density foam coret—bath cross-linked PVC and urethane—are slowly gaining accep- tance as core materials for power- boat transoms, plywood remains the core of choice. Ii is relatively inexpensive, and offers the high compression strengths necessary for cored panels that will receive multiple fasterer holes for ataching outboards, sterndrives. or surfacs- piercing drive systems. It's aot the purpote of this article to delve into the pros and cons of plywood versus foam core, or to look at the merits of presuretreated marine fgrade versus untreated plywood For a detailed discussion of those issues, see "The Case for Plywood ‘Structure," PBB No. 4, page S4 Plywood was perhaps the first core material for composite boat ‘construction. Consequently, we have a good understanding of how it be- haves in service. In applications whore ifs not perforted with trouble some holes, encapsulated plywood works just fine. We shouldn't be surprised, though, that highly loaded plywood-cored panels—made with contact molding and hand-layap methods, and peppered with large and small holes—suffer from water intrusion and deteriorate when stored and operated in wet conditions. “Plywood has always been readily available, zero-lesd-time product," Duppenthaler notes, "and traditionally kas been less expensive than other suitable core materials, In production, though, it's cifficalt to avoid building-in air pockets between the plywood and the transom face laminate, especially hea bedding into wet mat or chop instead of putty. Poor contact is usually caused by uneven laminatewets BOW THRUSTERS WITH A BOW THRUSTER, ATHWARTSHIPS IN A TUNNEL IN THE BOW, IT IS YOU WHO MANEUVERS THE BOAT, AND NOT THE WIND AND THE CURRENT IS THE PURPOSE | OF A BOW THRUSTER ? When maneuvering a boat at low speed, fe required conto! of the movements Doat, especially those of the bow. is extremely dificut fo acmove. in sich cases, a bow thruster Is the solution to the problem. Even when the boat is not under way, complete control of the movements Of the bow can be achieved by operating, the bow thruster. z Thrust: 5 bt Thrust Model Bow 23 Model: wets deco ooo e00 to. ‘PLANT A-7170SJANDAD ORD» PARA HDUSTRAL CENTER HANOVER 710761398» FOR ORDERS ONLY PHONE (B00) O-YTS- (0) 83887 AX 00) FLT (0 398-87 MAMADDRES: 7, Bx 871» BTID «MO 2140-0712 AME: 40) 7120740 0) 7° 0985 ‘email: vetusaol.com + internet: wwwvetus.comONE METHOD FOR REPLACING A ROTTEN TRANSOM ‘otting tho damaged core out fof a transom can really be @ project. Even when you've ‘got most of the skin removed, there's usually sll a margin ot core material trapped between the skins ‘round the perimeter. Youve got to leave it there to maintain proper scart ratios for ying the eriginal and repair laminates back together. ‘Tocs for geting out the remain- ing "frame" of plywood include ‘small chisel, sicks, chainsaws, fong-shank router bils and reamers surfaces, ply overlaps, or plain old sloppy workmanship and incom- plete grinding. "If the transom face is heavily curved,” he continues, "the clamp- ing method's got to he pretty good to fully rogistr the plywood into a thin layer of wet etop. Putty may work better in those cases where thicker bordlines are required. Any air Voids will wansier moistere or 14 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER in air rile, attack gindore, ard flexble-sheft tools, Take your pick, but be careful, both for yourself and the boat. One of the mos! innova- ‘we methods oftransom-core removal Ive seen was developed by Wolfgang Linger at Seawolf Design Group (New Smyma Beach, Florida). ‘The Seawolf rig had a cheinsaw mounted to a hydraulic engine. hoist's boom; the saw would cut cut tho transom's cero from tho top, and leave inner and outer skins intact liquid water, so rot potential Increases at these spots. Loads from the outboards or outdrives also build up at the voids, making a bad situation worse, We often find rot st the lower comers where there's been poor bedding at the core perimeter—probably because the ore falls on overlaps from the tran tom, topsides, and bottom, and the resulting changes in thickness.” Unger’ patontod Soacaet pour- able transom putty (U.S. Patent 45,026,788) is then poured into replace the plywood. The putty is a polyester matrkx containing micro- spheres ard a variety of ecyced fibergass fibers ranging from 0.25" to 1.5 long, t can aiso be prefabri- cated and installed just lke plywood. ‘See the photos on these pages for a step-by-step demonstration of a typical emall poworboat trancom repair with this product. Bruce Prurd As I mentioned above, transoms are highly loaded panels—and not just from outboard or outdrive loads, either. They also get lots of highly localized compression loai- ing at through-bolted fasteners. Plywood ie very good st accepting these global and local loads. One major downside, however, is its \weight—on the order of 4 Tbslcu f. If you also consider the priming‘Al old piywocd has been removed, and the inside face ofthe ‘outer ransom skin has been dressed. ‘A plywood tanson-shaped panel wil fam a temporary “dam to contain the pouratie pty. The ste offhe phucod panel that wil face the transom ie The plwood dem in place, forming a cavity ito which the ‘coated with a wax or mad reese, then laminated. Aferthe uty vil be poured. (Note thatthe plywood hasnY been lami ‘uty cures, the plywood can bo reedly removed, ard the skin nated yo; itsjust bong in place In this photo, and was wil remain on the puty to form the transom's inner face. later removed for fisting.) Ba The put is catalyzed and mixed in @ ‘Av-galon bucket and poured ito the ‘mold cay. At 77F, gos i about 30 ‘minutes, and reactes peak exotherm around the motorvel 9 dectputy The naw transom and inner skin, win (160°F) In about 45 minutes. stingers, floor, snd fiation tie-in FEBRUARYMARCH 201 15Right—Instoad of a ful repair, the tansom shown here received 2 composite parol factorod to tho original tronsom's outer skin with #10 solttepping sorens. Even ifthe panel | wot beated ana ‘sealed, this kind of quik fx may not last fon. Bolow—its lout to hide taring and darts ina cnosayor repair such 20 the, resin, add to that several ounces per square foct per side, ‘Weight, however, may be less of an issue than you'd think. For a transom, plywood i a few tens of pounds heavier then foam. Many years ago, while consulting for a foam-core manufacturer, I was sert to visit Richie Sutphen, builder of high-performance powerboats, to discuss lightweight foam coritg and ‘vacuum-bagging. I arrived to watch 16 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER thick, resin-primed plywood panels ‘get bedded into wet chop and weighted down with cross-beams and lead pigs. I made my case for lighter-weigat cores, and Mr Sutphen replied: "I've noticed that the props don't work too well when they're not in the water” He's right It may be better to look elsewhere in the boat fer significant weight savings. Foam cores commonly specified for tansoms, while lighter than ply- ‘wood, are not lightweights by any stretch of the imagination: they gen- erally run 18. Ibs/cu ft or more. Some race- and high-performance boats have pushed the envelope on transom coring. For one good ‘example, see the photo on page 74 in my anicle "Stringers and Hulk- heads" (PBB No. 68, page 64), which shows a transom with "dual-density” coring: lightweight foam outboard port and starboard, and denser foam with higher’ compression strength where drivetrain fasteners will all. This strategy seved approx- imately 20 Ibs in core weight. ‘Other more extreme racebouts, with exotic high-strength laminates, have gone to transoms with intermediate- density cores—in the range of 12 to 16 Ibs/cv ft—but they've had to adopt airerafi-composite construc- tion strategies and install suitably sized compression bushings at eash fastener. Working with high-density foom cores requires common sense and caution, Monolithic sheets of high- density foam—say, more than 16 Tbslea ft—are "boardy" and uncoop- erative; in some cases, more so than plywood. At times assembling two thinner sheets of high-density foam is more effective than trying to tor- ture @ rigid single shect into @ tran- som’s curvature. Vacuum-bagging perforated foam would be the pre= ferred process for this method ‘Laminate adhesion to high-density cores also can require special care, due to the very fine cell size of these cons. First, the faces must be clean and dust free. Next, they should be diligently cross-brushed ‘and squeegeed with priming resin to wet every open cell before the core is bedded, whether into mat, ‘chop, or putty. To date, I have seen only one high-density foam core fail, and it wes at the skin's attach- ‘ment to the core, There wes very little damage to the core itself. Years ago, Rohacell, manufactur- cers of mediun- and ‘high-density ‘methyl methacrylete foam for air- craft and aerospace applications, sold a small aluminum rolling pin that was studded with hundreds Of needles. You'd roll it across theTricel Honeycomb Says. We're Proud To Be Called “Lightweights” Cheoy Lee Shipyards took us on. “Cheoy Lee Shipyards has used Tcl Honeycomb forthe interiors of our yc forthe post 5 years. Besides reducing veight we find cl Honeycomb to be ery abr indy ond we are proud ofthe rests From Mr. BY. Lo Director Seem LW TRIE sie your weight ens. New! Finished Marine (Tipe Matin sre am, labo, od Grode Panels iy WEIGHT a asin of beled, cary, banks, nd frst. Save uo 80%in wht ov pyr, SOS it mish orb, xd monger Inport vse pefomone...l wiht swig hey oes mand, Wel Marin MBO en ‘room (ed Dey Ove) fn aon een pn! Main (a prec ot ni onan eis Tipe Marne None es tt iS ethieeo ‘eon sen mel lite postenecinfeihngTHE LEGAL SIDE OF TRANSOM REPAIRS |ttrancom damage cr repairs eblitr- formance with CFR [Code of Federal 181.25, and with furthor description ate the original hull idenificaton Regulations] specifications, issue ain Section 181.29—which also indi- number (HIN), you are facing yet certificate on my business leer cates where the number should be another challenge that comes with _ead—this is legal as nothing, ®t located on diferent types of boats. ‘tansom repair. To get an update on dentaly-—end describe my HIN verif-. There is no language covering where how builders should best approach cation, the nature and extent ofthe the hidden number may be placed, ‘is touchy issue, | contacted Dan repairs, tht the new HIN was done n__ only that k must be ‘it an unexposed Rutherford, an experienced indepen- accordance withthe CFR, and finally a__ location on the interior of the beat or ent marin fraud investigator. | photo ofthe new HIN. Tm probably _beneeth a ftngoor em of hardware. asked what he recommends forajob the only person in the world doing "Regarding who a manufacturer or that requires replacing the HIN. this, tutthat'sjustwho fam." repairer should tum to for repair or "What | generally do when Imm see- Finding the secret HIN location, by _replacemert ofa darraged HI ing a boat for the first time," replies the way, s not practical for amateurs. SGCFR 181.35 simply states Rutherford, “ist firsi confi that "You have o faxin an official request person may remave or alter a number the cutent HIN actualy coresponds for disclosure ofthe secret HIN loca- required by this Subpart urless autho- to thettle, insurance, financial, egis- ton on law enforcement o: other ‘zed by the Commandant. US. Coast ‘vation, and other papers. there's © accredited agency letterhead to get Guard.” Says Rutherford, "I tate thet ‘question, | locats the ‘hidden’ HIN on the infoemation. The local chop shop to mean that by the Commandant’e the boat, and confirm thatthe ds- cart access it. | wish other paris of direction, the local USCG Inspectors played and hidden HiNe ard the the system wore 2s well organized. could gv the ropairors the OK for a ‘ship's documents do, infact, match. "The relevant requrement forthe projec. In Massachusetts, where | Hall eystome are go, and tre repairer Hidden HIN was issued August 1, used fo lve, the tate would send an ‘ether reverse-Dymos, RotcZips, or 1984. Ris mandated by law under environmental police officer to verify routers in anewmetching HIN incon CFR Tite 33, SubpertC, Section ‘be damage and repairs. ROBOTIG TECHNOLOGY SYSTE A LEADING SUPPLIER FOR THE BOAT MANUFACTURING BON BD OLS u: a“When a wrecked aris sold by an surface ofthe core, puncturing it Many yards Ive visited appcar to underwter a special ‘salvage tte’ with thousands of tiny-diameter believe that small and intermediate. Ss'ssued, Thatveticle’s VINcan oles about 316 deep. During lami- sed recreational beats fave “over nejrreum to sevice. Beceuse a natng, these small panetsres would built” transoms, so that reinforce. enforcement, car dealers, and repa- Fil with res th clsim vas ta the ment substitutions can be made ers have cooperated fo $0. mary skin peel and dslaminetion filure without doing. much, homework, yours to fghtvehidedenty fraud, odes of the “eated” core panels Calling the orginal bulder for spe- eee ae} ‘were better, with more of the core’s cific written advice is safe, simple, system We onthaveanying | Gap demolished during feilre and probably icxpensive Sending than vit untreted core a hunk ofthe tangon skin out fort Inthe mare indy, henle needa gorge nena ‘Tia cn have scino Sil eo Repair eeier ni meeneniee omens fr boat buyers, peoawwe in my opinion, if the transom out of business. With that informa- Serncore insert ca probaly by, tile, and insure astolen boat witout core is bad, it's got to go. No tion in hand, you can do your best ‘ony probiom®-—und| there's awarranty tansom-core drying, no resin inject- to match of exceed the original Griuranes ar i reuano eg 8 infring af mys fang cnsutionopesiations toast, because he insured stolen cial juice; it's got to go. Is a smal propery, which was not ieghimately _outboard-powered skiff with a Replacing Damaged Core Fis to irsure. The warranty’ invaid. weak, rotten transom any less Duppenthaler notts that Padden He's potently out the boat, the dangerous than a 30' cutboard- Creek Marine has done complete bucks, and tis insurance, There are powered sportfishing boat running transom re-coring and repairs on ‘lose te 13000 beatbulders, and at 30. knots, 50 miles offshore, with umber of powerboats that had a few dozen car makers wordwide,” 500 horsepower secured to rotten undergone partial repairs before says Rutherford ‘and that makes’ plywood? Whose kids are in the The previous core removals were 1 complex task for marine law Skiff? Draw your own concuions, only around outdrive and fastencr enforcement” and develop your own policy. oles, while the rot actualy extended =a. ‘COME TO 18€X 2001 AND MEET RTS WRIGHT BOOT 1536 ‘Sree or n-ser Tuam reroltanising the wadtonl approach vo ost manufacire * Cost effective volutins for low © medium volume prodictionrequiemer + Quality systems based on exible indi robots, proprietary software ard machine vision ft + Auomaric getertion of rot paths om CAD and image dats + Windows™ tad wer imerfice fr simple, effective application + Variable work envelopes to suit individual eeds RTS FuxMu.™ - advanced production cells izing popricary sofware, standart Industria eobove and ooling equipment ncerporsing: RTS PLGMUL™ foc boae pug produon RTS MowMax™ - foc boacmold manufacure TOTS Tie MU™ foci el cering nscale Ros pisraa il tec opeying hops end can or con RTS WRIGHT manos Tel (61513614011 wwrwertsuright.comfarther down and outboard from the fasteners, We den like to do partial coring jobs. We prefer to remove all the old core, right ut to the lower transom comers. We replace old rlywood with sever-ayer "Boat-Ply’ treated Iauan or some type of treated plywood. The transom repair jobs we com- monly get,” adds Duppenthaler. "are usually generated by a boat sale or insurance survey, or it's a condition noted by 2 technician working on transom-mounted equipment such a the motor or drive. Many of these boats are ia the 20' to 25'range, and the cost of the repair versus the market value of the boat is 2 rele tionship that must be wetched care- fully. I think that a yard always reeds to suggest the best fix, and 2 {fill fix. Help the surveyor "see round the corner,’ so to speak. If the caulking around the outdrive tnit bas obviourly failed, and you notice this during a repower quote, ‘ring the failure and the potential for transom- and stringer-core rot problems to everyone's attention ‘aly on in the projec. Nobody's cleat cover likes big unpleasant surprises.” He notes, "Ifa tansom and por tions of stingers need replacement, depending on the specific. dost model, we often remove the deck. There’s almost no way around it when the stringers’ aft ends are involved ia the repair, because the deck liner's sole prevents access. This kind of internal repair with good access can be a 70- to 110- hour project. In V0-powered boats, fenewing the transom core whea tepowering is ideal. The motor comes out anyway #8 part of the transom job. "We commonly vacuum-bag foam- core transom,” continues. Duppen- thaler, "but we use giant hydraulic C-clamps to install plswood-core teansoms. Our goal is a oxe-hundred- percent-contact patch betwoon the plywood and the transom's face, ‘and we'll switch fiom bagging © clamps to get the results we want AAs a builder and repair shop, we need to be able to work 2 wide range of materials and processes—vinyl ester, epoxy, vacuum-bagging—and we need vo be able 10 use all the various systems wel. 'Sometines I'm asked to make @ repair with as-built materials, while [think there might be a better, faster, cheaper way. If the surveyor, underwriter, or builder doesnt waat to re-engineer the part, and wants only to address the defect itself Il happily tear out rotien plywood and reinstall new treated plywood. ‘With 4 cored transom, it man against moisture,” says ‘Duppen- thaler. "We do our best to keep water out of our transoms. We lami- te aver all outdrive cutouts during repairs and efits. For bolt holes, whether in a new or a repaired transom, here's our method: first, wwe drill a small-diameter pilot hole through the transom from the ut- Easy to install 1 Use vertically or horizontally ™ Models available with 180° opening cover (shown at let) ™ Reinforced lid with non-skid surface 1m Weatherstight seal ~ . wep Imtra Corporation » 30 Samuel Barnet Blvd, New Bedford, MA 02745 Fax: 508-998-5359 Access hatches that fit your needs, Inia i the one source for high quality accéss hatches. We feature a full range of rectangular and round access hatches in avaiety of sizes and colors Made in New Zealand of durable UV-resistant ASA plastic, they ean attractive feature for both powerand sling yachts. Contact imtra at 508-995-7000 for more information or our fulHfine brochure. HAROWARE & EQUIPMENT SO-PAC www.imtra.com ‘8 PROFESSIONAL BOATBULDERFora low-deadrse, lobstrtoat-siyle craft wih minimal systems such a5. ‘he one pictured here, @ transom repair done from the inside can be much ‘simpler and choaper than attacking {through the outside sta. On this {ransom the roten pipwood was routed ‘and ground out, new perforated plywood vacuuin-ba9g0d into wot chop, ard tne inner skin rolernated. On a deep-V hull packed with systems and frames attached to the transom, this approich will be con- plex and expensive. But, fora sim- ple, low-deadrse lobsterbost-style ‘raft such a the one ia the pheco side, Next, from the transom's iaterior Sometimes you get lucky with a above, i's a good solution. In this face, we use a hole saw to cut a transom-core problem, and cen example, the rotten plywood was plug out of the plywood core. We consider a repair from the inside, routed and ground out, new perfo- clean up the bore afterwards with a instead of an atack through the out- rated plywood vacuum-bagged into router. We then fill the bore with side skin. This makes restoring the wet chop, and thea the inner skin fiberglass mush, and ghss it over hull's cosmetics—an expensive was relaminated, with + cap laminate. Finally, we go component of any major exterior Confining siructeral and cosmetic back and re-drill the festener-size hull-laminating project—far simpler repairs to the transom’s inner face, tole from the outside." and cheaper. ts opposed to involving the topsides ———— « Precision Machined BT rey lols www.Janicki.com} FEBRUARYIMARCH 2001 81fand bottom running surfaces, will tough to stay out the requisite dis Keep project costs way down. tance from the transom/topsides Sometimes, however, when the rot comer. I'you grind too elose to the ten core is thoroughly bedded out inside corner, you'll have to add at the topsides margin, it's really new tabbing from the transom's Setting the cutout perimeter | _ in an outerskin repair (plan view) Topsle ee | NOTE: With 23h transom0 fae thickness and 2 ply overlap at comer ee eee mm Ya ler 2 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER Note the raw pynood edges in the ‘Scupper tore ofthis fre-damaged hul inner lace tthe topsides, ‘Remember, as you get closer to the transom edges—iypically at about 8" to 10"—you are getting into the overlap rezions where lami~ nate plies fiom the topsides and bottom surfaces were wrapped around their respective comers and ‘onto the transom face. Unless you intend to camry repair plies around ‘onto the topsides and bottom, you ‘must leave these regions inact during ‘transom-face-laminate and tansom- core removals, Save the scarfing until the end of the project 10 keep the laminate cutout perimeter in ‘200d shape. Bedding Fasteners and Hardware Holes below the waterline boats are always trouble, even if they are mostly filled with & fastener and carefully bedded. Transoms are riddled with fastener holes, either through one skin, or through both skins and core, Drive-system thrust loads are fed into the transom globally through the mounting brackets, but all eystems are also mechanically fastened in place through the transom with bolts of studs, each fastener creating its ‘own local compression loads, Either dive type—sterndrive 0° outboard— is secured to the transom by at lest four half-inch-diameter fasteners. ‘Add eight or ten self-tapping serews for trim-tab planes and cylinders, and perhaps a pilot tube water- speed-indieator pickup, toe. Doa't forget the transom-mounted fish- finder transducer that many small boats sport, and 1 half-dozen self- tappers for the transducer and Speedo cable clamps, Add in an Unies you intend fo cary ropa plies around orto the topsides and bottom. you must lave an 8 fo 10" perimeter Intact dung ransom-facetaminata 20d transomcore removal. The repar- leminato sear saris about 6h from the ‘opsides edge, andthe reperply ‘Sctdule consists ofsimpie overaps.Black HT (High Temp) Blue VHT (Very High Temp) Ye Wan Ye, War @ nly TRIDENT Meets New Marine Wet Exhaust Std. SAE 12006 For Flexible Exhaust Hose, Bellows & Elbows SAE 12006 Compliance & Labeling Is Now Required For NMMA Boat Certification & ABYC For Bout Surveys. earones ewer ‘UseD WoRLDWIDEInside-skin repair \ ee Pla view /oomge oe wits Prep for new tabbing nso transom = HN Origin etintact Fabric handling for transom repair Dprrecst tabiic @aninate ovesize fabricand rind tush air Mold retease ard ‘mask orignal elcoat zene kad sone @) fig fabric overlap laminate over HD tape = @ rreraired panes oot wanaete {ac aorso pesmeter Grinding off excess tied tui Original — ‘New laminate Note: largest ply fis inthis schedule ‘PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER Top—When repaling a transom fram {ho insite, wanout removing ne out- ‘side sk, its important to check the ‘nds ofthe stringers for rt— Dattculatyithey were tabbed onto a ere-phywood transom before it was ‘lassod over Bottom—In 2 transom-ace rpat, i's ‘proforable (0 lamiato oversize and ‘grind th repair piss fush. Ifthe Tics pro-ut, the edye of te ‘rinforcoment can be dstrte. externally mounted washdown or livewell circulating pump for good measure, and you've definitely excocded 15 holes in the transom’ outer skin. "Most manufacturers do nothing but caulk these areas," Duppen- ‘thaler notes, "which is usually aot a 100% seal when the boat is new, and is even less successful as the ‘beat ages. Many boats are also built with resin or gelcoat painted onto for into holes and cutouts. This is net a 100% fix either." Well Iook more closely at sealing and bedding strategies in a moment. ‘As you take apart « wet transom, pay careful atention to what caused, its failure. Chances are that water got in under the cap molding, around fasteners, or through limber or draia holes. After re-coring and re-laminatiag your repair project, you'll find youre ‘ame point a the original builder after the hull was demolded. Consider what you can do to prevent the same water-intresion problems that destroyed the original transom, Heres a silly-sounding question: What's the clearance between a ‘nominal half-ineh-diameter shoulder bolt (typical for mounting an out- beard oF sterndrive leg to a tr som) asd a hole drilled with a half- inch-diameter drill bit? Not much. Se, where's the room for the caulle fof bedding that’s supposed to seal up the core’ exposed cross-section? Ifyou're going to count on a bed- ‘ding or caulking elastomer to seal the core exposed in a transom through-hole, you've got to provide some room for that material. In other words, you have to drill aWhen you’re in deep — we’re stocked in depth... you deserve. | ich Soa | JOMPONENTS eres Grour ING. Paani read f Ce Une Ay "The Switch Relay & Circuit Breaker SpecialHyourre going to count ‘on an elastomerto seal the core exposed ina transom through- hole, you've got to provide some room for that material. slightly oversized hole. In fact, the hole often ends up generously oversized when you're using a hhandheld drill and bit. Deliberatly oversizing fastener bores should not be approached lightly, and may not be appropriate. for situa- tions where there are alignment, load path, and other considerations, especially in high-powered craft ‘When appropriate, doring 164" ng pioneered the modern diesel closed- es ee ete ee customers worldwide have enjoyed the benefit of equipping theindiese! engines and gensets with the AIRSEP. Many boat owners oven list thelr boats for sale highlighting ee ker BT ea io Cy Scag Inshort, it’s easy to decide how to outfit your next ne Paras ret eer ker Uc ay : € AIRSEP. {6 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER oversize for half-inch-diameter fas- teners leaves enough clearance for a sleeve of bedding around each fis- fener. Note, however, that caulking by itself will aot adhere well to the cend-grain of the plywood, which is what you're actually sealing in a through-transom penetration. To improve the bedding’s adhesion, bore slightly oversized holes, mask the openings carefully, and then baste each bore with epoxy a day for two in advance of installing the fasteners and bedding. Recause the plywood's end-grain may swell a bit fas it soaks up the cpoxy, a fast pass Wwith the correct size drill after the epoxy cures may be necessary 10 clean up the tole to leave room for the bedding. Alternatively, after ‘epoxy basting, the hole should be a Dit swollen and back close to its ‘original specification bere. Leave it this way if you don’t want to go Epoxy’s good performance as an ‘end-grain wood sealer is well demonstrated, but at the moment ‘we cannot gelcoat over it without multiple extra steps. The poor lorg- term performance of polyester resins is also well documented, and the same goes for gelcoa, especially when it's applied as a one-shot layer to dry-plyood end-grain. ‘What can be done to produce pre sentable, low-cost holes? Seal the plywood with one coat of laminat- ing resin, and then putty up the voids. Apply another sealer cot, and then gelcoat. Follow the same procedure for foam. It's labor- intexsive, and no substitute for a properly closed-out, inserted, or sealed hole, but it @ small step ap in quality ‘When there's not much room for a sleeve of bedding around the fas- tener’ shank, sealiag of the fastener bore occurs mainly under the wash- ers, and ander the securing nut on the hull or motorvell interior. For drives and outboards, these washers are usually of a diameter similar to that of fender washers, enly thicker. ‘The large area of these washers certainly increases the prospects of establishing a watertight seal. In my experience, though, while the bolts themselves may require somepersuasion with hammer and drift before they will come out, the inte~ rior and exterior washers often pop right off without any struggle what- seever. Ore reason for the bed ding's deterioration and poor adhe- sion can be a few seasons’ worth of a tilted-up outboard oozing fuel and ‘nro-stroke oll onto the bedding 1 have another theory about why this poor bedding adhesion occurs ‘on washers and bolts that are new. Even though many of the bedding and sealing elastomers now oa the market are excellent, they don't ‘work well on bois and washers that are dirty end cily. (This fact is Iways mentioned on the sealant tube.) If you dovbt that most brand- new fasteners and washers are dirty, put a splash of acetone or other sol- Vent on a clean rag or paper towel, ard check a few new fasteners in your shop inventory. Open a new blisterpack container, or check the bolts and washers that come with a new outboard. A quick spin of the bolts and washers in the paper towel will leave behind dirt and grease—sowvenirs of the stamping and thread-rolling lubricants applied when the fistener was fabricated of the washer was stamped. ‘These contamizants will definitely affect long-term adhesion between fastener and bedding. 1 now solvent wipe all nuts, bolts, and washers that are to be Sealed or bedded, and I've noticed a big improvement in adhesion. I have to use a heat gun to get the washers off, which 1 never did when I was Sealing to Inbed hardware. This close attention to bonding- surface contamination should not In frigging drives onanew hull, you're trying to get a good seal to surfaces that have been waxed and may retain some of the mold-release from original construction. slop at just the fasteners. Whea rig ging the engines or drives on @ new hull, you will be trying to establish 1 good seal to surfaces that have not only buen waxed, bat may is fact still retain some of the mold release agents applied to the tooling daring original construction. Once ‘aguin, a solvent wipe can work, but 1 prefer to solvent-wipe, mask, and then lightly sand the landing zone ‘on the transom that’s under washers and brackets. Another area that’s often improp- erly sealed and bedded is at the tronze-sleeved seupper tubes with fared-in-place ends. These fittings sre common in many small boats, and consequently get replaced dur- fing transom repairs. Ive rarely seen any bedding around the edges of those flares. T also doubt that the We are here to help YDO Nor Americe 800.722.5687 wwn.vdona.com FEBRUARYIMARCH 2101 #7bores f those holes were coated ger problems. Check out big-boat finally, @ Few words abott drive with resin, gelcoat, epory, or some scuppers the text time you attend a cutouts. I visited the US Marine sort of bedding compound before boat show. It's an easy survey pro- Bayliner facility in Arlington the tubes were slid into place. Why ject because they are near eye level Washington, a few years ago, and not? The incremental cosi is so on the bigger boats in the dry dis- saw an interesting method for oon: small, and the benefits to the cus- plays. I think you will be suprised structing these openings. Most tomer’s long-term enjoyment of a by how much raw plywood and builders produce steradrive hulls safe boat are great. end-grain-textured white gelcoat_ with a monolithic cored transom ‘Big boats have iarge cockpits, so can still be seen in the scupper that gels @ tig drive cutout after they get thicker transoms ard big- bores and hawsepipe cutouts of demolding; plywood edges are ‘ger scuppers—and sometimes otherwise-lovely composite boats. often left unsealed. Bayliner uses a “dutchman,’ or mold insert, 10 fully mold the steradrive hole. Prior to golzoating, the FRP insert is placed in the mold where the Something New is Emerging ative cutout wil in hepa. The wll is th from Alden Yachts transom i the dutchman. Next, the transom- core plywood, with CMC-machined ‘cutouts forthe drive, is bedéed, and then laminated over with the tran- som’s inner skins. The hull comes ‘out of the mold with the dutchman in place ia the pocket, and the trim crew pops out the dutchman and cuts out the drive opening. Bat they are cutting through inner- and ‘outer-skin laminates only; there's no plywood exposed when they are one. Slick, not that expensive, and ab- solutely great for transom longevity. ‘The Metal Method Brake-bent marine-grade alu- ELSE cinum or steinless stec! plate bas stronger than ever thanks io Composite Polymer Design's interesting. posibiles lor repairing Co gee ees transoms, especially for shops ‘unwilling to get deeply involved in ge composite fabrication and repair. Sea as Tm not sure, though, that metal Epoxy resins with exiended gel times for use with replacement transom is a viable way Coogee eter {0 ge around replacing rotten cor. SS pa First, i it really possible to encap- Sema keane ach oles Rie eX wally posable @ ciety: einer etzie) between metal skins, and then Pe eee eee ae ee motor off safely into the sunset? T eA Sneed don't think so. If the transem core ‘Most comprehensive product line availa! has turned to mush, what's going to accept the compression Icads of the drive system's fasteners? Metal Soe Gaol Beas Tinaces wists oe oR or tae ‘and many others using Fy Point D strong—typically plywood—will still Pa ere be required. At least a bit of ores ce A laminate to cover and seal the plywood seems advisable 100, $0 you are alresdy into composites, {8 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDERDL Cir elk are created equal... PCE eae Introducing Tundra, the new line of freezers and refrigerators built specifically for the marine industry. It's the ideal solution for newbuilds or retrofits. fee eee te ea attention to detall that go into every urit. W. designed Tundra with a range of features that eae mut ee Se ete ea pee estan eee Rugged metal construction = Interior freezer door for AC/DCor DC only medels availak Imerchangeable outer door panels to match | ynamic air-cooled condensing unitfor reliable rfermance (Standard on all models. Rugged As Our Name. What you can't see is just as important. For Dea ne aac com ias) service dealers, our industry-standard two-year See teens Cees eee ted akc pe ee een eet et ean Se eee com) eer esos Pert te Bice ear a) Heavy duty door latches and hirges Nia Hanost ee put ncliaing inboat's cabinetry. a Thermal overload cutout Dependable, quiet, Danfoss compressor High inpec pelstyrene iter fo lowmatenence and easy cleaning. Low voltage cutout to protect compressor from damage. a aeceven for a metal repair. There is_much less surface area or repair area to the hull? Even with ‘A U-section formed-metal "tran- sealing ard bonding the metal com- the strongest elastomeric adhesives som sleeve" is preferable to two ponent in a typical small-boat available, you must strictly follow uuncennected plates inside and out- motorwell than there is on the recommendations for bonding side the hull. However, even when bull's exterior transom serfece ‘methods, bondline thicknesses, and the plate is brake-dent into a form Other than the drivetrain fasten- solvent preparation. Otherwise, it's that drops down over the original ers, what is going w hold the not prudent to rely only on an transom contours, and has metal to the original composite hull; and adhesive bond and drivetrain fas- bushings installed between inside what system—fasteners, adhesives, teners to keep the metal transom and outside plates, the inside sur- or both—is going to accept and attached to the original transom, face poses a particular challenge. transfer panel-scale loads from the Mechanical fasteners of some sort, probably located near the perimeter of the metal part, where the original transom may still be okay, will be necessary. | have rover soon a metal-transom repair plate that has been fasiened to the original hull with through-bols. Without exceptioa, the fasteners hhave been sell-tapping, usually #10 or #12. Ifwe don't attach the motor ff cutdrive to the transom with self-tapping screws and adhesives, why is through-bolting the same components fo a metal transom, and then attaching that metal tran- som to the hull with self-‘apping screws and adhesives, an accept- able practice? Since the trinsom's care probably got wet from fastener penetrations originally, isn't drilling it with dozens of additional holes to secure the metal repair just asking for more trouble? Selfapping screws, in my opinion, are far more likely to per- mit water entry than correctly drilled bores for durough-hull fasteners. Duppenthaler and I agree: ply- wood and various types of foams cean perform well as transom cor, as long as they are correctly installed, fastened to, and main- tained. Hulls with lest-than perfect transoms could stil live long lives— a long a8 no one ever drilled a Pe at Hes ee i bole in them fo mount an oxtbosrd aaa Sine drilling i incvitble ¢ ew heap aad siople measties ean PLES el hla txtead the ieapan of just about THAT WITHSTAND any cored transom. D> WATER, SALT OR SUN About the Author: As "Bruce Pfund/ Srecal Projects lsc.” Brice con- Subs on composite processes end str= WWW.LONSEAL.COM Vey marine compare souctare. He Is the technical edtor ofProfisioral Boubuiler, 1-800-832-7114 90 PROFESSIONAL BOATBUILDER