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Transom rebuild - Need your best idea for removing wood inside.

captainbobc

New member
I have a Celebrity 18' bowrider and I am replacing all the wood in the structure..stringers, floor, and transom. I am removing the transom wood from the interior. The lower portion is easy to remove since it's rotten. The upper portion is a different story. There are two layers of 3/4" plywood sandwiched with one layer biaxial cloth covering, 3/8" thick glass transom and between the two plywood layers is another double layer of biaxial cloth. I am removing from the inside and saving the glassed transom.
Any great ideas on getting the solid wood out?
I am using an oscillating tool, flat bars, chisel, and am not moving along very fast. In other words, it is kicking my butt!
Any experience is appreciated.
 
I did the same thing 20 yrs ago...stripped the inside down to the hull. Cut out small sections of the transom at a time being careful not to cut through the outer fiberglass skin. Remove the stringer wood but leave the molded footprints to set the new ones.

Cut and fit all new wood then treat outdoors with one coat of CPES (Clear Penetrating Epoxy Sealant) on all sides and edges. Use a respirator because it will kill you. When setting the transom wood use the outer holes of the skin That had holes all the way thru for nuts and bolts to clamp the wood in place immediately after gluing to the outer skin. Grease the nuts and bolts for easy removal. Clean the grease from the holes when bolts are removed.

I used epoxy to rebuild. It's not cheap but I was lucky to have a company down the road that made epoxy and the owner was interested in my project and sold it to me wholesale. I used L&L (Lay up and Leveling) epoxy to make a putty with saw dust I got from a local lumber yard. You'll need it to fill low areas and under the stringers and transom fit isn't perfect. For the floor use plywood sanded on one side or more expensive plastic flooring. You'll want to set a 1/4" drop from outside edge to the center of the floor for good drainage to the stern. Engine mounts should be cut from solid wood blocks of hardwood and screwed and glued to the stringers. You'll want to wrap the mounts w/FG cloth.
No PMs just post questions here.
 
guyjg, you did exactly what I plan to do to this boat. This is not my first, but it is the first to have a transom to remove from the inside. I have been trying to remove the good wood from the transom by doing small areas, but it is taking a long time. I am using an oscillating tool to make cuts and a hammer, chisel and flat bar to do the removal. The double layer of fiberglass sandwiched in between the two 3/4 in sheets is dulling the blades and making it difficult to remove. Tomorrow, I'm going to try using an air chisel sharpened and sharpened is such a way that it will avoid the outer hull skin. Hopefully that will speed up the process. I look forward to putting it back together. The destruction and removal of all the wood is taking it's toll on this 76 year old. :eek: Thank you for your excellent reply! I really appreciate your tips and expertise.
 
I would just cut the entire transom off and rebuild it new. This picking and chipping is for the birds. Instead of wood use Coosa board as core material. Vacuum bag the entire thing then glass it into the hull in one piece.
CPES is just regular epoxy that's been thinned with Xylene.
 
I considered that but the total hull on my boat is in excellent condition. Removing the transom glass takes on a whole new aspect of how to support the rest of it after it is cut out. I decided I have the time and patience to save the existing fiberglass that is 3/8 in thick with good gelcoat by working from the inside. If the boat were smaller, maybe. I have heard that about cpes, but they deny it. Who knows? But thinned epoxy would penetrate just fine, I'm sure. Thank you for the reply o2batsea!
 
"Just" cut out the inside f-glass, leaving the outside alone. Clean out the rotted wood, replace it with new, then re-glass the inside back in place.

Jeff
 
"Just" cut out the inside f-glass, leaving the outside alone. Clean out the rotted wood, replace it with new, then re-glass the inside back in place.

Jeff
Exactly what I am doing, but the question was how to better remove the good part of the wood that is in the upper portion. It is tough. Thanks
 
I used a small battery powered hand saw. Set the depth 1/4" less than the hull. Cut small sections at a time so you can use a prybar to "pop" it off the skin. Wear a dust mask and goggles for safety. Don't wash your clothes...throw them out when completed. Mine stood on there own. If your fuel fill hose is buried under the flotation foam it will be deteriorated and need replaced. I bought a new fuel tank w/rear hose connections since the aluminum connections were corroded to dust.
 
All good ideas and I appreciate the replies from all. Today I tried my idea of using an air chisel sharpened to separate the plywood from the transom. It worked perfectly! I was less than half way through and that had taken 3 days. Today I completed removing the rest of the plywood layers and the inside of the transom is clean. I will still sand it flat before I install the new transom plys. I'm looking forward to installing new stringers, floor and transom. I have already rebuilt the 200 hp GM 305 engine and I'll refresh the outdrive as well.
Thanks and I'll post some pictures later of my 1986 Celebrity 180
 
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I know your project is long done. But here is a tip that saves hours of work. If your skilled with using a small trim chain saw 10-12 inch bar that's the secret. I can remove most transoms carefully leaving the outside skin intact in 3-6 hours. The last one I did I even left the inside skin intact on a 14 foot Hi-Laker. I just took the entire core out down to the bottom and side gel coat 1-1/4inch wide. just fyi. pics if you want to see them.
 
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