TOPIC: 1960 Wagemaker transom help.

Thanks to those of you who have helped me in the past and those of you following my restoration job.

As youknow I'm new to boat restoration and have run into a snag and I need some advice.

Here's the problem:
I've managed to strip off 99% of the old lead based paint and ran into the below problem where the transom support was.





The transom was fiberglassed in on the ends and just a layer of resin was spread over the rest of the wood. The factory then painted over the resin. Question is, how do I take care of the wood that came out? It's not soft or rotted. I think my dad may have taken the support of and applied resin to some of it.

Can I just fill the voids with resin and sand flat to the rest of the transom, prime and paint it with the rest of the interior once it's sanded and ready?

Somone had suggested routing it out the length pf the bad spots then glue in a thin layer of wood. Then resin, prime and paint. Seems like a lot of work for something that's going to be covered up by the transom support anyway.

Oh the transom support is a 2"x4" varnish solid piece of Mahogany that matches the topside of the boat. It mounts with three brass 2 1/2" wood screws into the transom.

Any help here would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Bob

Could we get a pic of the whole boat, and what size engine will it wear?

jim18611865

Here is the link to all the pics of my project (along with some from Nessman's rework of his Wagemaker Clipper).

The boat is 18' with a 1959 Evinrude Jubilee "Fat" fifty.

www.fiberglassics.com/glassic-forums/main-forum/1960-18-wagemaker-empire-clipper-restoration#10163

WOW nice boat.
If it were me, (and I am an amateur) I would fill voids, glass that transom (not just resin), paint, then put your 2X4 mahogany back. But that is just me. Safety and keeping the water out would be job 1.
I have a ton of left over glass. Woven and chopped matt. 60" width.
What state are you in?

I'm in Maryland.

Take a grinder and grind out the dark wood. Ruff up the area around a little with the grinder. Then take some resin and mix it with Cabisil until you have a bondo like mix. Fill and skim what you have ruffed up. Sand this back down flat and then I would cover the whole tramson all with a layer of glass. You will have a nice looking job and one water can not get to.

D

If interested in any fiberglass let me know. (Or anyone else here)
I am in CT so shipping shouldn't be bad. They are on 5' rolls now.
You can have as much as you need for cost of shipping.

Herters59 & Jim,
Thanks for the info. I was trying to keep it close to original, but the fiberglass across the back does make a lot of sense. It will keep the water out and reinforce the transom at the same time, besides the transom support of course.

After digging through a couple of boxes that were under the bow I found a 3' x 8' piece of glass cloth. I guess my dad had planned on doing the same thing you gentlemen had advised. That would explain why the transom support was off when I got the boat.

I'll have to read up on glassing since I haven't done it before but I don't think it should be that hard to do. Besides, if this becomes an addiction, as I have read it does, I'll need to learn anyway.

I'm assuming once the filler is dried and sanded, I mix up the resin and hardener, brush it on, then lay on the cloth and add another layer of resin over it?

For doing 1 17' boat, I became neary an expert on fiberglass.

Yes you have the basic idea, and get safety equip. Please wear a respirator! You really can't do it without it, as you would likely pass out before you were done, at least I would with the poly resin.

Pay attention to the directions and the temp and humidity the day you are laying it down. Time can be your enemy as well as too much hardener.
Wear protective clothing and gloves. That stuff reacts differently to different people. For me it was a medium to mild burn.

Jim,
Thanks, I do have a respirator. Since I'm heavy into woodworking I wear one all the time. Here's a couple of pics of the transom and why I was thinking about keeping close to original.




I still have to sand and add a new layer of varnish to the transom engine mount.

Also have to decide what to paint the inside with. Not sure if I should go with primer and enamel or a single or two part paint. I don't think it will matter if I roll and tip since the whole inside is just the woven glass and resin that had primer and paint, as you can probably see from the pics.