Appx. cost for a transom job ?

[stormtracker]

Hi all. Recently I picked up a 79 AquaSport 176 Family Fisherman for free.
It's in good shape and I love it.
The previous owner started a transom replacement (from the outside) but never finished it.
The 1st piece of 3/4 wood is in and he gave me the 2nd piece all cut and ready.
The issue is that I have never worked with fiberglass before.
I know it's not rocket science, but it is the whole transom that my motor will sit on and I not sure if I should do it myself or pay to have it done.
So the question is appx. how much would it cost to have it done ?
Are we talking about 200$; 500$; or 1000 $ ? any idea ?
My thoughts are that if I want to try doing it myself, then I should probably wait till the Spring of next year, because here in New England area it's already cooling down to the 60s, and 50s, and the boat is kept outside.
Then I can dabble and practice on some scrap wood in my garage to get the hang of it.
I find it a little confusing about the different kinds of epoxy, resin, cloth, ect.
I'm not afraid to do it myself and that's what I was planning, but I know it's important to do it right.
Any thoughts or comments are appreciated.
Thanks
KM

[keysguy]

I have a lot of the same type of questions.  It would be cool if some of the experienced guys here did a "idiots" guide for beginners posting.

[RickK]

I don't know what someone would charge to do the work.  We have some pro rebuilder members that might PM you with costs.
As for doing it yourself, there are a couple examples of rebuilding a transom from the outside in the rebuilds forums, scour the forums and I'm sure you'll find some help there.

[bfabian76]

my neighbor had his done at a marina for his grady white. $2000.

search the forum and tackle it yourself!

[Shine]

my neighbor had his done at a marina for his grady white. $2000.

search the forum and tackle it yourself!

$2k to $4k is what I have seen,  so much depends on how easy it is to get to the core.  Cutting from the outside seems like its easier, but in the long run run  its difficult to make it as strong as replacing from the inside.

There is probably $1,000 in materials if you use epoxy and plywood

[Martin t]

While I am waiting for my gas tank to be built I was wondering what to do about this

[fitz73222]

If you are considering outsourcing this, I would send a PM to Dirtwheels, one of our members. He does beautiful work.

[RickK]

What you're seeing is where the liner comes up and over the transom.  Very common.  Really not a structural thing but water can get in and start rotting your transom from the top.  You might consider taking a dremel and grind a bevel along the cracks and fill it with MarineTex or some thickened gelcoat.
Take a look through these pix and about 10 down you will see the same thing and what it looked like under it.
http://classicaquasport.com/smf/index.php?topic=10101.msg89247#msg89247

[Martin t]

Thanks Rick the transome does feel strong no movement when I shake engine, I've almost got the pic thing figured out

[Capt. Bob]

Marty,
It looks like someone already fooled around with it some time ago.

On my 91, they covered the joint connection between the transom/hull and cap with a plastic trim piece.
You can see the original on the right side.



I removed the damaged left side and exposed the joint.



It appeared the factory used the same "gumjuwackum" to attach/fill the void in the connection that they use to attach the deck to the stringer system.

I ground out as much as possible and filled the void with a two part epoxy.



Lastly, I had an aluminum trim piece made (one on each side) to replace the old plastic cover.



The trim pieces were the most costly. The rest was my time and materials. Inexpensive.

Good luck.

[Martin t]

Thanks again capt bob gave me a good idea!

[Capt. Bob]

Well then, get goin'

Good luck.