marine grad wood or treated plywood for my transom?

[BillP]

Re: marine grad wood or treated plywood for my transom?

dixie420,<br />Ok, so how many boats have you (or your experts)really seen that had delamination of fiberglass or rot with marine pt wood? I suppose the factory boats you are seeing with rotten wood did not use CCA pt wood or apply glass at the proper MOISTURE as mentioned by ALL marine pt mfgs. <br /><br />I won't get into an experience pixxing contest here because my experience makes not one hoot of difference on what is real. I'm not a johnny come lately to the boat building scene either and have a few scars to proves it. However, your experience is apparently dated and not making for accuracy on current times. My ears and eyes are open for a better and more credible source for pt wood showing lab tests and comparisons. I want to see data that refutes what the APA says. One or two opinions don't hack it without specific testing data. Seeing a boat years later and claiming to know why it went to hexx is only a 1/2axxed guess. <br /><br />I've been researching this pt vs non treated thing for 3-4 yrs...and received a lot of flack from folks(uninformed)who dispute the use of it. I posted the APA site because they have the best reference site with pdf files, including lab tests of pt wood in direct comparison with non treated ply. There are mil specs there too which are specific to this subject. You can spend days reading their data. The APA is a strong organization and many major and minor wood mfgs are members. They have a consensus and years of experience to back their claims. <br /><br />So, the question here is do people like me trust high profile organizations and industry leaders who do testing and use the materials in production OR individual citizens who post their opinions on the web? I know where I stand and am using pt wood for 100% of the stingers, floor and transom on a current boat project. All wood was air dried from several months to over 1 year before use.

 

[Ralph 123]

Re: marine grad wood or treated plywood for my transom?

BillP you make a really good point. That is, if you are going to tackle projects like this where you are dealing with your safety and the safety of others, you should do the research necessary to draw conclusions and not rely on posts from anon. sources who won't be riding next to you.

 

[dixie420]

Re: marine grad wood or treated plywood for my transom?

ok i have no problem using marine grade wood, nor do i think its not good for a transom, in my opinion its the best choice you can make. but like i said in my last post, boatersam was looking for a low budget way to fix his boat and i gave him my advice on how to do so, and the best cheap wood he could do it with. if someone wants to buy marine grade wood, thats great. but i think on alot of boats its not nessacary. i also think that regular pt wood is not the same as marine grade pt. i cant look at a boat thats 3 years old and has fallen apart and tell you what caused it, but if i build a boat and see how it lasts over the course of time i can tell you pretty accuratly what went wrong, yeah ive built boats that didnt last as long as they should have. and so has anyone else that has built boats for any length of time. you said all wood was dried for several months to 1 year, i happen to think this makes all the difference in the world and the point im trying to stress is that taking a sheet of pt wood, cutting it and fiberglassing it while the wood is still secreting its juices is a bad idea. i also believe that a decent piece of wood that has been fiberglassed properly will last as long as a high dollar piece of marine pt thats been done as well. if the boat has a smaller engine than a 35-40 horse, i think marine grade is overkill. having your transom break off is a very serious accident and anyone who builds their own boat has only themself to blame if it dosent work. if you dont think you are capable of building it to last pay someone else, that way when it fails you can start the blame game. oh, ive been doing fiberglass repair on boats for about 7-8 years and in the last 6-7 years ive never fixed a boat for someone i wouldnt trust to take out myself. i will agree with what billp said though, maybe my info is dated. i definatly havent been researching this as long as you. i still think everyone is missing the point of this entire thread, boatersam started off by saying he couldnt afford marine grade wood, it seems to me that talking about the quality of marine grade pt is pointless in this thread and maybe there should be a new one started on the discussion of marine grade vs non-marine grade wood. i feel like there is alot of people with different opinions on this subject.

 

[DJ]

Re: marine grad wood or treated plywood for my transom?

I have replaced several transoms. I always used a good grade of plywood, but not marine.<br /><br />I sandwich several layers (depending on desired thickness) of 1/2" plywood together using waterproof glue and stainless steel screws. I put a heavy weight (park car on it) while the glue is curing. I then cut it to shape and install if it is in a f-glass boat. If in an aluminum boat, I coat the entire assembly with poly before installing.<br /><br />The first one I did is now 14 years old, stored outside, and has NO issues.<br /><br />JB has a good point about voids. If you pick your pieces carefully and plan out the cuts, you can avoid the great majority of them.