Re: My Yardsale Boat
Great looking little project you've got going on there. Your Surfboard building friend is your greatest asset when it comes to the fiberglass work on your boat. I'd go through him for all your fiberglass needs. Apparently there is a difference in resin as to how long it has been on the shelf...you ideally want resin from a fresh batch, not something sitting on the shelf at your autoparts store for god knows how long.
If you wanted to go another step with the transom, you could buy some CPES ( from rotdoctor.com ) and inject it into small holes you would drill into the transom wood and let that transom soak up as much of it as you could get it too, particularly around the bottom where the rot usually starts. It'll harden up and seal the wood and you should have a transom that will last a long time after you've properly glassed over it.
Replacing the transom outright with seacast or another product that can't rot is ideal, but it comes down to what you really want to invest into that little boat.
Looks like it'll be fun once you've got it finished and out on the water. For a 12' boat, I think a 15hp motor would be sufficient to get you moving along without overpowering the boat, though finding a 20hp with remote controls would be ideal for something that will really scoot!
If you plan to fish out of the boat and do a lot of trolling though, those smaller motors are great. My 25hp has a tendency to foul out after long sessions of trolling ( though it could use a tuneup ). I had a 7.5 evinrude that just wouldn't quit trolling....great motor, and it propelled a 14ft aluminum boat along nicely. Just nothing you'd want 4 people in the boat for and expect to go faster than a barge
