[Ed]

Hi Gents-

I'll add my two cents if you don't mind.

In John R's situation, if the transom is not totally rotten or wobbly, and he is not going to add a NEW EXPENSIVE MOTOR I would do the glass and aluminum overlay, with the expectation that it is only temporary . When you have the aluminum overlay fabricated be sure that it extends beyond (see photo) where the transom cutout goes from a horizontal to vertical plane. Many people who use/make these aluminum overlays make the mistake of only covering the area where the engine bolts on to the transom (plus a foot in either direction). This is pretty much useless because all of the stress on the transom is where the horizontal and vertical planes meet at that 90 degree angle in the corner.

Scott M. - considering that you're repowering with a new engine at the end of the year, I would not mickey-mouse around with the temporary fiberglass/aluminum fix. With $12,000 of brand new motor on your transom....you don't want to risk cracking it in the middle of next season or worse yet, lose the transom completely and having the engine go overboard.

If it were my boat, I would replace the entire transom from the INSIDE. I know I will get some arguments on this but that is the least structural evasive way of replacing a transom. If you cut the outer skin and replace it from the outside, you've lost a lot of the hull's integrity that is hard to replace. I know that the Gougeon Brothers of West System Epoxy tell you it is okay to replace a transom from the outside, but they're just trying to sell you more of their product.

Ask any old time boatbuilder/fiberglass guy and they will all recommend that you recore transoms from the inside. It is basically reversing the process of how the boat was built.

Phew....that was long.