[Fr. Frank]

Ive always wondered at the integrity of these tansom jobs performed from the outside. Is it as strong ? The guy who did mine tansom said to never cut the transom skin off.

Yes, it's just as strong. the difficulty in doing this from the outside is in faring the transom to hull transition, especially when you have no edge with which to work. You will have that difficulty, it appears from the pictures.

Now is also a great time to raise the transom to either 25" or 30", depending on what you plan on for power. If you're going used motor, do 25". If you're going new, make it 30".

If you're planning on a 4 stroke 115 hp or greater, 2 stroke 150 or greater, or an Optimax 90hp or greater, now's a good time to raise the deck 2" as well, to accommodate the extra weight and keep a dry deck..