Re-coring fuel tank cover

[dcobbett]

I’m in the process of re-coring the cover over the fuel tank in my 1976 20’SF. The existing 3/8” plywood core was made up of 6” x6” squares, with narrow filler strips around the edges. The wood was totally rotten and it took me less than 1 hour to strip it down to the underside of the ‘glass cover piece. I still need to sand down the exposed surface, but I’m going to rebuild the piece and I’d appreciate some advice regarding the rest of the process.

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The existing ‘glass cover is about 2’ wide by 5’ long and I have some idea as to what is probably required. Also, I’ll be doing the work inside the house, so I’ll use epoxy to keep the smell down.

Once I sand the underside of the cover, should I lay in a layer of glass and set the new core on that?

If I use ply for the new core, should I cut it into pieces like SeaCraft did, and should I bevel the outer (perimeter) edges of the wood? Also, should I hold the wood back from the perimeter 1” or so to allow the hold down fasteners to be in resin/glass rather than wood?

What type of cloth (and how many layers) should I apply over the new core, and should that be coated with any kind of paint, etc.?