Redwood

[sonny1]

The addition of cork makes sense. Glued to the back side of a wood transom would cut down a lot of vibration especially when dealing with a small 4 stroke. My wood transom is easy to replace on a 14 ft Lonestar. Two side brackets and a bottom bracket. The side brackets were held in place by rivets while the bottom bracket was bolted in. After reading this plan on reinstalling side brackets with bolts vice rivets. Cork is not that expensive and really like the idea. How long will the cork last who cares if the wood transom is easy to replace. Post like yours is what makes this forum. Thank you for sharing this.

 

[Dennis Wilson]

Thanks... I like to learn and research and make every attempt to do things right. But over the years I have tried alternative methods on literally every restoration project I have done much like Henry Ford did in his time. Use what you have and repurpose if whatever fits/works.... I stock cork and know I have it.... a little thicker than what I removed.... but I also have another gasket material that is super thin and that was used on water necks as gaskets on cars. The gasket on the outside transom was very thin.... almost paper-like.... so this is what I might use..... IF .... I can find it.... These days that is sometimes my biggest problem. Then yesterday I also researched what bolts/screws to use when attaching the transom parts and got the usual debate and yes, no, do and don't..... for every possible option. What was there, for many years, was plain jane zinc plated el cheapos.... that rusted badly and there was zero chance of removing them conventionally. I used a cut off wheel to remove them. So I am considering stainless steel and was cautioned on using them because of an (electron) chemical reaction... then for every article I found that says "don't" I found an article that says "it won't affect a thing." Then there were advocates for using only aluminum hardware too.... no rust... no chemical interaction.... I am willing to bet the bolts I cut off, had been on this boat for over 50 years and I am sure I will never see these removed by the next owner; whatever I use. But I was a waste of time yesterday (it was hot here in Minnesota) so this morning I am going out early and putting on the dust mask and will clean up some areas of the boat.... shooting for at least two hours per day..... It is turning into more work than I thought it would be... but it still is a fun project and a learning experience.... Did you notice I tend to babble? LOL... Take care...

 

[Wayne Roberts]

PS... Just read an article about why cork was used... I thought it would be a protective kind of thing.... but it was also used to dampen vibration from the motor which would be magnified by the boat... so it was basically a sound deadener/anti vibration...... ironic thing... I used to have a roll of this in stock to create my own gaskets when there was a need to make your own gasket because the originals were out of production for older motors... but I think I might have tossed it?? But I also think I have a roll of some other gasket material that will do the same thing.. who knows... gettin' an education again.... it never ends.

Well that makes some sense I suppose to use it as vibration damping agent between the wood and transom metal but i can't image that to be a big problem unless the prop was out of balance. With an aluminum prop i can see that issue maybe with hard usage........striking rocks or other hard material....nowadays with the widespread use of stainless steel props that should not be too much issue unless you fish in really rocky rivers or etc.......I can see now that what you read up on makes sense especially for the 1950's era motors........good job on the research!

 

[Wayne Roberts]

Thanks... I like to learn and research and make every attempt to do things right. But over the years I have tried alternative methods on literally every restoration project I have done much like Henry Ford did in his time. Use what you have and repurpose if whatever fits/works.... I stock cork and know I have it.... a little thicker than what I removed.... but I also have another gasket material that is super thin and that was used on water necks as gaskets on cars. The gasket on the outside transom was very thin.... almost paper-like.... so this is what I might use..... IF .... I can find it.... These days that is sometimes my biggest problem. Then yesterday I also researched what bolts/screws to use when attaching the transom parts and got the usual debate and yes, no, do and don't..... for every possible option. What was there, for many years, was plain jane zinc plated el cheapos.... that rusted badly and there was zero chance of removing them conventionally. I used a cut off wheel to remove them. So I am considering stainless steel and was cautioned on using them because of an (electron) chemical reaction... then for every article I found that says "don't" I found an article that says "it won't affect a thing." Then there were advocates for using only aluminum hardware too.... no rust... no chemical interaction.... I am willing to bet the bolts I cut off, had been on this boat for over 50 years and I am sure I will never see these removed by the next owner; whatever I use. But I was a waste of time yesterday (it was hot here in Minnesota) so this morning I am going out early and putting on the dust mask and will clean up some areas of the boat.... shooting for at least two hours per day..... It is turning into more work than I thought it would be... but it still is a fun project and a learning experience.... Did you notice I tend to babble? LOL... Take care...

I used stainless steel bolts, finish washers and lock washers on my 2 Alumacraft transoms I restored and I have had zero electrolysis problem. One of them was done in 1978 and it still looks fine. Of course I did spray paint both boats beforehand with zinc chromate.

 

[Dennis Wilson]

I have a lot of stainless steel assortments so I will go with those too..... If there would happen to be a problem, it will be the next owner who can deal with it. I found three types of gasket material and one is a man made material...... All you can do is try. I have 1/4 of the mirror finish done above the rub rails along with the prep of the interior transom location... how many years of "crud" was under the wood/gasket..... I used a 3M stripping wheel to remove the bulk of it and then the orbital velcro sander to finish it... not like new but not bad either... Had to dig, like always, to find the JB Weld and finally found it... but it was permatex brand and I have used it before.... epoxy that takes 24 hours to cure... two big clamps to hold the broken part in place and I think it will be fine... Also did some calculations about the trailer...... Another good morning!!!!

 

[Wayne Roberts]

I have a lot of stainless steel assortments so I will go with those too..... If there would happen to be a problem, it will be the next owner who can deal with it. I found three types of gasket material and one is a man made material...... All you can do is try. I have 1/4 of the mirror finish done above the rub rails along with the prep of the interior transom location... how many years of "crud" was under the wood/gasket..... I used a 3M stripping wheel to remove the bulk of it and then the orbital velcro sander to finish it... not like new but not bad either... Had to dig, like always, to find the JB Weld and finally found it... but it was permatex brand and I have used it before.... epoxy that takes 24 hours to cure... two big clamps to hold the broken part in place and I think it will be fine... Also did some calculations about the trailer...... Another good morning!!!!

I don't see it be a problem at all unless your operating in salt water or maybe grounding something electrical to the hull. I know i have had no observable problem with the stainless fasteners on mine and they make removing something a cinch later if needed. Gonna be a pretty fish catcher when your done!

 

[LDUBS]

You will get galvanic corrosion using dissimilar metals together, including aluminum & stainless. Would be worse in salt water. The good news is on the galvanic scale, stainless steel is about the least reactive you can use. Best practice would be to isolate the stainless fasteners/fittings from the aluminum. I use my boat in fresh water & don't keep it in the water. Maybe I should feel a little guilty but I don't worry about the stainless fittings.

 

[Dennis Wilson]

I live in Minnesota. If I somehow find that I am in salt water, I made a radical right turn somewhere....... but there is one more alternative maybe to cut down on the chances of a reaction if I use an aluminum flat washer anywhere the stainless bolt/screw would make contact with the aluminum..... I don't see it as a problem and certainly it will be a thousand times better than a generic zinc or galvanized bolt/screw that was used previously and I am sure it did NOT come from the factory this way. I know some of them have been replaced because they use a torq head and that wasn't around in '58......

 

[sonny1]

You could use what the Navy uses titanium hardware. The deck lights on the flight deck of all Navy ships are made out of titanium to cut down on corrosion. With the introduction of aluminum superstructures a lot of hardware is now titanium. With my budget I will stick with everyday stainless. We don't have much salt water here in Oklahoma.

 

[LDUBS]

I live in Minnesota. If I somehow find that I am in salt water, I made a radical right turn somewhere....... but there is one more alternative maybe to cut down on the chances of a reaction if I use an aluminum flat washer anywhere the stainless bolt/screw would make contact with the aluminum..... I don't see it as a problem and certainly it will be a thousand times better than a generic zinc or galvanized bolt/screw that was used previously and I am sure it did NOT come from the factory this way. I know some of them have been replaced because they use a torq head and that wasn't around in '58......

Nylon washer would be better. Zinc bolts might not be a good idea. In case what I said was misleading, galvanic corrosion can happen in any water. It is just much worse in salt water.

 

[LDUBS]

You could use what the Navy uses titanium hardware. The deck lights on the flight deck of all Navy ships are made out of titanium to cut down on corrosion. With the introduction of aluminum superstructures a lot of hardware is now titanium. With my budget I will stick with everyday stainless. We don't have much salt water here in Oklahoma.

For fun I looked. A 1/4 x 1 1/4 titanium bolt is $3.25. For one!

Another way they cut down on corrosion on ships is the constant painting.

 

[Dennis Wilson]

The basic cleanup of the boat is finished, and the "interior" parts of the boat that need to be replicated are in the garage and they will be finished this winter so these components (redwood seats and transom) can be installed early next spring when the boat will be moved back inside the work stall. I got a lot of good ideas and will use stainless steel bolts but with the nylon washers as suggested. I do have to measure the transom one more time to see if I will use the cork similar to what was used originally on this boat or some of the manmade very thing gasket material I use in car restoration. But for now, the boat work is on hold as the changeover from nice weather in Minnesota changes over to winter. Just too many other things to do now. But after the first heavy snowfall, I will be ready to start working on the seats and I look forward to that. Thanks for all your suggestions/help!