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I have just completed an extensive rebuild of my transom. I elected to allow someone else to do it as I was very concerned w/ structural integrity in this area, secondary to the extensive area of damage on my boat (70-75% of the core being rotted). I have spent much of the winter learning about resins, laminate construction, etc. I would use balsa. I would use a vinyl-ester resin, not readily available poly-ester resin (excessive permeability). Not epoxy as it is incompatable with gel coat unless I were considering painting the entire boat (epoxy will adhere to poly/vinyl-ester, but poly-ester, i.e. Gel-Coat, will not adhere well to epoxy). Materials, unless you use epoxy, are not your major cost factor, labor is. Buying some sheets of balsa, resin, and glass are only a small portion of the cost. By the way, the core in the transom is thicker than the deck, 3/4 vs 1/2 inch. Consider doing the grunt work yourself, and farming out the more critical or esthetic portions. I hope this has been helpfull. I think, ultimately, the most critical issue is ending up with a solidly laminated construction. All layers well adhered to the next layer. A final issue is matching the gel coat color. The shop I used did an excellent job through a process of trial and error.
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Replacing transom -- GregS 6.9 #24 -- 6/27/03 9:35a.m.
Re: Replacing transom -- Dave Seely -- 6/29/03 8:44a.m.
longish reply -- marc s2 6.7 #78, Lake Tahoe -- 7/1/03 8:51p.m.