Glen-L.com

I have two questions regarding the transom on my squirt.

1.) I am wanting to go with a bright finish on my transom. I however do not have the correct plywood yet (Gotta wait a few more weeks) but would really like to be able to move forward with the project. I have considered 2 different things and not sure which is the best or maybe both. I was thinking about getting some plastic tarp type material and laying it between the transom frame and a temp transom. That way the support is there and when I get the plywood I want to use I can just swap the transom out and wont have to worry about any epoxy between the frame and transom since I will have a bag there. Is this an acceptable practice? Will it cause me problems in the future? Secondly I am thinking about just closing in the entire transom frame similar to that of frame 2. Should I do either of these or both?

2.) After the above is completed would I be able to layout a guide on the transom and adjust the circular saw to 24 degrees (12 to get me back to a 90 and another 12 to make the 12 degree reverse angle of the transom) then make my bevel for the transom?

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Why not is why!

There is nothing wrong with using a sacrifical transom mock up. If you wish to have the correct width but do not want to spend a lot on materials, just use cheap 2x4s as framing and apply a simple sheet of luan cut to the right deminision. You can even fkip the boat with this in place. You can glass the bottom if you wish too, and just use small tabs after the fact for the chine sections with some extra work down the road. I would make sure that the sacrifical one is pretty exact so that you can transfer the shapes with the notches onto the good layup.Getting everything to go back in will be a bit tricky but no impossible.

I will have have the real transom in before I lay the bottom and side plywood as all this wood will come at the same time so I dont think it should be to bad to make the switch.

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Why not is why!

To get the reverse angle, just figure the angle you want,say 14 degress, and cut that the way you need it!

How long til you get your plywood? Seems like a lot of work for noting if not too long.

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Boat building can best be defined as an endless series of
tragedies obscured by the occasional miracle, followed by a good bottle of beer.

Don't Dream Your Life, Live Your Dream

More then a month I am sure. I dont have to cash right now to pay for all of it and I am not going to order any less then all of since I have to pay a flat rate shipping fee.

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Why not is why!

I tried building the transom and then cutting it out for the ski. I couldn't make it work. I wound up removing all the planking so that I only had the transom frame installed. After I installed the drivetrain, I enclosed the transom around it. I did graft the ski pump housing to the hull so my installation is a bit different than your proposed installation. But I still think it would be easier to plank the transom after you have the entire drivetrain installed. Just my 2 cents...

KB

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"I'm not trying to get it perfect. I'm trying to get it finished!"
Squirt Build: http://www.tubbytug.com/SquirtHome.html

I noticed that on your website. That is one of the reasons I was asking about building the framing much like yours.

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Why not is why!

Ok so I got all the frames assembled tonight except for the transom. I am a bit confused on this. The best I can guess is that I need to cut the main transom frame member at 12 degrees on the bottom, top, and in the cutouts for the battens and keel. Is this correct? I was thinking about just adjusting the table on my band saw to 12 degrees and going to town on it but I am not 100% this is correct yet. It just seem like it is a lot of work being that I would have to make the side to side cuts at 12 degrees the readjust my table back to 0 and make the up and down cuts (for the sides of the frame and the sides of the batten and keel cutouts). I think the confusing part about this is the lack of info in the plans or the boat building with plywood book.

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Why not is why!

I made the 12 degree cuts on my table saw. I screwed some straight wood scrap to the transom with an overhang of 3" (screws set back so the blade wouldn't hit them) parallel to the line I wanted to cut. Tilted the blade to 12-13 degrees, adjusted my rip fence so my cut would be on the line and then made my first pass. Process was the same for the other side. You could just as easily do this with a circular saw and set the board in from the line the same offset as your circular saw deck. For the top (deck side) edge I cut the arc a little long so that after I flipped I could fair back a little if necessary.

Hope that helps. I thought I had a picture somewhere but can't seem to find it. There are really a whole host of ways you can make this cut...just do it in a way you feel comfortable and with the tool you prefer.

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Bill

I told my wife we needed a three-car garage for my projects...she told me to ask her for permission next time before I buy a house.
http://www.unitybuild.net