38 Scarab Build
#1
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Joined: Aug 2022
Posts: 31
Likes: 41
From: Ohio
1981 38 Scarab Flatdeck. I bought this boat back in September and have begun getting it water ready for spring 2023. Transom was wet and front bulk head was gone,so naturally we started to cut it all out.
















#4
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Joined: Jan 2007
Posts: 6,473
Likes: 357
From: Mansfield, TX
When you go to redo it you may consider a 1 inch layer of balsa wood on outside layer, followed by a layer of glass, and a final layer of a more traditional hardwood with a mat of glass over that. The balsa wood grain does not allow water to travel and will not allow the whole transom to rot out. The grain itself travels front to back instead of side to side like the traditional wood. You may get some localized rot from water penetration, but will remain localized and will not spread. This is the build method of Saber and can tell you from experience and reading some of others that it works. They also don't run the wood all the way to the edges, there is a gap of 1-2 inches and don't quite understand why, just that it works well.











