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Bigjim · 24-05-2023, 14:06

When I bought my boat I renamed her and ordered vinyl lettering to apply to the transom. The first version was smaller and gold in color but looked more orange. I didn't like the size or the color, so I removed the lettering that fall and ordered a new, larger version in white.

The name came over the winter and my plan was to repaint the transom and install the lettering the next spring. But other, more important, projects delayed the painting, plus bad weather in the spring, so that was delayed. One year turned into two and then three.

Then, last winter, I was browsing the internet and saw an ad for sideboards on Etsy. The boards are custom carved out of PVC and look like traditional boards you see in New England. I was hooked. I ordered the name of my boat and just after the New Year it arrived. The only problem was that the PVC material was incredibly stiff and would not bend even a fraction of an inch. My Transom looks relatively flat but actually curves quite a bit.

I started to investigate ways to bend the board so it could be installed on my boat. The first thing I tried was heat and weight. I often use a heat gun to bend PVC pipe when I need to make it conform to a specific angle. I put a 45lb weight on the board and hit it with my heat gun. Nothing. After another 15 minutes I did not see it flex even a 1/4".

The other method many carpenters use to get wood to bend is by cutting dados into one side allowing the wood to bend more easily. Once bent the dados can be filled in with thickened epoxy or putty. I was afraid doing this would wreck the board, but I gritted my teeth and tried it anyway.

At first, I cut 1/4" dados 1/4" deep, but believe it or not, the board still did not bend enough. I increased the depth to 1/2" and finally the board followed the curve of the transom.

The final task was now to restore the integrity of the board. I decided to use Polyester Structure putty. It worked great. I needed two quarts of the putty to completely fill the dados but once they were filled I temporarily installed the board on the transom so the putty could cure into the final shape.

I then sanded and faired out the back of the board and gave it a quick coat of gelcoat. Once that cured I put on two coats of Interlux Briteside black polyurethane. Finally, I sprayed the front of the board with 5-6 coats of gloss polyurethane to give it a nice luster. I think the name looks amazing.

Before installing it permanently, I got some 3M compound polish and buffed and waxed the transom. Everything is looking spiffy.