I drilled a hole for a transducer one time on the V, water came out and I was devastated. Then I looked inside the bilge and saw that the hole I drilled was below where the wood ended, through solid glass...the water had come from inside the boat.

Something to check.

Follow Skunks advise, don't cut the outer skin! The hull can twist and change its shape. I had to redo mine back in 06, cut it all out from the inside. Went back with marine plywood and polyester resin I got from Carolina Classic nearby. Turned out great, rock solid! No trouble since but I keep it wrapped up under a shed.

CarbonCore transom
 

I've said it before in other transom threads but a viable shortcut would be to expose only the top edge of the transom at the motor cutout. Then use the chain saw to remove as much wood as you can reach. Try really hard to clean the inside of the hollowed out transom, block all holes and then pour 2 buckets of Carbon Core.

This would skip the hard part of cutting the cap and removing the motor well.

I recommend CarbonCore over Seacast because it really pours and leaves no air pockets.

Every one I've seen done this way ended up having the skin seperate from the core because the remaining wood on the skin tore free. I have nothing against the pourables, but the chainsaw method doesn't clean them the surface enough to get a proper long term bond IMHO.

ya that kinda worried me enough to take mine apart and grind both surfaces clean. I haven't seen any longterm outcomes from the shortcut.
I think there may be a way of removing just the motor well to get enough access to get some of the inside skin off and grind. Hopefully I'll never do a transom again!

Well I did a few videos on my water damaged transom, using the hammer, drill, and moisture meter. It is showing sighs of water damage near top of motor well area , topside near rear of both storage doors, and in other areas.
Below are the you tube links, .
https://youtu.be/YR1I62BBfe4
https://youtu.be/FL5F1lgtxTo
https://youtu.be/3BPXg67UTYQ

The wood that came out was brown not black ...good.

As best as I can tell it may be wet at the top edge. Again...they are all wet there...If the glass is separating from the wood its a problem. I would cut that top edge off where the motor mounts and look at the wood and see if the skin is separated from the wood.

Its a tough call. Its your call.


Did you ever stand on the motor when it was in place?
If the transom didn't flex, I would glass over the top edge, mount the motor with a transom saver and go fishing.

Well I finally got a chance to work on my transom. I cut it just like shunkwork's video, and it was rotted in the centers so far. Have to work on it some more tomorrow.

notice in the second picture how it is 2 pieces coming together on an angle. It does the same on the port side. So you see the transom is not one big flat piece of plywood.

I still can't tell from the pix if its shot. Mine was soft in the corners and I panicked but after tearing it apart I saw it was pretty solid down a few inches. Thats going to be your call.

If you go ahead, consider limiting your cuts to the motor well and not go into the hatch openings like I did. You might find you have enough room to remove much of the inside skin.

Many of these transoms in these boats are made of a BUNCH of square chunks of plywood all held together with resin and glass. The idea was the smaller pieces were easier to work with, cheaper since they could use up scraps, and the multiple pieces held together with resin and glass meant each section was isolated from the other so if water got in and rot started, it was isolated to just a few squares, and not the whole transom. The downside is you have so much glass and resin to deal with cutting them apart.