jamoore
08-29-2003, 08:34 AM
Not much going on in this forum. Thought I would share a simple little project. We have all heard of folks making cavitation plates out of road signs. I used this concept to make a transom plate. While re-doing my transom I noticed the jack plate had dug into the outer skin a little. Didn't want to tear up my new transom so I decided to fabricate an aluminum plate to protect it.
Obviously a real simple project but you can make it look pretty good. Find an apropriate sized doner sign and cut out what you need. It usually only has material on one side so you could just flip it over and use the clean side. I like to make it look good so I remove all the old material from it. Paint stripper and a razor scrapper work good for this.
A wet sand and a few minutes on a buffing wheel and you have a decent looking plate. I have made several other pieces for my boat this way and depending on how much effort you put in to polishing it you would never guess it started out life as a road sign. You paid for the sign anyway might as well get some use out of it. Try not to pick one that is critical to safety.
Joey:D
Here is the donor being cut to size!
Obviously a real simple project but you can make it look pretty good. Find an apropriate sized doner sign and cut out what you need. It usually only has material on one side so you could just flip it over and use the clean side. I like to make it look good so I remove all the old material from it. Paint stripper and a razor scrapper work good for this.
A wet sand and a few minutes on a buffing wheel and you have a decent looking plate. I have made several other pieces for my boat this way and depending on how much effort you put in to polishing it you would never guess it started out life as a road sign. You paid for the sign anyway might as well get some use out of it. Try not to pick one that is critical to safety.
Joey:D
Here is the donor being cut to size!