Gunwale material suggestions?

[Mr Hands]

OK, I'm wondering what to use to cover the gunwales.
My 18' fiberglass hull had partly decomposed thin plywood covering the sides before, so I'm not too keen on using wood again.
Any other ideas out there?

Thanks so much for the help and knowledge I have received from this site so far!

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Gunwale material suggestions?

I used pressure treated plywood on mine. I figure it will stay pretty dry and should last longer than my interest in this particular boat.

 

[Mr Hands]

Re: Gunwale material suggestions?

Thanks EZ,
Looks good!
What thickness plywood did you use?
Is it covered in carpet?

I'm hoping to incorporate some rod storage behind the port side so I will want to make it easily accessable.

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Gunwale material suggestions?

I used 3/8" I believe. It was the same as was there originally. I covered it with marine carpet using stainless staples. Although the originals were very badly rotted there was just enough left for me to use as a templates for the new ones.