On Sat, 07 Jan 2006 22:33:44 -0500, Harry Krause
wrote:

I'm not convinced "coring" is a good thing below the waterline, and I
sure as hell wouldn't consider a boat with balsa coring anywhere. I
have, however, owned a couple of boats with klegecell foam in the
transom, but that application is nothing like the foam used between
layers of fiberglass in the hull.

The longevity of balsa cored decks and hulls has not been impressive.
I know of a number of balsa cored sailboats that were junked because
the cost of repairs exceeded the value of the boat. Foam cores seem
to do better but they are not immune, and when they do fail, it is
sometimes in spectacular fashion. Do you remember the America's Cup
contender that literally broke in two and sank within seconds?