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My engine was originally mounted with stainless fender washers. Although the transom was compressed some around the washers (as one would expect) with an engine weight of ~160# I had no good motivating factor to add a transom support plate.

When I added a jack plate I also added a T-H Marine TSP-1 transom support plate (http://www.thmarine.com/products/Outb...port-Plate). With the plate added it definitely distributes the engine weight very nicely and there is no longer significant compression of the transom. Is it overkill? - probably...but it made for a very nice finishing touch to the engine installation.