Thanks folks for the accolades and answering in order, I like a little smoked salmon myself (very little) but do no smoking myself. However there are numerous top shelf outfits here in Alaska that cater to the public and ship all manor of smoked products all over the world. If any one is interested I would list some good ones. Huda Thunkit (boat name)=Alasgun (username)=Mike Layman Wasilla Alaska. I used the E-deck due to its lighter weight in comparison to the other plastic lumber and it is very strong. I ran a piece of the 2 inch aluminum angle all around the edges and have sufficient fasteners holding all together but the item that did the most was the bow cleats as they tie both boards together. They are located as to allow a 94 qt chest going each direction from center. The other end of the chest being tied to the side cleat. I had a third board in the beginning but it was to much trouble taking in and out for the purpose of raising the motor. Two boards are plenty and everything works well with the motor. I did trim a very small piece from the edge to eliminate contact when the motor is fully up. From a strength standpoint I would say, you can pile er up! Remember you still have the 3 inch wide fiberglass rib all across the front which helps tremendously. In thinking about what a person could load here, I think you would run out of room before overloading the shelf. Thanks for your interest, Mike on Huda Thunkit