Single mom attempting transom repair. Advice?

[Hunterchick]

I all, I am attempting to get my daddy's 1987 Starcraft CSS 150 (Art Carlson designed) up ang going. Boat has been in barn storage for 7 years, than sat in yard uncovered for 2. I took all seats in so they are in great shape. Just aquired a 90 Johnson VRO (VRO unhooked). I have been teaching myself to rebuild engine. Anyhow, was getting close to mounting engine on boat. Really checked it out and the driver side uppermost engine bolt hole I could dig a probe into once past the glass and wood shavings come out. The rest were solid. I can jump up and down on transom but nothing moves. Should I cut the glass on top and see how far damage goes? I was considering using seacast. Any thoughts? Obviously trying to do this economically and dont have a soul to help me.

 

[Hunterchick]

This is a side shot of the boat. It has a soft spot in the floor by the engine well so I am probably going to cut away the carpet, and see what the stringers look like underneath. I see a marine grade plywood purchase in my future..

 

[sphelps]

and dont have a soul to help me.

Well your in luck because you came to the right place ..We may not be able to physically help out but we can sure help guide ya though the process ..
Plenty of good folks are here willing to help the best we can ! Ask questions and post pics and we will do our best to help ..
:welcome:

 

[rad1026]

Keep reading, searching and reading. There is so much information in here and great people to help if you are willing to put in the time. Yeah, first step is to determine the extent of the damage. Good looking boat though. Welcome aboard.

 

[Woodonglass]

Welcome to iBoats! Go on the inside under the splashwell and down low by the drain tube on the transom. Use a 3/8" drill bit and put some tape on it @ the 1" mark. Drill into the transom 3" away from the drain tube and 2" above the floor of the bilge. Both sides. Then move up 6" and drill again. then move out 6" and drill again. Check the shavings and see if they're dark brown and damp or light colored and dry. If wet then you're gunna be replacing the transom an most likely the stringers to. Does the boat have a ski locker? If so open it up and do the same drill sample in the side walls (Stringers) of it. The wet deck does not necessarily mean your stringers are bad since the boat sat outside that can cause a bad deck. Was the Bow UP when it was stored? Post some pics of the inside rear of the boat too.

 

[Hunterchick]

Will do WoodonGlass. I will take pics also. Not feeling overly positive, tho. I do have a call into Dr. Gel from American Boat Restoration and watched videos on the transom repair using seacast. The boat was stored bow up until a battle with the ex just prior to this winter when he shoved it up a hill and I was unable to get at it till spring, unfortunately. I have it sitting with its nose way in the air now. Which brings on another question. It seems to drain water all the time. I ordered a cover for it. But I am wondering if it means the foam was saturated.... Drilling holes in a boat! Here I go..

 

[DeepBlue2010]

Welcome to iBoats HC. The foam could be water logged if it is continuously dripping. The process that WoG described is known as core sampling. I use a hole saw instead of a drill bit by itself to get a better visual of the wood. I let the hole saw cut only through the fiberglass skin and acts as my stopper while the center bit goes deeper into the wood bring the shavings out as described by WoG. It is a matter of personal preference but both methods will equally get the job done. Don't forget to organize the shavings by location and watch out for sudden breezes, don't ask me how I know this

Best of luck with your project. You came to the right place

 

[jbcurt00]

Welcome to iboats HC

Woodonglass and DeepBlue2010 will help answer any questions and get/keep ya pointed in the right direction.

Thanks guys

 

[tpenfield]

Welcome to iBoats. You have come to a good place and good advice given. You definitely want to determine how far the moisture and rot go. Boats usually rot from the keel upward, so rot high in the transom is concerning. The test holes will tell more.

 

[sphelps]

If you are on a tight budget which most of us are using seacast might not be the best option .. It ain't cheap ... Don't get me wrong seacast is a very good product and once installed it is there for life with zero worry about rot again .. I have rebuilt 2 boats using it on transom and stringers ... No regrets .... just your transom I am guessing would cost from 4 to 600 bucks for the stuff plus shipping ... You would need to calculate the amount needed ..
That being said you could use plywood for a fraction of that .. Proper installation and proper storage a wood transom would last many many years ... Heck Woodonglass's Lonestar has a transom that's still good after more than 50 years .... It's all in how ya take care of it ...
If it's just the transom seacast may be worth the cost by doing the chainsaw method and not removing the inside skin ... That would save a good bit of glasswork ... But if the stringers are gone ya may as well use wood ...JMHO ...

 

[Hunterchick]

Thank you everybody! I am feeling a lot more brave than I was a few days ago. Sphelps $600 would be within my budget, mostly because my carpentry and glassing skills are a bit weak, and i am not so brave with cutting a transom to be exact fit, and I would be totally down with it lasting forever! Ok, now to get drilling and cutting. What do I do if the foam is saturated by the way?

 

[Rick Stephens]

What do I do if the foam is saturated by the way?

Don't borrow trouble. Find out what is, not what might be.

Since you know you have soft spots on the floor, grab a drill, drill bit, a hole saw, a skill saw, and plan on takin a look. Cut a chunk of that soft floor out, whatever it takes. Take a look, then you know. Drill some sample holes into the transom, then you know. I wouldn't count on the water damage being limited to a soft spot. It will have spread all around that spot. So don't be afraid to cut a nice big chunk out from the start and get a good look at wood and foam underneath. Then you can plan the fix based on that reality.

 

[Hunterchick]

Ok, so I ordered a Dremmel, lots of cutting wheels and a cordless drill. I have serious concerns with using the chainsaw method to cut out the wood. I am just not sure I have the strength for it. I am going to try the 1990 Bayliner Capri Transom Repair that is documented on YouTube in 4 parts. I am sure it will take me longer to get the wood out but at least I retain all my limbs...

 

[sphelps]

Put a link to that repair so we can see how they did it .. Yes if your not comfortable with a chain saw do not attempt it ..
If you don't mind me asking is your father still with us ? He may have a few tools around that would come in handy .. You must realize that if you plan on seacast every bit of wood has to be removed from the transom and the inside of the skins must be cleaned down to clean glass .. If not then you may not get the proper bond of the seacast ... This is very important ..

 

[Hunterchick]

https://youtu.be/m0uaRH00a8I

Nope, my dad is not with us, he committed suicide 13 years ago today and this boat was the one thing we loved to hang out in most together. I do have a lot of tools, my Dewault drill is not cordless and I have a circular saw, jigsaw, palm sander... I am very aware that every bit of wood needs to be removed. In this video they use the drill with a long extension and a drum sander attachment. I opted for a good dremmel to cut the fiberglass top clean so I can perhaps reuse it...

 

[sphelps]

I,m sorry about your dad .. My wife's brother left us the same way .. It is a hard thing to deal with ..
The guy with the video's did a great job ... Lucky for him his transom was complete mulch ... That made it much easier to clean out . The drum sander looked like it did a good job of cleaning the skin .. Pouring it is the easy part ... Prepping it can be a chore .
Sounds like you have a good grasp of what needs to be done ..
Btw , nice looking Starcraft ! Most of the ones we see hear are tin boats . Nice to see a glass one for a change ...

 

[DeepBlue2010]

Of course you can use whichever tool you are comfortable with. However, from experience, Dremel, while capable of doing the job, it would be like emptying a swimming pool using 1 gallon jar. If you get a 4 inch grinder and put a cutting wheel on it, you can do the job in fraction of the time Dremel would take you.

Again, if you want to take your times and use less risky tools, by all means. Just letting you know that there is a faster way.

 

[sphelps]

I agree with DB .. A dremel is a great tool for some things like getting into tight places .. An angle grinder with the thin metal cutting blades make quick easy work when cutting large area's of fiberglass .. Those oscillating multi tools work good also and are very safe and user friendly... And please make sure you are set up with the proper PPE .. The dust when grinding fiberglass is some bad stuff for your lungs .. You will need a good half or full faces respirator with the proper filters .. The little paper dust mask are pretty much useless for grinding glass .. Gloves , safety glasses ,and a few of the tyvec coverall suits will help keep the itch off of your skin ...

 

[redneck joe]

https://youtu.be/m0uaRH00a8I

Nope, my dad is not with us, he committed suicide 13 years ago today and this boat was the one thing we loved to hang out in most together. I do have a lot of tools, my Dewault drill is not cordless and I have a circular saw, jigsaw, palm sander... I am very aware that every bit of wood needs to be removed. In this video they use the drill with a long extension and a drum sander attachment. I opted for a good dremmel to cut the fiberglass top clean so I can perhaps reuse it...

What city are you in? Might be able to get some on site encouragment from one of the forum members. ...

 

[Paul2375]

Saving what you can is what I am doing...my 76 Sea Ray transom was completely rotted out...tore it out from the back and now starting to repair it. Get all the wet wood out was the biggest challenge. Good luck on the the repairs! Lots of good answers to questions I had found on iboats. Good folks too