Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

[12thManFalseStart]

After reading another thread on here about how much flex is ok, and none is, I checked mine, and my heart just sank. Whoever put the motor on just drilled 4 holes through the back of the boat, and caulked it with something. Obviousley the calking didn't do it's job. Bolts were lose, so I went to put locking channel locks on the inner bolts, and found lose and rotten wood beneath the fiberglass I just pulled off. DAMNIT!!! I haven't a clue if it's even fixable, or worth it. The only thing I could think of doing is cutting out a metal, or thick wood plate to fit down there the width and height underneath, and put the bolts through that to help distribute the stress. I'm almost sick.

Now I know what else to check before buying another boat. Should have read these forums before. I can't even fathom how much that would cost to fix, if there even is a fix. I might have a motor for sale soon.

 

[metriccrescentwrench]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

IMO you should be able to replace the transom, stringers, deck, and flotation foam for at or below $1000 in materials. Just as a comparison, I'm doing a full repair of an 18 ft bassboat right now, and that's going to include replacing balsa core (plus I'm using epoxy resin instead of cheaper polyester) - I'll probably have around $800 to 900 into it when I'm done. If you're handy, don't mind getting all itchy from fiberglass dust, and like your boat well enough to justify the effort then it might be worth repairing it properly. (And you probably realize that simply throwing on a steel plate isn't a safe or proper repair.)

 

[12thManFalseStart]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Boat for sale. Runs great. Just needs a little TLC on the transom. Too bad I have a conscience to hide this from someone like the guy did to me 2 weeks ago. Then again, I should have done my homework, and seen this before buying.

 

[12thManFalseStart]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Ok, since I've only got $1,500 into it, should I just sell it as is and what would I expect to lose? Or should I part the boat separate from the engine?

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Do you like the boat? If so, then I would fix it, looking at what you have, it is not a bad looking boat, but as with most of them, they need some work, replacing a transom is really not that bad or hard of a job, it just takes a little time to figure out what they were thinking when they first built it, once you do that , then it is quite easy to redo it. Don't feel bad, you are not the first and you won't be the last to fall in love with a boat that has a bad transom, I have done it a couple of times myself.

 

[Alwhite00]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Good thing you didnt put that bigger motor on it you were talking about. Good luck.

LK

 

[Pony]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Boat for sale. Runs great. Just needs a little TLC on the transom. Too bad I have a conscience to hide this from someone like the guy did to me 2 weeks ago. Then again, I should have done my homework, and seen this before buying.

More than likely the seller had no idea either........

 

[tonyjh63]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

If you're not gonna repair the transom, instead of parting it out right away, why not run the boat a season or two and get $1500 of enjoyment out of it? In the meantime, you'll learn some stuff about boats/boating, and will be better prepared to buy another boat when you're through with this one

 

[littlerayray]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

If you're not gonna repair the transom, instead of parting it out right away, why not run the boat a season or two and get $1500 of enjoyment out of it? In the meantime, you'll learn some stuff about boats/boating, and will be better prepared to buy another boat when you're through with this one

never go out on the water with a rotten transom that is just asking for trouble on canada day i had to wait an hour to splash my boat cuz a guy went out with a rotten transom and the motor tore the transom apart luckily the leo's were in the water and were close by when it happened and the only thing that needed recovery was the boat

 

[spdracr39]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

If you're not gonna repair the transom, instead of parting it out right away, why not run the boat a season or two and get $1500 of enjoyment out of it? In the meantime, you'll learn some stuff about boats/boating, and will be better prepared to buy another boat when you're through with this one

Danger Will Robinson !!!!

Don't give out dangerous life threatening recommendations how will you feel if he did this and he drowned when the transom broke out ?

 

[NSBCraig]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Don't get in a broken boat!

Why does this argument continue? I just heard it last week again. "Well we took it to the keys and it worked fine", only possible reply was given "Well your an idiot!". Why in the world would somebody risk their life and the life of others on something that they know is unsafe? Do you think my friend told everybody that went out on the boat- "oh and by the way this boat is visibly breaking in half, it is completely unsafe, we knew it before we towed it 400 miles to take you all out into open water"? I'm betting the answer is nope.

Did you guys see the youtube video if the guys on the bass boat? The motor came off at speed. Did it fall off the back and sink in the drink? No because your motor still has steering and control cables hooked to it. It flipped right up into the boat, full throttle hitting the guys in the head. One of them's melons was inches from the prop spinning at who knows rpm after it left the water.

Fix it or sell it and disclose the truth, and yes I believe fully the guy you bought it from knew it's condition. Why did you think you got a boat, motor, trailer for $1,500?

But above all don't ignore it and just hope everything will be fine.

 

[Frank Acampora]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.



That is too beautiful a boat to let a little thing like a rotten transom cause you to sell it.!

We more experienced fellows here on the forum do tend to take repairs for granted and consider simple what a novice would consider daunting.

However, if you are not afraid to get your hands dirty and are willing to do some mechanical and fiberglass work. That boat (from the photo) appears to be easily salvageable and for not a lot of money.

First, even if the transom is flexing as badly as you say, it may not fail; I have seen them run for a long time with a lot of flex, but yes, I agree that it is bad advice to use it as-is and a foolish move on your part.

Now, After removing the engine, it is possible to use a penetrating epoxy like Git-Rot or the generic brand to fill the rotted transom and at the same time rebuild what has crumbled away. I have had good results doing this and depending upon how badly rotted the wood is, you may need 3 or 4 kits at a cost of about 100-150 bucks. It is easy: You drill pilot holes and fill, then cap the holes. Complete instructions are on the kit.

OR, if you really feel like working, you can with a little help, separate the top half of the boat, exposing the transom, and replace the wood.

Then, as added insurance, you can cap the transom with .080 hard aluminum. You can find all the help you could ever need in the restoration forum.

Here is a transom I rebuilt and raised 5 inches this season. Granted: the boat is much smaller than yours and the work was simpler but it is an example to show that you CAN do it.

 

[Pony]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I found this video the other day....they queued it up with some funny music......but the theme is serious. THIS is what can happen when you go out in a boat with a rotten transom.......

 

[12thManFalseStart]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I can't seem to find my mini usb adapter to throw in computer to upload pics. The engine didn't come with the boat being a 73, and the boat an 80. They used four bolts, with some type of sealant, that obviously didn't do it's job. I also noticed that the c clamp is about 1 inch higher than where it would be sitting on the frame, so it's doing nothing. It's only the four bolts, that, if I keep tightening, will just crush the rotted wood.

I didn't know there was wood in between the fiberglass. Thought it was full fiberglass. So, how would one even know if they fixed it somehow if their seals with caulk, or whatever they use is working, since you can't see into the wood past the fiberglass? Is there some sort of rubber bushing to put through the hole for the bolt, before you slide the bolt through the hole?

Even though whoever installed this engine, just doesn't look right, I'm sure it worked for awhile, until the water got in. Even if it was the original motor/mounts, if the sealant goes, so does the transom I'm guessing.

 

[mbhoag]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I am glad that my thread on transom flexing caused you to take a look at yours... now that I have noticed mine doing it, I would never go back on the water with it until I have fully investigated and corrected the problem. My 125 HP motor is way to heavy to mess with a potential problem like that (see video, which by the way Red Rock lake is only an hour from me, I do not want to be the next one with an online video of me sinking).

I have no idea of what I am looking at for work on mine, but yours is probably similar... read all the forum post under the repair/restore section, it does not look as horrible as it sounds. Just dive in and do it. Worst thing that can happen is you cant get the boat back together and you just sell the motor ....

C'mon... it will be a fun learning experience! I'm sure mine will be anyway!

 

[12thManFalseStart]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I am glad that my thread on transom flexing caused you to take a look at yours... now that I have noticed mine doing it, I would never go back on the water with it until I have fully investigated and corrected the problem. My 125 HP motor is way to heavy to mess with a potential problem like that (see video, which by the way Red Rock lake is only an hour from me, I do not want to be the next one with an online video of me sinking).

I have no idea of what I am looking at for work on mine, but yours is probably similar... read all the forum post under the repair/restore section, it does not look as horrible as it sounds. Just dive in and do it. Worst thing that can happen is you cant get the boat back together and you just sell the motor ....

C'mon... it will be a fun learning experience! I'm sure mine will be anyway!

Well, pulling and scraping out old rot as we speak. Using a ryobi job max tool that vibarates to cut a straight line of the fiberglass. Not looking so good. Top to bottom so far, and I've only got about 10 more inches from side to side that I haven't got to yet. About half inch deep so far, but didn't want to dig any deeper, feeling this is the only thing holding my motor on. I'll try and post pics once I find that damned mini usb adapter.

What kind of sealant should be used for the bolts? Silicone caulk? Or is there a special "marine price" one out there that supposedly works better? Thanks.

 

[MTboatguy]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Probably time to take this one to the rebuild/restoration section, you will find a wealth of knowledge in that section that will basically walk you through repairing your boat.

By the way, what fiberglass are you cutting? You do realize, you will normally not be able to replace the transom without pulling the cap, right?

Also, you need to get that motor off so you can properly figure out what is going on with the transom. If the rot is as bad as you are describing, you will also need to figure out if the end of the stringers are rotten, which I suspect they are, you are not going to be able to "dig" the rot out, the transom needs to be replaced completely. If you just dig it out and slap another piece of wood in their without doing it properly, you are going to compromise the integrity of the hull even worse than it is now!

 

[ricohman]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I believe he may be cutting the transom from the outside.
I hope I am wrong though.

 

[metriccrescentwrench]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

I believe he may be cutting the transom from the outside.....

NOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!! :facepalm:

 

[12thManFalseStart]

Re: Wow! I may be in trouble with flex, and now I see why.

Drying out with a fan what I've cut out.

I noticed that the c clamp doesn't even rest on the transom. Hangs about an inch above it.

If you can see it in the pic, I dug out about half and inch of rot, and flattened it out the whole way, and now have a fan on it.