Transom replacement - HELP PLEASE - 1988 Skeeter - SD 125 FS

[smithbeze12]

First timer here...

So I bought a 1988 Skeeter SD 125 FS, Johnson 110. I was very excited about it, as it was maroon (I'm an Aggie), and it was in immaculate condition. Original gel coat, perfect, original seats, perfect, original carpet, perfect. Too good to be true right? RIGHT!!! As you can see in the pictures the boat looks beautiful, but the transom was worse than the mulch you put in your flower bed!! I didn't find that out until after I ponied up $5k cash to a guy who I cant find anymore.

Watched some videos of how to replace a transom and felt ok about it, but the thing that is throwing me off is this little curve in the back of the boat that was filled with foam. Now im not sure on how to put it back together once I put in a new transom. Should I put the original fiberglass skin back on and glass it in? Help me out please!!

-Brian

 

[Redtruck12]

Hey Brian
you are in the right place for advice. It definitely has been for me
it seems to be a more common practice to work from the inside and leave the exterior glass in place but I’m sure guys on here can guide you through from where you are at currently.
a more detailed description and pictures of the curve you are concerned with is probably a good place to start.
so how are your stringers......???

 

[smithbeze12]

Well I sure hope that is the case.
I figured it was more common to repair from inside after all the videos I have watched and all the forums I have read. But I am not equipped to take the whole top off of the boat.
I should have posted on here before I cut the back but I was a bit impatient. I hope someone can help me now that I have already gone down this path.
I haven't checked the stringers because I am afraid to and that is more work than I think I am ready for honestly. The curve I am referring to is just how the back of a skeeter isn't straight up and down like a lot of older boats I have seen with transom replacements. I will post a picture of the curve later.

 

[garbageguy]

...I haven't checked the stringers because I am afraid to and that is more work than I think I am ready for honestly...

if you are going to use this boat, and like it to the point you are willing to replace the transom, I suggest getting past the fear and check the stringers

 

[kcon]

Sweet boat!

Bad news incoming: The long and the short of it, the other guy may have made out like a bandit, at least at $5k. Your stringers are almost certainly rotten, it would be a miracle if they weren't - so you absolutely need to get a core sample of them.

Good news: You've come to the right place, should you have the tenacity, and funds, to take this on, properly.


You may have, at this point, made your life slightly more difficult by cutting out the back exterior of the transom, but no worries there all it means is some more work, all in all nothing that's all too complicated. Get samples of those stringers, you mightn't really NEED to take the cap off the boat if the stringers are bad, as you're gonna have to remove the deck, and just about everything else to do this job properly.


So step one, find out the conditions of your stringers, bulkheads, and deck.Don't worry about that foam, odds are pretty strong you'll need to remove it and replace it anyway, which is really quite simple and inexpensive.

 

[smithbeze12]

Sweet boat!

Thanks kcon. Read through your ongoing restoration...some posts gave me hope and some made me want to throw this boat away! haha But your project looks amazing..Great job man!

Update...stringers are just as bad as the transom, just mush. But the thing that confuses me is that the deck is crazy solid! Jumped up and down on it and tried to break it or even crack it but nothing. Then proceeded to drill a couple of holes in different places to see what shape it was in and it still looks like new wood. Also, there is a lot of foam on the outside of each stringer. Cut back the deck and it doesn't seem to be wet or ruined, but i'm definitely no expert.

Not a fan of doing things halfway usually, but it makes me wonder...what would I be hurting or putting at risk if I just replaced the back half of the stringers and new transom? I know that isn't the proper way to handle this but... Thoughts?

Thanks

 

[Panoguy]

...what would I be hurting or putting at risk if I just replaced the back half of the stringers and new transom? I know that isn't the proper way to handle this but... Thoughts?

Thanks

When I started my restore, I had the exact same questions, & went thru the feelings that you're having. The short answer: you've already invested plenty into the boat, you'll be happier & feel safer in the long-run if you follow your initial instincts and NOT go half-way on your rebuild. Personally, I wouldn't be happy cruising in a boat that I know I only half-a$$ed.

You'll have a better-than-factory boat if you push thru it! I'm still not finished with my restore, but I'm glad that I decided to do it right, in the end.

 

[Woodonglass]

Cutting the outer skin is not the optimum method but...It's doable. Boats Rot from the bottom up. Especially fishing boats. Decks are pretty much the last to go bad. Stringers and Transoms are the first. IF you can determine, via drilling core samples that the stringers are good at some point, it's perfectly acceptable to sister in new pieces. Not optimum, but acceptable if done correctly. Keep asking questions and posting pics of your progress.

 

[smithbeze12]

Cutting the outer skin is not the optimum method but...It's doable. Boats Rot from the bottom up. Especially fishing boats. Decks are pretty much the last to go bad. Stringers and Transoms are the first. IF you can determine, via drilling core samples that the stringers are good at some point, it's perfectly acceptable to sister in new pieces. Not optimum, but acceptable if done correctly. Keep asking questions and posting pics of your progress.

Well definitely not happy with myself for cutting the outer skin, but i've learned a valuable lesson now! Wont do that again.

I began cutting away all soft spots and rotted wood in the deck by the bilge area last night. Working my way up the stringers a little at a time. I will try to get a core sample soon and post pictures.

 

[kcon]

I'm thinking you're gonna have to pull the entire deck no matter what