72 glastron/General boat question..

[liquidlabfx]

New classic boat to me. But. The rear of transom it has 2 holes. Neither are plugged. One up higher. One down low. I'm "guessing" the lower hole should have a plug in it? Thank you. Also. Will a rubber expansion plug work well?

 

[tpenfield]

The lower is the typical bilge drain. Generally threaded plugs are best, but if the hole has no threads then an expanding plug will have to do.

The higher 'hole' would be a transom well drain. It should be above the waterline when the boat is at rest. That one should stay open so any water that splashes over the transom can drain back out

 

[Texasmark]

Wally world has pugs in the sporting goods dept specifically made for the bilge drain...lower hole. Leave the upper hole open and for identification purposes of this upper hole, look into the splash well in front of the engine and you should see it (from the inside), verifying that it is the splash well drain.

Glastron was built in Austin, Tx. for many years and made a fine boat. Very popular on local lakes like Lake Austin and Travis.

 

[liquidlabfx]

Wally world has pugs in the sporting goods dept specifically made for the bilge drain...lower hole. Leave the upper hole open and for identification purposes of this upper hole, look into the splash well in front of the engine and you should see it (from the inside), verifying that it is the splash well drain.

Glastron was built in Austin, Tx. for many years and made a fine boat. Very popular on local lakes like Lake Austin and Travis.

It does not look to be threaded. Super clean old boat. That has been unmolested. I saw those plugs the other day while grabbing 2 fenders. I guess I'll go back. Only minor things I'm doing is I coated the inside with durabak. The. Laid down some marine carpet. Only used industrial velcro in areas so it doesn't flop. The seats hold the majority of it down. Only holes I'll have to drill are for a Bimini top. Even after just doing things inside the boat in the sun... well you experienced people understand. YOU BAKE! Not fun. But ill be using a Bluetooth speaker so the dash stays original. And some sea sucker cup holders and "holy crap" handle for the passengers.

 

[ScottinAZ]

sweet lookin old boat!!! the "avocado green" may not be everyones taste, but it still looks to be in good condition

 

[liquidlabfx]

Yes. Lol. My whole house as a kid in the 70s was this color. Lol. Stove. Toilets. Fridge. It polished up really easy. Heck. The seats have no tears. And still smell like grandma's basement. Even after power washing. But. They are original.

 

[ScottinAZ]

Yes. Lol. My whole house as a kid in the 70s was this color. Lol. Stove. Toilets. Fridge. It polished up really easy. Heck. The seats have no tears. And still smell like grandma's basement. Even after power washing. But. They are original.

love it.... they are only original ONCE.... and that boat is a time capsule you can enjoy today

 

[liquidlabfx]

love it.... they are only original ONCE.... and that boat is a time capsule you can enjoy today

Yes. I even went as far as getting a brand new outboard and controls. Main reasoning is. I would like to enjoy it for this season. And get the 68 mercury in tip top shape over the winter. It too is too nice. Yet parts aren't the easiest to come by. But it's gonna stay in the family.

 

[Texasmark]

The usual deck drain hole is a brass tube. The metal-mechanical part of the "ribbed rubber" plug is adjustable for a snug fit on varying drain tube dimensions....within a certain range.

Did you verify that the top plug is the splash well drain?

Are there any visible flotation mechanisms? Depending on the year model, and back in the early '60's included, some mfgrs. sealed the deck (floor) to make an airtight chamber between it and the outer hull providing BIA certified flotation at the time. I had such a boat, 13' Taylor Craft and it had a small drain hole in the transom below the deck drain and it was to drain that area if it accumulated water.....which it did on a regular basis making the boat unstable when in use.

 

[liquidlabfx]

The usual deck drain hole is a brass tube. The metal-mechanical part of the "ribbed rubber" plug is adjustable for a snug fit on varying drain tube dimensions....within a certain range.

Did you verify that the top plug is the splash well drain?

Are there any visible flotation mechanisms? Depending on the year model, and back in the early '60's included, some mfgrs. sealed the deck (floor) to make an airtight chamber between it and the outer hull providing BIA certified flotation at the time. I had such a boat, 13' Taylor Craft and it had a small drain hole in the transom below the deck drain and it was to drain that area if it accumulated water.....which it did on a regular basis making the boat unstable when in use.

Hard to tell honestly. I just know it didn't come with one. ?

 

[liquidlabfx]

Hard to tell honestly. I just know it didn't come with one. ?

Sorry. The upper drain is definitely incase water splashes into the rear were the fuel tank and battery go. It's also sunken in there. About 6 inches.

 

[Texasmark]

Sorry. The upper drain is definitely incase water splashes into the rear were the fuel tank and battery go. It's also sunken in there. About 6 inches.

I commented on this with a like but I'm having a concern. There are several types of "splash wells" that catch the back wash that sometimes comes over the transom, especially 15" transoms either from rough water following seas, or by the boat being operated at reasonable to high speed and the operator chops the throttle abruptly causing the transom the sink and back wash...the water the boat was pushing out of the way no longer has anything holding it back and it moves forward toward and into the transom splashing over it.

Another drain type device is where the deck is flat till you get in the general area of the transom and then falls down...with width of the deck stringers to a lower leves glassed in area......your comment about the location of the battery and fuel tanks made me thing of this.

On some of these configurations, if you get on your hands and knees with your head against the inside of the transom, looking back at the step from the main part of the deck to this lower part at the transom there will be round drain holes in the sides of this area where I have seen a thermosbottle type lever action removable plug was inserted in usually 2 holes, one on either side of the step. That would be the flotation air pocket. Looking at the transom just above this lowered area ....the surface upon which the fuel tank and battery are resting would be the deck drain. The lower hole would then be a bilge drain that drains out any accumulated water sitting between the outer hull and interior deck.

Splash wells are usually shallow depth, enough room to get the transom engines clamp brackets above the bottom and deep enough for the engine tilted up in the transom bracket extended position, allowing room for remote control cables to make a bend without kinking...usually requiring the powerhead to be tilted to one side when raising to have enough room for the cables to curve without binding.

A combination splash well as described here plus the lowered area at the transom of the deck where the battery and tank are mounted were sometimes used by boat builders.

So what does all this mean to you??????? I don't know. You asked about holes and these are some examples of things I have had and seen over the years along the lines of the subject matter. Hope this Helps.
Mark