Bad transom repair?

KewlBird · Mar 14, 2008

Well it was finally warm enough to go outside and mess around with my boat...Here's what I found...The transom was replaced at one point in time (check the pictures, all will enlarge if you click on them). Looks like who ever did it cut out all of the fiberglass on the interior of the boat and stuck some new boards in and covered them with a single layer of fiberglass mat. The board in the middle is fairly thick but the ones on the port and starboard sides are much thinner (looks to be thinner than the original was). On the exterior you can see where the transom is cut and some fiberglass was globbed on. There appears to be no adhesion between the exterior fiberglass and the wood (I can peel the fiberlass back). I'm not sure if this is a good fix or a hack job. I don't know a lot about repairing transoms but was planning to replace this with seacast until I saw that there isn't an interior wall. Looks like the top shell of the boat would be possible to remove to gain access to transom. Any suggestions? I planned on putting my 85hp Johnson on this, I'm sure I would need to repair this before attempting to put this motor on it. Here's a bunch of pictures, you can see what was done. Being new to boat repair I am open to any suggestions. I'm not affraid of work but am afraid of loosing my outboard

.
Click on images to enlarge:

KewlBird · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Ride The Lightning · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Hi,

that looks just horrible.
I would not even try to drive this boat with 85HP. Do you know how the wood was bonded in? The mats beyond are likely to have no effect.

Regards,
Lars

drewmitch44 · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Yea and you are going to have to eather cut the splashwell off or seperate the top. Or you can do like i did and cut the top like 1 or 3 feet from the back of the boat and just take the top off of the back of the boat. Thats what i did. Ill try to see if i have any pictures. That way seemed easy to me and now got good acess to the transom without everything in the way. If i dont have pics i will go and take some in a few min and post them in an hour or 2. That is actually the point where im at.

KewlBird · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Ride The Lightning said:
Hi,

that looks just horrible.
I would not even try to drive this boat with 85HP. Do you know how the wood was bonded in? The mats beyond are likely to have no effect.

Regards,
Lars

The only thing that appears to be holding the wood is the mats they applied which is fiberglass to the floor

. I don't think there is any bond betweed the wood and the exterior layer of the boat.

Thanks drewmitch44, I'll look forward to some pictures

beauff · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Wow someone did a nice job on that.I wish you luck. That would be a big job for me .

Coors · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Sorry, but that is one hell of a hack job.

drewmitch44 · Mar 14, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

my wife is calling me to bed but i gotta show ya a couple pics! ill talk more tomorrow morning!

drewmitch44 · Mar 15, 2008

KewlBird · Mar 15, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Thanks drewmitch44 for all the pictures, gives me an idea of what I might see when I pull the shell. Having that off of there deffinately gives a LOT more room to work with. Couple of questions for you: 1. How do you plan on reattaching the splash shield where you cut it (fiberglass it back together?)? 2. Are you replacing the transom with new wood or doing the pourable stuff?

Thanks again, gives me hope...I might start disassembly today, weather seems ok.

BTW, I might be pulling the floor and replacing it as well mainly because there is a spot where "they" also repaired the hull and I want to see it from the inside. So removing the whole shell would be a good idea.

Ride The Lightning · Mar 15, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

KewlBird said:
The only thing that appears to be holding the wood is the mats they applied which is fiberglass to the floor . I don't think there is any bond betweed the wood and the exterior layer of the boat.

Thanks drewmitch44, I'll look forward to some pictures

Hi,

I think you are on the right way. You have to remove the old stuff completely and build a new transom.
Take pictures of your work and show them, so we can help much better.

Regards
Lars

oops! · Mar 15, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

hey drew...??? can ya help the guy...????

lol (good job)

yup....the transom has to come out......however ugly it looks.....it can be fixed.......

its just a transom replacement.......

were here with help

cheers
oops

jasono2l · Mar 15, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Man that is truly a hack job, I hope that if I need to replace my transom I can do a better job than that guy did on your boat. Good luck with that man.

KewlBird · Mar 16, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Can someone tell me if something is missing in the bilge, are there supposed to be some sort of runners under that floor? Those are views from underneath the floor. Last pictures shows some sort of a wood block that lifts the floor up in the back, I'm not sure why

. I haven't done anything on it yet. I'm being told by my family to drop this project and buy my self a better boat. I have to think about this one, the cost to repair so far is around $800 for the supplies, then I have to paint it too......

TriadSteeler · Mar 16, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

KewlBird said:
Can someone tell me if something is missing in the bilge, are there supposed to be some sort of runners under that floor? Those are views from underneath the floor. Last pictures shows some sort of a wood block that lifts the floor up in the back, I'm not sure why . I haven't done anything on it yet. I'm being told by my family to drop this project and buy my self a better boat. I have to think about this one, the cost to repair so far is around $800 for the supplies, then I have to paint it too......

KewlBird,

I think your family is giving you some sage advice here. I always love a challenge, my current project is evidence of that. I would never want to dissuade anyone from rolling up their sleeves and bringing an old girl back to life. However, after looking at the transom job and the stringer/floor modifications that were made, I would haul that thing to the dump.

Normal rot from exposure and people who get excited drilling holes in the transom are one thing. This is something entirely different. Based on the craftsmanship displayed in those pictures there's no telling what other surprises await. Some you may not even discover until after your money has been spent.

In addition, the person making those repairs was more than likely the same person operating it as well. And to me that is a scary thought indeed.

Coors · Mar 16, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

If you want to do it, go.
When finished, you can sit back, and be proud. And know the boat is safe.
Besides, it will keep you off the streets.

Solittle · Mar 16, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Those runners are called stringers and are part of the boat's structure.

If you have already spent $800.00 my guess is that you have $800-1,000.00 to go. Your call on whether to continue.

erikgreen · Mar 16, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Just from what I can see in those pics, the floor, stringers, and transom were done by someone who didn't know how, and didn't have the address of this bulletin board to get help

Odds are pretty good they all need replacement. That's a $1000 or more job, just counting materials and your time. Lots of people here have done it, and if you like working with your hands it's very fulfilling. Plus you end up with a boat that's better built than when it came from the factory. You won't even break even on the repairs, though - do it if you like the boat and want to keep it for a few years.

On the other hand if you're hoping to get on the water before fall, another boat would be a good idea.

Erik

drewmitch44 · Mar 17, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Im doing my transom tomorrw and i want to be on the water by late fall or early summer! I got stringers to do yet and a bunch of other stuff! Im going to do that as i go.

KewlBird · Mar 20, 2008

Re: Bad transom repair?

Well, here's the latest news. I gave up on this thing and will attempt to sell it. It will be hard to sell a "project boat", I'm not sure if anyone will even want it. At least I might be able to get some money for the trailer. While this thing is up for sale here's what I acquired. A 1985 16' Aluminum hull Starcraft, with a 70hp Evinrude (ptt) and a trailer for $1,200

. Interior needs complete overhaul but I think the boat was worth the amount I spent on it. Here's couple of pictures (no, that's not my boat in the background

):

Thanks to everyone who helped!!!

Bad transom repair?

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