OMC transom boot question

[powderhombre]

hi all, I am new to this forum and very new to boating. first boat , 1982 18 foot Beachcraft runabout, OMC 3.8 liter I/O I think a Stinger 800. Boat is in very good condition overall, being in Colorado has not much in the way of rust or Uv damage. all systems work: tilt trim, electric, engine runs fine. the question is about the transom boot. Although it is old, it shows no signs of dry rot cracking or damage. the screws are all in place and the calking around the seal looks tight. Is there anything other than this I should inspect before launching boat? I don't want an "Oh sh*t" moment her first time out. what is invovled with replacing this boot? thanks. I do have some other issues, but will post them seperately.

 

[F14CRAZY]

Re: OMC transom boot question

If all looks good, most likely, you're fine. If you were to replace or remove it you'd remove all the screws on the outside and reach inside to undo the stainless band...it's a really big Fernco rubber coupler band. Reinstallation requires that you use 5200 on the transom and screws/screw holes to keep water out of your transom.

 

[NW Redneck]

Re: OMC transom boot question

If you have checked over each of the 'pleats' in the boot and flexed each one all the way around to check for any signs of cracking and they look good, and there's no deterioration on the engine side from oils/gas/cleaners/etc. you should be fine. They're fairly skookum and made with pretty thick rubber. If the boat was stored out of the water and kept out of the sun it's probably in good shape.

When I got my boat, a 1975, about 3 yrs ago it had the ORIGINAL boot on it (only 1 owner) and I ran it for the first few trips with no problem. I decided to replace it as I wanted to pull the boot to get better access to the tilt motor and a few other things, and when I pulled it off and gave it a good look it was still in good shape. I had already ordered a new one, so I put that on and kept the original as a spare.

Welcome to the white anchor club!

 

[WizeOne]

Re: OMC transom boot question

Not to worry! My boot is now 35 years old. (California sun and smog to boot) I even had it off recently to pull the engine and drive for floor work. The original install did not even use a sealant to the transom.

When I reinstalled it, I used a small bead of 3M 4200 around the screw hole perimeter and forced some into each screw hole. I think that 3M 5200 is a little overkill.