89 Tracker Tournament V17: Scrap or Fix?

[TwoRivers]

89 Tracker Tournament V17 Transom

Hello all. Looking for some ideas. I picked up a 1989 Tracker Tournament V17. It needs among other things the wood replaced in the transom. The boat came with a 70hp Johnson TT that I was able to get running. I'm not looking to do a total restore on this boat. It will be a fishing boat and doesn't have to be pretty just safe. The transom needs to be able to hold up to the 70hp plus a 9.9 kicker.
The cap came off pretty easily and the wood looks really bad. Hoping to get enough wood out in one piece to be able to get a pattern for the new wood?
Looking for ideas to remove old wood. I was thinking of driving some really long screws into the more solid areas and trying to lift out?
Also the side channels extend over the transom on both side. I think I read on a thread where someone cut the channels to remove the transom wood? Can't remember if they welded them back up or just left them short? Can't find the thread.
Any help appreciated.
thanks
rob

 

[bonz_d]

Looking at the pictures the hardest part is going to be gaining access to the whole transom width w/o cutting or bending up the aluminum over the top of the corners. Otherwise it's just a matter of removing the engine and all the fasteners going thru the transom and then trying to pull the old one out in one piece to use as a template or just going in and grinding the old one to pieces.

I'm guessing that the plywood is 1.5" thick inside the transom so what is normally done is to bond 2 3/4" pcs. of plywood together to achieve the 1.5".

Nice looking ol Tracker BTW!

 

[TwoRivers]

Thanks for your response.
I'd rather not take both channels off to repair the transom.
I'm thinking that I can cut several inches off of each one. There are corner caps that cover the ends of the channels and the transom. I might be able to leave it that way or get the cut off pieces welded back on?
I thought I saw a thread where someone had a similar situation but I'm having trouble searching the board?
Any ideas appreciated.
Thanks again.
rob

 

[bonz_d]

Yes there have been others in the same position. Some have bent it up while others have yes, cut them off and refitted them. Might try searching some of the Starcraft, Sea Nymph or Smokercraft and Sylvan rebuilds.

 

[jbcurt00]

You'll need to cut back 1.5" +/- of the aluminum gunwale to leave enough room to lift(pull) the old transom up and out. More importantly, you'll need that 1.5" gap to put the NEW transom back in.

On Starcraft aluminum boats, the 1.5" piece that's removed is completely covered by the transom endcaps, so the missing piece can just be left out.

As described:

 

[TwoRivers]

Thanks very much to all for the response. This is exactly the information I was seeking. I took the pictures after I removed the end caps. Seems like if I cut the channels the end caps will cover things up once the transom is replaced.
Also, it looks like the transom is 1 5/16 in. a little shy of 1 1/2.
I saw a thread on tinboats where a guy made a transom from planned and fitted 2x4s?
Any opinions?
rob

 

[jbcurt00]

If you need 1 5/16", use a piece of 3/4" and either 1/2" or 5/8". After glue and sealing it, I suspect 3/4" & 1/2" will be close enough to 1 5/16".

Plywood will be more stable and if you take care in laminating the 2 sheets together, it'll be flatter & more likely to stay that way, then dimensional lumber will be.

 

[TwoRivers]

If you need 1 5/16", use a piece of 3/4" and either 1/2" or 5/8". After glue and sealing it, I suspect 3/4" & 1/2" will be close enough to 1 5/16".

Plywood will be more stable and if you take care in laminating the 2 sheets together, it'll be flatter & more likely to stay that way, then dimensional lumber will be.

Makes sense. Going with ply. I'll post some pics as I get going.
Thanks again.
rob

 

[TwoRivers]

No Title

Winter is closing in, I can feel it even though we had a couple nice days here in the South Hicks of Pittsburgh.
I was able to remove the old rotted transom. Wasn't pretty, and I managed to mangle one corner (badly rotted) but it's out.
Pretty sure I got enough of it to make a template for the new one.
Was surprised to find that the rear deck is totally made from aluminum? That has it's good and bad points. Good = no rot. Bad = have to hack it up to get to transom and some plumbing?
Anyways you can see from the pictures how I cut the back deck panels and the ends of the side channels. Accepting comments on how I could do it better and how to get things back together.
Had to remove about five inches of foam from rear to get to transom bolts. Was happy to find that the foam was dry all the way to the bottom and only slightly damp around the rotted wood.
The wooden transom on these boats are exposed in the center section that's under the rear deck lid. I'm guessing that's where the rot started and spread from there?
My plan going forward is to put the boat away for the winter. The motor is already stored in the basement and I'll go over it this winter.
I'll source out some plywood and work on the new transom also over the winter. Hope to get things back together sometime next spring/summer. No hurry since the SeaNymph is a great fishing boat and it's running well.
I'll try to post some pictures and ask for help as I fabricate the new transom. That will keep the thread active until I get things wrapped up.
Thanks for your comments, you can keep them coming.
Hope this helps anybody considering a similar project?
rob

 

[TwoRivers]

Hello all.
I originally posted back in November about picking up a 1989 Tracker with a 70hp Johnson. (http://forums.iboats.com/forum/boat...air/8860619-89-tracker-tournament-v17-transom)
Got the motor running last fall, removed from boat and went over it this past winter. Motor should be OK.
When I got the boat I knew for sure it needed the transom replaced (mushrooms growing and ant infestation). Also knew it had a leak in the bow area.
Wasn't put off because I fixed a leak in my SeaNymph and it's now dry as a bone.
Also fabricated and epoxied up a new transom over the winter and just put it in.
Removed the front decking to get access to the bow area to fix the leak. Cleaned everything up real well. When I went to rinse the bow area out I noticed that water wasn't draining out into the bilge area?
Removed the console and all the wood. What a mess. Looks like mice?
Seems I have a blockage under the live well / bait well / rear deck area?
It's all riveted aluminum and I have zero idea how to remove it?
I'm searching for information but the only post I can find on the internet (for a Tournament V17) is the one I left back in November.
If I can figure a way to remove the rear aluminum decking, I'd be OK with replacing the foam and cleaning her out real good. Somehow I'd get it back together.
There is a scrap yard not far from my house. Since the motor, controls, and trailer are good, it wouldn't be a total loss to roll it down the hill.
Any opinions and all help appreciated.
Thanks
Rob

 

[Woodonglass]

You should prolly keep posting to your original thread. That way the members can see what has already been suggested previously. No need to start a new one about the same project.

 

[TwoRivers]

You should prolly keep posting to your original thread. That way the members can see what has already been suggested previously. No need to start a new one about the same project.

The original post is seven months old with no posts. Isn't there a time limit thing on the board?
Thanks for your response.

 

[Woodonglass]

The time limit thing is for other members posting to it. You can always post to your thread any time you want no matter how old it is. No Time limit for the OP!!!

 

[batman99]

Like a few folks, I'm a "do the math" type of person. With this approach, I take items (like a broken vehicle) to 3 x different repair shops and ask for their fix estimates. I then average the high, low and medium amounts to create 1 x common number. I then look at re-sale (if it was working properly) and see if I can sell at higher price -, to recover its repair costs. If (for example), it takes $7K to fix and I can only sell for $5K later, then its a $2K loss. I don't fix it. But if repair was $5K and I could sell later for $7K, then I would repair. If one takes emotions out of the item, is it financially worth it to fix? Hope this helps.

 

[TwoRivers]

Like a few folks, I'm a "do the math" type of person. With this approach, I take items (like a broken vehicle) to 3 x different repair shops and ask for their fix estimates. I then average the high, low and medium amounts to create 1 x common number. I then look at re-sale (if it was working properly) and see if I can sell at higher price -, to recover its repair costs. If (for example), it takes $7K to fix and I can only sell for $5K later, then its a $2K loss. I don't fix it. But if repair was $5K and I could sell later for $7K, then I would repair. If one takes emotions out of the item, is it financially work it to fix? Hope this helps.

Thanks Batman. I follow your thinking on the money part.
I got the boat for free with a good motor and the trailer is better than what I'm hauling my SeaNymph around on.

Hope I'm not breaking any forum rules and not offending anyone by starting and continuing this thread?

I'm not looking to do a restore to a better than new condition, but that wouldn't take much.
I'm trying to determine if I can fix this thing up to cruise and fish the MON River and maybe pull a tube.
I'm really trying to get some insight as to how the rear deck of this boat does or doesn't come off?
If I can get the rear deck off I can fix the boat for a few hundred dollars in foam and fasteners. Carpet or covering would be extra.
I've scanned the web since I got this thing and the few Tournament V17 projects if found the posts ended before demolition was completed.
Any help appreciated but I'm not expecting much as I can't find a similar project anywhere?
Thanks again.


rob

 

[jbcurt00]

Merged these for you

And as noted, the originator of a topic is the only one who should post to a topic that's been inactive for 90+days.

Good luck

 

[TwoRivers]

Merged these for you

And as noted, the originator of a topic is the only one who should post to a topic that's been inactive for 90+days.

Good luck

Thanks
Still learning the rules and grateful for the forum.

 

[jbcurt00]

No problem, happens all the time..... sometimes its 2 topics in different forums, started the same day that get combined....

 

[TwoRivers]

Wow, these boats must be rare?
Over 100 views and most of the posts are administrative.
Anyways, what a mess.
Usually, I'm not a critical person: BUT, this design would earn a failing grade in a high school tech class!
And you guys that assembled this thing, What were you thinking riveting aluminum to foam and encasing electrical and drains in foam?
The whole rear deck of the boat , live well and storage area are riveted aluminum over poured foam?
All of this must be removed to gain access to the clogged bilge drainage area. (If you attempt this, start forward of the live well and work your way back)
The main wiring harness is encased in foam under riveted aluminum? So are the intake and drains for the bilge and live well?
The drain holes in the baffles are smaller than a dime.
I can understand the concept of using the foam as a structural agent but the whole rear fuel / battery storage compartment floor was riveted on the side flanges to foam. They also riveted the plastic flex hoses to the foam.
This boat never had a chance to drain. Even if I fixed the leaks it would take on water every time I had it out in the rain to where it would be so heavy I'd have to up the horsepower. This boat will NEVER go back together the way it was designed and assembled.
OK, here's the positive.
The boat looks pretty good all stripped down, nice and wide and deep. Looks like to good place to start a project.
Problem is it will have to be a winter project as I'm too busy in the summer to work on boats.
I barely have enough time to enjoy my running boats.
I'll update this post when I take some pictures of the cleaned out bones.
thanks and still looking for ideas.
rob