How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

[mcm114]

I just had my friendly nearby yamaha dealer install an engine (95 yam 225) on my boat (91 ski centurion falcon). It was exactly the same overall dimensions as my old engine (91 yam 225) but for some reason they decided it would be better to mount it one notch higher on the transom. You guessed it...cavitation. Anyway, this nearby dealer ain't that nearby, so I decided to fix it myself. I hoisted the engine and began loosening the 4 mounting bolts. As the sealant started to break loose, brown liquid slowly trickled from the transom holes. How awesome. Apparently these monkeys put this engine on and silicone sealed it, without removing any of the old sealant. Luckily they put the bolts in the wrong holes, or I never would have known. This boat has only been run about 5 hours in this condition, and there doesn't appear to be any real damage. There was some wet sawdust that came out with the bolts, but no big chunks, and the holes are still round. One interesting thing to point out is that the 2 lower bolts had no corrosion on them, but the two upper ones did.

So what is my next move? Should I just replace the hardware, put a good seal on it, and call it good? Is there something I can do to shore up my transom, in case it did get damaged?

 

[DJ]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

Moving to Boat Restoration and Building.

 

[mcm114]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

Oh, the truth hurts. I started out replacing an engine and ended up rebuilding/restoring my whole boat.

 

[OhWellcraft]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

With 225hp and 400+ pounds back there I would want to know for absolute sure the transom was in very good shape. Do some research on this site on how to test for transom rot or damage and check yours out real well. I was reading around on this site some time back and noticed how many people had bad transoms. So I figured I probably should check mine out, Turns out it was totally gone black mush holding my evinrude 235. It almost made me sick to my stomach to think I had my wife and two kids in that thing 20+ times last year skiing.. So after working every night after work and 14 hour days on the weekends I finished my transom rebuild early this spring and didn't really miss any of this season. I have been out 15-20 times pulled skiers,tubes,air chair, and a couple of broken down fellow boaters and my new transom doesn't leak one drop. If there is some slight damage maybe you can fix it now and not have a big shocker down the road. Good luck hope nothing too bad is going on in there. Also don't use silicone it's crap for that type of application use something like the 3M 4200 or 5200 if you never want to take it back apart.

 

[chrismarion]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

Well, since you said water did come out you could try and wick it out. Not saying this is a cure by any means. Just a general idea of how much water is in the wood. Use blue shop towels, the thick paper towels from auto parts stores. Twist the corner of one sheet so you shove it into the hole and pull a tad through (if you can). Let it sit over night and the next morning see how much did it wick out. Doing it throught the day defeats the purpose since the sun will dry the towel.

Also, you can try to squeeze the transom, with the motor off of course, to see if you can force water to come out of the bolt holes.A wood clamp or mini vise with rags ( to protect gel coat ) should do. Problem with the second idea is only the water above the holes will come out. You could also take a small drill bit and drill just past the resin, barely entering the wood to see if water is present.

Just ideas incase you didnt think of them. The first and last I did just to check the original transom my boat had. The shop towels confirm wetness. As did the tiny dimple holes near the bottom.

 

[Solittle]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

If your dealer used silicone as a sealent I would find a new dealer.

 

[mcm114]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

Good news. After a nights rest, the holes were relatively dry. I drilled a couple of small, shallow holes on the inside of the transom and they were dry. Phew. I scraped out all the old sealant and applied almost a whole tube of 3M 4200. That stuff is horrible to work with, by the way. You have to get it on there quick, because it will set in the tube, and it gets harder and harder to squeeze out. Until the tube bursts in your hand. Then it comes out real easy. I had to wash my hands with steel wool to get it off. It was a fun day...

 

[1730V]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

Ahhhh, the joys of 4200. I hate that stuff too but it sure works great. If I have any amount of sealing to do I buy the caulking gun size. Sure makes it easier to work with.

4200 will set up. I hope you don't want to take that engine off any time soon. 5200 would have been a better choice, IMHO.

 

[OhWellcraft]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

I thought that the 4200 was not as permenant as the 5200 or do I have it backwards??

 

[drewmitch44]

Re: How to fix a jacked-up transom mounting

4200 is semi-perminant and 4200 is perminant. look at the rating on the top right corner of the package. I have a package in my hand right now.