Transom replacement advice.

[MassillonBuckeye]

Looks like oil from the motor has done a number on the exposed wood on my transom:

I scraped out most of the rotted wood, which is all in the splashwell area there. Everything below the splashwell is fine. No rot. Its just the wood right at the seam there.. Am I looking at replacing the whole transom? Can I clean that up and caulk it or fill it with something? I basically have no seal on that wood and when the splash well gets wet, the wood soaks it up. I'm not sure why it gets so oily there from the motor either. I've had guys say those 70HP mercs just do that. So whatever I do here will need to withstand the oil in the future. Thanks for any input! I really don't want to pull the motor as I don't have a motor stand or hoist so I'd have to get creative there. <--- I think I just sealed my fate here.. I know how much you guys enjoy "creative"!! lol

 

[TruckDrivingFool]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

I'm guessing at this being a Starcraft if so it's not that hard of a job just time consuming, so I'd take the creative approach to getting the motor off/storing and not on the repair. Not to mention that if you have problems in one spot you might as well do the entire thing.

Seems your big hurdle is getting the motor off. Me and the neighbor lifted my 50 off no problem so I wouldn't think a 70 would be much worse. (I could be wrong though) If it is there are other creative ways to get it from come alongs to tipping the boat front to back. As for storage once I had the 50 off I just carefully laid it on the floor.

From there it's just a straight forward SC trans replacement, any of the preferred sealing methods will work for the water and oil you're concerned about, but I'd say glassing is the best option (poly or epoxy your choice)

 

[Raystownboater]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

You really need to remove the motor and replace the whole transom. I had the help of timfives and Ezmobee's experience and it was completed in 1 weekend. I would suggest renting an engine hoist for a weekend. The other possibility is a case of beer, pizza, and a well placed ad on the forums. You should be able to get a few guys to give you a hand

 

[emoney]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Pulling the motor is no where near as bad as what you're imagining right now. I was in your exact spot (not a transom issue, but still pulling the motor) a few months back and I tried every which way to Sunday to avoid it. Once I knew that was the only way, I set out to get it off, and oddly enough, I found out that I had wasted about 3 weeks because there really was nothing to it. I bought one of those $17.00 ratchet cable come-alongs from Harbor Freight and pulled mine off by hooking one end to a 4x4 that I had laid across 2 ceiling joists in my garage. I even forgot to secure the 4x4 to the joists (oops!) but it still came off like butter on hot toast. My motor is a '96 Force 120 so it weighs more than yours and I was still able to pop it off. I went and got 3 bolts, a 4" square metal "washer" and a heavy duty eye hook to make my "lifting eye". Then, just hook one end of the come-along to that and the other end overhead and ratchet away.

That way, you'll have access to the transom and you'll be able to do this job the right way. Trust me, if you knew me you'd know for a fact that if I can do this you can. I'm more of a lover than a fighter and to top it all off I'm a musician if that sums it up for you, lol. Seriously though, for about $25.00 I had and still have an engine hoist and I'll never be afraid of this process again.

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

The boat and trailer does not fit in the garage. Gah! I guess I don't have to lift it very much. I may have to build a stand or something.

 

[GWPSR]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Do you have any trees in your yard? A sturdy branch makes a dandy redneck motor hoist.

 

[emoney]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

A big old Oak tree will do just fine. Remember, your motor is probably only around 260lbs. ONce I wrapped my head around mine only weight in the 320-330 range, I realized I was making a mountain out of a molehill. Heck, I can lift myself out of bed and I weigh 240lbs, lol.

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

A big old Oak tree will do just fine. Remember, your motor is probably only around 260lbs. ONce I wrapped my head around mine only weight in the 320-330 range, I realized I was making a mountain out of a molehill. Heck, I can lift myself out of bed and I weigh 240lbs, lol.

hmm, just the biggest crab apple tree you've ever seen. Hadn't thought of that. I may have a big limb I could use. Ok, what do you guys recommend sealing the splash well with that will withstand that oil mixture that ends up in there? I'm going to have to seal the aluminum splashwell to the sealed wood. Probably epoxy a couple 3/4 sheets together. I really wasn't planning on a full restore until now so I'll consider myself in the beginning stages of my transom replacement.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Something as simple as this works very well...

 

[TruckDrivingFool]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Ok, what do you guys recommend sealing the splash well with that will withstand that oil mixture that ends up in there? I'm going to have to seal the aluminum splashwell to the sealed wood.

3M 4200 or 5200. Mine only a year old but no troubles so far from the gas that tends to drip out when the motor is tilted.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

"I'm going to have to seal the aluminum splashwell to the sealed wood."

I'm not a "Tinner" but... from what I read here on the forum most of the Tin boat guys do not adhere the wood to the hull or splashwell. They DO use the 4200 or 5200 to seal all the bolt/rivet holes in the transom and use JB Weld to fill small dents and holes in the boat. Just my observations.

When fabricating the transom, there are a lot of ways to seal the wood. Resin & Glass, Epoxy, Marine Varnish, Oil Based Paint etc... All of them will work. Check out the forum to see which one appeals to you the most.

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

"I'm going to have to seal the aluminum splashwell to the sealed wood."

I'm not a "Tinner" but... from what I read here on the forum most of the Tin boat guys do not adhere the wood to the hull or splashwell. They DO use the 4200 or 5200 to seal all the bolt/rivet holes in the transom and use JB Weld to fill small dents and holes in the boat. Just my observations.

When fabricating the transom, there are a lot of ways to seal the wood. Resin & Glass, Epoxy, Marine Varnish, Oil Based Paint etc... All of them will work. Check out the forum to see which one appeals to you the most.

Gotcha. I'm going to start looking around here.. Are you aware of any of the rebuilds off the top of your head that had something similar to what I'm looking at here? Thanks all for the input.

 

[Woodonglass]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

It would really help if we knew what kind of boat you had and had some pics too!!

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

It would really help if we knew what kind of boat you had and had some pics too!!

Oh sorry! Pics! Right!
Its a Starcraft Pikemaster 160.

Here's an album with a whole bunch of random things regarding this boat and motor.
https://picasaweb.google.com/114888527474509440745/Starcraft?authuser=0&feat=directlink

I'm also working on correcting the bow stop/winch post situation in another thread. A few projects for the winter maybe along with the replacement of some of the faded veneered dash and rod locker wood. Maybe a windshield. There's a few things I want to do with it. *Wishes I had a bigger garage!

 

[jasoutside]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Just thought I'd stop in and say howdy! She is going to make a great fishen rig man!

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Just thought I'd stop in and say howdy! She is going to make a great fishen rig man!

hiya!

Ohh yeah, we've been fishin all summer!

Here's my personal best smallmouth I caught trolling middle of July. Not the best pic but.

Heres a video of her floating a couple weeks ago: Gives an idea of the layout. This link working for you guys? May have to upload to the YouTubes.
https://picasaweb.google.com/114888527474509440745/Fishing03#5787687955623226754

 

[Tinfever]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Hi, this is how my father and I took off my 60 Johnson so I could do my transom. We backed the boat into the garage put an old tire next to boat on the floor, had my girlfriend crank the landing gear on the tongue of the trailer all the way in (tongue low as possible). We put a block under the skeg of the motor (everything disconnected of course) then had her crank the tongue of trailer up which lowered the back of the boar as my Dad and I balanced the motor, once it cleared all we did was lay it down on the old tire.

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Hi, this is how my father and I took off my 60 Johnson so I could do my transom. We backed the boat into the garage put an old tire next to boat on the floor, had my girlfriend crank the landing gear on the tongue of the trailer all the way in (tongue low as possible). We put a block under the skeg of the motor (everything disconnected of course) then had her crank the tongue of trailer up which lowered the back of the boar as my Dad and I balanced the motor, once it cleared all we did was lay it down on the old tire.

Interesting. I'll keep that in mind. NOt sure I'd want to put all the weight on the skeg though? I'm guessing yours survived just fine? I'm going to have to see about dislodging my tilt and trim as well. It probably hasn't been touched in a loooong time. I know the hose ends at the rams are quite corroded. I wish they would have done the transom when they did they floor 2 years ago!

 

[Tinfever]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Buckeye we were comfortable we weren't going damage the skeg because its a 60 HP twin, its fairly light. After it was clear from the transom the boat was moved forward then we layed the motor down forward as to not put any sideway load on the skeg.

 

[MassillonBuckeye]

Re: Transom replacement advice.

Buckeye we were comfortable we weren't going damage the skeg because its a 60 HP twin, its fairly light. After it was clear from the transom the boat was moved forward then we layed the motor down forward as to not put any sideway load on the skeg.

Gotcha. Yeah, I'm not real sure how much this 70 Mercury weighs but it looks like a tank lol. Thanks for the tip though. I may be able to borrow a motor hoist from a neighbor. I'd just have to come up with the rig to connect to the top of motor to pull it up.