Transom Rot or Not?

Jitts3,

Thanks! I have been watching FriscoJarretts for a year or so now, since his first boat. Very detailed and walks through the materials you need. I have spend hours and hours picking up tips from him. I also consider him an ole friend becuase I'm from the Dallas/Ft. Worth area originally, though him and I have never met. :)

I will take a look at your project and maybe you will give me additional inspiration to start again on my own. I have been looking into Greenwood Products (Marine Plywood) as well as Seacast. I also heard about a Michican Composite called Tuff Stuff. This is a job that I never want to do again. Well until the front half of the boat needs the same attention.

Thanks again and please keep me posted.

James
 
I notice you plan on doing an OMC to Merc conversion. What happened to the original settup?
 
Jitts3,

One of the OMC 4.3s threw a rod or something. I sold the other engine and manifolds. All that is left is the transom assembies, Y pipes, and the Cobra outdrives. I have a bite on one of the out drives. Whatcha looking for? Do you have a list? :)
 
Cobra drives were OMC's grand finale. My 240 goes way back before that. I have the stringer drives and electric shift at that. They stopped making that in 1977. I was just wondering why you didn't just rebuild the busted engine and press on. I do need some parts yes, but another member around Detroit has those.

Did you already aquire the Merc equivalant of what you had?
 
Jitts3,

Yes, I scored a complete Merc setup a couple of years ago out of a SR 290DA. Twin 4.3 205HP Mercs with the Thunderbolt setup. The engines only had 450hrs. I will need gaskets, wiring, cables, and such... but Imoved to the Mercs as they are more common and parts are readily available. Also, I have been told that Mercs have more HP at the prop. I should be picking up 25-30hp per drive. I was running low 50s mph on the OMC setup. I think I will be near 55mph with the Mercs. 55mph on a nearly 30 year old 28' Crusier ain't bad.

If you are replacing the transom, you might consider going with a newer setup. I'm no expert as you know, but if you ever thought about it... you are right there with a transome replacement and new stringers/motor mounts. Just a thought.

James
 
I have considered it but decided against it back then. The reasons are/were then granted before I knew the transom was shot. I bought this boat in 2008. And she sat since for the most part. If you read both threads. The new one I put a link to and the first one with that like on post one.
basically the Merc settup push the boat by her transom. The early OMC pushed the boat by the engine mounts to the stringers. Hence "stringer drives". Then OMC tried to copy the Merc with the Cobra drive. They went under with that. Parts are still available from the new company in Canada. I got some for the rebuild of the top end of my drive.
I didn't want to have a new engine pushing on a big "patch" since the OMC Stringer has a big transom hole for the surrounding boot. So back in 2008 I found a complete package. Running engine and drive. The engine recently rebuilt. The boat it was in was junked and I got the power package.
Then to top it off I scored a rare power steering Intermediate housing. They are all on my floor and waiting for me to finish the boat.
It was recent I started poking around and found the rot. So now it may have been worth going with a merc. But I already spent the money with this settup. After all, if it worked in 73, it will work now. Water is still wet right....
 
So true! I will keep an eye out for your posts and follow your progress. Let me know if you find a good fiberglass guy. In case I throw in the towel and decide to call in reinforcements. :smt100
 
lv2bunderwater said:
Jitts3, I guess I should have finished reading your entire posts. Sounds like you are well on your way sir.
Click to expand...

Sir? I'll have you know I work for a living:smt043

It will be sometime before we start with the fiberglass with the cold weather sticking around so long. Now is when I must truck hard and get the cash up to pay for all the new goodies that we will need. But for now the demolishion work is ahead of us along with all the little things that go with the restoration.

Stay on your project as well. And keep positive. Steady wins this contest.
 
Just came across this topic. Good grief....you guys are braver...or more ambitious than I am. I hope I never run into anything like this in my 268.

A guy who rebuilds transoms looked at mine a couple years ago....tapped all over it checking it and seemed pretty impressed with it....asking me if it had ever been redone because it looked so good. But I have no idea....was just glad to see him so impressed with it.

Anyway......you guys mind if I ask an easy question? Don't want to hijack this thread.

I was just wondering what the overall thickness of a 268 transom is?

I'm hanging a new extended swim platform on mine next month hopefully when the weather smartens up....and I'm going to have to drill through to bolt on.

I have to go through the thickness of the new platform and the transom for new 1/2" bolts and was just wondering how long a drill bit I'll need. Not sure if I have one long enough now or if I'll have to go out and buy one.

Thanks.

And good luck with the rest of your projects.
 
Old Vet said:
I was just wondering what the overall thickness of a 268 transom is?
Click to expand...

The transoms are approximately 2 inches thick, 1 1/2 inches of plywood plus the inside and outside fiberglass. Make sure you triple check what's located on the inside before drilling through.
 
Hello! Read your thread and I and very impressed with your work so far. I think the tear out would be the hardest part and the most labor intensive area of the project. So you are way on the way to getting it back together.

If you choose to have someone else finish it, here is a guy who does excellent work. He did a transom replacement for a friend last year and was quick and very professional. I know it may be a five hour drive from Chicago, but he may be what you are looking for.

His web site is:

http://www.advantagegfr.com/

I live a few miles away from this outfit and they seam to keep jobs moving and without delay. I rarely see the same boats there sitting in his lot too long. To me that means he likes to get work done and move on to the next project, a mark of a true professional.

Good luck with your decison.
268 Frankenboat
 
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Thanks 268 Frankenboat.

I made some progress over the weekend. I was able to take a closer look at the stringers by removing the top cap plywood and the foam. I spoke to a boat repair company out of MI that does transom and stringer work and they specialize in Seacast. I wanted to take some good pics to see if I can get a quote to do the rebuild work, now that I have opened everything up. It felt good to start working on her again.

Here are a few pics of my progress.

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj522/lv2bunderwater/IMG_08411_zpscd121180.jpg

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj522/lv2bunderwater/IMG_08391_zps8d7dee32.jpg

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj522/lv2bunderwater/IMG_08431_zps42560894.jpg

http://i1266.photobucket.com/albums/jj522/lv2bunderwater/IMG_08361_zps84fea600.jpg

Has anyone used Seacast in their Sea Ray cruiser? I know it is about 3 times the cost, but I would never have to worry about it again. It is something I'm considering with the money and time that I'm putting into this boat. I plan on keeping it for a while...
 
That's a start. Be sure to measure pretty much everything as you rip and tear. Better to have to many notes than not enough should you wind up doing the work to put it back together.
It always feels good after making some progress. Looks like you were cold too. I thought I saw ICE in the bilge.
 
lv2bunderwater~
I am very impressed with the work you have accomplished so far and I look forward to your continued story. My fear is when up my boat this spring and start tapping the transom I may find some rot that will need to be fixed. I hope I can learn from you what I hope I do not have to do...
Keep up the good work and Good Luck
 
After doing the same rebuild you are about to do, I'm really not sure even how you would use Seacast. I thought that stuff was meant to be poured into an open cavity? Maybe I'm wrong.

When we rebuilt my 268, we completely removed the support structure from the inside of the boat. After that was complete, we then rebuilt the structure out of plywood and re-glassed everything (there was much more done, but that is the basic operation).

I think Seacast is fine for an outboard style boat that needs a new transom, but for the kind of work you need, I'm not sure that is the best option especially if it is 3x the cost.

Also, since you are starting to cut the old internal glasswork away, make sure the hull is completely supported underneath. The superstructure will start to sag as you cut the inside away. This can change the shape of the hull and start to put stresses on other areas.
 
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Getaway said:
After doing the same rebuild you are about to do, I'm really not sure even how you would use Seacast. I thought that stuff was meant to be poured into an open cavity? Maybe I'm wrong.

When we rebuilt my 268, we completely removed the support structure from the inside of the boat. After that was complete, we then rebuilt the structure out of plywood and re-glassed everything (there was much more done, but that is the basic operation).

I think Seacast is fine for an outboard style boat that needs a new transom, but for the kind of work you need, I'm not sure that is the best option especially if it is 3x the cost.

Also, since you are starting to cut the old internal glasswork away, make sure the hull is completely supported underneath. The superstructure will start to sag as you cut the inside away. This can change the shape of the hull and start to put stresses on other areas.
Click to expand...

I'm thinking along the same lines as Getaway with all his points.
Cutting out and replacing the old transom material seems a much better option than seacast with cost, time, ease and strength.
 
I am following your journey with great interest. I have recently completed a a transom repair on my SRV 190. Your starting point pictures look very similar to what I was facing when I started to take a hard look at my transom area after the engine let go and was removed. I like you, looked into Seacast, but I found the cost prohibitive and the end result and longevity for the type of repair I was doing would be questionable I followed the advice and descriptions of the folks who had done this repair before me (from the forum) and things worked out well. The repair I did was not as large as the one you are facing- it took me a good part of 8 months to get the boat back to where it was ready to replace the engine. Keep the course, you'll make out fine.
 
CSRers,

Starting to put my plans together for my fiberglass and resin order. Still cold here, but I want to be ready when "true" spring breaks.

A shout out to Getaway and others that have replaced their transom and stringers in a 268. I was hoping to stop the new/replacement stringers at the firewall without cutting into cabin. I was noticing that the existing stringers at the firewall seem to be going through it, but when looking from in the cabin itself... the stringers that run the rest of the length of the boat are not aligned with the bilge stringers.

Can someone help with recommendations how to tie in the new with the existing stringers? Thanks!


IMG_0179.jpg
 
Nice work!


 
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