Transom Testing

[Stanfo]

Hi raiders, does any one know if there are any ways of testing for a soft floor and transom in a second hand boat. The reason I ask is that we are looking for a second hand glass boat and dont want to get stuck with a lemon that will cost the earth to get in working order.

Cheers

Lachlan

[captainbat]

Hi raiders, does any one know if there are any ways of testing for a soft floor and transom in a second hand boat. The reason I ask is that we are looking for a second hand glass boat and dont want to get stuck with a lemon that will cost the earth to get in working order.

Cheers

Lachlan

I did reply to this but I dont think it went through so once again...

Tap around any suspect areas lightly with a ball peen hammer. The sound should be 'bright and crisp' if it is dull then the material inside is soft - (rotten). Also the hammer wont bounce off the rotten areas as vigorously. Pay special attention to areas around engine mount bolts, skin fittings, transducer fitouts etc.

cheers - Bat

Edited May 7, 2009 by Scott Taunton

[pelican]

There is the joy of finding a good fibreglass one but there is the knowing it is a good one with a tinny.

There is no 100% way without drilling ( and sellers won't cop that) it but......

There is structural damage where the transom has been overstressed - like too big a motor, hitting sand bars flat chat , just old glass badly laid up and trailer mishaps . You may be able to see some severe crazing or cracks of the FG in transoms which this has happened to

There is structural damage from the actual wood in the transom rotting. The transo is layers of glass and resin coating a plywood core. The core should never get wet if it is encased properly so a lot of builders skimped and used non marine ply in old boats. Yeah not real bright. A lot of other old plys were not that good a quality and have voids in them, poor compression at manufacture, moisture and crap glues. This added to builders not sealing holes in transoms for motor bolts and drains leads to a transom absorbing water and then rotting. Rot is either the glue not being waterproof, wood swelling with moisture absobed or a fungal, mould that breakes it down into a mush. Fresh water is what kills them as most moulds, mildew and fungus don''t happen in salt water. Rain water in a hull bottom spells danger for transoms and stringers if they are not properly encased.

1. If it has a motor on it tilt the motor up and then use your body weight to place a appropriate mount of force down near the prop. Appropriate would be the amount of force teh motor would place on the transom punching into a wave just off the plane . Ie that means take a fat , to very fat mate. If the transom flexes more than it should it has a problem. It could be rot

Some brands are known to rot, some are known to be weak in the transom and others are known to have used poor quality materials or badly designed. Spend 5 minutes on the phone with Huey once you find a prospect to learn it's weaknesses or whether to bother.

Floors and stringers are just as expensive to repair and hard to tell if rotten until well gone.

More later when I get a minute

Edited May 7, 2009 by pelican