Transom evaluation?

[wengr]

Hello. I'll be looking at a 20 year old boat that is for sale, and I am concerned as to the condition of any wood. I feel that if the floor seems solid all around under my weight then that will be acceptable, and that I can probably repair any issues there myself down the road. The transom on the other hand, I'm not so sure about. How can I evaluate the condition of the transom? Can anything be done other that looking for cracks? I'm not so sure that I'll even be able to view the entire transom from the inside.
The boat is a 1997 Bayliner capri 2050 with Merc 5.7. Any advice appreciated.

 

[Old Ironmaker]

Put your weight on the outdrive or bottom end of the outboard and look for flexing in the transom.

 

[wengr]

Ok, I can do that. Thanks for the reply.

 

[Blind Date]

Look for caulk around the transom assembly on the outside of the hull. When transoms get really bad on an I/O they'll start to leak around the transom assembly and that's often how people will fix them. Also look at the transom on the inside of the hull. Look for any delaminating fiberglass around the edge of the inner transom assembly and simply push with your fingers next to it to see if you can feel any soft spots. Lightly tap on it from the inside with a dead blow hammer. If you don't get any dull thuds it's probably still pretty solid.

I'd be concerned more about the floor and stringers as they tend to go before the transom, but not always. For example, the transom in my 1979 CVX had some rot but it didn't leak and it would have lasted another 10-15 years easy before it got bad enough to need replacing. The stringers and floor however were in pretty bad tuff shape which I why I gutted it. The transom BTW, even with the rot, was a complete PITA to remove. Darn near as strong as the day it was built after 30 years.


Lastly 20 years is nothing to me. My all original 1997 Sundancer 250 still looks and runs like a new boat. And there isn't a spec of rotted wood in that boat anywhere!

 

[JASinIL2006]

If you can access the inside of the transom (some boats have carpeting/panels/etc. covering the inside of the transom) poke the fiberglassed wood with a screwdriver. Look especially carefully in any location where there is a thru-hull fitting (e.g., bolts or screws) as well as all around the keyhole for the drive. Any signs of softness are not good...

Drilling test holes is the best way to check, of course, but not many sellers will let a prospective buyer drill holes into the wood parts.

 

[Scott Danforth]

with the outdrive up, have someone about 200# jump up and down on the end of the drive. the gimble should not move.

 

[redneck joe]

If it has a ski locker look for an extra layer of plywood that might have been added to just cover up problems