Transom Extention

bgbird

Seaman Apprentice
Joined
Jun 13, 2004
Messages
44
A boat that I'm looking at has a "transom extention". Instead of the outboard being mounted on a bracket to the transom, this extention appears to be mounted to the transom and the motor mounted to it. Exactly what is the benefit of this arrangement vs. the traditional mounting approach...
 

rrhodes

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Jun 24, 2008
Messages
636
Re: Transom Extention

Pictures would help, I am not sure if you are talking about a Jackplate or some home made contraption.
 

Mark42

Fleet Admiral
Joined
Oct 8, 2003
Messages
9,334
Re: Transom Extention

A boat that I'm looking at has a "transom extention". Instead of the outboard being mounted on a bracket to the transom, this extention appears to be mounted to the transom and the motor mounted to it. Exactly what is the benefit of this arrangement vs. the traditional mounting approach...

Generally the farther rearward the outboard is mounted, the better the boat handles. This is a common setup on ocean going fishing boats. They often mount two outboards on the brackets. A safer setup than a single inboard, due to engine redundancy.
 

dontask

Petty Officer 2nd Class
Joined
Apr 5, 2009
Messages
177
Re: Transom Extention

Depending on what type of bracket your looking at it could be an issue. I would avoid the set up unless it was a bracket installed by the boat manufacture of the boat.
Bad set ups can lead to transom problems. The engine is heavy enough without the bracket now factor the torque advantage the bracket gives for/to stress loads under rough water impacts. Some boaters do use jack plates for speed or shallow water running which may be needed in their case, but it still adds additional torque to the transom which some boat designs can't handle long term. Check for abnormal cracking in the scupper area, check for flexing in the transom while using the outboard as a leverage bar in the raised mode and pressing down hard on the skeg, check for cracks emanating from any of the transom mount holes.
The handling improvement may not be worth it for the average general use boat ---- if it is not a factory set up.
 
Top