Cracks in transom supports.

[tworotorturbo]

Hi guys. 2002 Zodiac SRMN 600, with a heavy Honda 130 on it, has cracks along the base of the transom supports. I want to have these repaired and then I want to make some sort of support brackets (like my old Searider had) in order to prevent the cracks from returning.

If I fabricate some sort of support bracket that goes from the transom to the deck (between the two existing supports) will I be placing too much stress in an area that is not meant to be stressed? I know the Searider had a thicker deck area under its transom support brackets.

[Nos4r2]

I think I'd be exploring that a bit more thoroughly than that. Do the knees go all the way to the bottom of the hull under the deck, or are they supported by the deck?

It looks like your deck might be a little weak (wet/rotten?) in there.

[PeterM]

What nos said. Iooks quite serious to me :-(. That's alot of movement or the deck is blown/swelling making it pop up like the

[tworotorturbo]

Thanks for the advice guys, I will definitely look into it. Never worked with fiberglass before so any tips on how to determine if the deck has water damage?

[Nos4r2]

Originally Posted by tworotorturbo

Thanks for the advice guys, I will definitely look into it. Never worked with fiberglass before so any tips on how to determine if the deck has water damage?

I'd drill a very small hole you can seal easily into it down to the wood and see what comes out.Use a cordless-it might be very very wet in there.

[tworotorturbo]

Originally Posted by Nos4r2

I'd drill a very small hole you can seal easily into it down to the wood and see what comes out.Use a cordless-it might be very very wet in there.

Thanks. I will do that and update with pics. The transom says max weight is 436 lbs. I think that BF130 comes in at 500 lbs.

I also plan to install a hatch so I can see whats under the deck.. like this SRMN 600 has done:

[C-NUMB]

Not the funniest job but in any case i would remove the gelcoat from the cracked area to inspect the GRP(and let it dry) as a starting point.

[Barrowboy]

Hmmmm, looks a tad 'serious' to be honest and with a large engine on the back it would have been working those cracks when you were underway.

I hope it doesn't end up requiring major surgery like the one Biffer's presently working on but I'd be investigating it pronto...

[biffer]

I would bet that it's the floor and not the transom that's moving

[whisper]

Is it a fibreglass moulded deck?

[whisper]

There looks to be a stainless steel plate screwed to the deck near by, first of all I would remove the screws and check if they were sealed and how the deck is made up.

If you know of anyone with a borascope you could also have a look at the knees under the deck through the transom drain plug if you have one.

The scopes are cheep these days, saw a digital one today for £79 or you possibly hire one. But shine a torch up there first to see if this is worth while pursuing...

[tworotorturbo]

Thanks for the input guys. I know close to nothing about boat construction but I had a guy who builds boats take a look at it. He says those knees are hollow and it looks like a molded deck. Not sure what that means but I will start opening her up and see what I find. The borescope idea sounds good too I will give that a try first.

[whisper]

What's on top of the stainless brackets screwed to the deck near the supports? Is that the seat base?

[tworotorturbo]

Originally Posted by whisper

What's on top of the stainless brackets screwed to the deck near the supports? Is that the seat base?

It was the base of the custom t top that someone made for the boat. I removed it already but left the screws in place for now.

[Barrowboy]

Originally Posted by tworotorturbo

It was the base of the custom t top that someone made for the boat. I removed it already but left the screws in place for now.

I can't help thinking that if those screws for the top weren't adequately sealed then it's a perfect conduit for shedloads of water to run down the stainless tubes and enter the (plywood?) deck.

Is the deck 'soggy' at all around these?

[tworotorturbo]

Now that I have spent all summer jumping waves and making those cracks spread, I finally decided to take a break and tend to the damage before my motor ends up in the ocean.

Those knees are hollow. I did take a drill bit to the deck and it seems like a thin wood deck on top of foam. No wet or soggy areas. The cracked area at the base of the knees is just hollow grp, about 3/8" thick. I am grinding away at some of the radius around the knees and have already found bubbles and areas of little to no glass in the lay up. I have no clue what I am doing but hopefully it turns out ok.

[two stroke mick]

There is nothing like fixing your own to to ensure two things
1) That the job gets done corectly (if you follow the advice given here on rob net)
2) You know how to fix your baot in the future and you will also get to know where the weaknesses ar

TSM