This comment is really for newer owners:
I owned a ‘76 170, which I restored to great condition. For a 17, it was an excellent bay boat. I’m now considering a ‘74 222, which will also need a lot of work. (But the floor and transom are solid!)
My comment is about the original low transom design…which is often made full-height these days as part of a major restoration.
While I agree that this looks more contemporary, the low transom was a big safety feature. If you ever took solid water over the bow - which can happen with center console boats, especially when running a rough tidal inlet - the boat could only fill to the transom level. Notably, the front ‘casting deck’ was the same height as the transom. So the actual volume of water that could stay in the boat for more than a few seconds was relatively small and would not swamp the boat. And if the bow was up, as would be normal, almost all the water would run out the back immediately.
Yes, it’s possible to take some water over the low transom in reverse in a heavy chop. I never got more than splashes over the transom in my 170, and it ran right out the transom drains. But that concern is more than offset by the scenario I just mentioned.
