1997 Aquasport 225 Explorer Transom

[flounderpounder225]

yes, the brass drains in the transom well.  Mine were cracked around the flared shoulder.

[TXFishin]

What would be the recommended repair to the top wooden portion of the transom? A DIY job, dig out and pour in a composite?

[flounderpounder225]

I'm not sure, I suppose that would work sufficiently, I'm not sure how far down it goes?? and I don't believe it is structural in any real capacity.  you could also probably laminate marine plywood with epoxy resin and go back with what was there, if the cap is sealed properly it would probably last another 20 years??  Some other members may be able to elaborate better on this.

[RickK]

Where are your rear lifting eyes?  If they are in the affected areas, then you would need to cut out the bad plywood and replace.  You can use epoxy, for sure or polyester for that matter.  That's the repair I had to do on my port side.

[TXFishin]

Far from the lifting rings, the issue is with the top outer bolt on each
Engine, you can see by the pic (before re-power) the top outer engine bolt is sunk in slightly, it has been this way since I've owned the boat (5 years)

[TXFishin]

I'm glad I went with the white option on the New engines, turned out really nice. I just got my props back from Baumann's today, I had to add an inch of pitch to (hopefully) drop the RPM's below max range, the new engines are running stronger and with counter rotation it seems to be providing more lift, reducing the drag on the hull. After breaking in the engines I was running 46mph at 6,200 RPM and still had throttle left so I'm hoping the extra inch of pitch will drop it a couple hundred RPM and and allow sit around 6,000-6,100. The DF140A's are even quieter and smoother than the DF140's, in the water at idle you mainly hear the tail tale water streams, and on the hose you can carry on a normal volume conversation, seem to be getting a little better mpg as well, cruise around 26-28mph at 3.2 mpg 

[TXFishin]

More pics

[RickK]

What did the tech that hung the engines say about the damage?  Did you get a chance to look in the holes when the engines were off?

[CLM65]

Those engines look great!  I'm hoping to put a white 175 on my flatback.  I hear lots of good things about the suzukis.

[TXFishin]

Those engines look great!  I'm hoping to put a white 175 on my flatback.  I hear lots of good things about the suzukis.

I can't say enough on how impressed I have been with mine, the previous 2003 DF140's had over 2,000 each, ran strong, no major issues, always fired right up, and the newer models even better

Some commercial guys are getting 5,000+  hours

[TXFishin]

What did the tech that hung the engines say about the damage?  Did you get a chance to look in the holes when the engines were off?

Well, that's what started the whole thing, prior I thought it was a poured transom, when I picked up the boat he said he couldn't have put the new engines on had it not looked strong due to liability reasons, he said the transom seemed strong but I might need to replace it in a year or two.

That got me to question if it was wood or not. However, there are two bolts in between the port engine, you can see on the pics above, I removed them and filled then in, when I did I cleaned out the old 4200 with a drill, I couldn't really tell if it was wood, it was a brownish color, not rotten or soft

Up until the tech told me that I had thought that maybe the reason the bolts were sunk in was that the poured transom had pulled away slightly from the outer shell

[TXFishin]

Well I have my answer on the transom issue, composite after all and strong as a brick wall!

I did a lot of research on-line, calling around and after talking with several fibreglass repair shops, who were not so friendly and immediately went for the worst case route (a whole new transom wanting to cut the back off), I reached out to Mercedes Fibreglass Repair (www.mercedesfiberglass.com). From what I have seen and through word of mouth from multiple resources, Mercedes not only does top quality work, fair price, and quick turn around, but from the moment I called I have received nothing less than friendly customer service beyond my expectations.

As soon as he looked at the pictures I sent, and after seeing the boat, he told me that he knew exactly what had happened, without even cutting into the boat, he said that transom is fine, and that when the top hull/deck was joined to the bottom hull, on the inside, there was a slight gap between the core and the top hull/splash well, and this is what caused the engine bolts to "crush" in to the transom.

He gave me a quote to repair that area, reglass back with solid glass, fix some stress cracks and remove a thru-hull ducer, so I told him to get with it

After Mercedes cut into the transom, it was exactly as he said, nothing wrong with the transom, solid as a brick wall. just that the top hull when joined there was a small gap near the top where it was not sitting tight against the composite core.


Mercedes has been sending updates and pictures regularly, and from the other work I have seen I can't wait to see the results.

[TXFishin]

More pics, getting closer to having my engines back on..

[TXFishin]

Looking better than new, rigging almost done 

[RickK]

Looks great