Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

I bought a 1976 Potter Hull Sceptre 23 foot this fall. The boat was repowered in 1995 with twin Volvo 3.0L engines with volvo penta cobra outdrives. The boat, before I bought it took some water in the engine compartment> The seller told me it was bc of bad bellows. After assessing the transom it seems there is a 1.5 inch hole in the transom that may be the cause of this. I am anxious to get working but want to make sure I do it the right way, even if it takes longer and is more expensive. Want to sure up the transom. I am gonna take of pic of problem area and post again. Any suggestions please from a new seacraft owner

Re: Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

it will help a lot to post a couple of pictures- and then Im sure the help will come- and welcome to CSC!

Re: Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

Welcome,
Some I/O's are notorious for letting water in. I am not an expert in them, but I hear alot about bellows/etc leaks. Some people say don't leave an I/O in the water for extended periods. Fr Frank can probably give you some more accurate info.

Re: Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

As mentioned,pictures would be a help.Where is the hole that you found?Is it rot? More detailed info would also be helpful.
This is a great site for help,the guys on it have been a big help to me on my project.I've met a couple of them and they are great guys.

I recently did a transom replacement on my 74 Tsunami,I/O,and am ready to put the engine in.
I own a couple I/O boats and fish out of lots of them,and personally prefer them over outboards for the area that i fish(Great Lakes)fresh water.

I think outboards are superior in saltwater as you can tilt them out of the water to reduce corrosion problems.They are also much easier to winterize,and you can fish later into the season if you're up north.

I've never had bellows leak,but it can happen when someone installs them improperly,or when owners are too lazy or too cheap to maintain them or replace them when necessary.

Re: Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

I am not sure about the 1.5" hole, without pics,and that sounds like it might be your problem, but one thing you may want to check carefully is the scupper tubes. We thought my dads 72 I/O had a leaky bellows last year and it turned out to be the scupper tubes. The tubes rot in the center sides, and that allows water to flow down into the bilge at a pretty good rate. We replaced the tubes and the bilge was perfectly dry.

Good luck !!

Re: Transom hole help, 76 Sceptre 23 PLEASE !!!!!
 

maybe the 1.5" hole is from the shift linkage. That was what leaked on our previous I/O because we tried to squeeze out an extra year with out replacing it.