Quote:
Originally Posted by Seafari78
It is a plate to raise the transom 5" as the original transom height was 20" and this is a 25" shaft engine
The transom seems ok however, being that it is original I would not be surprised if it has soft spots and this bracket is working as a crutch
I will find out this coming winter as I am going to spend some time checking that out
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Nice looking rig! I like the raised decks and more space behind the windshield on the newer models! My older model Seafari has the smaller gas tank and larger step down aft of cabin door. I find that a 70 qt cooler fits in the stepdown real nice and moving that extra weight forward helps the ride quite a bit when it gets snotty. You have a fairly light motor so your rig should be reasonably well balanced, but in rough seas it'll ride better if you can mount that cooler further forward, up over the gas tank hatch, maybe rotated 90 degrees.
A transom isn't necessarily soft just because it's old! One thing you might want to do that I did when I got my boat in 1975 . . . lift the motor off boat and pull the aluminum trim that goes around the engine cutout. The inner liner, which includes the splashwell, fits over the top of the transom/cutout and is sealed to the transom with brittle polyester putty (Potter putty). Frank Brown, who I bought my boat from at Brown & Hauptner Marine and who was a SeaCraft dealer, said that putty was so brittle that it always cracked. He said they used to pull off that trim on all the new boats they sold, route out that joint, and fill it with a flexible polysulfide caulk like Life Caulk. I did that before hanging the motor, and I think it's one thing that saved my transom. When Don Herman installed my bracket and filled in the cutout 7 years ago, he said it was the driest transom he had ever seen on a 1972 boat! If your transom isn't already wet, that would be worth doing! I'd also consider using Polyglo to keep that gel coat looking good . . . much longer lasting and much less work than wax! Denny