My 1977 sceptre

[Wooley]

Originally Posted by Bushwacker

Nice rig! However that rust streak below the port transom towing eye indicates you've got some crevice corrosion going on there, so I suspect entire transom is wet. (When plywood gets wet, the water spreads in all directions because if follows the grain, and grain direction changes 90 degrees in each layer of wood. Also "stainless" steel only remains stainless in the presence of oxygen needed to create the protective layer of chromium oxide, and there isn't much oxygen inside that damp transom, so those towing eyes will rust just like they were plain steel!) I'd pull that towing eye and check it because I suspect you'll find that the 3/8" bolts are really only about 1/8" thick inside transom!

Don's right, that fancy aluminum plate is just a band aid! You have a lot of weight and bending load on that transom that may be too much for just 1/4" thick fiberglass (if the plywood is mulch), so before you launch it, jump up and down on the lower unit and check to see how much deflection there is in the skin of transom!

I'm def going to take the time to inspect the entire transom. I plan on keeping this beauty .