Another Gil Bracket Question

[JJRJR]

Sorry to keep asking about this, but. . .

OK, the marina is going to have a welder look at my engine bracket (92 Gulfstream 232) before they pull the engines, etc. The guy that looked at is was worried that maybe we couldn't salvage it. I've called around to a few places. Armstrong is over $4,000, which is nuts. A place here in Miami makes custom brackets and they are about $2,600 which is a bit more palatable. Problem with a new bracket is the existing holes in the stern for the original bracket need to be filled in and new ones made for the new bracket. I'm really not digging that, but maybe it's not as big of a deal as I think??

1) the marina tech said we may be able to just resurface the bracket with awl grip and paint, but that if the aluminum is compromised that it will always take on massive amounts of water. He said he's seen people put bilge pumps inside the brackets. Anyone every heard of this?

2) Seems to me there has to be some product I can use to cover the aluminum bracket to make it more water-tight?? How about a rubber treatment of some sort before it's painted? Anyone have any ideas about how to cover up any small pitting that may be letter water inside?

3) If it's not that big of a deal to fill in the OEM installation holes and drill new ones (for the marina, not me) it may be best to just throw in the towel and get a new one?

Several of you have been kind enough to give me great advice and pictures on this subject, but it appears that the previous owner left this bracket unfinished for enough time to start to compromise the aluminum. I can bounce up and down on the engines and the bracket doesn't move at all, it's sturdy. I just don't want to have a catastrophic failure 5 miles at sea with a broken bracket due to it rusting through or something.

Any ideas?

Thanks again,

John

 

[JJRJR]

May have dodged a bullet. Marina just called me. While he still wants a welder to look at the bracket, the thinks we'll be able to salvage it, at least for a couple seasons. He pulled the drain plug and very little water came out. Corrosion not as bad as he originally thought. Let's see.

 

[suzukidave]

the simple solution is to fill the bracket with something air tights that displaces water. empty plastic pop bottles with the lid screwed back on is an example. i have also heard kid's pool noodles. that way, even if the bracket leaks, it will not ship much water.

do not use flotation foam. it will absorb water over time.

do install an access hatch if you don't have one so you can keep an eye on things. armstrong makes a round hatch specifically for this application that is very popular.

as for the transom, there is nothing inherently scary about drilling new holes in a transom that you aren't likely to encounter anyway when you remove the fasteners from the existing holes to take the bracket off. you are likely about to hear about some rot around those holes. if you do, don't panic, and go look at the damage yourself and post about it here rather than agreeing to major work. the chances are it can be fixed with epoxy fill, and maybe some reinforcing and backing plates on the inside.

 

[REEL NAUTI]

Any updates?? I'm in the same boat as you. Looking to have my Gil bracket refinished.

 

[JJRJR]

Hello,

Yes, I had the original refinished. Fortunately the aluminum was salvageable. It was VERY expensive to do. Brought it down to bare aluminum, etched the raw aluminum, painted with AwlGrip, then bottom paint under the water line. Had to remove the engines, replaced the engine bolts, etc.

All in, parts and labor was about $3,500.

 

[REEL NAUTI]

Thanks for getting back to me... Who did the work if you don't mind me asking?? Happy with the work>?

 

[JJRJR]

A local marina did it. I'm outside of Fort Lauderdale, place called Banyan Bay. Yes, I'm happy with it. I'm not happy that I had to spend almost $4K just so the bracket wouldn't rust out. I could have nearly re-powered the boat for that money.

BOAT - Break Out Another Thousand.

 

[Finest Kind]

Sorry....I just saw this post otherwise I would have sent you this link sooner:

http://www.hermco.com/brackets/

I had one of these installed back in 2007 and am VERY pleased with the quality of the product and the way it improved the ride and efficiency of my boat due to the flotation and deep V design of the bracket.

 

[SmokyMtnGrady]

I don't know Clark if I should be bobbing around no ocean with a piece cheap government fiberglass between me and my outboard motor.

Ok, all kidding aside it seems like a good product but is it not heavy especially compared to aluminum? Even with the perk of added flotation I wonder what the extra weight does to the boat especially how it sits in the water?

 

[Finest Kind]

Ok, all kidding aside it seems like a good product but is it not heavy especially compared to aluminum? Even with the perk of added flotation I wonder what the extra weight does to the boat especially how it sits in the water?

The Hermco bracket makes my boat sit HIGHER in the stern when docked than it used to with the OEM bracket. So much so that when water accumulates in the bilge, the FORWARD bilge pump goes off before the stern pump.

When underway, the Hermco allows the boat to jump on plane faster, and the Deep-V bottom design of the bracket gives me a softer ride in rough seas than the flat bottomed OEM used to.

Like I said before, I highly recommend this upgrade to anyone with a persistent leaking bracket issue.
Another point worth noting is the fuel savings I've experienced over the years.
Before the upgrade, how much extra fuel did I burn every year with that leaking OEM bracket while lugging around approx 10 gallons or more = 70+ pounds of extra water weight right over the motors?