Transom Gelcoat cracking

[Saltyone]

Looking at another 265 express and had him send me pictures of the transom area.

Below the aluminum bang cap on the starboard side, appears to be a crack..

On the port side, above the cap appears to maybe be a few stress cracks.

Thoughts?

 

[seasick]

My initial impression is that there probably are serious issues based on the first picture. The cracks on rhe right side are concerning but more so since the sealant/caulk applied to the left of that area is cracked and looks separated. That could be a sign that the transom is flexing

 

[PointedRose]

Agree, half ass smear job of sealant was not an effective fix whoever tried in the past

 

[Halfhitch]

You don't want that boat.

 

[Fishtales]

IDK. For a boat of that age, you are going to find some things that need attention. Transom work like that is prob $5K to remove engines, bang cap and plastic pieces and repair, fiberglass and re-gelcoat. If you can work the price, you could shore it up, continue to watch and address if it gets worse or if you want to correct.

 

[Jimmyfiretruck]

IDK. For a boat of that age, you are going to find some things that need attention. Transom work like that is prob $5K to remove engines, bang cap and plastic pieces and repair, fiberglass and re-gelcoat. If you can work the price, you could shore it up, continue to watch and address if it gets worse or if you want to correct.

only repair on that, cut it apart and recore it with composite ….

 

[SkunkBoat]

2nd picture is confusing. Is there a swim platform up against the metal trim on that side?
At first glance it looks like the metal trim separated from the transom and they tried to fill it in with gray sealant.
I don't think thats it.

All old grady's that got used and are not trailer queens have an ugly transom cap because it was a piece of crap to begin with.
Yes, It needs the top edge and trim fixed (better to glass the whole thing over)
Thats not a difficult job and would not cost much to do it yourself if you are so inclined.
If you have to pay somebody for evrything, don't buy a boat.

MAYBE, it needs a transom. Nobody can tell you it does or doesn't just from that picture.
Every 20 year old boat MAYBE needs a transom..and fuel tanks..and deck hatches recored...and chips in hatches filled...and...

Looks like a pricing oppurtunity.

 

[Jimmyfiretruck]

2nd picture is confusing. Is there a swim platform up against the metal trim on that side?
At first glance it looks like the metal trim separated from the transom and they tried to fill it in with gray sealant.
I don't think thats it.

All old grady's that got used and are not trailer queens have an ugly transom cap because it was a piece of crap to begin with.
Yes, It needs the top edge and trim fixed (better to glass the whole thing over)
Thats not a difficult job and would not cost much to do it yourself if you are so inclined.
If you have to pay somebody for evrything, don't buy a boat.

MAYBE, it needs a transom. Nobody can tell you it does or doesn't just from that picture.
Every 20 year old boat MAYBE needs a transom..and fuel tanks..and deck hatches recored...and chips in hatches filled...and...

Looks like a pricing oppurtunity.

That “sounds” good but….

clearly, that transom core is going to be wet.

attempting to pull a motor off , grind that back and glass over the top cap is a pretty skilled job - you have those skills ? I do …

attempting to match that gel will be quite a challenge .

nothing sticks to wet wood - trying to get that to dry out will prove to be challenging as well…

seeing cracks like the ones on the inside seam - that shows flexing. Gel coat shows the cracking , glass can flex slightly,not gel coat. Grind that gel back and the cracks in the glass will appear as small white lines…

odds are, there’s big problems there …

throwing numbers out there , that’s pretty presumptuous,you own a glass shop ? Work in one ? Have professional experience in this field ?

 

[SkunkBoat]

I stand by everything I said.

 

[Jimmyfiretruck]

I stand by everything I said.

Way to deflect …

 

[SkunkBoat]

Way to deflect …

"MAYBE, it needs a transom. Nobody can tell you it does or doesn't just from that picture."
I stand by what I said.

Yes I have replaced a transom myself on a previous boat. Its not rocket science.

 

[Saltyone]

2nd picture is confusing. Is there a swim platform up against the metal trim on that side?
At first glance it looks like the metal trim separated from the transom and they tried to fill it in with gray sealant.
I don't think thats it.

All old grady's that got used and are not trailer queens have an ugly transom cap because it was a piece of crap to begin with.
Yes, It needs the top edge and trim fixed (better to glass the whole thing over)
Thats not a difficult job and would not cost much to do it yourself if you are so inclined.
If you have to pay somebody for evrything, don't buy a boat.

MAYBE, it needs a transom. Nobody can tell you it does or doesn't just from that picture.
Every 20 year old boat MAYBE needs a transom..and fuel tanks..and deck hatches recored...and chips in hatches filled...and...

Looks like a pricing oppurtunity.

Yeah, I believe it is a swim platform. I asked them to try and get a picture of the transom underneath of that too see if it has a crack in the same area as the starboard side.

 

[kevgle]

that boat(265 express)even with a rotted transom is still a better boat than 90% of whats out there.If every thing else checks out and the price is right go for it.You will not be disappointed.Should be around 5k to do the job.keep that in mind when negotiating.Good luck.