Transom

[UtahAngler]

Im wondering if anyone knows if the transom on my 1998 cobra has wood inside or is it all fiberglass? The reason i am asking is I have some cracks around where the engine bolts on in the splashwell and if there is wood inside Im going to need to have someone tear it apart to see if its rotten. I dont think it is because there is no flex that I can see everything still seems very solid. If its all fiberglass then Im not going to worry as much about getting it fixed right away. Also has anyone else had this kind of problem with cracks in the splashwell? Any info would be greatly appreciated thanks.

[Cleveland]

Hi Cameron,

You have a fiberglass encapsulated wood transom. The gel fractures in your splashwell are just that "gel fractures" and are not uncommon and they are probably caused by stress. You can take the piece of transom trim off of the top of the transom to expose the top of the transom wood and inspect it. You can also take the 2 top motor mount bolts out, if it isn't too difficult and see if there is any wood rot going on too. I am thinking that your transom is just fine.

[UtahAngler]

Im sure they are stress cracks but they seem pretty deep. Also on the top of the transom there are cracks on both sides right above where the bolts are that hold the jackplate on so they have me worried. The trim piece I can remove is the black plastic plate across the top?

[Tx 201]

Utah,

One of the reasons I bought a Cobra was the strength of the transom. I would seriously doubt if you have any problems there unless some has removed the motor bolts and didn't seal them up again.

I have seen my brother's 201 go through some wild stuff and it is holding up just fine. He has two superficial gel cracks in his splashwell that have been there for years, they don't get any bigger and he keeps on hitting if hard through the rough stuff. If any transom was going to fail on these boats, it should have been his.

Let us know what you decide. See ya!

[UtahAngler]

Actually the bolts were removed because the jack plate that come with the boat originally was crap so they replaced it with a slidemaster. The bolts were sealed up though because I can see where they siliconed them. Im sure it is fine but I better have someone look at it and maybe fix them if they are deep enough to allow water inside. Thanks for the help.

[Cleveland]

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by UtahAngler &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">The trim piece I can remove is the black plastic plate across the top? </TD></TR></TABLE>

Correct

[UtahAngler]

If I remove this piece of plastic doesnt it need to be sealed? Or is it not sealed and can I buy a new one to replace the old one? So many questions I know. Just seems to me if its not sealed then it would be just as easy for water to get inside of it while on the lake as any cracks in the splashwell.

[Cleveland]

Yes....it is sealed. The guy that used to put them on used to run a couple ob beads of black silicone on the bottom of the transom trim and some silicone around each screw hole before putting it on the boat. When you get the screws out you will probably have to use a putty knife or a screwdriver to pry it off. Just clean the old silicone off and you can use it again.

[Cleveland]

And since your boat is a 1998 model the transom trim is made out of aluminum....not plastic. Also AFTER you put the trim back on the boat be sure to run a bead of silicone around the outer edges of the trim to seal it also. We always used black silicone to match the trim.....but you can use clear if you wanted to....it's up to you.

[UtahAngler]

Ok thats right I do remember that it had some dents in it so it wouldnt be plastic. Thanks for the help I will take it apart and take a look at it.

[Backlash Ar]

Cameron...To stop the gelcoat spider webbing from getting any bigger find a sharp pointed object (like an awl) and place the point of the tool at the end of a spider crack and give it a tap. You will put a miniscule "dot" in the gelcoat but that's as far as the crack will go. Then get yourself the right color Sharpie pen and color in the cracking. The Sharpie is waterproof and it will make those spidercracks disappear.

[UtahAngler]

Thanks Larry for the info but the cracks I have are not spider cracks they are deep cracks along the bottom of the splashwell where the transom starts. where it makes a 90 or close to a 90 degree angle. They run across this area and upward. Its more one big crack not a lot of smaller cracks. Then I have cracks on top of the transom right directly above where the two bolts go through the transom into the long metal piece inside the splashwell that says cobra on it. the cracks on top run width wise across the transom and seem to be cracked fairly deep. Im sure this is all from the engine making this area flex. Not sure why it would crack above the bolts on top but it has. Im told there is a guy here in Salt Lake City that is awesome with fixing fiberglass and gelcoats. Im going to have him take a look at it and see what Im dealing with. Just put the new carpet in the boat and it looks great so Im hoping its not a huge cost to fix the transom cracks.

[Cleveland]

Cameron,

I hate to say this but I HAVE seen other splashwells with that kind of damage. If you don't have the original motor on the boat then I'd think that at one time or another that boat has hit something pretty hard...OR....the motor mount bolts weren't as tight as they should be and was ran that way for quite a long time causing undue stress on the splashwell which is why the fractures are so bad. It is repairable....me and Donnie have fixed a many of them.

Starting in 2000 the design of the splashwell was changed from a square boxed area to more like a soap dish look and thus eliminated the exact problem that you have. I must also tell you that of all the splashwells that me and Donnie repaired, the integrity of the transom was still intact. No wood rot and no voids between the glass and the wood and still as strong as it was the day it was built. Just cosmetically looked like do-do.

I do highly suggest that you get a reputable fiberglass repair person to take a look at it for you and get their diagnosis of the damage. I got my fingers crossed that all of the damage is just superficial.

[UtahAngler]

Yea I do know that the guy I bought the boat from had troubles with the jackplate coming loose from the boat and the jackplate falling apart. I also know that the guy didnt do much maintenance on the boat or trailer. When I bought it in 2000 I didnt know much about boats at all so I didnt know what to look for. Im guessing that the cracks have been there since then and I didnt notice them until recently. Sometimes lessons are learned the hard way and cost a lot of money. Ive dumped so much money into repairing this boat that its hard for me to sell it now Ive got it just how I want it and there is something to be said about not having a boat payment and still having a great boat to fish out of. I will definatly have this guy look at the transom Im sure it will cost a fair amount to fix but Ive found for every dollar you spend on fixing new problems you save 10 times in the long run. Thanks for the help again you guys and gal are a great resource.

[jbassman87]

This may be to late for it to do any good. I have a 98 cobra that I just replaced the transom on. I noticed a crack under the top motor mounts like you and took it to a dealer and he showed me the rotten wood in the transom. Had a new com-posit one put in for a chunk of change. If water has got in the matting of the fiberglass then you will have water damage to your transom. Get it fixed right or sell the boat. You don't want to be going down the lake and loose your motor.

[UtahAngler]

Im going to get it looked at. I wouldnt sell a boat with a problem like that. Thats just wrong to dump a problem on someone else. Can I ask what it cost to replace it just so I have a ballpark figure?

[jbassman87]

I didn't mean to say sell it without telling the what they were getting. You are right that would be very bad. I'm glad to hear you are going to have it looked at, hopefully it's not as bad as mine. I don't know the exact price it was because insurance paid some of it on a prorated amount. I hit a sum-merged object is why I noticed it in the first place. My out of pocket expense was 3200.00. But I also had some other things done while they had it all apart. If you have insurance call it in they may help. Hope I hepled!

[UtahAngler]

Yea that helps but if If its going to cost more than 2,000 I will just sell the boat as is for a few thousand and cut my losses. I dont think its rotten but one never knows. Ive already dumbed close to 10,000 more into this boat and engine than its worth over the last 5 years, not including what I bought it for so Im already far behind in it.

[jbassman87]

That sucks. I got lucky with mine. I got a great deal, had it for 4 years and only put 3700 more since I bought it. But as they say boat stands for

BOLT ON ANOTHER THOUSAND

good luck Joel