Repair or Replace the Transom Assembly? My Upper Steering Shaft Adventure
prgrod01
Member Posts: 53 ✭✭
Here is my contribution to the Transom repair or replace question. 2001, 242 FiestaVee, spent the first 13 years of its life in pristine BC mountain lake water before it was purchased and moved to the west coast to become the ocean cruiser that it is today.
We moor the boat 6 months and winterize it for 6 months. Had the boat 3 years leak free, noticed a slight rust trail and dampness on the 4th year and by the end of year 5 it was a continuous leak from the infamous upper steering shaft (or steering pin etc.) and would fill the bilge overnight… scary when my recent moorage did not have shore power and relied on a dual battery system alone. Otherwise the transom assembly looked reasonable, but no doubt it was time for a rebuild.
My goal was to educate myself and do the job over the winter and ideally I would rebuild it for less money than purchasing a new one, unfortunately, after completely disassembling the old transom and pricing out all the parts and specialized install tools I ended up buying a new transom assembly. The risk was not worth the reward in my mind… with age comes the reduced tolerance for risk and failure… I would have been some upset if I rebuilt this unit and then it leaked in a short period of time or parts that I did not replace continued to fail in future years.
New TA is on the boat and ready for a new season, here are some of my lesson’s learned:
Old transom issues: upper steering shaft seal leaking, steering lever was very sloppy at the hinge pin and would need replaced as it caused a large amount of play in my leg (Gimble ring appeared fine), trying to remove the mercathode system I snapped both heads of the SS bolts and also realized it is essentially impossible to remove without replacing the entire unit as the wires are permanently epoxied with no slack.
New transom install: When I pulled the motor the rear motor bolt seized to the bushing in the fly wheel cover so had to get the shop to replace the motor mount bushings. The new bushings were the “new style” have an extended knurled end that eliminates the need for the double wound lock washer. And the new transom assembly has pre-mounted plastic washers to eliminate the fiber washers, a big improvement. BUT what to do about an optional SS washer for additional alignment, with this new combo I was unsure if I needed it or not, flipped a coin and did not use it first go round and it worked perfect without it with my combination! Other than that install was fine and added some 4200 around the main seal for peace of mind.
My conservative estimate to rebuild my transom was $2,200 CAD including parts, tools and adhesives etc. (but it always ends up being more than you hope) and I found an entire assembly on sale for $3,000 CAD pre-tax so done deal.
Hope that helps.
Rod
Comments
Pictures of old assembly
Dream 'Inn III -- 2008 400 Express
Thanks. Looking forward to a dry bilge this year.
Here is the pictures of the new TA with plastic washer
Good luck with the repair.
I should also mention the front engine motor mount issue i found, on one of the four lag bolts (2 per side) that secure the engine mount to the hull was noticeably loose, so I replaced all four lag bolts from 3/8" to 1/2" while the engine was out of the way, worked great.
Pulling the engine was a bit of work, had to make a wood gantry crane in the driveway etc. but it was also nice to be able to inspect everything on the motor over the winter. Bad thing about too much time is a guy can spend another couple thousand on trinkets... Took all the hoses off and inspected (only replaced the sea water hose), replaced the fuel pump as it seems to be impossible to replace while the engine is installed in my tight engine compartment, engine water pump, sea water impeller, thermostat, spark plugs, cap/rotor and starter and got my alternator rebuilt.
No signs of rot or rust on the bottom of my oil pan from the salt water in the bilge, but gave it a good wash and sprayed liberally with corrosion guard.
Removed the risers and inspected my exhaust/riser connection but surprisingly there was minimal corrosion, so got away with only installing a new gasket.
Completely drained all my fluids, I had never thought to drain the leg oil from the reservoir but was pretty thick and nasty at the bottom. Also drained the power steering and trim tab reservoirs and hoses.
I will say it was a challenge and at the beginning I was having fun, glad I was able to do this in the off season and take my time vs an emergency repair in the middle of boating season. But let's say I won't be upset if I don't have to do this job again for many years!