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1999 18' Dauntless has cracks in transom
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 10/31/13 - 3:53 PM
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I just discovered many stress cracks on the transom of my 1999 18' Dauntless. It was originally from New Jersey but has been on Lake Erie for several years. It has an Opti 135 on it. The facility where it is stored for the winter thinks the cracks were the result of the boat being overpowered. I just bought it last spring , did not have it surveyed & missed the cracks because they were under the bottom paint. Anybody have a similar problem?
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| butchdavis |
Posted on 10/31/13 - 4:31 PM
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Why is it a problem? I don" believe 135 HP is overpowered on a 1999 Dauntless 18.
Butch |
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| Joe Kriz |
Posted on 10/31/13 - 4:32 PM
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The Dauntless 18' has a max hp rating of 150.
So, it is not overpowered.
Any photos?
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| wannabe |
Posted on 10/31/13 - 5:16 PM
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Joe Kriz wrote:
Any photos?
X2
Drew
1988 Outrage 18 - 1988 Yamaha 130 hp |
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| BillDemers |
Posted on 10/31/13 - 6:04 PM
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I have some gelcoat crack in mine up on either side of the engine where the transom molds into the rest of the engine well. I haven't seen any other cracks in mine. The cracks ore very thin( spider cracks) . I also have the 135 and don't think it is" over powered" my wot top speed is 43 mph I wish I had the 150 although the 135 and 150 are the same displacement. Sorry got of track there.
BillD
1999 Dauntless 18' - 135 Mercury Optimax |
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| sraab928 |
Posted on 11/01/13 - 2:56 AM
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Short Circuit wrote:
missed the cracks because they were under the bottom paint.
This statement leads me to believe the cracks are at or below the water line - It will be interesting to see what the pictures show if Short Circuit can get them for us.
Scott
1974 21' Revenge w Mercury 200 ProXS V8 |
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/01/13 - 1:53 PM
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I have a few pics. I just have to figure out how to post them.
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| Joe Kriz |
Posted on 11/01/13 - 1:58 PM
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Just put a link here to your photos wherever you have them like photobucket, etc.
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/02/13 - 7:49 AM
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I'm struggling to get pictures posted. I may have to get my grandson involved.
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 5:56 AM
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Ok I think this should work. http://s1297.photobucket.com/user/Sho...6/library/
Any comments or suggestions of cause and or repair (if needed) would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Short Circuit
Edited by Phil T on 11/04/13 - 6:15 AM |
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| Phil T |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 6:28 AM
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Thanks for posting the photos.
The gel coat cracks are interesting as they are in locations not typically seen.
They appear to be stress related but it is not clear what caused them. Often, if a piece of hardware (through hull fitting, lifting eye etc) are installed and the fastener holes are not beveled, the gel coat can crack due to stress. This may explain the ones around the through hull.
I would offer the opinion that the boat may have had been damaged by being dropped or bumped while trailered or in a yard. They are not serious but do warrant attention.
To repair hair line cracks, one would gently grind out the crack slightly in a V shape (with a dremel type tool) and refill will gelcoat. It is a DIY depending on your mechanical talent. A yard could repair but it could be $ 500.
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| butchdavis |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 6:50 AM
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I would have the transom inspected at a fiberglass repair shop and repaired by them if needed.
Butch |
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 8:33 AM
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What is in the transom? If it is foam, is it possible it lost it's strength and can longer support the outboard?
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| huckelberry145 |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 11:15 AM
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Remove the drain where all of the cracking is and you'll find out what's inside. You'll hope the wood is not rotten.
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| Phil T |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 1:57 PM
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These are hairline cracks in the gelcoat, I highly doubt the fiberglass embedded wood in the transom is rotten.
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 3:45 PM
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Ok. Sounds like a good place to start. Time permitting, I'll sand off the bottom paint & remove the thru hulls to get a better look. I'll post a few pictures of the transom then.
Would it be worth contacting the factory with the serial number and ask if they have seen this before?
Thanks,
Short Circuit
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| BillDemers |
Posted on 11/04/13 - 6:06 PM
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I agree with Phil, the "cracks "to the lower right of the engine look like scratches not stress cracks. At first glance the thru hull fitting looks to be leaking water from behind it and may need to be resealed. The other cracks in the first pic look to me to be just into the gelcoat and depending on how picky you are might be worth an attempt at DIY.
BillD
1999 Dauntless 18' - 135 Mercury Optimax |
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| thegage |
Posted on 11/05/13 - 7:41 AM
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I have a few similar looking cracks on my 16SL, near areas where there are protrusion into/through the hull--e.g. drain tubes, screws for mounting depth sounders--where the fitting was mounted incorrectly without sealant or where the sealant failed and water got into the foam/transom wood. Since I live in an area where it gets very cold in the winter, my theory (totally a SWAG) is that when the entrapped water froze it swelled and caused the cracking from the inside. Sound plausible?
John Kittredge
1991 16 SL - 2013 E-TEC 90 |
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| huckelberry145 |
Posted on 11/06/13 - 4:19 AM
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I agree John. After I discovered my transom was wet, the amount of water in the wood was astounding. How I found out was when I was installing a new depth finder and drilled a hole for the mount, water poured out. I didn't time how long it dripped water but it was enough to be of concern. I immediately removed the drains which acted like they had no sealant on them and inspected the plywood transom. What I'm driving at is where this boat resides there are enough freeze thaw cycles to cause stress cracks around fittings and through hull drains that need to be resealed. If that is the case, hopefully the wood is still good. In my case where the bulk of the water was the wood was solid. Trust me I know, I had to dig it all out. It was the wood near the top that was rotten. Reference my personal page for details.
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| Short Circuit |
Posted on 11/06/13 - 5:35 AM
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I did install a depth sounder in early summer. I noticed a few of the cracks then but didn't think much of it at the time. No water came out when I drilled for the transducer.
I'll pull the drains & sand (or have the yard sand blast) the bottom paint off to get a better look at the whole back end. What did you use to replace the rotted plywood?
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