Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Questions about boat repairs with our resins and fiberglass: hull patches, transoms and stringers, foam, rot etc.
Barry_CF
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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

Thanks Tom. The 1000 pounds is the total, engine and stern drive, and just measuring where they are located I came up with a rough guess that the combo had the cog of that assembly at the rear of the engine, about 10 inches forward of the transom. So, I'm confusing the issue referencing COG, but what I meant was the COG of what I take out and put back in, figuring if I can end up close to where I started I'll be OK. I hope that makes sense...

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

fallguy1000 wrote: Thu Aug 04, 2022 8:21 pm Do nothing until asking. Lotsa guys screw up stuff by doing it wrong.

Armstrong is the way to go on the bracket. They may even have done that boat.

CoG is basically meaningless. You only track your changes.

So, the CoG is a simple reference. Pick a point one foot ahead of the engine. Keep track of all moments in and out, or out and in, and you'll know the net effect from that point.
Re-reading your advice here. And that is what I'm attempting to do, just keep up with how I change it. I just picked the back of the engine since I *think* that is the COG of the sterndrive assembly.

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by fallguy1000 »

Barry_CF wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 8:38 pm So, in that case, it's going to be higher by the thickness of the new sole, right?
Yup
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Barry_CF
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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

fallguy1000 wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 10:04 pm
Barry_CF wrote: Tue Aug 16, 2022 8:38 pm So, in that case, it's going to be higher by the thickness of the new sole, right?
Yup
Seemed clear, but just in case :)
Thanks!

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

This afternoon I started working on the outside of the transom, removing the swim platform, the cylinder for the trim tabs (I'll get the tabs off tomorrow), and the stern drive. With the drive out I can start disconnecting the engine to get it out. I still have to build my gantry but that should only take a few hours I hope.

Every screw I removed, and there are quite a few, came out cleanly, no water poured out nor did any rotten wood show up. Since I put all the screws back in I would torque them down and they all screwed in tightly. So, I'm hoping the evidence is the transom is good, at least it's better than what I could have found. I should get the final verdict when I get the engine out and the stern drive transom components out.

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Fuzz »

If all the screws were above the water line you might have got really lucky :D

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

Fuzz wrote: Sat Aug 20, 2022 2:46 am If all the screws were above the water line you might have got really lucky :D
Some were below, there are two screws on each side of the outdrive that held the lower swim platform supports. They were submerged when in the water and came out clean, dry, and torqued back down. I'm going to keep believing until I can't :)

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

I finished removing parts on the transom, took off the trim tabs and removed the outer part of the scuppers. Still looking good. I had one screw in one trim tab that didn't get tight when I put it back in, but it didn't even try, so I think it was probably over tightened and stripped when installed.

I got the motor ready to pull with the exception of the throttle cable I think. Pretty easy actually. All the nuts seem to come loose pretty well. I had given them all a squirt or two of PB blaster prior to today. I probably missed something... The motor mount bolts are all easy to get to.

I designed my gantry for the motor removal this evening. It can do dual duty as I need something to hold a tarp over the front of the motor home I'm restoring. After I get the engine out I can use it there.

Once I get the engine out I'll do a better inspection on the transom and stringers. The stringers sure appear solid. I stood on them while I worked on the motor disconnections. Could be a problem at the transom if the transom is a problem. After I get the engine out I'll probably pressure wash the inside. It's not that bad but certainly could use a bit of cleanup.

Picture of the engine with the removable surround taken off. This is before I started disconnecting stuff. Th e battery's are sitting on top of the port side stringer. You can see the starboard side with paint missing due to getting blasted with the pressure washer earlier. There is no give standing on those. Of course the wood inside could be rotted and hidden by the glass work I guess. After I get the engine out and do a cursory inspection I'll ask for some specific instructions on how to check this stuff out. The transom hole should tell that story I'm guessing. Should I drill test holes in the stringers? And if so, how?

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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by fallguy1000 »

First, after getting engine out, visual inspection.

Then use an awl, by hand and see if the awl penetrates deep into any wood at any openings.

Then, if your hearing is good, take a plastic mallet or flip a decent sized screwdriver over and start banging on the stuff with a consistent swing, not too hard, and listen for a unique, hollow sound or rattle. If you hear variation, drill a test hole like 3/8" and then use the awl again or the drill and see if the wood is wet or mush.
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Re: Sea Ray 245 Cuddy Fish (1983)

Post by Barry_CF »

Thanks Fallguy. I have done some tapping on the outside of the transom and it sounds good to me, solid sounding. But I'm not sure what I'm listening for to be honest. I get a sharp report that changes slightly as I get to what I know is a change due to construction, like at the bottom where the hull joins the transom or the side where the side and transom join together. I have done some poking with an awl but glass covers most everything and I have refrained from trying to poke to hard into the glass.

So far the only wood rot seems to all be topside on panels that were never protected (all removed now) and the plywood in the sole. On a couple bulkheads (maybe that's what they are, they are 1/2" thickness which seems thin) at the very top there is some crumbly wood, but as you go down it gets hard again. I think this supports my theory that the holes in the sole that were not sealed allowed water to slowly soak the plywood in the sole. Also, the gas tank cover was meant to drain freely down the length and eventually out the scuppers, but if that area gets contaminated it would run under the sole and towards the aft end, and then hit the top of the bulkheads.

So, just so I'm clear, if I have a suspicion or want to test, use a drill bit, say 1/4 and drill into an area and check the wood that comes out. Clean and dry is good. Black and or wet is bad. Then fill the hole with an epoxy glue. Is this how you guys would do it?

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