Replacing motor mount

[PuddleJumper]

Hi. I’m planning on replacing mount on my 87 C22. The current one was intended for light 2 stroke and my boat has 4 stroke 8hp. Currently raising/lowering nearly impossible for this old man. Going to put new mount with springs intended for heavier 4 stroke.
Will I have to cut fiberglass back of port side on inside to access mount bolts?

 

[ShotgunSlim]

I think you should be able to access the bolts by crawling behind the dinette table seat under the cockpit, all the way to the back and looking up. I have an 86 model and have been in there but my motor mount is fine and I have no need to get all the way to the bolts.

 

[Gene Neill]

Slim is right, no need to cut anything. You are probably not going to like crawling back there to get at the bolts, though, and crawling out is even worse. A spry young helper can be worth his/her weight in gold. Otherwise, patience and a sense of humor as you try to back out of the "cavern", with all the grace of a turtle trying to climb backwards up a stairwell.

 

[rpludwig]

LOL, great visual Gene!

PJ, I've seen several others doing the outboard bracket thing here on the forum, adding some vertical L channels or similar reinforcement inside the transom to give the mount better support (spread the load) and protect the transom integrity, rather than just relying on bolts and fender washers....especially important for a heavier outboard IMO...

 

[PuddleJumper]

Thanks for the idea. I’ll go to the boat today and see if this old overweight frame can fit in there.
I don’t have high hopes. May have to get my skinny neighbor in there.

 

[Jacktar]

Mine are reachable through the port side hatch for lazarette

and PO used a backing board along with the fender washers. Maybe yours is mounted differently. Pix included as part of my nooks and cranny series of shots. PO also used it as place to mount some of the electrical connections, later modified, this is a before picture.

 

[Hardhead]

I've been back there many times - it's doable for sure.

That being said, if you're like me, you might wish your arms, elbows and neck were attached differently trying to manipulate those fastenings. Lying on your back, with your hands up around your head, is some help if you can.

 

[Hardhead]

I have an 87' as well. If you can see anything after you get the bolts out, I'd be interested in what the composition of the transom is.

Mine seems very solid, but it's easy to worry about water intrusion into plywood back there. I'm no expert, but I'd probably try to use some 4200 on the inside of the bolt holes, and good butyl tape under the backing. Good luck with the project.

 

[AaronD]

I'm no expert either, but it seems to me that the standard drill / dremel / epoxy / re-drill dance we do for deck hardware (as described by @Maine Sail at http://www.pbase.com/mainecruising/sealing_the_deck) is probably appropriate here. It's actually easier to do the dremel part with the big 3/8" holes in the transom than it is with smaller deck hardware. And of course, butyl tape; see Maine's response to my question at https://forums.sailboatowners.com/i...hardware-with-bed-it-butyl-tape.117172/page-7.

The "vertical L channels" @rpludwig referred to are available pre-drilled in stainless from Catalina Direct; they worked fine for me. Stingy sailor used angle aluminum, which is cheaper, if you don't mind mixing metals with your bolts (perhaps coat the hardware with Tef-gel and isolate with acetal washers?). I also reinforced the interior fiberglass with a board of 1/4" G10, but that's almost certainly unnecessary.

 

[rpludwig]

I have an 87' as well. If you can see anything after you get the bolts out, I'd be interested in what the composition of the transom is.

Mine seems very solid, but it's easy to worry about water intrusion into plywood back there. I'm no expert, but I'd probably try to use some 4200 on the inside of the bolt holes, and good butyl tape under the backing. Good luck with the project.

HH...regarding transom composition, when I installed rear scuppers on my '84 I found the transom composition to be fiberglass/plywood/airspace/plywood/fiberglass. Why the airspace (approx. 1/8"), I have no clue, but I did fill it w/4000 and line the hole w/4000 as well b4 installing the scuppers....Without stiffing the airspace, bolts would compress the transom sandwich. On an outboard bracket, I'd use epoxy fill there as AaronD suggests.

 

[Gene Neill]

This is the transom of my '88, at the scuppers. The thick layer of plywood is only about a 4" square in reality, not a real part of the transom.

 

[Hardhead]

Thanks for the info and photo regarding the transom layup.

I'm trying to figure out what the darker brown material in the middle is - another layer of fiberglass?

 

[Jacktar]

Plywood core

 

[pclarksurf]

As mentioned-- crawl through the port aft opening easy enough once you are in there but take everything with you

I cleaned up goodness knows how many legacy holes and added a backer for my 4 stroke Honda 5

 

[shemandr]

Take a charged cell phone in there with you.