motor mount bolt holes

[John Glover]

I found all four of my motor mounting bolts needed from one full turn to one and a half full 360 turns...which worries me. Question: On a Tracker PT 18 or probably all the Trackers that have an aluminum encased wood transom, does anyone know if those bolt holes are threaded or are they just drilled holes and Tracker counts on the bolt torque and silicone to keep water out?

I want to back them out one at a time and re-silicone them, but am a little nervous about that. This is all still the issue of taking on water in the boat and even after I tightened all four bolts, I'm still taking it on, at least 2 gallons in 3-4 hours. I have already smeared the rivets with silicone, replumbed a new areator, and replaced the hull plug. TEE recommended the procedure to run water into the hull with food dye and look for where it might come out, and will do that later. Right now, the bolts bother me.

Any suggestions?

Jack

 

[TritonGlenn]

Back them out one at a time, supporting the engine, and squirt 3M 5200 around the bolt and nut faces (under the washers if you have them on there), and retighten to proper torque specs. Once it's all tightened down, smear more 3M 5200 sealant around any area that looks like it might need a bit more. Then, mark the bolt shank and the nut with a paint pen or anti-tampering gel. That way, you can tell if they back out.



I can gaurantee you - 3M 5200 on the bolt and nut faces, torqued to specs, and then left to dry 24 hours - you will NOT get leaks through the transom motor mount holes. The paint pen / anti-tampering gel will show you if your bolts / nuts are turning / backing out some way - but I doubt they will after this proceedure.



Sorry to hear that you have leaks. In a boat, they are a pain. I'd second Tee's recommendation - that was good advice. Or, if you want to do it another way - try this - sprinkle baby powder over everything in the bilge area, and stay back there as someone else is backing your boat into the water. Look for the powder to move. When it does - there is your leak. Then, when your boat is back on the trailer, just pull the plug and rinse the baby powder down the drain hole.



All the best,

Glenn

 

[John Glover]

Thanks, Glenn. A friend of mine suggested that "one bolt at a time" technique to reseat the bolts and I'll do that. I just hope water hasn't seeped into that wood over time and cause rot!

Jack

 

[TOMMY RICH]

Hope you figure out where it's coming from...