Depth of Maxum 1700XR transom in the water? Is my hull waterlogged

[conrad503]

I recently purchased a '95 Maxum 1700XR and I'm wondering if the foam cored hull might be waterlogged.

The boat has the original Force 120 mounted on the transom. At cruise, with the engine level, half a tank of fuel, and just myself in the boat at the helm, the transom rides low enough to put the seawater drain holes below the waterline.
This results in a trickle of water into the bilge from around the grommet on one drain hole (I'm in the process of fixing that problem).

I mounted some trim planes and had a stream of water run out from within the foam core area when I drilled the holes. I let the water drain fully, but I'm guessing the leak was left unrepaired by the last owner and probably let a lot of water into the core area.

Does the foam retain water? I'm obviously new to boats, but have decades of experience working on nearly anything else with an engine. I'm imagining that the foam has at least some porosity, and maybe a lot more if it's 20+ years old and/or left soaking in water.

Can anyone confirm whether the transom depth of my 1700XR at cruise is unusually low?

[mmwjr]

The boat structure is wood core but the boat does have foam floatation. A 120 on a 17’ boat seems big to me. Maybe the motors weight is the issue. There should be a max HP rating listed on the boat.

[conrad503]

The engine on the boat is the OEM fitted powerplant. And I believe read somewhere that it is also the maximum rated horsepower for the boat.

[Patrick Bodkin]

The surveyor that I hired in 2020 to help me on my boat search "flunked" the 1st boat that I had a contract on because the fiberglass hull was determined to be fully saturated on his water meter. The next boat that I signed a contract on passed without a hitch.

I'm guessing that you didn't get a hull moisture assessment?

[mmwjr]

Originally Posted by conrad503

The engine on the boat is the OEM fitted powerplant. And I believe read somewhere that it is also the maximum rated horsepower for the boat.

Then she’s definitely water logged. Also sounds like the wood is wet since water drained out the holes you drilled in the transom. Not a easy fix.

[conrad503]

Originally Posted by Patrick Bodkin

The surveyor that I hired in 2020 to help me on my boat search "flunked" the 1st boat that I had a contract on because the fiberglass hull was determined to be fully saturated on his water meter. The next boat that I signed a contract on passed without a hitch.

I'm guessing that you didn't get a hull moisture assessment?

Nah, the boat was cheap ($1000), because the engines were in boxes. The former owner hired a shady boat mechanic who disassembled the engine, required another be bought for parts, then demanded twice the original estimate before beginning work to put it all back together. I bought it from the frustrated owner after he picked it up in pieces from the mechanic. Then, after towing it from Portland from Seattle, I reassembled the engine and had it on the water in exactly one week.

The boat is otherwise in excellent condition. Floor is solid throughout, interior looks 5 years old, not 25, and it came with a nice EZ-roller trailer and lots of other extras. So, no matter what a survey would show, I figured it was worth gambling a grand.

The transom is still reasonably solid near as I can tell. I put 50 ft/lbs of torque on the engine mounting bolts without noticeable distortion. And we've run for all it's worth on the water several times now with no visible transom movement, and no stress cracks developed--not the final word in testing procedures obviously.

I'm investigating the vacuum pump/heat pad method of drying out the core chambers. I'm less concerned about whether the boat will last forever. It's a nice boat, but clearly not a high end luxury craft worth restoring. I'm really just concerned about hauling extra weight through the water.