Damaged Motor - Advice Please

[rainylakefisher]

OK, I'm embarrassed, I messed up, and I can't blame anyone but me. Long story short, I backed my boat into a wood piling and hit the hydrofoil hard enough to crack the plate above the prop. After the initial shock, and sick-to-my-stomach feeling, I'm looking for advice.

FWIW, the motor is a 2004 Johnson 115 four stroke with very few hours. I don't plan on selling the boat for a very long time. I figure I could fix the structural problem by adding a 1/8" stainless steel plate and securing it using the same four holes that hold the hydrofoil. If I put the plate on the bottom, it wouldn't be obvious and the hydrofoil covers up most of the top.

Here are my questions for any boat experts:

1. Would insurance cover this type of damage? I do have insurance on the boat.

2. Other than a complete lower unit replacement, is there a way to fix the problem? I know cast aluminum is difficult to weld and might require taking off the entire unit upping the cost even more.

3. What is the black cover held with two screws highlighted by the red arrow? The plate I'm thinking of would cover that piece, but would still be accessible by removing the plate. I would need a hole in the plate to re-install the trim tab.

4. Any idea of the cost of a lower unit replacement?

5. Any good metal fabricators in the NW metro that could fabricate a simple plate from a template?

[Valv]

That is a bad hit, but not as bad as you think. What you are planning to do is good, it will help the situation a lot.

You can find just the lower unit housing, much cheaper then the whole lower unit. You have time in your hands, motor will function with no issues, you can search the auction places for the part.

Regarding insurance you have to check with your agent, I am pretty sure it is covered, but you have to consider the deductible.

[morepower02]

Yes could be an insurance pay accident. It would be cheaper to repair. I would charge $299 to make it look new again.

[CAMAN]

Thats not bad at all. Like Valv said your plan of making a stainless plate is good, but I wouldn't install it to the bottom of the lower unit, I would make a horseshoe shaped plate and install it to the top of the lower unit. Installing it to the bottom could hamper the performance and cause alot of resistance.

That area of the lower unit isn't structural and nowhere near any critical components, you could easily get that welded up and painted and it might never even be noticable. That's a fairly simple weld for an experienced welder.

[Ufatz]

J-B Weld or something similar. Carefully dress if off when it is cured with files and paper, then paint with close matching or even factory paint. Should hold as there is no "load" of substance on that piece.

Cost: a few bucks and some time.

And be looking for new/used housing as suggested above.

[boatfixer]

Contact your agent and go from there.

What's your deductible? $250? For me it would be a no brainer to have the housing replaced if that's the case. That's what insurance us for.

Having it welded by a competent welding shop like Bakkens would be my next suggestion.

[JohnMickish]

I also say contact your insurance agen't. They will probably put a new lower unit on it and then you know it is fixed right and good as new.

[morepower02]

Why pay a deductible and higher premiums? Any good prop/skeg repair shop could repair it for a couple hundred dollars and it would be like new. The damaged area is not into the critical area of the housing. If you also bent the propshaft then I would start a claim on it. Speaking from experience with this the damage shown in the picture is going to be tuff to get insurance to throw a new case on it.

[DTro]

I like the JB weld idea. Fill in the crack to keep it from migrating, slap a new hydrofoil on, and forget about it.

[cbrooks]

Almost the exact break happen on my boat. I just took it to a welding shop payed him $40 or 20(can't remember exactly) dollars and he welded it from the top not bottom. I remember disconnecting all my batteries because it could cause a current in the boat with the welding. That was three years ago.

[Bigtom]

I would at least get a price on a new housing and labor. Would hate to have problems later with you trim tab also.

[marine_man]

Tough to tell for sure from the pictures.. but I don't think many fixes short of welding (and even that I think is iffy) will keep the rest of that plate from cracking off.. I think a foil will only make that worse in that area due to the added load you're going to be putting on the plate vs w/o it.

I'd at least review your insurance policy and see what your deductible is. If it were me, I'd fix it... all the way and be done with it.. and not worry about if your repair will hold. Repairs that extensive always seem to fail at the worst time.

Why did you add a Hydrofoil to it in the first place? Just curious...

marine_man

[boatfixer]

Certainly isn't gonna hurt. I know with my insurance, there would be no rate increase.