Grady bracket

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conshykid

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I am redoing my Grady which has a Grady motor bracket and I just took it off and sent it out to get sand blasted and then powder coated,but as I got to thinking I was wondering if anyone has welded a plate to the front of the bracket where it bolts to the transom?If they made it this way at the factory they wouldn't have been prone to leaking in water.

If anyone has how did you paint/coat the inside??

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Just got done doing what you are doing. The inside of the bracket had NO paint. Had it powder coated inside and out.

Make sure you keep the foam block.

HD
 
I need to get this done on my grady bracket as well...what is the ball park cost of having it removed, sandblasted, and powdercoated? Is it close to the same as buying a new fiberglass bracket?

Thanks
 
bracket

I sanded my bracket down w/ progressively finer and finer sandpaper until I was happy with my results. After prepping the surface I used 2 coats of metal primer (Interlux Prima-con I believe) and 3 coats of Pettit
Easypoxy Sandstone (I'm 99.9% sure it was Sandstone, I'll confirm tonight). It looks like it came out of the factory. Tape off and use Tri-lux 33 bottom paint for lower half.
Sandblasting may be overkill depending on the condition of your bracket.
I would consider the cost of removing engine & bracket, sandblasting, powercoating and re-rigging.
 
The surface on the inside doesn't need to be painted, however, from a cosmetic point of view, it may be desiable to some(?).

The drive may have a little water coming in and building up over time, perfectly normal per drive manufacturers instructions. It should never fill up of course. If you think of the drive as a second bilge, it will be seen as such, unless your bilge is bone dry.

Check seasonally, and measure how much water comes out so you can record how rate is increasing and when it demands attention.

Never get rid of the foam block even if it is partially wet. Leave it alone.

If you have too much water buildup and looking for the leak, for drives with the blocks, take off the upper most cover and fill drive with garden hose on a clear day in the morning, look for where the water is dripping out by end of day, if not wait several days, it will eventually leak.

No reason to throw the baby out with the bath water, the drive's life is the same as hull, just maintain it and keep the zincs doing their job, same way they protect your motor made of the same alloys.

My drive has a leak across the top horizontal joint of the drive at the hull seam, I see now why, the flange is very small up there. I hear it hissing as the sun heats up the drive. Very little water accumulates, so I could care less.
 
well I got the bracket back from the blaster and will be taking it to the powder coater tomorrow to see if it needs to be sanded to knock down the tiny pits the blasting media leaves.now thinking about it I proably should have had it diped to remove the old paint instead of having it blasted.I guess Ill find out tomorrow if its good to go or not.

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Why are you going to powder coat vs. traditional paint application? Have you weighed the pros and cons of powder coat vs. paint? Leave the powder coat to Pauly at Orange County Choppers it has no place in an underwater marine application.
I can email you what paint to use and the proper application if you are interested. It will cost you about $200-$300 in materials and is a simple process you can do yourself.
I'd hate to see you go through all this work and have a problem with the powder coat failing a few years down the road.

Pat
 
gearadrift said:
Why are you going to powder coat vs. traditional paint application? Have you weighed the pros and cons of powder coat vs. paint? Leave the powder coat to Pauly at Orange County Choppers it has no place in an underwater marine application.
I can email you what paint to use and the proper application if you are interested. It will cost you about $200-$300 in materials and is a simple process you can do yourself.
I'd hate to see you go through all this work and have a problem with the powder coat failing a few years down the road.

Pat
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Not true at all.call all of the aluminum bracket manufacturers and they all use powder coating to cover their brackets,not paint.powder coat will hold up as long or longer than paint if 1 its done right and 2 the coat stays intact.The vital part really is the proper anti fouling paint,because really thats whats making contact with the water.The guy who is doing my bracket powder coats for many boat builders including Viking and Lhurs to name a couple,so I trust his ability to do the job right with the right material.
occ sucks and could care less they powder coat ,and I know what paint to use if I was having it painted,my original post was asking if anyone has welded a plate on the front of the bracket and if so how they finished the inside being the opening is now closed from the plate being welded in
 
I'm not trying to tell you what you are doing is wrong. I read your posts about the projects on your boat and it looks great. My problem with powder is it is very unforgiving. If you chip it, crack it, scrape it etc. it will lead to failure. You cannot touch it up. Where as if you go with a quality paint system, you can DIY, and touch up or do small repairs as needed. I've had several items powder coated by reputable sources over the years including; stack vents, flag/jackstaffs, fire station valves, sewage deck connection valves, and so fourth all of which were above the waterline in a marine environment and I have not been impressed with the longevity of the product.
If it was mine I'd stick with what I know works. High build epoxy polymide anti corrosive primer like Ameron 235, 5-6 mils DFT followed by non copper anti foul below the water 3-4 mils DFT, and a urethane or silicone alkyd enamel for above the water 2-3 mils DFT. Simple, cheap, and easy.

Pat
 
gearadrift said:
I'm not trying to tell you what you are doing is wrong. I read your posts about the projects on your boat and it looks great. My problem with powder is it is very unforgiving. If you chip it, crack it, scrape it etc. it will lead to failure. You cannot touch it up. Where as if you go with a quality paint system, you can DIY, and touch up or do small repairs as needed. I've had several items powder coated by reputable sources over the years including; stack vents, flag/jackstaffs, fire station valves, sewage deck connection valves, and so fourth all of which were above the waterline in a marine environment and I have not been impressed with the longevity of the product.
If it was mine I'd stick with what I know works. High build epoxy polymide anti corrosive primer like Ameron 235, 5-6 mils DFT followed by non copper anti foul below the water 3-4 mils DFT, and a urethane or silicone alkyd enamel for above the water 2-3 mils DFT. Simple, cheap, and easy.

Pat
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do you mean Imron? by DuPont?just asking and you are correct the #1 thing that kills a powder coated piece is if it chips or cracks
 
Ameron marine industrial coatings http://www.mdnautical.com/ameron/235-PDS-AI.pdf

To answer your original post Ameron 235 or an equivalent is what I would use on the inside of the bracket, if anything.

I'm a DIY guy all the way. I need all the cash I can free up for the gas tank. I know what the powder costs and in my opinion I'd save a few bucks with a paint system. 5 years from now if I needed to repaint=easy, where as re powder=pull motor blast to white metal and start over.
 
Personally, I would take the bracket to a fabricator to have a flange added to the top where it mates to the transom. This would serve two purposes:

1. It would increase size of the area that you can apply sealant to.
2. You could add some additional bolts across the top to further strengthen it's mounting to the transom.

As for paint vs. powder coat, I don't know which is better, but I would probably go with paint on both the inside and outside. Once it's cleaned, have it etched, primed and then painted. You'll have to get your product advice from someone else though. I suggest you speak to Raybo Marine over on the ClassicMako board.

The foam block is also another item for debate. I would also leave that out and just see that the bracket stays properly sealed. Contrary to what many believe, the foam itself doesn't provide any flotation. All it does, is prevent the bracket from filling with water (and negating the flotation the bracket itself provides) in the even it develops a leak. Keep the bracket sealed and leave it out.
 
gearadrift, I hear ya about saving $$$ Ill check out th Ameron as I admit Im not fimilar with that brand paint.

gw204,I feel the same way about the foam.It serves no purpose execpt to pevent the whole bracket from filling up.If done correctly and sealed the right way it wont get water.I was considering once bolted up to use this: http://www.uscomposites.com/foam.html This foam will provide additonal floation unlike the Styrofoam Grady used,plus its a closed cell foam.
 
Anything powdercoated looks good new and is very impact resistant. It doesn't lend to repairing simply when it pulls off, as all coatings do eventually, because it's so thick.

Are engine brackets, lower units, and mid sections factory powder coated?
 
If I had it to do over again I would leave the foam block out. Instead I'd use an inflatable rubber bladder like to ones used in aircraft fuel cells.

The foam does displace water but really doesn't do much if any in the way of floatation. A bladder on the other hand would do both since it would be filled with air. The great thing about the bladder is that you can let the air out to check for leaks plus move it around as needed to check out the insides of the bracket. Once you're done you would refill it with air, put your inspection cover back on and be on your way.

I found that you cannot get your hand too far down the sides or back of the foam to check for water nor check the inside of the bracket to see what shape the metal is in.

HD
 
I found that you cannot get your hand too far down the sides or back of the foam to check for water ..

I usually just pull the drain plug to check for water ... :?
 
Heavy, water is very heavy (no pun intended), if it fills the bracket it can push the stern down and be a liability.
My twin bracket holds about 10 or 12 gals when filled with water to the lowest inspection plate, as I recall.

That's nothing compared to a total void.

That is also why it does provide floatation, does the same as foam in hull does.

The height your hull rides or sits in the marina has nothing to do with foam or no foam.
 
bracket paint

The Pettit paint which matches Grady is Easypoxy Off-White # 3108, not the Sandstone as earlier posted (told you I'd check)!
Mine looks like it came out of the factory. Pics to come.
 
I was wondering what year your hull is that the off white pettit paint matched so well, I have an older (88) hull that seems to be fairly bright white
Thanks
Mike
 
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