Transom thickness on a Gulfstream

Rlloyd

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Looking to replace the scupper thru-hulls on my 2003 Gulfstream. Does anyone happen to know the transom thickness on that boat? Also, I can find the Perko catalog part I want, but haven't found any availability online. Any advice on that front? Thanks in advance.
 

seasick

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Which scuppers? Deck drains?
 

Rlloyd

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I'm referring to the thru-hulls that go through the transom wall and connect to the deck drains. I put the same query to GW and just got their reply: The transom is 2 1/4" thick. The original part (GW part #11-464) is now obsolete, and they're recommending this replacement from Premier Products: GW#11-656, which is Premier's #56553. The problem with that is that Premier's replacement part is stainless, and not recommended to be used below the waterline. Apparently GW thinks my thru-hulls are out of the water? Not with a transom bracket and twin F250's, they aren't! So, I'm still trying to straighten this out with GW. I did find a Perko 0377B08CHR, which is chrome over bronze, and works with a 3" max transom wall - but so far have not found availability anywhere.
 

seasick

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Isn't that hull rated for 400hp max?
In any case, chrome over brass would be fine but as a substitute, a plastic Marelon type fitting would also be fine especially if it isn't a major chore to routinely inspect and possible need to replace in a few years.
 

Rlloyd

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You guys are correct - my typo. They are in fact F200's, and 400hp is the max spec. Grady's response is that the boat was designed with the thru-hulls above the waterline, and sent me a brochure from 2003 showing a picture of it OTW as such. I k now the motor bracket is always suspect, but I won't inspect that until I pull it out of the water in a couple of weeks. In addition, the manuals reference 2 batteries, rather than the 3 Group 27'DPDL's I have in there now (so there's at least 70lb), and I've got about 70lb of lead in the back of the boat between the downrigger balls and various fishing weights. I'm not moving or reducing the batteries, and I seriously doubt that moving 70lb of lead forward will move my transom up by 4", but I will play with it and report back with what I find. I do/don't want to find a bunch of water in the motor bracket... Although original, I'm wondering if the F200's are heavier than the original design criteria that Grady had for twins on the boat.

As for the thru-hulls, I'm not comfortable going to a plastic part or stainless, so I've found a bronze Groco 1 1/2" thru-hull with about 5" of thread on it. I'll have to add adapters to make it a barbed nipple for the drain lines.
 

BirdRock

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Definitely bronze below the waterline if you can’t raise the stern. We replaced all of ours on our gulfstream years ago after the plastic cracked. We had none below the water however.
 

seasick

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I highly doubt that one more battery would submerge the scuppers. I would take a look inside the bracket though. It may have water in it.
 

Mindskew

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My 282 also has the ports at/under the waterline, especially with a full tank of fuel. I’m not sure the part but I’d suggest metal over plastic as I have seen plastic damaged while docking.
A question, how are you managing to reach the clamps on the hoses? On the sailfish, these look like they were installed prior to the deck being attached to the hull. I can’t see any way to access without cutting holes. My hoses need replacement but don’t want to cut the hull.
 

GW Jonathan

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Hi. If your interested, I have two Perko #0323DP.Hose size 1 1/2.Flange OD 2 7/8. Max hull thickness 2 1/8. White plastic, blk flapper. $50.
 

DennisG01

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Just an FYI regarding your comment about not wanting to use "plastic" below the waterline. Seasick mentioned "Marelon"... that is a VERY special type of fiber-reinforced composite. It's not really "plastic", though. It would be an absolutely fine choice and would last many, many years. Just wanted to throw that out for anyone else reading this so they don't get the wrong opinion of Marelon. It is an EXCELLENT product.
 

seasick

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Thanks Dennis for making that clearer.
 

DennisG01

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Thanks Dennis for making that clearer.
Thanks, Seasick. Misinformation spreads way too easily on the 'net - especially when an opinion is made without knowing all the facts.

For what it's worth, Rlloyd, I'm not trying to convince you against using bronze - of course bronze is excellent - just, as SS mentioned, helping to further clear things up.
 

Rlloyd

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Thanks for all of the advice so far. Jonathan, my hull thickness is 2 1/2", so I could not use the thru-hulls that you have - but thanks anyway. I do understand that the Marelon is a glass-reinfoced product and very sturdy. I just think that if it's going to stay below the waterline, I want the peace-of-mind of bronze. I have enough things keeping me up at night...

As for the thru-hulls being below the waterline, I did some experiments. Before starting this, with 2/3 main tank, and full aux, the top of the thru-hull flange was about 1.5" below the water. Turns out I had about 100lb of lead and other stuff back near the transom, so I removed all of that from the boat. This brought it up about 3/4". I then moved all of that weight to the bow, and that brought it up another 3/4". I then had my wife stand up on the bowsprit, along with the lead (she's about 125), and brought it up so the top of the hole in the thru-hull was just breaking water. That still leaves me with about 2" more to gain before I can get the bottom of the flange out of the water, and there's no more easily moved weight in the transom area left to work with. I have NOT opened the inspection hatch on the bracket yet, but did some calculations: The bracket is about 6-7 cubic feet in volume, which would represent about 350lb+ of water, if full, and all of it is behind the transom. When I haul the boat out, if the bracket is full of water that should give me enough buoyancy to solve the thru-hull problem. There's still the issue of the main tank being 2/3 full, so an additional 30 gallons won't help - but the center of mass for the fuel is about 4' forward of the transom. We'll see, stay tuned.
 

Rlloyd

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An update on this topic: After hauling the boat out, I checked the bracket for water. There was about 1/2" in the bracket, and no signs of major leakage, so I don't think there was much more than that while the boat was in the water. I then had a thru-hull removed from the deck drains, and the good news there is that the transom is dry. So now I'm still flummoxed as to why my thru-hulls are sitting 2" lower than they should be, and are 1/2 under water. I know that 3rd battery and the weight of all three batteries is probably higher than Grady's designers planned for (maybe 100lb total), but I don't think that's enough to account for it. Maybe these F200's are heavier than Grady expected. So my thru-hulls are still half underwater, but the boat seems to otherwise be in good shape. While it's out, I'm having the deck drains and the 1 1/2" hoses to the thru-hulls replaced. The hoses were definitely old and cracked, so that was needed.
 
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doug228

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Do you have the inline 4 or the V6 200s?
 

Bird Blaster

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My 2007 Gulfstream w/ twin 200 V6's always sit below the waterline. Granted I didn't check the inspection hatch on the bracket, the scumline on the boat shows it always sat that way well before I became the owner. Mine are stainless, but I am in freshwater so haven't been as concerned. I do inspect them every year, I had the hoses changed and I usually try to put a fresh sealant around the outer diameter of the through hull just so I feel better.
 

doug228

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Did grady rig the 200 v6 4 strokes from the factory? Im guessing the older 400 HP rated boats are expecting two strokes.
The inline 4 is around 100lbs lighter. Saving 200lbs would make a big difference.
 

doug228

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I know in the seafarer grady moved the fuel tank forward once the 4 strokes came around to balance to boat better. Im in the process of installing a new main tank in the front of mine, no auxilary.

Not sure what the configuration is on a gulfstream.