TOPIC: 1959 Crosby Capri

I am about to begin work on a 1959 Crosby Capri. I previously knew nothing about the boat until last week when I tried to find everything I could but came up short in most cases, So I turn to you all. If you know anything about this type of boat please respond and I really appreciate it!

Some of the questions I can't fill in are:
-I know the boat is one of the first Crosby produced to be fiberglass, but it is 100% fiberglass or is there wood construction built into the hall with the glass?
-How would you be able to tell that the transom is bad? If it's all fiberglass I thought it wouldn't rot - so this somewhat goes back to the first question
-Once I remove the gel coat, is it okay to simply repaint with polyurethane paint and no add a new gel coat?


Best,
Cobalt

Welcome aboard!, glad you're here. First most boats all have wood stringers that are glassed over, even now. It depends on the manufacturer. In your case I believe that is true. Also most of them had plywood transom covered in fiberglass. Skinned on the inside and outside. You can check the stringers and transom by drilling a 1/8" hole in the top of a stringer and look a at the color of the wood coming out. If it's very dark or black it's probably rotted.
Same for the transom drill a 1/8" hole maybe 1/8" deep or so and look at the woid coming out. Drill it toward the bottom. You can fill both holes with epoxy afterward. If the wood is dark or black or actual water comes out then you know you'll have to replace the stringers or transom or both.
As for the gell coat it depends on how thick it is. You. Ay actually be able to wet sand it and bring it back to life, unless it has a lot of scratches or gouges. If it does you can use vinylester to fill them and regell coat or fill them with epoxy but then you'll HAVE to paint it because gelcoat won't stick to epoxy.

Bob

Don't know if you tried our library yet for more info.
www.fiberglassics.com/library/index.php?title=Crosby

Thank you! Would you say that any boat past 20 years would most likely need the transom replaced? Also I have no purchased the boat yet, but this picture was included. Do you think this condition already suggests rotting of the transom?

Thank you, I will definitely take a look at that!

There more than likely won’t be any stringers in your boat. Crosby used balsa as a core sandwiched between two built up layers of fiberglass. If it were mine, I would gel coat it. Longer lasting and able to be more easily repaired/patched from mishaps. Also helps to diminish that overshine so apparent with acrylic finishes. If restoring to original, and want that original look, gel coat is the way to go. If you do it yourself, it isn’t easy. If you have it done, it isn’t inexpensive. The transom? Test drill and look for moisture and/or rot. Looks like the transom has been modified. Remove the added extension and poke around.

Lee Wangstad

I would guarantee that a sandwich transom that old with holes drilled in it for attachments will be rotten.

I would agree after doing more research. How long would you think it would be able to hold a 50HP motor without cracking and needing to be replaced lol.

3 seconds after punching it fast forward
Sorry, couldn't stop myself.
It would probably hold just because of the glass skins but why take a chance on loosing the boat, motor and personnel. Swimming back to shore and going home with an empty trailer which you could sell for more than you paid for the boat.

So you're saying I shouldn't get it as it would not be worth it?

I think he might be saying if the transom broke and boat sank, then you would only have a trailer which sometimes can sell for a similar price for a whole unrestored project of boat, motor, and trailer before restored. The boats I do only have value to me as it is often easier to invest more dollars to fix them than the dollars they are worth when done... unless certain boats have rarity or some historical background or one of the fine wooden boats. The Crosby boat company and history in their evolution is interesting to me... but not sure they are worth any more than a person is willing to fix for fun with their own time and materials. I just think typically people offer the good advice of transom replacement for everyone’s safety since it it likely extremely rare that a typical outboard boat of this age more than likely needs that replacement due to rotting wood. If it has screw holes below the waterline or has sat outside during its life, the bet is you will find a weak or even really rotten wood inside that transom. We don’t want to see anything bad happen to anyone boating like in this attached video where somebody took a chance on and old transom and it did not turn out well... we want to see everyone return to the dock safely under your own power. A restoration is worth it if you yourself feels it is worth it. The old saying I heard years ago that the definition of a boat is ... a Big hole in the water that you constantly pour money into until you get rid of it... but with that said, I am a die hard boater and keep learning how to do more work myself each year. Good luck with whatever your decision is, but just know that there is plenty of expert help on this site to see you through a complete restoration.

I'm sorry if I mislead you. The good Dr. 'splained it better. By all means buy the boat if you are able to do a project.
Some boats are quite easy to replace a transom and there are plenty of videos on the net to run you through from start to finish.
Here's a pic of a transom I replaced that was impossible to access from the inside. This is what you might encounter.
We all want you to be safe on the water.

Oh no, you are not misleading me at all. I am completely brand new to boats and truly appreciate any advice you guys give me. I see your picture and have done some research on how much a DIY transom fix would cost, but if you wouldn't mind, how much did it cost you to fix that? I believe I would be able to do it for around $500 but I would appreciate the input from someone who's actually done it haha!

Crosby Capris are nice boats, but I just wanted to jump in here because I see this possibly heading down a path you may not like. Don't assume it will just be transom replacement. Unless you know the previous owner did work on it, or you have properly inspected the boat to positively know there are no underlying issues, you should expect that this would be a big project. If this boat does have a balsa core, you're in for a lot more work. Usually they're wet/rotted and a lot of people who have replaced the balsa core in their boat say, "never again" - it's nasty work. Also, and I am no expert on Crosby Capris, but I believe there is wood sandwiched in the deck on the bow. With all the hardware typically attached, you can probably expect water intrusion there too. Several years ago I looked at a Crosby Capri listed here locally for free. I passed on it because of all the work that I knew would be involved.

For the transom, simply removing one of the bolts holding on that aluminum plate and inspecting the hole may be an indicator. If they didn't use stainless bolts (one looks pretty rusty in that picture), then you may remove a bolt looking like this which will tell you everything: