Tin Boat Transom Corner End Cap Hack

[DearJon]

Hello, all. Hopefully, the title of this thread isn't too confusing. I have a 2015 War Eagle 2170 Blackhawk. The area under the corner caps that tie in the transom to the gunnels is open and there is a "hole" back there where water can drain down to the bilge. The problem is when you drop a tool, or in the case of the other day, a fish under there. I had a Mangrove Snapper flip off the hook and skitter under the transom cap only to fall down the hole. You cannot fit your arm in there as it's very tight. It took me three hours trying to "fish" that fish out and it was already smelling ripe. I ended up having to use one of those little flexible claws meant to retrieve dropped bolts in an engine compartment. I attached a small bore scope camera to the end so I could see what I was attempting to grab. Anyways, I ordered some perforated SS sheet metal online and fashioned some guards to prevent losing anything else down these holes. I used SS self-tapping screws to prevent corrosion and then painted everything to better match the boat's interior. If anyone is interested in performing this mod, I can post material specs and more details.

 

[DaleH]

The mod looks great! And having once dropped an eel into the bilge of my Dad's boat once, I can certainly sympathize!

 

[airshot]

Looks really good, thanks for posting!!

 

[FuzzyGrub]

Very nice solution! 8) 8) 8)

My son had a Tracker mod-V that had similar corners. I wanted to put a bilge pump outlet in one of them. That was before I tried to get my hand in there.

 

[LDUBS]

That is a great idea to fix a potential pain the a$$ problem. I can imagine the look on your face when that fish slipped down there. :shock: Thanks for sharing.