How concerned should I be?

[Timporal]

Hi team, I'm looking at purchasing an '05 25 in Alaska. There are a couple red flags that I would love to get your thoughts on. This will be my first C-Dory and first boat.
The fiberglass on the transom is chipped away, and some sort of black substance has been applied to seal it. I'm including pics of a couple other problem areas below the sink in the cabin.
How concerned should I be about this? thoughts on how to look/test for bigger issues I'm having someone get a moisture meter on the transom tomorrow.

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[pcg]

If someone did a repair job that sloppy it's safe to assume the top of the transom was compromised and moisture got inside and it's now trapped, which means rot. Click on my icon to the left and then click on the number 91 under "Media" to see what I went through to repair the sloppy repair job someone did on the top of my transom. If you click on each photo, you can see commentary on the right. So yes, you should be concerned, but it is also something you can repair. There are posts in this forum of much worse transom damage that owners have repaired themselves.

As for the areas under the sink, the floor on these boats, from the forward bulkhead back to the transom, is balsa core. Any penetration (i.e. screw holes) allows water to get into the balsa and subsequently cause rot. The seriousness of the issue and the repair required ranges from minor to very major. If you search on the forum for "balsa" you will get lots of hits and can read how owners have dealt with this. I would be concerned.

 

[thataway]

It is hard to know what the real extent of damage is, but you shoud be doing moisture readings on the bottom of the hull (hoping the boat is on a trailer), on the transom, and the cockpit floor. The area under the tanks which are now 21+ year also has a history of rot, and if the tank has been leaking, there may be damage on the inside of the actual hull layer. Both moisture meter and sounding with a phenolic hammer, bsck of screwdriver etc, will give a lot of information. Is there a marine surveyor near by?

Even though his books are somewhat controversial, I suggest buying and reading David Pascoe. "Surveying Fiberglass Power Boats". You should read and reread the section on moisture meters. There are some articles on the use of a moisture meter by Pascoe before you get the book. One factor in the negative for a boat in Alaska, is the number of freeze / thaw cycles in Alaska, the boat has gone thru, may give you some good ideas if you want to take on what might be a serious project and repair. If you decide to move forward with a project, there are plently of C Brats to help you!

With that work done, an depending on what you find with the moisture meter in the cabin, around the aft cabin bulkhead the transom, cockpit floor, and bottom of the boat inside and outside. I would be offering on the lower end of prices to buy that boat.

 

[Timporal]

Thank you both for your thoughts! I'm including a few more pics of questionable areas and rusty hardware in the cabin. Is rusty hardware like this just part of the marine environment (and should have been SS to begin with) or is this a sign of something more troubling? I know all boats are projects, but I'm honestly not trying to get into major project boat territory for at least the first 1-2 years

A marine surveyor already did a valuation survey, and stated:
-"Hull port and starboard side was tested with a moisture meter and low readings found".
-"Transom was moisture tested and elevated levels were found. Transom has over 20 holes drilled by factory to install trim tabs, engines, depth sounder, drains, and other equipment. It is not uncommon to have moisture in the transom. The transom was also percussion tested and only slight variations were found that were too suttle to specifically state that the transom was delaminated. The transom has been repaired previously and should be recoated".

I'm having a different surveyor come out with me tomorrow. Unfortunately, it's been dumping for a week here, so I'm not sure how accurately we'll be able to do any moisture metering.