Got a reply to my last post on another forum....including it here for help/clarification of the transom notch.

Quote:

Originally Posted by "Davedowneast"

FYI, I have the same boat (1978) and it has the same notch. This is an incredible hull. I took a friend rock fishing in January and when we got back, he said "I wish my boat was that big". My friend owns a 20' Seacraft and what he was saying is that the 20' Wellcraft feels much bigger. I too have some transom issues and plan to do the repairs with a bracket and re-power. By the time I'm done, it will be a 23' and will go just about anywhere. For $2000 and a little work, someone will have a nice boat.

My Reply to "Davedowneast"

Thanks for this post Dave, kind of confirms my feeling that the notch was either "Factory" or was necessary for the original power, especially with your hull being only a year later. This boat had the original 1977 200 Merc Black Max on it when we bought it in '82. That blew the powerhead in '84.