getting the outboard on the dinghy

[Tillsbury]

I lifted my old heavy outboard off the rail for the final time today, and into the car to get sold. The electric outboard has proved its ability beyond any doubt for me. It lives in the corner of the cockpit locker and the battery “head” lives down below for security. I can lift the outboard from the locker on to the dinghy very easily with one hand and no risk of damage. The battery then comes on last with one hand once we’re ready to leave.

The silence and ease of use and control are side benefits. Removing the chore of transferring it to and from the dinghy is worth the cost on its own, along with removal of petrol from the boat.

[HBrew]

+1 for the caddy - cheap, doesn’t take much space
With a block and tackle on the boom you can do it singlehanded. With a halyard you need 2 or in my case three people (one for the winch, one to hold the motor and one in the dinghy) due to high freeboard and not wanting to let the outboard touch the sides

[conachair]

Bit smaller but spare halyard through a moving block on the pole works for me.

[conchaway]

Place the motor in the dinghy. Row up to the nearest beach. Get out.Take the motor out. Install the motor on the transom while standing on the beach.

[Dockhead]

Well, you've gotten a variety of answers, and this corresponds to the variety of different ways to do this


I have experience with all of them. My comments:


1. Manhandling. Even with a light outboard, it is very dangerous to try to pull it on and off by hand and manhandle it into position. It's one thing to do this when everything is still, but on a moving boat? The risk of dropping the motor into the drink, or tripping and falling yourself, is significant even with a light motor and even in relatively calm weather. Therefore, even with really small outboards (like my present 3.5 Mercury), I prefer to have some kind of tackle on it.


2. Halyard. Better than manhandling, at least in calm weather, but drawbacks of this are you don't have purchase without a winch (therefore you need two people), and most importantly, the angle of lift pulls the motor into the side of the boat. It works ok only if there are two people, one on the winch, with the other holding the motor off the side of the boat as it goes up. If the boat is rolling, fuggedaboutit.


3. Outboard crane. Works great. I had one of those Garhauer jobs on my last boat, and it was great. Useful for more purposes than just handling the outboard. Can be used easily single handed. Drawback -- if the boat is pitching, you want to lift from midships, not from the stern. Also, more carp installed on deck is more windage (why I don't have one now).



4. Halyard via guyed-out pole. This solves the problem of the motor bashing into the side as the boat rolls, but is laborious to rig, and takes two people.


5. Block and tackle via preventered-out boom. This is what I use now, not having an outboard lift on my present boat. Relatively quick and easy to rig, although obviously more of a faff than an outboard crane. Big advantage is that this can be used single handed. Use a block and tackle with a cam cleat, and you can lift the outboard clear of the lifelines, then get back on board, and haul the boom back in, and single-handedly put the motor back on the pushpit.




So, you pays your money and makes your choices.

[jmorrison146]

[ATTACH]187702

Forespar Motor Mate uses a small base permanently mounted on the deck breaks down into three pieces and stores on a compact bag. I have two and will part with one if you're interested.

[MartinR]

Originally Posted by yalnud

Probably the worst method one could use. Hey let's lift 40 pound over the side of the boat with or work point on the center line..... good way to jump a sheeve

We use halyards all the time for lifting, also much heavier objects than outboards. Never jumped a sheave. This is a method that has stood the test of time, from the Vikings onwards.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by MartinR

We use halyards all the time for lifting, also much heavier objects than outboards. Never jumped a sheave. This is a method that has stood the test of time, from the Vikings onwards.

To eliminate the risk of jumping the sheave, use a spinnaker halyard reeved through a block hanging from the masthead crane, not a halyard which uses an in-mast sheave.

[Alec H]

We've been using the main halyard over the transom, with dinghy secured to the transom. The engine, a 15, wants to swing into the stern; I place fenders across that section. We use the winch to lift the motor off the pulpit mount and lower it a few feet; it rests on the fenders while I climb into the dingy. Then lower the rest of the way. It takes a little muscle to pull the motor away from the fenders and onto the dinghy transom, but with a 4 that should not be a problem. Make sure your safely line is long enough to lower all the way to the dinghy transom.

[hamburking]

I had a yamaha 4 on the stern rail of my Pearson 30. So, exact same situation.

First tie a safety line.

I used a thick braid line, maybe 3/4 inch, for good grip. I tie this to the lifting handle of the yamaha. Now, the important part is to tilt the outboard all the way up (like if to keep the prop out of the water when in use). Then loosen the tansom bolts, and lift off the stern rail. Then, holding the easy grip line, lower to the helper in the dinghy. With you holding the outboard easily now with the line, the helper can move it right over the dinghy transom and you lower into place. You still keep a good grip until the transom bolts are nice and tight. Then tilt the outboard back to normal use position.

The big "AHA" moment was realizing that the outboard had to be tilted up. With the full tilt, it lifts easily from a line in the handle, in the right position to be lifted, lowered, and attached.

It helps to have good upper body strength. I recommend lowering and raising a 10kg bruce with 20 feet of heavy chain (at least), by hand, every time you anchor. You'll have enormous guns in no time.

In the end I switched to a honda 2.3. Much lighter.

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by Dockhead

To eliminate the risk of jumping the sheave, use a spinnaker halyard reeved through a block hanging from the masthead crane, not a halyard which uses an in-mast sheave.

DH, the sheave jumping is simply not an issue in any reasonable mast head design. There just isn't room for the halyard to get off the sheave, at least on any of the boats I've owned. I suppose if one was using a small diameter wire halyard and had badly worn sheaves in a lousy designed sheave box, then it would at least be possible... but wire halyards are soooo passe and worn sheaves should be renewed before a jam occurs at sea!

The spinny halyard is a possibility IF the motor storage is forward, like in a sail locker, but if stored aft as many are, the main halyard or topping lift are w hat works.

It's just a non problem... nearly 40 years of using the halyard for hoisting stuff and no jams or jumps.

Jim

PS I have done this deed single handed a couple of times. Takes several trips to the mast, and leading the fall of the halyard to a cleat near the rail, AND fairly calm conditions, but it can be done. Much better two handed!

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

DH, the sheave jumping is simply not an issue in any reasonable mast head design. There just isn't room for the halyard to get off the sheave, at least on any of the boats I've owned. I suppose if one was using a small diameter wire halyard and had badly worn sheaves in a lousy designed sheave box, then it would at least be possible... but wire halyards are soooo passe and worn sheaves should be renewed before a jam occurs at sea!

The spinny halyard is a possibility IF the motor storage is forward, like in a sail locker, but if stored aft as many are, the main halyard or topping lift are w hat works.

It's just a non problem... nearly 40 years of using the halyard for hoisting stuff and no jams or jumps.

Jim

PS I have done this deed single handed a couple of times. Takes several trips to the mast, and leading the fall of the halyard to a cleat near the rail, AND fairly calm conditions, but it can be done. Much better two handed!

OK, thanks for the correction!


I always did this midships, so the spinny halyard was ok.


I never used a halyard as far back as the pushpit. The angle of pull, combined with large freeboard, at least on my boat, would have made that not very useful. I always manhandled the outboard to the rail midships, and then used the halyard from there.


I guess different ships, different long splices, etc.


But after all I found the block and tackle from the boom to be much easier, and much better in rougher weather since you didn't need to manually keep the outboard off the side.

[Bigmarv]

these various high fuss/effort solutions are obviously better than just learning to row.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by Bigmarv

these various high fuss/effort solutions are obviously better than just learning to row.

The snide implication being that people discussing outboards don't even know how to row? Many on here, including me, have been rowing since before they could walk, and love a good row in appropriate circumstances.

But try rowing against a brisk headwind and head sea in a RIB sometime.

Try rowing a mile and back to pick up someone off the pier.

I am towing engineless dinghies all the time -- the people are always exhausted and grateful. Last summer in fact I got radio calls requesting tows, from one family

[ballvalve]

my suzuki 2.5 weighs next to nothing why not look at a lighter O/B