Show Us Your Outboard Sling

[s/v Jedi]

The sling is normally first thing I make for a new outboard but this time it has a lifting eye under the hood making it obsolete

[Bill O]

Webbing is the way to go and making a custom one is probably the best.

Currently we are using a Davis (looks similar to Jim's w/the connector clips between the webbing). It's generic sling, works ok and rated for the weight of a ~15hp. Making your own, would make it a tighter fit (less generic) and less strap movement to not interfere w/the pee tube.

[toolbar]

Originally Posted by s/v Jedi

The sling is normally first thing I make for a new outboard but this time it has a lifting eye under the hood making it obsolete

Tohatsu or Mercury? I wouldn't want to take the hood off everytime I hoist the engine - I have lost too much stuff in the water.

Paul

[a64pilot]

Originally Posted by toolbar

Tohatsu or Mercury? I wouldn't want to take the hood off everytime I hoist the engine - I have lost too much stuff in the water.

Paul

I wouldn’t mind at all, the cover is so easily removed and it’s not small like a screwdriver or something.
I have a store bought sling, but always secure it with a steel cable through the hole meant to lock the outboard as security, because one day that sling will break, slip off or something and the cable will catch it.
A lifting ring sounds like a better plan to me.

Looking, it’s listed as “optional” which means it’s not likely there, but for $10 could be.

Thanks Jedi, I think your on to something



According to the parts book, mine has an “engine hook” on the block, might be worth investigating and delete all this sling nonsense.

[s/v Jedi]

I have the new Mercury efi 20hp and the lifting eye works great. If you can’t hold on to the hood of the outboard then how can you trust yourself to put the outboard on the dinghy Using the lifting eye it never was easier and I have been around outboards for a while.

The manual actually shows this as the preferred way

[Capella]

Why do I always find the thread of what I need after the catastrophe?

I raised the sea level slightly yesterday by committing my old but very nice 9.9hp outboard to Davy Jones' locker. I was hoisting it by the carry handle, because that is where the rope was attached when I bought the boat. Of course, it just took one little crack in the plastic to make the handle explode, launching my outboard into submarine mode.

So, when I get the new one (great response from the broker, Bailey's, and the insurer, Vero, got approved same day claim was made) it will not only have a proper sling, but also a safety line in case the hoist let's go for any reason. We learn by making mistakes....

Regards
Michael

[skyhawk]

Originally Posted by pcmm

What about just clipping the lifting line to the outboards carrying handle? it won't lift vertically but it will lift and be a very secure strong attachment point!

exactly what I was thinking....
but given it wouldn't balance in a good orientation I can imagine how that could be a problem.

just thinking out loud here, but if it were me, I'd be looking really hard at a way to permanently mount something to the engine...some eye bolts or hooks...that would allow a simple clip on or tie on, and haul away.

[Capella]

Lifting by the carry handle is what turned my outboard into a submarine - pulling on the hoist (when lifting the motor off the bracket) tends to torque the whole thing backwards, and when it eventually slips off the bracket you might get a jerk. I think that is what caused my lifting handle to disintegrate.

[CassidyNZ]

15hp Mercury so a little heavier than the 2.2hp eggbeaters

My sling is homemade virtually identical to Sanibel post #15. I use automotive seatbelt webbing for this (and a lot of other applications around the boat). Every now and then I go to an auto wrecker’s yard and with his permission and a box cutter, I harvest 5 or 6 seatbelts.

In a previous life I used to do engineering testing of seat belts/mountings in vehicles using pretty sophisticated gear. I made up my sling and tested it using the same gear and turned out I could lift about 1400kgs on my sling before it yielded so I reckon it’s safe for lifting the outboard.

And the configuration is such that with a tight fit on the motor, the “legs” of the sling can only pull together/tighter under load and slipping off is not of any concern. Been using this design for over a decade and have made several versions for all my friends, never had one fail yet.

@s/v Jedi: the images posted imply that the lifting hook/ring of which you speak is inside the outboard cover - does this require the removal of the cover each time you use it? Seems to me there is a reasonably good opportunity to drop the cover in the water?

[Alistair242]

Agree with s/v Jedi. The lifting eye inside the cover/cowling is the safest method. I recently purchased and then returned a production harness. It looked to me that the webbing and/or buckles would fail at some point when the sun and salt has been on them for a period.
It takes a few seconds to remove and then put on the cowling. I’d much prefer to dive for or replace the cowling than the 20hp Tohatsu.
It could be that the harness I found was not great quality.

[dfelsent]

So far I’ve been happy with the line around and up and over the cowl.
I do have a sewing machine and webbing. But I kind of like knots.
And I use the mizzen sheet as a hoist.