Dinghy Power

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Gary Wyngarden

The good news is I got a great deal. I needed to upgrade my dinghy from a small 8 foot Achilles. I picked up a Zodiac YL 310 plus a Mercury 9.9 HP 2 cycle outboard, for $1200 for both of them (probably about $4000 new). Both are in really good shape. The bad news is the outboard (probably more HP than I need) weighs 74 pounds. Getting it off the dinghy transom and onto a stern rail mount bracket on my Hunter 335 is likely to be taxing on my 54 year old back. I'm looking at an outboard strap and a mini crane offered by West Marine to pick the outboard off the dinghy and swing it onto the stern rail bracket. Anyone have any experience with these or have any better suggestions? Thanks for your help. Gary Wyngarden S/V Shibumi H335
 
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R DEUTSCH

dinghy

I lift the whole thing with my boom,it is a 450 with no back stay.That I can do bt myself,but the motor alone maybe. I bring the entire unit alongside and work from there
 
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Rich

sold it, buying a lighter one

We experienced the same problem last season. We sold the motor and are buying a lighter one. One consideration about the lighter one will be fuel location. If it's got an internal tank, then it'll either need to be emptied or the motor will have to be stored upright.
 
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Jim Ewing

Use the crane

Gary, I've got a motor lift for my 15HP outboard. It's great. The only problem being that the mounting location is about 5" further away from the lift than the length of the lift's swing arm. This means there's a bit of manual intervention to get the motor off the bracket or back on. Other than that it's perfect. Don't get a smaller motor if you plan on doing any gunkholing. You'll want the get-up-and-go particularly if (like us) every outing is an expedition and the dinghy is always filled with fishing and dive gear and lunch. Jim "Prospect"
 
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R DEUTSCH

dinghy

I FORGOT TO MENTION I ALSO HAVE A POWER WINCH THAT HELPSS.INFACT I JUST PUT MINE IN THE WATERAND IT WENT GREAT
 
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Jon W

Garhauer

I have recommended the Garhauer lifting davit. Practical Sailor rayed it a best buy several years ago. It's cheaper, andlifts more weight than cometing brands. It's also easy to use and stow. www.garhauer.com
 
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Russell Egge

Sell it, buy a smaller one (2)

We bought a 9.9 4 cycle merc (115 lbs)to use with our AB RIB. Boy was that a mistake, when we went to lift it we needed a crane (went with the nova lift(SP)). That worked to lift it, with some trepidation, but the mounting screws were too far apart for our beautiful edson bracket. Gave up and bought a 3.5? 2 cycle merc. No need for the crane now. Anyone want to buy a 9.9 4 cycle merc. Russell Egge s/v allie kat
 
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Bob Zolczer

Consider selling the Merc and getting a Nissan

Nissan makes a 9.8 hp 2 cycle that weighs 58 lbs. I have a Nisan 8 that weighs the same 58 lbs. I use safety cable in case it drops, lift it off the motor bracket and step into my RIB tied tight to the sugar scoop stern. Mounting it on the RIB's transom is relatively easy, even with my 58 year old out of shape back and arms. This way I don't have to bother with lifts, etc.
 
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Justin - O'day Owners' Web

Internal Tanks

Gary - I'd sell it and get a smaller one, too. I'd get one in the 6 - 8 hp range with an internal tank and plumbing for an external for longer trips. I know Merc has a set up like that, don't know who else does it. Don't worry about the internal tank. Just close the fuel valve and run the engine until it stalls. Then seal the tank vent. If you are worried about lubrication as the engine dies, kill it manually just before it stalls. I do that with my dink engine and can turn it upside if necessary without spilling a drop. Justin - O'day Owners' Web
 
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John V.

Motor weight

For Merc, and probably other makes, the weight is a funciton of the motor design more than the HP. For example, all of the Merc twins weigh about the same, from 6 HP through 25HP; as a matter of fact, they get a bit lighter as they go higher in HP. My 15 weighs less that the 6.
 
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Mickey McHugh

It Takes Two Baby

to load my 8 HP Honda on a 9' Caribe MVP Light Series RIB (L9) because we use the main halyard. I tie the tender across the stern. I use a line between the motor lift strap and the halyard so its long enough. Using the electric halyard winch, Debbie controls the up and down while I control the side to side. We have no problems with this method. I have put the motor on twice by myself by just 'man handling' the 77 pound Honda. I would not do it in rough weather. BTW, the Caribe L9 weights in at 95 pounds and we use the spinnaker halyard to lift it onto the foredeck. It leaves enough of room to easily walk around.
 
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Kirk Isakson

Outboard Hoist

Gary - I used the outboard lift from West Marine on my old Catalina 27. It attached to the stern rail through a stand-off ring and a tube attachment on the deck. I ran a line off the top of the lift back to a cleat to take any strain off the stern rail while lifting the outboard. You'll want to purchase some sort of cradle for the outboard for easier handling. The system works really well and takes the fear out of losing the outboard overboard.
 
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Frank

Motor weight...

I agree with your concern. I'm in the process of buying a Honda 9.9 four stroke and they weight a hundred pounds. I've been wondering how I'm going to deal with it.
 
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Colin Nielsen

Keep the motor - get a lift

By coincidence, I too am 54 and have an H336. I have a Mariner 15 HP for my Zodiac RIB - same block as a 9.9, just a longer stroke. We have just purchased a lift and it is a backsaver. The power is great for gunkholing - your 9.9 will get you places faster and, what the hell, you already bought it. Great sailing.
 
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Tim Leighton

OCEAN MARINE SYSTEMS

Gary, et.al.: OCEAN MARINE SYSTEMS (British Columbia) sells a very well made outboard lift you may be interested in. Their model MD10 is rated for 100 lbs w/ 4:1 tackle and comes with everything for $279 USD. A bit pricy, but very well made, easy to use and good looking. I must admit that I don't have one myself (although I'm considering), but a couple other boats I know do and they all really like the product. Their phone # is (800) 883-2848 and I've put their web site on the link below. With the fluxuations in the USD to Canadian, the price may be a bit lower these days. Bottom line I would say is to keep the engine and get a good motor lift.
 
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Ray Chapman

Main

I have a Hunter 310 and considered a Motor Lift, but did not want to store it or leave it in place all the time. I found that using the main halyard worked good. I'm 66 and have a bad back.
 
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