A good way of hoisting the outboard motor on and off the rail

There are very few things that I dislike about sailing, but moving the outboard motor on and off the boat is one of those things. I always worry that I will drop the motor overboard and/or destroy my back. So when I acquired a 5-horse outboard for my Ericson 34, I looked at various cranes and davits. I was not happy with their bulky looks and their substantial prices, and then I discovered the Swing Lift - an ingenious metal frame that guides the motor on an off the rail without the use of any special-purpose tackle (www.swing-lift.com). Instead, the main halyard is used to provide the lifting power. A Youtube video explains how it works: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NMQPVnmX-0U


Installation is easy and only modestly-sized screws are needed since, at all times, there is very little pressure on the mounts. I was surprised at how thin the transom is on the E34, so I used machine screws with a backing plate instead of the wood screws that were provided with the device.


I have found that the Swing Lift works as advertised, even in choppy water, even single-handed. I really like the way that it swings the motor well away from the hull. I always rig a safety line and use it to control the swinging of the motor (but that only works with two people). I imagine that excess swinging could actually lift the motor handle out of the Swing Lift’s hook, and I don’t want to take any chances.


The Swing Lift is well made and unobtrusive. It costs less than 300 US dollars. I highly recommend it.


In the photo, the motor bracket is a DIY job that I made out of Starboard plastic. It rests on both horizontal rails. I made the carrier for the motor out of bits and pieces in my shop, based on plans provided on the Swing Lift web site. I leave it on the motor full-time.

Cool solution to an old problem. I am considering adding a very small swim platform to the transom to aid with the same task, but that's one more option to consider.
Thanks for sharing.
Nice looking bracket too!

My solution is the Torqueedo 1003 electric, ordered today for $1727 from Jamestown (includes $95 shipping, no sales tax; West Marine is $2,170 with CA sales tax).

At 29 pounds, it's lighter than a gas or propane outboard, and the heavy Lithium battery can loaded into the dinghy separately if need be.

The reviews are mixed, although they are for gas outboards too. We'll see if electric power can compete in the world of storage, infrequent use, and salt crystals.

The 2015 battery is said to charge fully in 7 hours of house current. Formerly the number was 15 hours.

At slow speeds, 2.5 knots, the run time is said to be 10 hours. or 25 miles. We'll see.

Christian, Please give us a full review once you have used it enough to do so. I am considering the same electric outboard for my new dinghy. its either going to be the torqeedo travel 1003 or the mercury 3.5

Christian Williams said:

My solution is the Torqueedo 1003 electric, ordered today for $1727 from Jamestown (includes $95 shipping, no sales tax; West Marine is $2,170 with CA sales tax).

At 29 pounds, it's lighter than a gas or propane outboard, and the heavy Lithium battery can loaded into the dinghy separately if need be.

The reviews are mixed, although they are for gas outboards too. We'll see if electric power can compete in the world of storage, infrequent use, and salt crystals.

The 2015 battery is said to charge fully in 7 hours of house current. Formerly the number was 15 hours.

At slow speeds, 2.5 knots, the run time is said to be 10 hours. or 25 miles. We'll see.

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Your electric weighs the same as my Honda 2.3 hp 4 stroke. (http://marine.honda.com/outboards/motor-detail/BF2.3). Cost new is under $1K. The electric is, of course, quiet and you also don't have to worry about ethanol befouling your fuel system. But weight-wise, the little Honda does the job for me.

In 2013 we installed a Garhauer lifting davit for our old Merc 9.8

It worked great for the 4-month, 2200 mile Down East Circle. It was easily removed and stowed when not wanted. Probably saved my back.
Last winter we got rid of the old Merc (wife and daughter could never start the thing) and bought a Torqueedo which we absolutely love (we have 2 batteries).
The Torq requires no effort at all to get on and off, and we have a particularly difficult, very narrow transom with an outboard rudder,

I have the Garhauer lift as well. Used it with our Tohatsu 9.8. After 4 seasons I realized we never go over 5mph and the Tohatsu is heavy and a pain due to the constant worry about ethanol. Thought about the Torqueedo but stumbled across a 1991 Merc 5 hp with only 25 hours. The two stroke only weighs 30# and starts on the first pull every time.

lnill said:

I have the Garhauer lift as well. Used it with our Tohatsu 9.8. After 4 seasons I realized we never go over 5mph and the Tohatsu is heavy and a pain due to the constant worry about ethanol. Thought about the Torqueedo but stumbled across a 1991 Merc 5 hp with only 25 hours. The two stroke only weighs 30# and starts on the first pull every time.

Click to expand...

That's a piece of luck with the two-stroke. I looked around but couldn't find one. On the other hand, we are lucky here on San Juan Island (in many ways, actually!): there are only three gas stations, but one of them sells ethanol-free regular.