34 LRC Motor Lifting Davit and Transom Mount

[FlyWright]

I've been pondering how to best handle my new-to-me 15 Merc 2-stroke OB that weighs in at 77 lbs/35kgs. I need to be able to transfer it easily and safely to and from the dink, so I've decided to install a Garhauer motor lifting davit in the cockpit of my Californian 34 LRC. The davit can be folded and stored in the lazarette when not in use. I will also install a fixed motor mount to store the OB on the transom during cruising season when it gets the lion's share of use.

My plan is to attach the fixed motor mount to the upper port transom corner, above the scupper shown in the pic below. There's a flip-to-open transom rail gate at the port corner of the transom, but the mount will not interfere with boardings. The rail gate can be opened to provide more clearance during the transfer of the motor to or from the cockpit.

The davit will mount in the cockpit at the vertical rail shown behind the net loop to the left of the F in FlyWright, just to stbd of the rail gate hinge. The 34 inch boom is just right from this location to pull the motor from the dink and place it on the mount. When the boom is moved to stbd, close to centerline, it will align well to assist in pulling the dink (or mermaids) aboard the swimstep.

Before I drill the first hole, I thought I'd seek the counsel of other 34 LRC owners who have traveled this road before me. It appears to me that the transom is solid FRP with no coring. CHC, didn't you drill yours for a mount? What does it look like in there?

Any and all words of advice and wisdom appreciated before I drill the first hole.

 

[Giggitoni]

Just a thought on whether the transom is solid FRP. I wonder if you could pass a "stud finder" across the area to gain a bit of confidence that it is, in fact, solid???

 

[FlyWright]

I think the FRP is too thick for the sensitivity of my cheap 9V stud finder...plus it only shows variances in density. It it's solid throughout or cored throughout, mine wouldn't show the difference. Maybe I need gelcoat penetrating radar or a boat MRI for a full picture of the inside of my transom.

Now that I think more about it, IIRC, CHC had installed an inspection plate on the inside of the transom to access his mounting hardware. I believe there was a very little airspace between the layers of transom layup and cap/inside cockpit layup. If that's the case, I'd thru-drill to the cockpit with a backing plate or fender washers.

 

[Pack Mule]

I had to add an inspection port when I installed
my davits . The one with the hose bib was already there . I had about a 3" gap between main hull and liner . I put a 1/8 thick stainless steel backing plate on each side .

 

[chc]

Al;
Sorry, I was away from the computer. I've got pics on my phone, & will try to figure out how to get them in here. Space between the inside of the transom, & the inner transom is about 1.75 inches +/-. I drilled & installed 6 bolts w/fender washers as backing plates. If I had to do it again, I might go for a bigger backing plate assembly; more like a one piece plate. My Tohatsu 8 hp is about 80#; I can see a tiny bit of flex if I wiggle the mount & motor. Less than I had before, but still there. A solid plate would work, but might be interesting to get into the 6" inspection plate hole. Top to bottom space is somewhat limited; hence my use of the fender washers.

 

[FlyWright]

Thanks for texting those pics, Chris. They helped a lot.

I got the davit Mon eve and it was installed by dinner time on Tues. Also got the motor mount from Bligh installed. They work together like a charm.

I drilled straight through the transom hull and liner. There was a small airspace between them, but not much at all....maybe 1/2 inch. I plan to paint the fender washers and screw head white to disguise the mounting hardware a bit. I see no flexing when I shake the motor on the mount.

I'm very impressed with the price and quality of the Garhauer lifting davit. The geometry works very well for my boat. As you can see from the pics below, when the lifting davit is folded and stowed, all that remains permanently installed is the upper support ring and the mount ball which looks like a hitch ball.

I had hoped that the ball would be removable, leaving just the threaded female hole in the relatively flat mounting plate. Instead, they made it so the post is permanent in the mounting plate so when the ball is unscrewed, a threaded post remains protruding from the deck. I plan to modify this over time or ask them for a redesigned mount ball. I'd prefer to have just the mounting plate remaining when the ball (with threaded stud) is removed.

Soon I'll move the dink from the bow to the swimstep for cruising season. I'm confident the davit will make the dink loading process much easier.

 

[Capt Q]

Davit

Very clean installation!

 

[robs523]

that looks great! I've been pondering something similar, but want to make a davit that serves as a pot-puller/outboard hoist/dinghy hoist but doesn't get in the way of fishing. I feel like this is going to be a dumb question, but where's your dinghy stored? We have a transom-mount inflatable with an aluminum floor that must weight at least 150lb and the current system I have of hoisting it on the swimstep manually and tying it around my rails while wearing grooves in them is driving me crazy, but I still haven't figured out an alternative. I like the dinghy because it's handles the four of us, two dogs, and gear easily. I like it a lot more that I bought an outboard last week, but inevitably either me, the outboard, or both will end up in the water if I keep hauling everything manually. Thanks for the thread, I haven't been on here in quite a while and it's great to be back!

 

[FlyWright]

The net in post one is used to secure my dink to the swimstep and aft rail. The davit lifts the motor onto the mount and tips the dink up onto the swimstep. The davit is removable in 10 seconds and easily stored in the laz.

During fishing season, the dink (9.5 ft Achilles with wood floor) is moved to the bow and rides on foam cradles. Giggitoni and I lifted it along the stbd side last week onto the bow...didn't even get it wet. Its 15 inch tubes are low enough for me to see over from the lower helm.

 

[herbh]

A very common davit system in BC is the seawise system:
Home - Sea Wise Davit System

It is quite ingenious - the engine mount hinges off the transom, keeping the outboard stored in a vertical position. It is simple to use and recovery/deployment is easy. The only downside is that with an inflatable (RHIB) you need a trim motor to clear the outboard over the aft of the lower pontoon.
Cheers, Herb

 

[Capt Q]

What does it cost?

 

[herbh]

I think my neighbor paid about 6K CDN, but it would be best to contact Seawise......

 

[FlyWright]

Herb, that style is in the way for my sturgeon fishing in the fall-spring season. I prefer storing my motor on a dedicated mount which lightens the load on the lower tube and swimstep. I've always liked those and the Weaver Levers. They're well built, but expensive for part-year use. Besides, I'd still need a place to store the motor when the dink was on the bow.

On a small boat, it's nice to have options...and redundancy!

 

[FlyWright]

Update:

This is from Post 6:

"I'm very impressed with the price and quality of the Garhauer lifting davit. The geometry works very well for my boat. As you can see from the pics below, when the lifting davit is folded and stowed, all that remains permanently installed is the upper support ring and the mount ball which looks like a hitch ball.

I had hoped that the ball would be removable, leaving just the threaded female hole in the relatively flat mounting plate. Instead, they made it so the post is permanent in the mounting plate so when the ball is unscrewed, a threaded post remains protruding from the deck. I plan to modify this over time or ask them for a redesigned mount ball. I'd prefer to have just the mounting plate remaining when the ball (with threaded stud) is removed."

I was at the Richmond Boat Show with Giggitoni and Markpierce recently and Garhauer had a booth there. I spoke to the rep, Mark, about the option of modifying the mount ball plate to allow the stud to remain with the ball when the ball is stored to eliminate the toe stubbing risk. Mark immediately agreed that not only was it possible but that they liked the idea and would make a new one for me at no cost.

Last week I received my new ball mount plate that fit into the old deck holes and has the threaded nut welded to the bottom of the plate. Below is the result with and without the ball.

Kudos to Garhauer Marine for their tremendous customer support and excellent quality hardware. It's refreshing today to find a company that provides great products and customer support at a reasonable price.

Thanks, Garhauer!

 

[robs523]

Looks great! Unfortunately I’m getting transferred down south so it’s with a sad heart that I have to try to sell. We've had such a blast on this boat, so many great adventures and memories for the kids and my wife and I. It kills me to sell, especially after finally getting her running good again, but it’s just way too pricey to try to get a boat this size from Alaska to Texas! I guess the good news is that I don’t have to worry about getting the outboard on the dinghy anymore? And what a great story, customer service like that is very uncommon these days!

 

[FlyWright]

Sorry to learn you're having to sell your 34 LRC. They are truly great boats! Versatile, capable, efficient and easy to manage/operate/maintain.

I'll watch for the ad for Magnetic North when you list it. Maybe a classified ad here can help you with the sale. Hopefully there will be another great vessel in your near Texas future.

 

[Capt Q]

Not if you are Active Duty, my 34 was shipped to Hono and back to Kodiak.

USCG E-9 ret

 

[Lady_K]

Our setup is similar. We have been very happy with the motor lift since we installed it around 2000.