The outboard motor which came with our boat proved to be a bit heavy to lower and lift (wife in boat, me in dinghy) so we urgently needed a means to handle it safely.
A look round a scrapyard yielded several lengths of stainless steel tubing of various diameters, one of which had a convenient right-angle bend in it. I cut these to size and attached one length of tube to the pushpit, using U-bolts made from stainless studding. The main jib fits over it and swings in an arc to allow the motor to be lifted, swung and lowered as required.

A simple block and tackle provides the effort, which I made using some old pulleys from the odds and ends box. A nylon sling fits round the outboard.
It is now a very easy matter to fit the engine to the dinghy, and can even be done single -handed if necessary.
Cost of the scrap tubing was £10 and the 1m of studding, nuts and washers cost me £2.60.

Bill Martin

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