Advice please

[Daddy Matt]

Hi everyone

So, picking up my new (to me) boat tomorrow with luck.

It's a big step up from my last. Zodiac 3.8m with a 30hp 2stroke, manual tilt.

Now going Zodiac 5m with 115hp Suzuki on the back, electric lift and hydraulic steering.

I did a lot of towing with the little boat and always strapped the engine over to stop bouncing and swinging.

Question is, what do I do with hydraulic steering and lifting?
Is it normal to just lift the leg and travel on the lift mechanism, will I need to tie the leg to stop it swinging side to side.

Sorry, tad nervous, big budget spent on this and can't afford accidents.

Thanks for any advice

Matt

[smallribber]

I will be interested in reply's here as I am contemplating putting hydraulic steering on a new boat and did not think of this.

On my 60 hp 4.5 m rib which I have towed many times on quite large distances I simply tilt it up and sit it on the fold over stop. Never been an issue

[Orwell boy]

Originally Posted by Daddy Matt

Hi everyone

So, picking up my new (to me) boat tomorrow with luck.

It's a big step up from my last. Zodiac 3.8m with a 30hp 2stroke, manual tilt.

Now going Zodiac 5m with 115hp Suzuki on the back, electric lift and hydraulic steering.

I did a lot of towing with the little boat and always strapped the engine over to stop bouncing and swinging.

Question is, what do I do with hydraulic steering and lifting?
Is it normal to just lift the leg and travel on the lift mechanism, will I need to tie the leg to stop it swinging side to side.

Sorry, tad nervous, big budget spent on this and can't afford accidents.

Thanks for any advice

Matt

Been asked a few times before on here and people do different things ,some adopting and respecting current design improvements and some prefering to add their own belt and braces like their father did ! maybe the outboard manual is your go to on this one !
Personally i travel on the flick down support with engine raised and lowered down hard onto said support ,i used to run my prop bag string under support so i couldnt lose it which i never did ,until i actually relieved the downward hydraulic pressure once by just removing the down pressure a little ,the outboard obviously bounced and the prop bag was gone .
So hard down with a little groan for me and no wood or string

[CJL]

A lot of US websites/forums are adament that you MUST use one of these "transom savers": LINK

I've never used one but I always went back to the reasoning that if my transom can cope with 200kg bouncing as it goes over a wave, it can cope with a pothole. Maybe I'm being simplistic?

A neat alternative are these tubes with elastomer that fit over the rams but I've not seen them at sensible prices so not explored any further - LINK

Instead I've normally used the in built tilt lock on the engine and until last year when one bent slightly, I've never had an issue.

Since last year I've gone back to a lump of soft wood, between the engine and the transom (attached to a rope lanyard) which gradually gets damaged over time but works well for me.

Chris

[Pikey Dave]

The engine will flop over to one side or the other, if it’s been fitted correctly, it shouldn’t hit or foul anything, even in the tilted position. The weedy little stop on Suzuki engines isn’t designed for trailering, it’s designed as a rest for when the boat isn’t moving, on a mooring or pontoon for example. It’s to stop the engine dropping on the hydraulics. It isn’t up to being bounced around on a trailer. You can use a piece of softwood or such like for trailering, or you can go bespoke. See post #5. This subject has been covered at great length over the years. The search function will provide all your information.
https://www.rib.net/forum/f50/transom-saver-73071.html

[Nasher]

This is my solution below.
Although I need to modify it now to fit my new(to me) engine.
Trim down hard onto it, then strap the engine down as well to stop any movement.

I've never agreed with the American method of bracing the engine to the trailer.
Any movement of the boat forwards and backwards on the trailer creates a force which is arrested by the hydraulics and/or tilt tube/saddle of the engine.
Some say that happens when the boat is in use, but it's my opinion that the sudden sharp forces of banging over a pothole at 60mph with the engine tilted up are different to the forces created on water at slower speeds with the engine in the position it's designed to be in when taking a beating.

[Dry_Doc]

I use a similar method to Nasher. A block of softwood between the engine and saddle, then a ratchet strap from the transom towing eyes over the leg.
My engine manual explicitly states the the tilt lock must not be used for supporting the engine when towing.

[cdbxyz]

Originally Posted by CJL

A lot of US websites/forums are adament that you MUST use one of these "transom savers": LINK

I've never used one but I always went back to the reasoning that if my transom can cope with 200kg bouncing as it goes over a wave, it can cope with a pothole. Maybe I'm being simplistic?

A neat alternative are these tubes with elastomer that fit over the rams but I've not seen them at sensible prices so not explored any further - LINK

Instead I've normally used the in built tilt lock on the engine and until last year when one bent slightly, I've never had an issue.

Since last year I've gone back to a lump of soft wood, between the engine and the transom (attached to a rope lanyard) which gradually gets damaged over time but works well for me.

Chris

I do same