Removing Dinghy from R29 when on trailer?

[Mastercraft]

Looking for an easy way to remove dinghy on R29 while it is on trailer. I need to remove dinghy to fit in garage R29 in garage. I have a 15ft high garage ceiling. Could I rig up a pulley system and hang the dinghy when boat is 4 feet from back of garage. I also have a small John Deere with a front end loader. Could I rig something to the tractor?

 

[Rocky]

Mastercraft,
Using the tractor sounds tempting to me on the surface.....But if you can devise a pulley system to just raise it above the transom from the ceiling in one step, that sounds like it would eliminate climbing in and out of the boat while trying to transfer the weight from the dinghy davits to the tractor while releasing the locks....

Obviously I haven't seen your set up, but the few steps it takes, the more likely you are to do it.

Later!!

Rocky

 

[scross]

Our old fiberglass hull RIB dinghy weighed in at 90 pounds which may be significantly lighter than your dinghy.
We don’t tow more than just a few miles with the dinghy on the boat for a whole host of reasons. That means we remove and reinstall the dinghy on and off the davits 4-6 times a year. Not a fun task but not too difficult. It typically takes two people but I have both installed and removed the dinghy single handed.
Since we do this task in a marina parking lot no hoists are involved.
To remove dinghy just tie a line to the upper handle of the dinghy, tie the line to the stern rail and remove the standoffs. Untie the line from the rail and gently lower the dinghy so it’s swinging free still attached to the davits. Then lifting the dinghy at the transom remove the rear davit. Finally lift the front of the dinghy and unclip the front davit.
Two people can do this in 5-10 minutes.
Reverse this process for installing the dinghy back in to the davits.

PS: For us (both in our 70’s) removing the dinghy was actually more difficult than getting it back into place. Even more difficult is getting the dinghy into and out of the pickup bed but we somehow manage it.

 

[Red Raven]

We remove our dinghy when putting the tug in the garage. We first back the tug in with the dinghy still attached to the point where we store the dinghy against the wall. At that point I set two folding saw horses behind the dinghy and then drop the dinghy down to the saw horses. Once in a stable position I then unclip the dinghy from the Davits and my wife and I can lift it off the saw horses and tip it up against the wall from that position. Then I back the tug the rest of the way into the garage. Reverse the process when preparing to launch.

Very similar to scross approach with the addition of saw horses to rest the dinghy temporarily at a comfortable level. We store the two saw horses where we store the dinghy so they are readily available.

Curt

 

[Navigator's Son]

I can picture in my mind what you are trying to do with the dinghy. But I think the first obstacle you have to get past is you have to lower the dinghy first such that you can then clip a harness to it. I'm guessing you want the dinghy to be flat and then you raise it up above the height of the back of your boat to allow the stern to be backed up against the wall?

I installed a pulley system in my garage to lift the fiberglass cab off the back of my pickup truck. I had access to the ceiling attic and I made sure any and every bolt I used went through a stud. I can't imagine the weight of the dinghy being that much heavier than the fiber glass cab on my truck.

 

[trailertrawlerkismet]

How about backing your pickup truck to the transom of your boat and then lower the dinghy down onto the trucks tailgate?

Jim F

 

[bob daily]

A VEVOR Electric Hoist will lift 450 lbs, it's a overhead electric hoist 110V made for garages and shops.
Price is under $100 on Amazon and I'm sure others are available. Then all you need is make a harnes or sling to fit the dingy. I would save your back for that big fish or full crab/shrimp pot! Bob

 

[Mastercraft]

Very cool - electric lift!!!
Never thought of that. They are reasonably priced. Lots of options for Vevor
THANKS!