Outboard Safety Cable

[Hory]

This past weekend, I witnessed someone losing their 9.9hp four-stroke outboard off of their flatbottom rig on the river. They didn't have a lock or a safety cable on the boat. Luckily, they were able to retrieve the motor as it was within 20 yards of a shallow river landing. I run a 1999 15hp Mercury shortshaft on my shallow 14' Lund on the river. Would hooking the motor up with a safety cable be a good idea? It seems like a good idea, but if somthing were to go wrong...I don't really think I'd want an 85lb anchor falling off the back connected by a cable, pulling the stern/transom of the small boat down. Also, bolting the motor to the transom isn't an option for me...the motor comes off numerous times for trips to Canada throughout the Summer...and I don't like the idea of drilling into the boat. Thanks for any advice!

[traveler]

I think just checking the clamps every once in a while should do it. Always works for me:)

[Jim Almquist]

Buy a bag of tie wraps and just use one to keep them locked in place. You can always cut them off with a knife or even twist them of with a needle nose if needed.

[TooTallTom]

My dad bought a product a long time ago that actually locks the OB to the transom. It's basically square tubing with one end blocked off, and the other end finished to fit a padlock through.

Seems like a pretty good design for a couple of reasons. But I'm pretty conscious of keeping the honest people honest.

[Down Deep]

Why don't you just bolt it on. 95% of the boats you see have the motor bolted on. Drill the correct size hole and slip in a couple of stainless bolts with lock washers and nuts. It can be sealed with some silicone caulk. No more worries.

[h8go4s]

"I don't really think I'd want an 85lb anchor falling off the back connected by a cable, pulling the stern/transom of the small boat down."

It's no heavier hanging from a cable than it is clamped to your transom. It's not going to pull your boat down unless the cable is so long it hooks on the bottom and you start taking water over the transom.

Just bolt it to the transom and be done with it. You can zip the nuts off with a cordless drill in nothing flat if you need to pull the motor off.

Ron.

[CAMAN]

I wouldn't worry about it. Really the only way that can happen is if you either don't snug the clamps down or you don't have the motor bracket seated properly against the transom when you tighten it down. Best way to be sure it is secure is before you dip the boat in the water pull up on the lower unit while tightening down on the clamps. You will be able to tell right away if it is loose or not. If its tight dip 'er and go fishin!

[SkunkedAgain]

First of all, those "square tubing with one end blocked off" are sold everywhere. They will indeed keep the clamps from loosening but are intended for locking your OB to the boat so nobody steals it.

My last boat required the transom to be raised 2 inches for the OB to run effectively. I welded two aluminum plates on each side of a square 2" tube of aluminum. That fit over my transom and is what I clamped my motor onto. However, after hitting rocks once or twice and a large musky, I realized that a typical transom has a slight lip at the top edge to prevent the OB from coming off (assuming that the clamps are tight). My transom lift had a design flaw. Instead of building a new transom lift, I ran some steel cable from the OB to the boat. It had slack, was removable, and only allowed the OB to move an inch or so - keeping the motor from ever kicking off of the boat again.

A chain would have worked as well.