Engine Haul Out 101

You will need:

a) A lot of time (approximately 6 hours, give or take)
b) About 4-6 able-bodied (and patient) people (In our case, us, my Dad, my uncles Bill and Bob and my two cousins Austin and Zack)
c) A litany of tools including (but not limited to):  Every size wrench (original and socket), every size screw driver (both flat head and Phillips), hand saw, heat gun, label tags and electrical tape (to label the hoses and wires you remove - do NOT make the assumption that you will remember, because you will not), digital camera (to take photos as back up to the labels you create), 2-3 feet of pipe (to use as a handle extension/lever when dealing with very stubborn bolts), a hammer (regular and sledge), extra line or "rope", 5+ feet of chain, at least 2 VERY STRONG straps (1000+ lb weight), tape measure, cardboard (to cover seats and surrounding area), duct tape (because what job doesn't require this!?), WD40 (to loosen stubborn bolts and screws), ratchet, wire cutters, pliers (needle nose and regular),  and lots of ziplock baggies.

I am probably missing a few things here - but you get the idea.  Basically, you need a local ACE Hardware's worth of tools.

d)  Coffee, donuts and bagels

e)  A giant "cherry picker" crane capable of lifting thousands of pounds (this is ideal, you can remove an engine without this - but I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy)

f)  A few pre-cut 4x4 pieces of wood to place over engine compartment for safety (once the engine is out)

g)  A skid to put the engine on once it is out of the boat.

h)  LOTS AND LOTS of paper towels, a bucket, sponges, scrub brushes, rubber gloves and grease-combating soap (we like Simple Green) to clean up afterward.

i)  Beer.  Don't ever forget to bring the beer.

What to do:

Step 1:  Remove all doors, panels and associated hinges that encase said engine and cover surrounding area with protective layer (like cardboard) - secure with duct tape.

Step 2:  Get down and dirty in the "engine room" and unhook all hoses, electric wires and pipes.  Be prepared for interesting liquids and goos to come from the cut hoses. (It is highly advisable to have a very flexible person do this as Cirque du Soleil type moves are required in order to get to some bolts)

Step 3:  Depending on your engine and engine compartment - remove all extra "things" that make the engine "big" (like the prop shaft, cooling compartment, fuel filters, throttle cables, gear box...etc)*

Step 4:  Remove all the engine mounts (ours has 4 - waaaaay down under the engine)

Step 5:  Position hoist above the engine and gently lower crane down

Step 6:  Place at least 2 VERY STRONG straps around the engine, both forward and aft (the engine will pitch one way or another)

Step 7:  Secure straps to the crane (this might need some creative engineering as every engine and engine compartment are different - we needed to lift ours out awkwardly because it was bigger than the actual engine opening)

Step 8:  Hoist engine from its housing (this might require some elbow grease and nudging to get it off its mounts - especially if it has been there for 35 years as ours has)

Step 9:  Lower engine to the skid

Step 10:  Clean up the bilge and engine room.  You will have dropped MANY tools, bolts, screws and washers down there and you DO NOT want to find them clogging the bilge pump next season.

*If you do not know your engine like the back of your hand and don't have your engine manual on hand (wince), be prepared to spend over an hour trying to remove something that you discover cannot in fact be removed at all. This is an exercise in patience.

Piece of cake, right?  We simply can NOT wait to put it back in!! (Insert huge toothy sarcastic smile)

Getting closer!
Brittany & Scott

PS.  This is NOT an official engine removal guide.  Please DO NOT treat it as such.  Thank you in advance.