Engine Removal

[drynoc]

I am getting ready to remove the Volvo MD7A from my Santana 35. Can anyone provide any guidance on the best way to do this? A local mechanic says that I have to remove the electrical panel in front of the engine, but I refuse: there is room to go around the side (although not much). The engine is under the cockpit sole, so it has to come out the side of the engine compartment and then out the companionway. Do I need four brutes, or is there a way to attach a crane to the monster? I''m looking for any hints that might be out there on the physical problem of getting the engine out of the compartment and down on the ground. I do realize that I need to dismantle as much as possible.

[DelmarRey]

If the motor fits through the hole, it takes lots of rigging and braces but it can be done.

[RoadTool]

I really have no idea on the specifics on your boat or your engine so just in generalities ........ get a timber 4x4 or 6x4 , long enough to span your companionway , then build up above your cabin top with either timbers or concrete block to attain enough height to clear your cockpit bridge for clearance to coincide with the engine height to clear . Oh ya off the 4x4 crossways hitch a come along , a chain hoist of sorts , it will always be easier to use a tool rather than manpower ..... as for attaching the hook to the engine remove a bolt and go to a local hardware and get a eye bolt the coinciding size to tap in the hole the bolt came out of .

Now from there the task begins , if your repowering plan to remove the old engine from the cockpit the same time the new arrives , hire a towtruck being sky hooks arent available .

When I removed my A4 out of my Tartan 27 I stripped it and did the same as I explained , I already had the coaming boards removed so I didnt have to contend with cockpit coamings , I simply had 3/4" plywood on the cockpit seating and slid the engine to the edge then took the stripped A4 down the ladder with a rope directly to a truck bed . I was rebuilding the A4 so I wasnt wanting to destroy it , if your present engine is scrap , shove it off the deck and stand back .

[elhanley]

I have twice removed and replaced my 250# engine using the main boom. I pick the point on the boom from which the engine will be suspended, then rig a snatch block on a line attached at the end of the boom and running forward to that point. Run the jib halyard through the block and down to the engine, and guy the boom over the pick point. There is no bending strain on the boom. Hoist with the jib halyard winch. When clear of the companionway sill, I placed a short 2x12 over the sill extending forward of the engine, and support that end from the hatch runners. I was able then to slide the engine aft on the 2x12 til it was clear of the cabin trunk, repositioning the snatch block as we went. From there we could swing it on the the dock. If your engine weighs too much for this arrangement, and there is a haul-out facility handy, you could hire them to pick it out and have your buddy tow you home.

[DelmarRey]

Obviously, you didn''t read the FIRST post!

Quote: "A local mechanic says that I have to remove the electrical panel in front of the engine, but I refuse: there is room to go around the side (although not much). The engine is under the cockpit sole, so it has to come out the side of the engine compartment and then out the companionway."

The rest is a cinch!