Motor mount (my own design)

Very nice! I have the Cheata mount and have been slightly annoyed by how low it hangs in the water. It also doesn't extend far enough aft to be totally out of the way of the tiller. Maybe I'll reproduce your design.

Is your motor far enough out of the water when tilted up? With the Cheata I used the Cheata tilt mechanism instead of the motor tilt.

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Zach

I've been out on the water with it 2x now and it's plenty high enough. With this design you can only tilt up with the motor tilt mechanism. Nothing drags in tbe waves.

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2002 Getaway - SOLD in 2018 "Cheshire Cat"
2016 AI - Bought used 3.18.23 "Crabby Puppy"

Zach, I have better luck with leaving the Cheeta mount lowered and tilting the motor up to get the propellor and skeg away from the waves.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/100085529 ... 5011469021

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

Zach, I had issues with my Cheata same as you. I ended up raising the motor by making a taller mounting board on the end of the Cheata. The aluminum plate still drags in the water, though and there is lots of splash on the motor while sailing at speed, but at least it isn't drowning when it is in operation like it was before. You can see the motor getting splashed in this video. Good thing the gas cap is tight, right?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DSmSYgycPxc

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

Thanks for the design, Keith! I just ordered the materials from 8020. When I get it made and tested, there will be a Cheeta motor mount for sale if anyone is interested!

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

The holes in the cross bar that were used to mount the cheeta most likely will not line up with the new hole for the 8020. I had to drill new holes and I used Marine Tex epoxy putty (2 oz kit) to fill the previous holes. Ordered it off amazon for like $12. It was recommended by my hobie dealer to repair a crack in the comp tip of my mast so I used it on the rear crossbar at the same time.

I guess they don't need to be filled but I was mixing up the epoxy anyway.

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2002 Getaway - SOLD in 2018 "Cheshire Cat"
2016 AI - Bought used 3.18.23 "Crabby Puppy"

Just came back from sailing today. The Cheeta mount was kicking spray back onto the motor in a steady stream. I'm thinking of switching, but I'll try using both motor lift AND cheeta lift next time and maybe it'll be dry up there...of course, it isn't as handy and that could have made a difference today...we got stuck between pilings supporting 3 bridges, wind was squirrelly and light, 3 kt current was dragging us back to hit another set of pilings...thank goodness honda started right up. OH, have you guys ever had your motor cut out because of overspeed? Mine did today because after the bridges, the wind picked up and boat took off with motor still running, as we neared 8 kts, motor died---I worried it was harmed, but started again right away after the sail.

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

Hey Thom,
I found that if I had my motor at the normal position, and tilted the Cheeta up, the prop hit the water in heavy waves. If I tried to tilt the motor up with the Cheeta up, it was way too high in the air. I have my Cheeta down, and tilt the motor up. Because it's the Torqeedo motor with the tiller right in front and the heavy battery in back, I installed a strap to hold the powerhead sideways.
And yeah, that flat plate on the Cheeta splashes water everywhere. I'm pretty stoked to build Keith's design.
'

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

Dorienc

Another tip I just thought of regarding drilling the holes in the crossbar. Use a flat prybar in the slot in the back side of the rear crossbar and twist it sideways to allow enough gap to get the bottom mounting plate started then just use a hammer to lightly tap it into place. Place the support leg and upper mounting plate on top and clamp everything together so that the top plate does not interfere with the main sheet traveler and the holes in the upper and lower mounting plates for bolting through the main support leg align with each other. Mark the support leg where the holes should be drilled and disassemble before drilling. It's unlikely that you'll have the holes exactly lined up between top and bottom plates. Once the support leg is drilled out, reassemble and use 2 bolts to make sure that all stays aligned before drilling into the rear crossbar.

Now drill through the rear crossbar using the top mounting plate holes as your guide. Only drill down through the top of the cross bar. Then drop a couple of bolts through and bolt it all together being careful not to torque the nut too tight as you could crush the rear crossbar.

Give me a call if you have any questions. This design has been working out very well so far. I'm very happy with it.

Keith
203-671-1570

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2002 Getaway - SOLD in 2018 "Cheshire Cat"
2016 AI - Bought used 3.18.23 "Crabby Puppy"

Thanks, Keith! Great advice! I own you some good beer!

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Yet another Bob!
"Firefly" - 2012 Hobie Getaway with wings and spinnaker
"Sparky" - 1978 Sunfish (OK, it's not a Hobie, but it's a fun little craft)
Too many canoes and kayaks

I would love to try this design but I have one issue. I have the Honda 2HP which has a breather on the gas cap. When it's on a Cheetah mount and you tip the motor forward the gas cap and breather get a lot of splash. I worry about getting water in the gas tank. So instead I lift the Cheetah mount up. It doesn't get the prop completely out of the water, but the gas cap doesn't get as much splash. Does anyone have experience with the Honda and Cheetah mount and tipping the motor forward? If I knew this wasn't a problem I would try this new mount.

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Dave

Wxup, That's what I do. I leave the cheeta down and just tilt the motor up. It gets LOTS of splash on the cap but with the vent closed, water doesn't get into the gasoline. Starts right up when I need it. This new mount would probably reduce the amount of spray since it hangs higher off the rear bar with nothing below. I DID modify the cheeta mount by putting a taller board on it which lifted the motor about 4". This wasn't for spray worries, it was to prevent the motor from being flooded when motoring with two people on board. The motor head was nearly underwater without the modification. Like you, I'm considering replacing the Cheeta with this mount...but will probably not do so since I leave the motor attached to the rear for trailering and the articulating arm is useful since I use the rear mast mount (I had one put on my trailer) to hoist the motor weight off the crossbar.

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II

I would love to see pictures of your rear mast mount. My trailer ends not too far aft of the wheels and there is nothing far enough back to connect a rear mast mount to. It would be great not to have to remove the motor for transport.

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Dave

Regarding the gas cap breather, as you can see in the photos in my first post, I have the Honda 2hp also. I close the vent when the motor is not in use so no water gets into the gas, but either way, there is significantly less splashing now and the motor head stays pretty dry.

As for trailering, I have never trailered with the motor mounted to the rear crossbar. I always felt it was too much torque on the rear crossbar with all the bouncing from the road. I made a mount on the mast support at the front of the trailer that I move the motor to for trailering.

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2002 Getaway - SOLD in 2018 "Cheshire Cat"
2016 AI - Bought used 3.18.23 "Crabby Puppy"

I took my trailer to a trailer/muffler repair shop and told the guy roughly what I wanted. He welded a U shaped piece of roll bar stock to extend beyond the boat (about at the rudders). He also put a stub of pipe of larger diameter at the bottom of the U sticking up. Then another piece of roll bar and a roller on top that pins into the stub at the bottom. Of course, since the rear mount is on the centerline, I mounted my Cheeta a little off center.

You can see it in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LE9cmSGmXcM

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R/Thom
SeaRail 19
Triak
BMW C600
Formerly Getaway with Custom Spinnakers
Formerly raced F24 Mk II