Leave motor on transom during transport?

Taking the boat out for the first time today, and I have never pulled the boat and trailer with the motor attached.
It's a 7.5 Mercury.
When towing to your destination, is it okay to leave the motor attached to the transom?
I was thinking of strapping it down somehow.
Advice?

I always take the motor off, as long as you dont have a bad back it is the safer option.

I always leave mine on and I don't know of anyone who takes theirs off unless they don't have a trailer and are loading it in the back of the truck. As long as your transom is in good shape and you don't drive like a wild man down rough roads there is no reason to take it off. Pictures of your setup will help us determine the best way for you to trailer you rig.

Leave it on. Just let the motor all the way down against the transom and bungy it so it dosnt move around or buy a trasom saver to support the motor.

I like transom savers even for small motors but as long as you have enough ground clearance (skeg to ground) you should be fine.

Depends how thick the aluminum is. Seen several transoms tear down the sides on light rigs

Getcha a t-saver and you won't have to worry about it

Loggerhead Mike said:

Depends how thick the aluminum is. Seen several transoms tear down the sides on light rigs

Getcha a t-saver and you won't have to worry about it

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If a transom is so fragile or weak that it could fall apart from towing your boat with a small motor on it I don't think it would be safe to be out on the water with a boat like that.

The stress that even a small outboard puts on a transom while applying throttle and hitting waves, or even just cruising is far more than the same motor just hanging on the back going down the road.

my merc never comes off my boat if I can help it,I do always use a transom saver when trailering though.
DanD

I left it on today, I strapped it down the best I could, but I kept seeing it bouncing pretty good in the rear view mirror. I had a forty mile drive to the ocean. I pulled over about three times and checked it...it seemed okay but it stressed me out watching it bounce around like that.
On the trip home I placed the motor in the back of the boat and I was alot more at ease.

You may have another problem then. If you had the motor all the way down it should not be bouncing around at all.

chavist93 said:

You may have another problem then. If you had the motor all the way down it should not be bouncing around at all.

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Actually it isn't the motor itself moving, but the back of the boat bouncing around on bumps in the road, etc.
I just can't see how that would be good for the motor to be bouncing like that along with the tail of the boat.
The motor itself remained secured to the transom.

reedjj said:

Loggerhead Mike said:

Depends how thick the aluminum is. Seen several transoms tear down the sides on light rigs

Getcha a t-saver and you won't have to worry about it

Click to expand...

If a transom is so fragile or weak that it could fall apart from towing your boat with a small motor on it I don't think it would be safe to be out on the water with a boat like that.

The stress that even a small outboard puts on a transom while applying throttle and hitting waves, or even just cruising is far more than the same motor just hanging on the back going down the road.

Click to expand...

You must be blessed with nice roads but I guarantee you hitting constant potholes and ruts up here in the mountains is far more stressfull and will sex your transom up. Our paved roads are worse than most Fla dirt roads. If somebody wants advice I'm going to assume they're driving on poor roads to if they don't specify

As others have said, get a transom saver. I have one for my 48 hp Johnson that really needs it. When I bought the boat in San Diego, I drove it home to LA and watched the motor bounce even on a smooth freeway. I pulled over several times trying to use the hydraulic trim to adjust it.

I just installed a brand new Honda four stroke on my new aluminum project two days ago. It has a transom saver too because I'll be towing to the Sierras tomorrow and don't want anything to go wrong.

There are a lot of plus and minus opinions on transom savers, but for me, a few bucks more is worth the ease of mind.

BTW, I have a transom saver from West Marine and an Attwood that I bought at Wal Mart. The Attwood is much easier to use and actually looks a lot stronger, IMO.

So, did you go to Newport Harbor? Lots of good bass fishing there. Another good spot is Huntington Harbor. Just be careful going past the Naval Weapons depot as they patrol the area and will warn you if you get too close to their ships (from personal experience).

I remember the first time I took my boat out. (Which was this past Memorial Day weekend) I was so worried that I didn't hook everything up right or that I hit a bump too hard. Since then I think I have taken it out at least four times a week and I feel a lot more comfortable driving with it now. I do however have a transom saver on mine and it works well from my experience. I bought the attwood one from Wallyworld and it has kept the motor in place on highways, interstates, and good ole pot hole roads here in Pennsylvania. It beats the heck out of having to take the motor off the boat everytime I take it out.

Nomowork, we went to Newport harbor.
We did alright, caught one bass, a short halibut and a handful of mackerel.
I'd like to try another marina next time, I'll look into Huntington.

Atuk593,
I was looking at a transom saver at Walmart this morning.
I'll prob. get one.

Attwood has a transon saver that is spring loaded...and it is Made in USA =D> .We got one for our brand new 2011 Honda BF25 from BPS...it is like around $70 US or about $64 CND :roll: .Even a 25 Hp just shy of 200 Lbs can be quite a chore to take off and reasemble.
Dan

sirbeigealot said:

Nomowork, we went to Newport harbor.
We did alright, caught one bass, a short halibut and a handful of mackerel.
I'd like to try another marina next time, I'll look into Huntington.

Atuk593,
I was looking at a transom saver at Walmart this morning.
I'll prob. get one.

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Just got back today from a week in the Eastern Sierras. Although the West Marine transom saver was really a pain to use, it did it's job on the new Honda outboard. That was a long tow and I was glad I had that stick on there.

I'm keeping my aluminum boat as a fresh water only boat. We go to Huntington Harbor with our other fiberglass boat as we like to go out past the breakwater when the weather and swells permit. The heavier weight of the fiberglass boat helps in the open ocean waters.

Nomowork,

I will prob. do both fresh and saltwater in mine.
I want to check out Huntington Harbor and the Long Beach area.

sirbeigealot said:

Nomowork,

I will prob. do both fresh and saltwater in mine.
I want to check out Huntington Harbor and the Long Beach area.

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Huntington Harbor has a nice bay fishing area just before going under the bridge by the Naval Weapons area. Just anchor near the buoy line that separates the preserve area or near the shore by PCH. There are some large boats going in that channel so beware of where you anchor. You are not allowed to anchor once you past the bridge in the channel due to Navy security reasons.

Just a reminder, Long Beach is where all the Los Angeles street runoff ends up, especially near the Queen Mary launch ramp! :shock: We've gone sailing in Long Beach, but never fishing. :shock: There are a few other launch ramps at Long Beach near the aquatic stadium and one is even free if you don't mind a really run down launch ramp.

nomowork said:

sirbeigealot said:

Nomowork,

I will prob. do both fresh and saltwater in mine.
I want to check out Huntington Harbor and the Long Beach area.

Click to expand...

Huntington Harbor has a nice bay fishing area just before going under the bridge by the Naval Weapons area. Just anchor near the buoy line that separates the preserve area or near the shore by PCH. There are some large boats going in that channel so beware of where you anchor. You are not allowed to anchor once you past the bridge in the channel due to Navy security reasons.

Just a reminder, Long Beach is where all the Los Angeles street runoff ends up, especially near the Queen Mary launch ramp! :shock: We've gone sailing in Long Beach, but never fishing. :shock: There are a few other launch ramps at Long Beach near the aquatic stadium and one is even free if you don't mind a really run down launch ramp.

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Yea, I've always heard that you shouldn't eat any fish caught in the Long Beach area...
However, I did catch a legal Halibut not too long ago surfishing in LB...my wife gave it to an Oriental woman at work and she said it was the best fish she had ever eaten.
I should check and see if she has grown horns or something....