Boat Hoists! UGH!!!!!!!!!!

So we moved back to the lake last December and I sort of acquired with my house a Shore Station SSV30108 which is a 3000lb vertical lift. I called Shore Station and asked why all the parts are the same for the SSV40108 (4000lb), and they said it's the exact same lift aside from the gear ratio (I think the 4000lb has a secondary chain, 3000 has single).

I proceeded to lift my Supra and snapped the winch cable. No big, it was old and rusty. I replaced it along with the pulley for that cable (it was like oblongated), what a pain in the @$$. It worked fine after that though, so whatever.

Then I bought my LSV. Worked fine for a while, then something snapped. I took the winch tube completely off this time and tore it all apart. It had broke a pully right in half and the bushing was stuck at an angle in the winch tube. Holy crap, it took me hours to get that thing out. How I did it finally was strapping one end of the tube to a big tree and then routed a chain through with a big lock hooked to the end and hooked that chain to my 3/4 ton truck. I then proceeded to yank and yank and yank until it finally popped free. I broke the chain twice before it came apart though.

I bought new EVERYTHING, so all new pulleys, lift cable, snatch block (that's what they call it, the carrier that moves back and forth with a pulley), and all the little other parts. I put it all back together last week and it worked perfectly without my boat on it. The only problem is that my new winch cable from the first repair had some slight fraying, but I thought it would hold until winter when I could replace that again.

Put my boat on it, lifted almost out of the water, one snap, two snap, BOOM! Boat back in the water. I was so frustrated I've just been putting my boat on it's trailer every day. I assumed that frayed winch cable snapped because I could just pull it out almost all the way, so I ordered another new winch cable. I finally took it off today and went to tear it apart. The winch cable was fine! The brand new snatch block somehow turned a little and the winch cable actually pulled the pulley and bushing out and just came right apart! Now the snatch block is stuck sideways just like that stupid bushing was the first time and I can't get it out! WTF!!!!! I honestly think the replacement parts were not as good of quality, and the plastic outer bushings on the snatch block were like hemispherical instead of flat, so it really had no stability assistance. I don't know, but I'm just flat out pissed now.

Anyways, I think I'm done with this lift. It has an awesome custome aluminum canopy on it, but I'm just so sick of fixing this stupid thing.

So my question is, is cantilever really that much easier to fix as it looks since it's one cable? I think I want to go cantilever for this reason only. One cable out in the open.

What are the drawbacks to cantilever? Vertical just are so much more complex and expensive, I don't see the benefit. My only concern is my lake is a little mucky (sink to ankles while walking), and with the weight at the rear of the cantilever while first lifting/lowering the boat concerns me a little for the back legs sinking in further than the front or something.

Sorry for the long post, but I'm just so frustrated!!!

If you have mucky bottom where your lift goes, have a look at the Sunstream Floating Lifts. I have tried Floe and then bought my Sunstream and it is the best by far. It is rated at 6000#.

That looks awesome! I've found a couple of Air Docks on craigslist locally, thought about maybe checking that out too. Unfortunatly, I don't think I have nearly the funds available for something like those floating lifts. I also don't have access to 110 on my lot, so unless it's a 12v powered motor with a battery and solar panel I'm kind of SOL. My lake lot is just a lot that's non-buildable, my house is the next street up. No power on my lot.

I don't think the muck is terrible, everybody on my lake has standard lifts. Just concerns me a little with the weight apportion due to the cantilever.

I had a cantilever Hewitt lift before my Great Lakes vertical, no problem with the soft bottom, our end of the lake is shallow and soft to the point I have lost a couple flip flops in the muck.

Your real problem is the 3 or 4000 lb rating. You really should go much higher IMO. I have a cantilever Hewitt and it has functioned great. However, you have to watch those cables. Once they start to frey, it's time to replace.

Update; I looked at a couple of hoists today, both 4000lb. One was a vertical made by Lakeshore. It looked nice, and it looked a lot easier to fix than the Shore Station, but it still had 4 cables and they were routed through the frame.

I also looked at a Great Lakes EZ Lift cantilever. It was in very good shape, and actually the owner had a 2006 Outback V on it. I think this one is newer than the Lakeshore also.

Anyway, both are the exact same price. The cantilever just looks so much easier to fix when the cable goes snap. Also I like the fact that the boat weight is held by the frame, not the cables, on a cantilever when fully raised.

I don't really see what the advantage of a vertical lift is?

I bought the Great Lakes cantilever, the dude had a 06 Outback V on it. It's actually a 5000lb lift, so I think I'm good now.

I brought it home last night on my small snowmobile trailer, on it's side....was barely clearing under the lights and power wires!

Now it's just getting the old one out, which is about 2ft in the muck. Getting quotes for like $400 to remove that and $200 to put mine in. Seems high, but the muck is pretty bad.

Wax - Some 55 gallon drums, ratchet straps and an air compressor will help you get the lift out of the muck. Fill the drums with water and sink them next to the lift. Strap the drums to the bottom of the lift with the fill hole at the bottom. Use the air compressor to fill the drums with air. This should help pop the lift out of the muck and float it to shore.

We use a boat winch with a c hook mounted to an upside down T to pull it from muck.

We worked on it all night. My problem isn't the muck really, it's the fact that the metal canopy (see my avatar) weights about 600lbs. 4 guys couldn't lift it off of there, we'd need at leasat 6 if not more and another boat other than my jon boat (like a nice stable pontoon). The muck is soft and we dug out around them. Hooked two 8000lb come-alongs to the closest dock poles (very hefty steel square tube) and pulled with both. Got it to lift up out of the muck some, but that canopy is just so dang heavy it basically went right back down. I don't even know enough people near me (only lived in this area since December) to get enough guys to come help. Looks like I'm paying. I had an idea with using my jon boat under the bunk rack and then using the come alongs to lift, but the 12ft jon boat isn't buoyant enough to lift the entire thing out of the water, it's probably over 1000lbs with that canopy.

Shore stations are heavy especially with the canapy. I have used 4 ft by 4 ft, commercial packing insulators, they are very buoyant. Once near shore get a couple Dolly's to move the hoist.

Where In Michigan do you live?, my brother in law has a dock building/install service in central southern mi.


http://i258.photobucket.com/albums/h...o/101_0283.jpg

I'm a little north of Detroit, in Lake Orion. I hired somebody today, they're coming tomorrow. Talked them down to $550 for the entire job, which includes removing the Shore Station, installing the Great Lakes, then moving the Shore Station to the new owner's house about 15 miles away (I sold it to the first guy that came out to look at it). That doesn't include install a the new owner's house. Sounded like a decent deal to me.

I don't know if you can see well in my avatar, but my canopy isn't a Shore Station canopy or any other standard type. It's galvanized roofing like a car port. It is stupid heavy. Kind of glad I'm getting rid of it...it's the coolest canopy on the block, but more trouble than it's worth in my opinion. Doesn't work well with a tower anyway, made for more like a pontoon boat.

no did not notice that, that would be crazy heavy with more metal on top.

sounds like you did pretty well.