Your boat engine may fail to work at times. That’s when you need a boat motor stand to keep the motor. Besides, if you are making a DIY boat, you need a stand to keep the motor. It may be essential to work on the boat motor during leisure, and for the rest of the time, you’ll need to store it somewhere safe.
Now that you know how valuable a boat motor stand can be, you must be wondering how to build a boat motor stand? A homemade outboard motor stand is usually built of wood. And don’t worry, it’s no rocket science.
A few couples of 2x4x8 planks can help you make a workable motor stand. For the bare Glen L-outboard boats, a 12-degree ransom angled motor stand would serve the purpose quite effectively. So, let’s get into business.
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Materials You Will Need
Before digging into the plans for building a boat motor stand, let’s look at the tools and materials you will need to make your very own DIY outboard motor stands.
Materials:
- A 2x8x8 board
- A few 2x4x8 boards
- Locking casters
- Regular casters
Tools:
- A circular saw
- A circular miter saw
- Bar clamps
- Cordless drill
- 1″ lag screws
- 3″ wood screws
How to Build a Boat Motor Stand Out of Wood: The Process
Although you can purchase outboard boat motor stands online, such as the outboard motor stand dolly or from your nearest handy shop, it would probably be out of budget or may not even serve your purpose quite rightfully. Hence, with the above materials and tools, you can know how to build a wooden boat motor stand all by yourself that fits your needs. Let’s hope on!
1st step: Starting with the base:
- According to the small or large outboard motor stand plans, begin by splitting four pieces of 24 into two 36″ long pieces and two 24″ long slabs of wood. The 36″ sections will be used to construct the motor stand’s foundation.
- Determine which ends of the two 36″ foundation sections will be the front and the aft end. Measure and then mark up to 16″ aft of the forward ends, draw a line. This will serve as a marker for the upright supports.
- Mount one 24″ piece to the forward end of the two 36″ foundation pieces. It will be part of the “shelf” that will contain the gas tank, among other things. Using only one bolt per end may be advantageous to line up the arrangement when you give additional pieces later.
- For the time being, set aside the second 24″ piece.
2nd step: Fitting with supporting blocks:
- Now, as you want a 12-degree ransom angle to the board, adjust your miter saw to slit at 12 degrees.
- Next, two pieces of the 2×4 plank need to be cut with one end left square, while the other end has a cut of 12-degree angle. What you need to confirm is that both pieces have to be equal.
- If needed, shave the square end. These will be wooden blocks that will provide stability to the upright vertical parts of the motor supports.
- Position one of the 4 inches supports blocks vertically on the 36 inches bases. Align the piece before the line is marked. It will be a guiding piece to mark another similar line throughout the 36 inches base piece before the vertical block. Do this in the same way on the other base piece.
- Place the 4 inches foundation block on the 36 inches so that the base makes contact with the short side of the block. Straighten the angled end of the wooden block with the second line marked earlier.
- Use screws to attach the 4″ support block to the base piece. In the same way, you need to attach the support block to the other base.
- Attach the second 24″ piece against the support blocks.
- You need to confirm if the assembly is squared and secure the 36″ base and the 24″ piece.
- This will act as the aft end of the shelf for the gas tank.
3rd step: Vertical supports building:
- Measure and cut two 32″ lengths of 24 with your miter saw adjusted to slice at a 12-degree angle so that one end receives the angled cut and the other end stays square. These will be the motor support’s vertical parts.
- Take a 24″ piece of 28 and split it in half. This is the motor board. Both ends of the triangle should be squared.
- Position the two 32″ vertical supports on the ground to line up their angled ends. The long sides should be pointing up.
- Align the top, or squared, ends of the 2×8 motor board with the slats. Put a distinction across the 32″ vertical supports using the 2×8 motor board as a reference.
- Turn the base assembly over and place it on the floor. Place one of the 32″ vertical supports with the angled end against the 36″ bottom and the diagonal cut of the 4″ block.
- Mark a line across the 32″ vertical support of the block as a reference.
- Repeat the step with the second 32″ upright support.
- Cut two more pieces of 24 to the length you just determined using your miter saw set to 12 degrees.
- Make sure the short side of this piece matches the calculated distance, which should be about 23.5″. These parts will help to strengthen the vertical supports.
- Place one 23.5″ reinforcement piece on each 32″ vertical support. The short side of the strengthening piece should slot between the two lines indicated on the vertical support’s long side. Then, secure into position.
- Attach the motor board to the vertical supports, ensuring that the assembly is symmetrical.
4th step: Fitting on the casters:
- You are very close to making a boat motor stand. Now, use the 1″ lag screws to attach the casters into the correct position after marking the position on the bottom side of the base.
5th step: Adding motor support to the wooden base:
- Place the motor support component and the base unit on their sides on the ground. Attach them and securely clamp them in place.
- Insert two 3″ wood screws through the base and into the bottom of the vertical supports to secure them firmly. Insert a third 3″ wood screw into the 4″ supporting wooden block using the rear of the vertical support.
- Turn the unit over gently and continue these instructions on the opposite side.
- Place a tiny piece of 2×4 below the forward section of the stand while the assembly is still on its side. Position a more extended portion of 2×4 beneath the aft end of the stand. It will be placed between both the base and the motor board. This will act as the aft support of the motor board arrangement, positioning it for optimal motor board stability.
- Draw the lines on this piece of 2×4 wood using the bottom and the vertical support as guidance.
- Cut on these straight lines. This will act as the motor board’s support.
- Mark and cut a similar piece from another section of 2×4 using the motor board support as a guide. Place each motor board support in position and secure using the 3″ screws.
And guess what? You are all done! You did great! Now, you know how to build a small boat motor stand that’s efficient and convenient.
Frequently Asked Questions
What height should an outboard motor be set at?
According to industry standards, the wood outboard motor stand height should be 15 inches. For long shaft engines, a minimum height of 20 inches is required. And for an extensively longer shaft, you will need a transom height is 25 inches.
What does it mean when a boat is over-popped?
By the term, a boat is over-popped, it means that the boat engine has ceased functioning in its maximum torque range. If you load the engine at its maximum with a lower RPM and start increasing the moving RPM, the engine gradually gets overloaded, leading to overheating and hence over-popping.
What is the difference in pitch on a propeller?
The lower and higher pitch are interrelated but inversed. The engine RPM will decrease as you increase the pitch and vice versa. However, for maximum efficiency of your under revving engine, go for a propeller with less and for an over-revving engine, go for a higher pitch propeller.
Final Words
With a bit of patience and the right tools, you will end up with your perfect DIY boat motor stand. Now, if you need to work on your boat engine taking out of the boat for minor mishaps or even the major ones, this outboard motor stand withstanding about 500lbs will be a convenient piece! So, hurry up and build your own boat motor stands in a jiffy!
