Gantries

I knew the first thing I had to do was get the boat off the trailer and flip it upside down.  My thought was to start from the bottom up in the restoration.   I wanted to get the fiberglass off as fast as possible to see how bad is the wood underneath. 

It took several weeks to wrap my head around how to build a movable crane of some kind that could handle the weight, but yet be able to move it around.  I came up with a gantry crane. 

The gantry is built with ten foot long 4x4s.  The beam across the top are two 2x8s that are glued together with an industrial polyurethane glue (not the crap you get at Lowes or Home Depot.)  All of the braces are 2x4 at least 4' long.  I used 3/8" through bolts on everything.  I wanted to build this so if I really wanted to I could pick up the boat with just one gantry and not worry about anything.  All of the wood is treated, so hopefully it will last for decades.  It is my hope ever Fall to slip the boat upside down for the winter to keep the snow and ice out of the cockpit and protect the deck from UV.

I raised the heavy gantries by attaching a chain hoist to the basketball hoop metal brackets.  My wife used the chain hoist while I guided the gantries once they reached their tipping point on the way up.  It was quite easy with the two of us.  Those chain hoists have a huge mechanical advantage.

Lumber, hardware, and chain hoist about $450.
total investment so far $600.