Garelick swim ladder

[mr.jadkowski]

I installed the ladder last night. Here are some pictures:

https://photos.app.goo.gl/FDtyAF1StmcddpBR6

I drilled the holes in the transom and my 5" x 5" ply backing plates, sealed the holes with epoxy, and then installed everything the next night using 1/4-2" stainless bolts and washers on the outside, and stainless fender washers, lock washers, and nuts on the inside. I bedded the hardware with butyl tape.

[lweisman]

Here's the swim ladder mistake I made. I installed one I bought directly from Com-Pac for the CP-16, it's a three leg tripod transom mount, a four stepper that's hinged to fold up in half.  (I don't know the model name.)  The problem is that due to the slight inward pitch of the transom, when you step onto the 2 lower rungs of the ladder it swings you under the boat rather than holding vertical, so you really need to pull yourself onboard.  I'm trying to figure out how to prevent it from swinging under the hull, short of remounting it with a bigger standoff on the lower tripod leg to set the ladder a true vertical.  Or maybe disable the hinge action somewhat to less than 180deg. but I need the hinge to fold the ladder up of course.  Very frustrating dilemma as I thought I was buying the perfect ladder for the boat and it's a real chore to use. 

My point in posting here is that might be a consideration in choosing the right ladder, if it's potentially free to swing under the hull.
Lee in VT

[mr.jadkowski]

I'm trying to figure out how to prevent it from swinging under the hull, short of remounting it with a bigger standoff on the lower tripod leg to set the ladder a true vertical.  Or maybe disable the hinge action somewhat to less than 180deg.

If the hinge works the same way that most of those tubular folding ladders do, I think you could achieve that by putting a spacer between either the top or the bottom tubes and the small hinge section. I bet a small bolt with the bolt head inside the hinge would do the trick.

Where are you at in VT? I was thinking about trailering my 16 over to lake champlain for the week but the weather looks horrible.

[lweisman]

mr.jadkowski wrote:
"Where are you at in VT? I was thinking about trailering my 16 over to lake champlain for the week but the weather looks horrible"


We live in Ferrisburgh VT on the 'Narrows' of Lake Champlain, across from the N.Y. Pallisades, a couple miles South of the Otter Creek delta and Diamond Island.  We're on a small bay called Kimball Bay.  It's been way too windy (for us) to sail yesterday and today, rain coming tonight and tomorrow.  Weekend looking good.  I know this part of the lake quite well and would be happy to offer advice, though we should start a new thread or PM to avoid an e-tongue lashing.  Where do you put in usually?
Lee in VT

[Tim Gardner]

Nice picture, Lee.  What does the water temp get to there?  As I remember some 50 yrs. back when I was kid on Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes,  it got up to the seventies maybe low eighties around Aug 15th., but only on the shallow (north) end.

TG, (living on Smith Mountain Lake in VA)

[Wayne J]

I went ahead and ordered the 4 step ladder.  I'm going to install on my com-pac 16.

Im going to use Alek's install pictures as a guide.

Wayne

[lweisman]

Hi Tim
Cayuga is a deep one, harbors plenty of cold water I imagine.  We've been just below 70* the past few weeks, great swimming (hence time to address my swim ladder issue).  I'd say that's a little warmer than typical, this after a genuine heat wave here earlier this month, >90* for a week.  Like Cayuga, it's very deep here (>300'), so a good blow can stir up some colder water at times while shallower bays can be 5-10 deg hotter.
Lee in VT

'About one hour south of Burlington by car, 50 minutes by boat.'

[RedBaron]

I'm looking at installing a ladder on my CP-16 and I'm wondering how you guys installed the backing plates on the inside of the transom. I've been looking and I don't see any straight forward and easy way of getting behind it. Do you have to take the top of the boat off in order to install those?

[Salty19]

I'm looking at installing a ladder on my CP-16 and I'm wondering how you guys installed the backing plates on the inside of the transom. I've been looking and I don't see any straight forward and easy way of getting behind it. Do you have to take the top of the boat off in order to install those?

No, you just shimmy your way back to the transom head first down the bunks and hope you don't get stuck.
If you're too big to fit, employ the old timer method of child labor and bribery.  It worked for JP Morgan and it can work for you.

Remember guys to not tighten those bolts down too much.  Fiberglass can't take a lot of bolt torque the way metal can.  Just enough to firmly attach it and squeeze out the sealant/butyl tape.

Some people have cut out the aft cockpit area for access and put in round ports to reseal it.  I would rather not do that unless it's absolutely necessary.

Just be glad you don't have a 19.  Those are VERY hard to get back there as the bunks do not go all the way back, and the cockpit lockers are just not big enough to fit unless you are small and little bit crazy. 

I'll be deploying the child labor method on our 19 when the time comes to do any work back there.

[mr.jadkowski]

I'm looking at installing a ladder on my CP-16 and I'm wondering how you guys installed the backing plates on the inside of the transom. I've been looking and I don't see any straight forward and easy way of getting behind it. Do you have to take the top of the boat off in order to install those?

I just took the cover off the lazarette and reached in from there. It's a little awkward but it is better than shimmying down the berth. I was able to do the whole install by myself since I could stand next to the transom and hold a wrench on the bolt head while tightening the nut on the inside with a socket and ratchet. Make sure you pay attention to exactly where the plywood core runs through the transom.  I had to mount mine slightly higher and more inboard than I wanted to make sure all four bolt holes ran through the plywood core.

I had the boat in the water last weekend and the bottom two steps on my three-step ladder are submerged when deployed. I'm guessing the bottom step is 15" below the water. The four step would be better for ultimate ease of boarding, but I think the three-step will wotk just fine for me.

[RedBaron]

Thanks, I've been looking at a few of the steps shown and I think I'm gonna put it on my list of projects for next year.

[Salty19]

I don't think the '94 model has the aft lazzarette in the cockpit like earlier 16's. Just a space for a fuel tank, anchor or other gear. No internal access. Hutchins changed it because folks were putting fuel down below and they probably saw that as a liability.  I'm not sure when this was changed though?

[RedBaron]

Yeah, my 94' has what looks like two circular access ports that are screwed into the benches near the transom. But I haven't tried taking one of them off yet.

[mr.jadkowski]

I actually used the three-step ladder today, first just to test it out and then later after doing a little diving. The ladder, and its placement on the transom, works fine for getting out of the water. It's certainly much, much easier than heaving myself up and over the side, which is what I was doing prior to installing the ladder. However, now that I've used it I think the four-step is the way to go. I'm not unsatisfied enough to pull off my three-step and replace it with the four step, but if I was going to do it all over again I would have spent the extra $40 on the four-step.