Any compact boarding ladder ideas?

[ND Bass]

Guys, do any of you have a boarding ladder installed on your boats? I have a PT185 so not a ton of room. Wondering if there is a compact, sturdy (father-in-law is a big man) model that would be beneficial in case of an accidental swim.



I see some transom mounted step things but worried about how sturdy they are...



Thanks!

 

[TritonGlenn]

Heavy duty rope. Loops on both ends. Knots every foot for gripping. One loop under your rear seat post. The other end long enough to reach bottom of your transom so you can get your foot in it - but secure it in your splashwell with either weak zip-ties (so you can pull and break them easy, but they stay put otherwise) or bungie cord, or twist tie, etc... (just something to keep it there).

All the best,

Glenn

 

[Jim in VA]

I put a two step folding ladder on the back of my PT175. Plenty of room. Used it many times when swimming off the back with my wife and son. Worked so well that when I upgraded boats to a G3 HP180, I installed another one on the back of it. I got the one pictured below from www.iboats.com, made by Det Mar for about $65. Its mounted on the transom with stainless lag bolts. Through bolts with nylon insert lock nuts and washers would have been better, but I just could get access to the front side of the transom without major deconstruction. Its worked well for several years and no problems with leaks thanks to marine silicone around the mount points.

 

[Randy Walls]

I have seen used (thankfully not me) the plate on the motor used. People think they are too heavy to stand on it but think of the pressure your motor puts on it during a whole shot!!!



I am not too small and neither were some of the people I have see use it.



I also read, I think from Mini, is to tie a rope that would go from one cleat (front) to a rear cleat and hangs just low enough to get your foot onto in the water and push yourself up. Can't get much cheaper than that!



Randy!

 

[Richard Marriner]

+1 on the lower unit. I am 300+ lbs and while its a little hard to pull myself up, I can still manage to do it by myself without help on my TV-18. I try not to put my entire weight on the lower unit, but mostly just to get me up out of the water and onto the stern.

 

[ND Bass]

Thanks for the great ideas guys. The use would be for the kids and my father-in-law as I mentioned. The challenge with him is (no disrespect intended) he's 65, overweight, has heart trouble and can barely carry himself up a staircase let alone climb on the motor to get back into the boat. If they had elevators/lifts I could hook up to the 24V troller, that might be a good option.



In any event, thanks for the great ideas again and happy....safe....fishing!

 

[Greg Meyer]

In an emergency... The trim and tilt will hoist someone out of the water and can be moved into the boat...

 

[Major Mark]

I had a swim platform/ladder mounted on my Targa.. works extremely well, extremely strong, etc...



http://www.overtons.com/modperl/product/details.cgi?i=26014&pdesc=EEz_Transom_Outboard_Platform_with_Two_Step_Telescopic_Ladder&aID=601K&merchID=4006