Homemade Boat Launcher

A boat launcher is used to get a boat into a good position on a slipway to assist it into the water. Homemade versions can be much cheaper than commercially available ones. Some launch systems are designed to be fitted to boat trailers. Simple ones are pushed down a slipway and into the water, with the boat gliding off the launcher under its own buoyancy. Large boats are unsuitable for homemade launchers. Kayak launchers can be constructed from a simple frame mounted on wheelchair wheels.

Things You'll Need

  • Hand truck
  • Screwdriver
  • 2 4-by-4 16 foot lumber
  • Trestles
  • Plane
  • C-clamps
  • Drill
  • 6 bolts and nuts
  • Carpet tape
  • Screws
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Instructions

    • 1

      Unscrew the handle and carrying platform from a hand truck that is capable of carrying load of up to about 600 pounds. Air-filled wheels on the hand truck are preferable to solid ones.

    • 2

      Mount two 4-by-4 16 foot lengths of lumber on trestles and secure them in place. From one end, plane down the top side of each length of lumber to make a slant running from one side to the other. Try to obtain the same angle over the full length of the lumber. Only a few degrees of angle are needed to help obtain a better glide when the boat is launched.

    • 3

      Turn the wood around so the planed faces are downward. Move the prepared lumber into positions parallel with one another, length ways on the trestles, about a foot apart. Make sure the thinnest sides of the lumber face each other; you will want them to form a 'V' that will sit around the boat's hull.

    • 4

      Mount the hand truck on top of the two pieces of wood with the wheels facing upwards. The lumber should run up the inside of the left and right sides of the hand truck. Move the hand truck into position so that about 1foot of the wood extends beyond the wheels' end. Most of the lumber should project beyond the end where the handle used to be. This position will create a lever over the wheels' fulcrum point to allow for easy lifting.

    • 5

      Secure the wood to the inside of the hand truck's frame with C-clamps. Drill at three equally spaced points from the outside of the right side of the hand truck through the frame and into the wood. Start near to the top of the hand truck's frame, progressing to the middle of it for the second hole, then the bottom for the third. Drill at the opposite points of the frame from the left side toward the middle for the second section of lumber. Use nuts and bolts to fix the wood to the frame through the drill holes and remove the C-clamps.

    • 6

      Remove the boat launcher from the trestles and place it on the ground with the wheels down. Stick carpet tape along the top side of the wood. This will help prevent your boat from being scratched.

    • 7

      Screw the hand truck's removed handle into the end of the two lumber sections that extend furthest from the hand truck. This will provide some strength and help you move the launcher more easily.