Ladder

[JSchukraft]

We had a great day yesterday in our newly aquired 99 X. Caught some decent wind off of the south central FL gulf coast. Boca Grande for those familiar with the area. What a perfect spot for sailing! Boy did we get some funny looks trailering that big boat with our Chrysler mini van!

Only problem we encountered was with the ladder. We all wanted to go in for a swim to get cooled off. My husband was the "guinea pig." He was able to get back up the standard stern ladder, but said it wasn't too easy and most certainly wouldn't work for our kids.

What suggestions to you all have? Are those ladders that simply hook over the side safe? We also saw that there are some ladders that have brackets that you install so you can latch the ladder into the brackets when in use.

Thanks in advance for any feedback!

[Dimitri-2000X-Tampa]

Hmm, that is an interesting observation. I would have figured the opposite, ie, my smaller kids are like little monkeys and can get up and down the ladder pretty easily. I always figured it was the bigger and older folks that had more trouble.

One thing you definitely need is a properly mounted grab handle. Without that, I would agree that it is very difficult to get up. I have a 2000X which just has the standard 2 step ladder from railmakers (factory option). The problem with a ladder on the side or the bow is that the freeboard is so high, you would have to get a pretty long ladder to be in the water deeper than the stock transom ladder.

Check out the mods pages, several people have put bigger ladders in and you can also see some grab handle mods.

[Divecoz]

I haven't built one yet, but I might TOY with it today. That is BTW a PVC ladder built out of 1-1/2 in PVC screwed or nut and bolted together. Goes over the side towards the back / transom / aft .Some tried to use them in Mexico / Coz but they wouldn't hold up under the Use and abuse The fatties and those who insist on climbing back into the boat with full gear on . I just wonder if they might work well being cared for just a little bit

[Idle Time]

we put flat steps on the rungs. Makes it much easier on the feet. I believe there is a picture in the mod section where someone else did the same thing.

[Scott]

Ours

[Craig LaForce]

I have those bolt on flats like Scott has. Works great.

I did 2 other things also.

1) hang a web strap tied in a loop from a large padeye that I installed where I removed the back seat hinge. It makes a great hand hold at any height from the water until you are standing on the stern. If you paddle an inflatable dingy or kayak, it is the first thing I grab when returning to the boat. Left hand grabs the web, right hand on top of the motor and boarding is very easy.

2) The right standoff leg did not reach the back of the boat on mine, so I installed a rail stantion base over the leg which made it hit the stern perfectly, makeing the ladder much stronger and more stable.


I would not suggest a boarding ladder over the side. Not only do you have to climb a lot further, but there are no handholds, and the boat also has more movement relative to the water on the sides. Rolling is more exagerated than pitching.

[ALX357]

[Duane Dunn, Allegro]

We have a larger one mounted on the outside of the port rudder. It's not too hard to use in conjuction with the grab handle mounted about halfway up the stern above it. Our kids manage fine, but I still find it tough after a ride on the knee board when my arms are pooped. Some treads might help. A higher second handle also would be even better.

Having it outboard makes it a bit easier to step from it to the aft opening provided the rudder is down. This however means you are constantly putting the rudder up and down as we primarily use it with water toys and need the rudder up to go fast.

You can also use the motor cavitation plate as a foothold if needed (motor off always).

[Divecoz]

Rational behind my thoughts of a side ladder is .
Well over 200 dive boats on Coz use side ladders many have "almost" the free board of a Mac, but admittedly none are as high just close . None of them BTW have the advantage of a Center board or Dagger board and 2 rudders all in the water either. Most I believe though open boats "NOW " are only 7 to 8 feet wide and about 24 to 26 ft long . They do weigh in at close to what a Mac does because of the need to handle rough treatment and big twin motors with 7 divers and a boat captain on board . Do they tip ? yes some do depending on the conditions but millions of divers use them every year . Soooooo my reasoning may prove faulty but we will soon see . I said they are open boats NOW because many started life as Cabin's or Cuddies and became Open Panga's. The Real Pangas have an average hull thickness in excess of an Inch of all hand laid glass no guns . . .

[nemo]

I have an M, so a different boat, but I think these comments apply to this thread. Our boat (purchased from BWY) came with a ladder on the stern to the starboard side of the engine, but we exclusively use a side ladder now. We found the stern ladder 1) hard to use perhaps because it's next to a large Suzuki 70 engine, and 2) too close to the depth finder transducer and I feared that someone would eventually step on the transducer and break it, when trying to get their foot on the ladder.

I don't have a good picture of the stock stern ladder. But this picture..

http://www.brownz.com/transducer_2.jpg

..shows the location, although the ladder is in the "up" position, and how dangerously close it is to the transducer.

We picked up a side mount ladder and made a slight modification so that it can hang plumb (straight up and down) when hanging on the sloped starboard rail by the cockpit. This implies I can only use it on the starboard side. We store it below when not in use, and we just hang it on the rail when we need it.

My kids regularly do tubing and kneeboarding behind the boat, and I've personally wake-boarded behind and used this side ladder. My kids and I can all give our testimonials that it's WAY EASIER to use this side ladder than the stern mounted ladder was.

[JSchukraft]

Thanks everyone for the suggestions and for taking the time to share your ideas, experiences and photos.

What we find the hardest with the original unmodified ladder is reaching that first step with your foot and that first pulling yourself up when you're in the water. So perhaps a longer ladder with a third rung and a grab handle, as suggested here.

Other issue is that the first mate and 12 and 14 yr old kids are not too thrilled with the ladder being so close to the motor and prop, even though of course we had it shut off.

So far, this has been the only issue of any significance we've had with our "new" X. Just wish it were easier to get in and out of for swimming, tubing, etc. But the many great things about the boat more than make up for it!

[Night Sailor]

I find it necessary to have the ladder next to the motor for easy access to the cockpit when the boat is on the trailer. If the ladder were outboard the rudder, the rudder would be in the way in it's normal up position.