The total time I spent putting ours in was equivalant to 3 weekends. We did it at the same time we were replacing the port lights. I don't recommend that. No real zingers though. It was pretty straight forward once the mounts were fabbed up. The hardest part was getting the old Westerbeast out. I stripped it down to a long block to lighten it up a bit. I saw somewhere that a deflated basketball was placed under the old engine and then inflated to jack it up enough to get it out. I would give that a try if I were to do it again. As it was the old engine needs to be jacked up and wood shims made from 2x4s put under the aft engine mounts. I stole an idea from Ray Durkee and built a cradle out of 2x4s and plywood that sat on the saloon floor. It had two 2x4s that lined up with the engine beds so that the engines could be slid out by running a come along from the mast to the engine and a chain fall from the boom to a rope attached to the engine. You lift with one and pull with the other. We used 2 halyard on the boom where the chain fall was attached. We probably put the Beta in and out about a dozen times trying to get the engine mounts correct. My wife and I got pretty good at it after awhile.
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Beta cradle.JPG [ 366.83 KB | Viewed 0 times ] To clarify I had the yard lift the old engine from the boat (right off the cradle) and the new eingine lifted into the boat with their mast crane.
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crane.JPG [ 124.75 KB | Viewed 0 times ]