Need a quick response if possible. I was just educated that my 367 cutter has a slot on the Stern rail (s) that would hold a removable slide in Davit. What I can't seem to find is a set for sale. Or even for sail. My email address is <vroyster@comcast.net> if anyone knows a source, I would be in your debt. Not a lot of debt, but,,, some anyway.
My understanding is that the slots were for a custom davit that Pearson offered as an option. I think you'd have to get pretty lucky to find a pair on the resale market. I believe most of us who have put davits on after the fact have chosen from Kato, St. Croix, Edson, Forespar, etc. I put Kato davits on my 1981 Cutter in 1999 and they have been wonderful.
Brian
The davits were, and still are, pretty flimsy. As Brian pointed out you are much better off in the long run to invest in a proper set of davits from one of the companies he mentioned. While the most expensive, Kato has great reputation.
Garner
Garner,
Thank you for clarifying what I always suspected. I'm not at all impressed with the stern pulpit found on my the Pearson 365. It's very flimsy. I would never attach a davit to 3/4" SS tubing uprights. It is simply not a sufficient anchor for a proper davit system. Since I've never seen a picture of these Pearson davits I believe that they may be nothing more than Pearson folklore. Perhaps if they ever did exist I'm thinking they probably popped off and fell in the ocean early on. I'm going to muddy the waters and suggest that the slots on the Pearson stern pulpit were intended for hanging a boarding ladder assembly. Anything more substantial than that should be considered poor engineering IMO.
Pete
I have actually seen those davits used. Allan on Incommunicado still uses it. While they are flimsy, they make a good solar panel mount for him. Or you could hang a small inflatable, but I wouldn't do more than 50 lbs on it.
Nice part about them is that you can easily remove them and store them below, which can save you 4ft in marina fees.
The Pearson factory davits are not fiction but well made but certainly have a flaw or two. They do work well and with a little help are not flimsy. U-bolt clamps will keep them from working out of the slots and a topping lift give them great lifting power. A great design for a cruiser that does not want the davits up all the time.
A good rule of thumb is that nothing robust should mount on either pulpit and these davits certainly violate that rule.
I agree with Wayne - I looked at used set at Bacon's and was tempted to buy them because of the easy of install design. For occasional use with a light dinghy they would be nice to have. I did not think they would meet my needs
They did not have a cross member to keep the arms locked together or secondary support for the pulpit. Maybe they were not factory or not a complete set. And, I was concerned how they would hold up with a 100 lb inflatable (Avon 10' 2" wood floor) hanging off the davits plus 45lb outboard on the rail...
I ultimately went with a smaller inflatable that I could stow in the locker, inflate on deck, and drop in the water...
Just one sailor's point of view.
Garner
The trend I'm seeing more of is to have your local tubing shop weld up a custom arch that includes the wrap around stern rail, davits and overhead platform for RADAR, solar panels and antennas. I've seen a couple of arches that have a look-out seat up there as well. This eliminates the flimsy Pearson railing once and for all. Pete
I agree with Pete, have an custom arch made. I took a look at the Kato island davits they are just like the original Pearson davits. It still comes down to where you use your boat. Inland waters the Pearson or Kato would be ok.For offshore work the stern is to low to hang a dink. Wayne with all of his offshore miles would tell you the only place for the dink is straped to the fordeck. I hope this helps. Allen
I have a complete set of the davits if you are interested.
I would like to see a pic of these. maybe just to get me by for a while for day sailing in the bay to the inner bays of Orange Beach area. How much, please? Verne Deja Vu