Transom Saver??

I just picked up a new 1850 ranger reata with a Merc 175 ProXS on the back and the dealer specified i would not need a transom saver at all and that the hydraulic steering would be enough…

seemed off, should i be using one, and if so what style is reccomended.

Delete one of your double post please.

I wouldn’t want that pressure on my hydros for tilt and trim nor would I want it on my hydro stearing. Centering clips and a wedge would make me feel better.

I have the exact same boat and it has a saver….wouldn’t go without it. It’s the pole style. Attached to the lower unit and runs to a roller.

Here it is off the boat so it fits in the driveway. Best pic I got.

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At how often this gets brought up, I’m curious as to why there hasn’t been some research brought out to support either way? Part of me thinks transom savers is one giant marketing scam…but I bought one! I’ve heard from several saying the boat manufactures say they are aren’t needed… and they designed the boats. Heck, on my boat I had to modify the trailer to even get one to fit.

Bought a new rig in spring of 2020. The dealer said they all use a wedge. I called Yamaha and they said use a wedge or a bar but use something. They wouldn’t commit to which is better.

I don’t see how a M-Y-Wedge (or similar) is a transom saver at all. It takes no weight off the transom. A hydraulic saver – Yes. BUT I don’t know how much pressure the tilt housing around the ram is made to take. It seems like a lot of weight bouncing on top of it.

The kind that attach to the trailer seems better to me. BUT does every bump you hit get transferred to the lower unit? Or is the trailer/boat/motor all become one once it all strapped together???

I bought my first real boat this summer. I haven’t gone more than 30 miles (from dealer to home & a mile to/from the landing) but if I ever go far, I think I will buy a VE-VE brand that attaches to the trailer. ??? I can see it now…….I’ll probably have both.

A friend that passed a few years ago was an aluminum welder that patched lower units for several boat dealers and shops. Usually it was from hitting a submerged object but a few a year were from operator error with transom savers. He would patch holes in the lower unit because people would use them when the rubber V or the knobs the motor rests on were wore out but people continued to use the any way. He talked about how some people would fold up a towel and put it in the cradle thinking it would protect the LU from exposed screws. The other error that caused cracks that he said were more serious was putting to much pressure on the bar type savers, either using it to keep the motor from turning while going down the road, or thinking they had to take weight off the transom for trailering. Those are the ones that are transferring every bump and vibration to the LU.
He always said whether you use a wedge, bar type transom saver or a piece of wood you should only snug it enough so there is no chance of it falling off, anything more was flirting with disaster.

The only way I would want the pressure on the hydros is if theyn have what is called a “Compound Valve” on they life cylinders.

lift cylinder

I used the Ve-Ve brand transom saver on the boat I traded in last year. Even though I tried to keep the rubber part clean it still rubbed some paint of the lower unit. One time when I got to a gas station, it had slipped off the lower unit. Probably didn’t have enough pressure on it. I don’t know how it didn’t come off the trailer. A bungee cord fixed that.