Introduction: Instant Outboard Motor Stand From Shopping Cart

By www.mit.edu/people/robot
About: Tim Anderson is the author of the "Heirloom Technology" column in Make Magazine. He is co-founder of www.zcorp.com, manufacturers of "3D Printer" output devices. His detailed drawings of traditional Pacific I…

Here's a slick outboard motor dolly you can make from a shopping cart in a minute.
It's good for moving the motor around and keeping it from falling over.

Step 1: Start Cutting

My granddad used to say: "To make a carved bear, take a piece of wood and cut off everything that doesn't look like part of a bear."

So start cutting.

I'm lucky to live in an area with lots of homeless people, so there's never a shortage of shopping carts.
I picked an especially small sturdy one for this project.

Step 2: Deburr It

Grind off the sharp burrs you made when you cut off the basket.

I left a little bit of the basket part attached. You'll see why in the next step.

Step 3: Reshape the Bottom End Rest

Bash on it until it's shaped like this.

Remove the baby seat back wall of the shopping cart.

Step 4: Pad the Bottom End Rest

Wrap it with a carpet scrap and wrap that with a bicycle innertube to hold it on.

Step 5: Dolly Away

Hook your motor's clamp over the push handle and use innertubes to secure all the dangling cables and stuff.

I innertubed the clamp over the push handle cuz I was in a hurry. If I had more time I'd bolt a board to the push handle and clamp the motor to that.