Advice on Orkney Boats

[gunman]

I am asking for some info from users n here with more knowledge than me (wouldn't be difficult) on the Orkney range of boats.

I currently have a 13ft Orkney Skua (sailing version of the spinner). I have only used it for fishing on a lough with just me and my 11yr old son. The boat in my opinion handles at a level you would expect for a larger boat, excellent stability. I'm thinking of taking my other 2 sons out with us too, that, coupled with the fact that the lough I fish is very large (lough Erne) makes me think about a slightly larger boat.

I was looking at a longliner 16+ (no idea what the + means). The guy says he used a 15hp on it and it planed the boat. From all I can find ( I have researched this and ended up with more questions than answers), the longliner is a displacement hull with a hull speed of around 8 knots. Does anyone know if the longliner will plane? I know the fastliner and possibly the strikeliner have more width in the stern to allow for planing.

I currently use a 4hp mercury 4 stroke on the Skua. To be honest, if I am going for a displacement hull I was considering just using it on the 16ft as I will be in non tidal water with no real currents to contend with. The idea of in time placing a 15-20hp engine on it and using the 4hp for trolling does sound like a plan as the main fishing ground we go to is 3-4 miles from our launch site.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

 

[CalicoJack]

Lots of Longliners in the SE of England. Most run 6 to 8 HP. They are displacement boats so you reach a point where they reach their speed limit. For there size thy are supposed to be good sea boats although they are a wet boat. The only criticism is that they are a bit over priced for what they are.

 

[dewinowens]

Hi,
I have owned a Longliner 16 for a few years. Before I go on to give my view on this boat, I should mention that there are two. versions of the Longliner - the original displacement version that I have (rated up to 15hp) and the newer Longliner which can take up to 25hp and is quite a lot quicker! I have a Honda 8hp on my “classic” Longliner which gives me a top speed of 7.5 knots with a load of 2 adults, 3 teenage kids, plus anchor and fuel etc. I get to around 6 knots with relatively little power but the extra 1.5 knots needs a lot more throttle and creates a big wake, suggesting this is a pretty inefficient displacement speed. I have tiller steering so I don’t get any more speed travelling solo because the bows end up pointing at the clouds! Would the boat plane with a bigger engine? Well, mine will surf down waves and seems to be doing something close to planing for a few seconds so perhaps, but you’d probably need wheel steering to help keep some weight nearer the bows. For me, I think that 8 or 10hp is about right - big enough to be a smoother twin cylinder engine with enough grunt but small enough to be portable and not heavy on fuel. The Longliner is a good compromise between ease of launching (I usually launch straight off a beach and don’t need to get the trailer completely submerged to do so) and space/seaworthiness. I have the factory folding spray dodger on mine which is really useful and I prefer it to a fixed cuddy. It’s there if you need it to keep the wind or spray off but folds out of the way when the sun comes out. I really only have two minor gripes with the boat - firstly the sheer up to the bows means that the bows are quite high relative to the rest of the boat so that sitting in the stern to steer, you can’t actually see where you’re going! I steer standing up and I suspect the forward visibility might be a reason why quite a few people end up with wheel steering. My other gripe is the slow speed - if you have a long way to go or a foul tide, any displacement boat will need a bit of patience. Of course the upside is the soft ride and fuel economy (compared with a planing hull). I rarely use more than 3 or 4 litres of fuel for an afternoon of mucking about on the water. There are a lot of used Longliners about with quite powerful older two stroke motors on them (25hp etc) but i’ve no idea how they would handle. The specification plate on mine says that the max power is 15hp, max speed 10 knots. It’s not my area of expertise but I suspect an insurance company would take a dim view of these ratings being exceeded. If your 4hp is a long shaft it would be fine, but I think you’d probably end up wanting more power, as you suggested. One thing to note is that the Longliner has quite a narrow transom. I think people do fit brackets to mount a backup/trolling motor but there isn’t a great deal of space to play with (I don’t have one). Hope this is useful.

 

[gunman]

Thanks guys. I was baffled at the start at the price difference between the Orkney boats. I think now I understand the different models, the fast versions seem to be higher priced as i assume, more desirable.

Yes, my 4hp is long shaft, I also do have a 4hp short shaft 2 stroke which I did use for a few outings by fitting an outboard bracket 3" down the transom but it wasn't an ideal solution at all. I also wanted a 4 stroke for trolling as we all know a 2 stoke doesn't like long periods at tick over.. I recently bought the 4hp 4 stroke from the main agent as used but only having 5 hours and with a warranty, so it's a good, reliable engine and I would happily rely on it on a larger boat. It pushes the 13ft Orkney Skua at 6 knots with me and my son on board, plus fishing luggage etc. I also run it off a 25l tank (I know it's overkill and would run this engine for a week).