Anything good or bad about seakeeper gyros?

[MapisM]

I couldn’t test it at planning speed as the props were too fouled to plane.

Blimey, that must be some fouling!
Loosing a few, or even quite some knots, is one thing.
But not being able to plane at all...

Very nice results though.
I'm curious to hear about the effects on boat trim at cruise speed, after you'll have cleaned her bottom.

 

[jfm]

Really, I believe you, however I would have thought that it had a greater moment re the fore aft distance to cog than the moment athwart ships and therefore more influence fore and aft. More mass moving up and down to counter though I suppose.

Ah but it cannot use its distance from the boat's COG as a lever to increase its moment. It can only produce a torque and so its distance from the boat's COG has no effect. Hard to explain, and I'm not sure I'm explaining it well...

 

[Nick_H]

Blimey, that must be some fouling!
Loosing a few, or even quite some knots, is one thing.
But not being able to plane at all...

Yeah, I was surprised as well, as the fouling on the rudders didn't look that bad from the quay. I could only get 1,000 rpm on each engine, design is 2300 rpm. Anyone know what the "get me home" rev limiter is on VP D12's? If it's 1000 rpm then maybe I have another issue, but I think it's just fouling.

 

[jfm]

Yeah, I was surprised as well, as the fouling on the rudders didn't look that bad from the quay. I could only get 1,000 rpm on each engine, design is 2300 rpm. Anyone know what the "get me home" rev limiter is on VP D12's? If it's 1000 rpm then maybe I have another issue, but I think it's just fouling.

Eek, that sounds a bit worse than fouling Nick. I took my boat out 3 weeks ago and she was fine at 20kts. Probably burning the same fuel as 24 knots with clean hull, but nothing worse than that. I have no antifoul on my metalwork, just bare props and shafts, so they must be messy and I'm booked in a the shipyard for a clean up at the end of March

 

[MapisM]

maybe I have another issue

I would think so.
Were the engines smoking above normal, when trying to go over 1000rpm?
If they were struggling to rev up due to an exceptional resistance, I'd expect them to smoke harder and possibly also vibrate more than usual.
If they were just quietly running at 1000 and no more, they were probably in safe mode for some reason - though I can't confirm you if that's where the limiter cuts off on D12s.

 

[jfm]

I would think so.
Were the engines smoking above normal, when trying to go over 1000rpm?
If they were struggling to rev up due to an exceptional resistance, I'd expect them to smoke harder and possibly also vibrate more than usual.
If they were just quietly running at 1000 and no more, they were probably in safe mode for some reason - though I can't confirm you if that's where the limiter cuts off on D12s.

Agree re the smoke. If they were in limp mode/safe mode the error LEDs in the EVC controllers would be flashing though...

 

[Balearick]

Wow, the second video is really impressive! I bet you're in for a nice comfortable summer now

 

[Deleted User YDKXO]

Thats v impressive, Nick. Interested to see it working at planing speed and in a bigger sea

 

[z1ppy]

Very Impressive! You must be well chuffed!

 

[BartW]

Thanks for update NickH, really impressive result.

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

Very nice! Er, when are you getting the P60?

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[Nick_H]

Eek, that sounds a bit worse than fouling Nick.

hmm, I fear you may be right, i'll have to get it checked.

 

[jfm]

hmm, I fear you may be right, i'll have to get it checked.

But do you have any flashing LEDs? You would if it was a limp-home mode activated by the EVC. Also it's a bit unlikely that both engines would have an EVC-detected limp-mode fault

 

[jimmy_the_builder]

But do you have any flashing LEDs? You would if it was a limp-home mode activated by the EVC. Also it's a bit unlikely that both engines would have an EVC-detected limp-mode fault

I don't know D12's, sorry, but if they were both in gear, throttle positions broadly the same and one was in reduced-power, wouldn't the other one just sync down to the reduced-power rpm?

Cheers
Jimmy

 

[Nick_H]

But do you have any flashing LEDs? You would if it was a limp-home mode activated by the EVC. Also it's a bit unlikely that both engines would have an EVC-detected limp-mode fault

No flashing lights, and no excess smoke. Maybe fuel shortage - ugh, maybe fuel bug :-(

I haven't completely discounted fouling though, so i'll lift and clean first

 

[AdeOlly]

That second vid is mighty impressive. I'm going to show my SWMBO and see if she'll let me buy a boat big enough to accomodate Seekeepers. She hates the boat rolling around at anchor....

As to 1000rpm max, sounds like you're dragging a trawler net to me.... I assume you didn't forget to antifoul last year

 

[MapisM]

No flashing lights, and no excess smoke.

Ok, here's another thought.
Since jfm mentioned EVC controls, I suppose you also have the digital display which can show all the engines parameters.
If so, you maybe noticed in the past what sort of load there is normally on the engines at 1000 rpm.
And even if you didn't, it should be pretty low - somewhere between 20 and 30%, as a guesstimate.
Now, if it takes more power to keep the boat moving at 1000 rpm (as it should be the case if the fouling would be as bad as you suspect), the load has to be MUCH higher.
Actually, if the engines can't accelerate further, in theory they should be running at close to 100% load, even at at such low RPM.
In turn, that would explain why the boat can't go on the plane, because it would take more power than the engines are capable to produce.
All rather unlikely in my opinion - I tend to think that there must be some other reason - but easy to check without lifting the boat, anyway.

 

[vas]

don't think I can contribute to this 1000rpm issue, but if it was the first outing of the craft after the stab fitting, maybe something silly happened on installation? dunno bent fuel line, blocked air path.

simply, when something happens/fails I tend to go back to what was altered recently and I've saved a lot of time (ok, due to my stupidity in the first place, but that's another story )

V.

PS. and to be on topic, second video 26+sec is really impressive, well done!
PPS. I can see Bart starting saving money NOW for next year's BA project work

 

[Nick_H]

Ok, here's another thought.
Since jfm mentioned EVC controls, I suppose you also have the digital display which can show all the engines parameters.
If so, you maybe noticed in the past what sort of load there is normally on the engines at 1000 rpm.
And even if you didn't, it should be pretty low - somewhere between 20 and 30%, as a guesstimate.
Now, if it takes more power to keep the boat moving at 1000 rpm (as it should be the case if the fouling would be as bad as you suspect), the load has to be MUCH higher.
Actually, if the engines can't accelerate further, in theory they should be running at close to 100% load, even at at such low RPM.
In turn, that would explain why the boat can't go on the plane, because it would take more power than the engines are capable to produce.
All rather unlikely in my opinion - I tend to think that there must be some other reason - but easy to check without lifting the boat, anyway.

I don't have the digital display, just the EDC controller with 5 buttons/6 LED's. I need to lift and anti-foul the boat before Easter anyway (and i'm not visiting again before it is lifted), so I may as well see how much fouling there is, or if there is something else obvious causing the problem when I look underneath, before investigating other possibilities.

 

[Nick_H]

don't think I can contribute to this 1000rpm issue, but if it was the first outing of the craft after the stab fitting, maybe something silly happened on installation? dunno bent fuel line, blocked air path.

That's a good line of thought Virtuvas, although the gyro system is independent so its hard to see what could have been disturbed