Bow thruster noise machine

Hope I never said a word against use of thrusters in situations where they're required because of confined space in tight-packed berths. Wouldn't it be recklessly, culpably stupid to keep a boat in such a spot, then insist on repeatedly back-and-forthing, bashing neighbours & pontoons because the steering doesn't allow such delicacy at close quarters?

Where the berthing arrangements have changed, the related equipment has evolved to enable safe & easy access into the space. That's good for everyone.

I think it's the use of thrusters in places where a practiced helm could certainly have managed without, which makes onlookers sneer...

...because if the skipper appears to doubt that he can manage without the thruster, so will everyone who's watching. Nothing personal, Puff. :encouragement:
 
I've used mine a few times in a very unseamanlike mannor. For example, going into a lock a bit close to one side as lock busy. Got a little close to the edge on the way in and possibly getting into a bouncy situation. But of reverse to make the prop wash kick the back out to port and left bit of thruster to the right. Boat slowed and moved over to port out of the way of danger. Terrible helming, should have my license removed. Oh hang on a sec.......
 
ricky_s said:
But that might make my using one more valid? Rubbish stinky driver:)
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Don't say that! You'll make the sailboat thruster-users feel marginalised...like they're accused of using one of those stinkpot's lazy cut-corner solutions. :biggrin-new:
 
dancrane said:
I reckon it's only observation, with a hint of wistful nostalgia. A hundred years ago, how many 30ft sailing yachts had engines? Whatever the inconvenience (and overall detraction) which the difficulty of handling a yacht with no auxiliary represented, people still owned them and used great skill to cope, although certainly many were wrecked too.
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Back then yachts were not often taken along side. You'd sail into harbour and either anchor or maybe pick up a mooring, neither very hard to achieve under sail. It's all very well wistfully looking back a hundred years ago and saying that its not like it was, but the nature of the game has changed to be unrecognisable from the days of the gentleman sailor and his paid hand going cruising in a sieve.
 
There's no logic at work. My dad said the same about roller reefing (makes you lazy about sail choice) and no doubt my grandad would have said the same about winches rather than block and tackle. It's progress but it leaves some behind in a yearning way for their youth when men were men and bow thrusters were for girls.
 
Javelin said:
After another day of cringing we've decided that visitors who come to Southwold and use their bow thruster to moor up will, after dark, have their bow thruster removed and replaced with a machine that sounds like one but does nothing.
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On the river Hamble the same discussion was mentioned regarding the engine. The engine was given to wannabe sailors who could not sail. (Total made up rubbish)

The bow thruster was given to wannabe masters who could not master. (Total made up rubbish)

Now tho, the bow thruster for me at least is another method of steering the vessel when going astern often it is best to leave the wheel centered and revert to the bow thruster when going astern at 1-2 knots or at the speed the rudder fails to get the waterflow to make a difference.
 
Seajet said:
. . . However I'd rely on boat handling first, the bow thruster a short term aid at the last minute maybe, but certainly not relying on it - there's always ' the what if it fails ?! ' scenario any good skipper or pilot will have at the back of his mind.
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Why only at the last minute? I nearly always use mine based on prior planning -- as a part of boat handling, not something extraneous to boat handling. I never use it coming into a berth except for the narrow and specific case of holding the bow in for a second if it's being blown off, for long enough to get a line on -- something which is never a surprise if you have properly analysed the wind before making your approach. I always use it coming out of an along-side berth, unless I have wind blowing me off. Because the thruster and counter-rudder is vastly more effective in getting you out of scraping distance of the wall or pontoon than any other tactic. I always use it when maneuvering at low speed in reverse (this great use of it belies the idea that thrusters are useless when making way). All these cases are planned in advance and are not last minute moves.

And why do you say never rely on it? Why is it any different from using that other mechanical aid, an engine, in harbour? Sailing-boat auxiliary engines, with their tendencies to clogged fuel filters, running out of fuel, plastic bags in cooling water intakes, shredded impellers, etc., etc., etc., are surely more failure-prone than bow thrusters, yet the great majority of us boldly take the sails down when we come into harbour. I think most of us would instantly get some sail back up if -- God forbid -- the engine failed during harbour maneuvers, and figure out how to get the boat secured without the engine, but I can't imagine anyone using the auxiliary engine only as a "short term aid", just because it might conceivably fail. Same thing with bow thrusters.
 
What happens on a yacht bow thruster if a line gets sucked into it? It must be common as they are used for berthing mainly. Is there risk of somehow ripping out the impeller and causing a large leak suddenly? Would you automatically need a new thruster?
 
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jerrytug said:
What happens on a yacht bow thruster if a line gets sucked into it? It must be common as they are used for berthing mainly. Is there risk of somehow ripping out the impeller and causing a large leak suddenly? Would you automatically need a new thruster?
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I did have that happen one time and it just stalled the motor with no damage to the prop, tunnel or the leg. The tunnel is steel on my boat so I don't know how GRP would stand up but I don't think it would be a problem as a Bow thruster motor power is much lower than the power or the main engine would be.

BTW we had to dive down and cut the rope out from between the prop and tunnel.
 
jerrytug said:
What happens on a yacht bow thruster if a line gets sucked into it? It must be common as they are used for berthing mainly. Is there risk of somehow ripping out the impeller and causing a large leak suddenly? Would you automatically need a new thruster?
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I sucked a larg builder type bag into mine a few weeks back. Mine has 2 props so it all ended up between them and jammed it. But just jammed it. They do have either shear pins or soft dogs in the props , so nothing expensive breaks and it certainty wont tear a hole. In my case no damage was done the motor just stalled.
 
Lakesailor said:
You have foolishly fallen into the trap of arguing a point with Seajet.
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Mine is in a cofferdam, so even if it fell out leaving a gaping hole, it would not leak into the hull.

But as others have said, the design makes it unlikely to cause a leak. Since it's in a tunnel, it's almost impossible for a rope to wrap the shaft. If sucked into the prop, it would stall the motor and perhaps break the shear pins. Not a very big deal.
 
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