Can classic boats have bow-thrusters?

michaelchapman said:
The first photo has a "classic" silhouette. But in all the other photos it looks very modern. The placement and style of the deck hatches for instance. The boat is also a very modern design. It is a real shame they did not do a better job with the hatches.

Not so sure you could call this a classic.
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By that token then, could you say that a Working Pilot Cutter now fitted out and used as a 'Yacht' is not a classic as she was never intended to be altered for that purpose and is therefore no longer 'Authentic'? (Charmian excepted!)

Are we not confusing the word 'Classic' with 'Authentic' or 'Traditional' or 'Historic'?
 
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drumbeat said:
By that token then, could you say that a Working Pilot Cutter now fitted out and used as a 'Yacht' is not a classic as she was never intended to be altered for that purpose and is therefore no longer 'Authentic'? (Charmian excepted!)

Are we not confusing the word 'Classic' with 'Authentic' or 'Traditional' or 'Historic'?
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No - my argument is that the yacht in question does not look classic at all when you look down at the deck. The hatches are all wrong.

A pilot cutter, even a replica like mine, has a bit more claim to classic. The under water lines are as they were in the 19th century - not some modern fin keel. The deck layout is the same, with the exact same style hatch over the accommodation. The rig is the same although of course my sails are not made of cotton, and the running rigging is not hemp but modern stuff. I also have an engine - which authentic pilot cutters never had. It is very complicated to park these days in your average marina with no engine and no tug boat (though I have had to do it once when the starter motor packed up).

I don't think anyone wants truly authentic any more. (Heads??!!)

It is all a question of degree and opinions will of course always diverge.
 
Its all about what appeals to one but not another, practical side would say the Hoek though maintenance is still an issue whether it be systems or the paint and brightwork! Drumbeat is much more pleasing to my eye and in fact most of the modern classic or spirit of tradition type yachts lack the aesthetic appeal of the original classics. If you compare the looks of a 'Spirit' with similar yachts of an earlier era it is clear to me that they are sadly lacking in the natural elegance and beauty department. Modern classics are great but when you combine lighter displacement or shallower hull forms sheer and deck height goes up and then it all goes a bit wrong.
 
An engine yes(if you must..assuming it was origionally sail powered),a flush heads yes(but keep a bucket handy),nav equipment well at least it can be unscrewed and chucked overboard when it goes tits up,bow thruster..no way,and as for those GHASTLEY HATCHES they shouldn't even be mentioned on this forum.
PS Must dig out the photo of a twin screw Morcambe Bay prawner I sailed on in the 60's...that was two long shaft Century Seagulls bolted on to planks.....yes it, true!!
 
This will soon become another forum where nobody is fit to be a member!

I'm happy we do what we need to to keep these boats in use. If he doesn't use it and no-one else wants it then it will become another rotting boat in a yard

Its not a classic Fife yacht for *** sake

We live in marinas these days. I've got myself in a few messes over time saved by fenders, if I could afford one I'd have one.
 
Well spotted! Here it is, about 26 seconds in...


I don't know the film; it looks awful, an attempt to give Tom Selleck something to do on the back of America's love affair with Crocodile Dundee. Cue Hollywood Aussie accents.

But the barque, the James Craig is a beauty; it'd be daft to call her classic status into question.

EDIT: She's a barquentine, I just noticed before anyone else points it out. :o Now, cue someone to tell me she really, actually IS a barque. :rolleyes:
 
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Going back to 'No such thing as GRP classic' from Wooden Boat Fittings. How would you class Pen Duick? Fife design, rebuilt in glass. I had a good look at her on one of the jollies around here (along with three other PDs) Stunning on deck.

Most of the problems must be with structural considerations. Cutting a big hole in a carvel boat would need some careful thought. Less so for composite hulls like Michael's.

And, a thought about parrafin powered bowthrusters.. Gas turbines use parrafin, so would they be acceptable? Just askin'
 
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Well, Yes.
But a mate who sails his ketch without an engine has given up on the dinghy and Seagull and is installing an inboard. As he sails s/handed, the idea of launching the dinghy and pushing 13 tonnes of boat around in anything but a flat calm is 'interestng'.
 
DownWest said:
Well, Yes.
But a mate who sails his ketch without an engine has given up on the dinghy and Seagull and is installing an inboard. As he sails s/handed, the idea of launching the dinghy and pushing 13 tonnes of boat around in anything but a flat calm is 'interestng'.
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No no no.

He calls up the tug boat on the VHF and sits back and smokes his cigar while the tug does all the work and the staff take his lines in his berth and tie everything up for him, stow all the sails, clean the boat and put the covers on. In the mean time the chauffeur turns up with the carriage :encouragement:

Who needs an inboard engine????
 
drumbeat said:
Sails are a means of propulsion to manoeuvre a boat.
An auxiliary engine is a means of propulsion to manoeuvre a boat.
A bow-thruster is........
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A bow thruster is a means of propulsion to move the bows of the boat.

Like everything it doesn't have to be used, but its nice to have in emergencies.
 
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