Cutting a hole in the slug - the practical side

Engines

I would always try to repair what you have however you are obviously thinking of options.
I think an O/b in a well is horrible. It is difficult to remove to reduce drag and it gets in the way of cockpit floor space.
I have an o/b on a bracket but then I don't use the engine anyway.

One design around here called a Marauder 24 has a half a well at the transom. The engine actually mounts on a transom in a well inboard by about 50cms from the main transom. The main transom has a cut out in it.
This puts the engine about 80cms forward of where it would be on a bracket so less pitching problems.
It is easily tilted back and up to reduce drag.
This works with an inboard mounted rudder. In your case I would consider building twin rudders either side of engine.
You might consider simply mounting the engine on the transom which perhaps can be cut low enough for your short shaft engine.
Just a few thoughts for your imagination. good luck olewill
 
Let's face it the most economic way would be to just buy a rise and fall bracket and hang a long-shaft o/b on the back - job done! The Slug is such a stubby little boat that with a long-shaft you would have to have the bow underwater before the prop would be out of the water the other end. And in any case as you have always expounded If its that bad I wont be out! You can then remove The Beast and either not worry about it ever again,restore it or sell it.
 
the engine starts and runs - stuck in forward

but I can live with that

So whats the problem then?

just get an outboard with reverse for when you need it.
 
unreliable

Niander said:
the engine starts and runs - stuck in forward

but I can live with that

So whats the problem then?

just get an outboard with reverse for when you need it.
Click to expand...

I do have a Honda 2.3 on the back of the boat which is fine as a back up and for marinas -

but it is not up to getting me through the rough stuff around some of the bars I have come across

Wells, Deben and colne bar all got pretty horrible

wells is a lulu and the channel that forces you at right angles to the breaking waves

a bigger boat can suck up the punishment but the cresting waves fill the cockpit and shift the boat sideways

and small boat needs to be turned bow in towards each breaker and then a quick turn on the back of the crest to make forward progress between the breakers

the only way to do that with an outboard on the tsern is to vector it

I would hate to be hanging over the transome vectoring outboards u nder such conditions

I can't even contemplate the shame and derision heaped upon me on this forum should I end up calling out the emergency services because the beast has let me down.

As I said earlier - it has cost me a lot of money, time and emotional trauma

Dylan
 
nowell nowell the angels did sing!

Why do people want to put OB s in wells?
So much Cockpit space lost and so much drag! My boat had an over sized OB in well when i bought her. I tried an OB bracket and that was horrible. Hanging over the transom to change gear etc. So I hung it on transom as close to rudder as i could. I fabricated a linkage that turns motor with rudder.
This is pin jointed and i remove it when tilting the motor. The swivel in the middle is for when i forget to remove it before tilting. I can steer from standing on cockpit seat with tiller extension which is handy in confined areas, and the prop never hits the blade. I can motor/sail with blade up or down, but with motor tilted, Ariel has a clean pair of heels, drag-wise.
Stub tiller is used as the main tiller pivots to lift blade. Wish i had spent more time on aesthetics as after 2 seasons prototype looks like a permanent fixture! Pics show motor in well as per original and current arrangement.
 
Well Well Well. :D

I have a Snapdragon 23, with an outboard in a Well and am currently rebuilding the well.

Firstly I must say that having a Well has had virtually no issues. The only concerns are that it saps a bit of cockpit space but to be honest, I think it would only be an issue with 4 in the cockpit and that the outboard leg needs some form of antifouling.
Oh and the engine is bleedin' heavy, but that's not the Well's fault.

The engine is a bit of a brute (10hp Honda 4-stroke) and that is supported by a 2 1/2 inch plywood supporting transom, which is bolted into the sides of the cockpit and through a thinner 3/4 inch plywood transom that makes up the inside 'wall' of the transom.

I'm only redoing it as the cockpit floor was a bit 'Heath Robinson' so i'm replacing all the wooden parts.

Fuel Tank sits in one of the cockpit lockers.

Boat came to me that way so I've not experienced without but it seems to work for me. :)
 
LIke that John!

An outboard in a well is less likely to come out in a heavy sea and race the engine...nasty!
its also closer to cockpit...a few important advantages
 
dylanwinter said:
I have been on the look out for a small, safe, seaworthy, easily handled , short masted yacht with outboard in a well.


Dylan
Click to expand...

I couldn't help thinking that you were describing my boat!
Newbridge Coromandel.

Expect lots of posts describing how a junk rig is no use to anyone. Mine got me from Lincolnshire up to the Tyne and back last year, might get a bit further this summer. :)

Andy Seedhouse has a very original looking one for sale. It has a tabernacle and no standing rigging, so the mast can be dropped in 5 minutes and raised again just as quickly.
 
One important consideration, especially if you are venturing up north is the availability of fuel.

Getting hold of petrol (without a car) when in remote places will be a pain, I read in the PBO round britain book that diesel is easier to get hold of beside the sea than petrol in the remoter places in the highlands.

D
 
northwind said:
One important consideration, especially if you are venturing up north is the availability of fuel.

Getting hold of petrol (without a car) when in remote places will be a pain, I read in the PBO round britain book that diesel is easier to get hold of beside the sea than petrol in the remoter places in the highlands.

D
Click to expand...

Don't say that.. I'm considering a lap of the UK at some point and my Honda only drinks Unleaded. :(
 
You don't have to go too far north to struggle. There's none within a couple of miles of Scarborough marina, but I got an offer of a lift to get some from the first person I asked about fuel.
I wouldn't worry too much. People can be extremely generous. :)
 
I really think you are grasping at straws with all these outlandish ideas.

You talk about the problems of getting over the conditions at certain Suffolk/Norfolk river entrances. If you continue around Britian (as is your aim) you won't come across any more of these and in any event ANY inboard (even one stuck in forward) will do you better than an o/b - well or transom.

I, for one, wouldn't go round Britain relying on an O/B. No doubt others have -or no engine at all- but an inboard that will start reliably is your biggest safety factor.

Either get a new boat so we don't get any more of the slug/beast problems or get the inboard sorted. Several posters have offered to look at the gearbox if you get it out of the boat.

Either that or re-engine. Where on earth does your figure of £5k come from? Buy a s/h yanmar for less then £1k. £500 should be plenty for the extras (hoses, couplings etc) and DO-IT-YOURSELF Thousands have and it is not rocket science and at least then you have some knowledge of the mechanics of the boat.

Honestly Dylan, we are your supporters and want a practical solution for you so FFS get on with it.
 
Last edited:
northwind said:
I think the petrol availability is mentioned in the other one :)
Click to expand...

:) Well i've not read the whole book yet so It may yet be in there.

Regarding Dylan's 'issue', Even though I like my Well/Outboard combination, i'd certainly be looking at resolving the inboard problem (either repair or replace) before carving away at the back of the boat.

The good thing about little sailing boats is that they have little engines. I would make a significant wager that I could do a complete inboard installation on the slug for no more than £1k.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Other threads that may be of interest

P
Essential pre purchase or even pre survey checks
2
Replies
28
Views
859
Refueler
Refueler
P
Adding fuses to my batteries
2 3 4
Replies
61
Views
2K
AngusMcDoon
AngusMcDoon

Share this page

Top