Sailing with outboard

[coveman]

I have an outboard that is fitted in a well, which works fine. My question is - Is it best to leave it in neutral when I am sailing and not using it or leave it in gear to prevent to prop turning? If its left in neutral the prop "free wheels" with an irritating whine. What do others do?
Sailing purists will say the engine should be removed as it slows the boat down but that would not be a practical option on my boat and there is no way of tilting the engine up.

 

[Refueler]

I have had 3 sail boats and have one sail boat now with O/bds ................ I never really thought about it .... sometimes I did .. sometimes I didn't ...

But I do know that all the FNR O/bds I have had do not iike gear to be engaged when engine not running ... I have needed the engine OR prop turning to allow gears to engage..

 

[dac31]

I have a transom mounted outboard which obviously can be tilted up and is so when sailing, I have had it down momentarily and the noise was noticeable but not too distracting. It is a 5hp Yamaha 2 stroke perhaps the noise is more problematic on your motor?

 

[Chiara’s slave]

We have a transom mount outboard for power. When we’ve got the sails up, we tilt it obviously. If it’s in neutral before we’ve done that, there is a terrible whine, I can well see that it could be unbearable. If I just switch off still in gear, the boat slows like we’ve anchored by mistake, and a huge stream of cavitation and turbulence is visible. Hobsons choice. Is there no way of getting it out of the water?

 

[VicS]

I have had 3 sail boats and have one sail boat now with O/bds ................ I never really thought about it .... sometimes I did .. sometimes I didn't ...

But I do know that all the FNR O/bds I have had do not iike gear to be engaged when engine not running ... I have needed the engine OR prop turning to allow gears to engage..

That's because they have a dog clutch.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

That's because they have a dog clutch.

Of course. That makes the gear operation a bit ruff.

 

[ylop]

As far as I can tell inboard engine users suffer the same dilemma. You'll find mixed advice for them, some of which claims to be about efficiency (allegedly you will lose speed if you put it in gear although I've never noticed it - obviously the relative size of boat/prop will make a difference) or wear and tear (if the prop is spinning something is wearing although it may be miniscule) or manufacturer recommendations (which may be specific to the particular model of drive/gearbox). For inboards folding / feathering props change the question again, and I know a skipper who claims "in gear" was less likely to snag a line. My gut feel is that there's a large part of personal preference involved, a huge amount of anecdote not evidence, and some myths which might be been true on a previous boat but aren't on the one the person now owns but are restated as facts etc.

If I was sailing your boat and the engine was making a noise from the prop free wheeling I'd pop it in reverse to lock the prop. Given all the other ways to kill an outboard I doubt that will be the life determining issue!

 

[Refueler]

That's because they have a dog clutch.

I am trying to understand why you feel need to highlight my post ... I am sure that anyone with similar also knows that about gear shift.

 

[Sandy]

What does the engine manufacturer's' manual state? Follow their instructions.

 

[Chiara’s slave]

What does the engine manufacturer's' manual state? Follow their instructions.

Thing is, outboard manufacturers probably didn’t consider the possibility of someone having to do this. It’s a pretty crass design of engine mount. The main advantage of outboard power for us is lifting the whole damn thing out of the water. Cost wise, our boat would barely have noticed the additional cost of an inboard when it was new. new.

 

[coveman]

What does the engine manufacturer's' manual state? Follow their instructions.

Nothing in the instructions I guess they didn't account for engines being fitted in wells!

 

[coveman]

Thanks for the replies - Horses for courses I suppose - I'll speak to the dealer and find out what is recommended. If there is no harm to the engine, it is going to be less noisy if I leave it in gear. I'm not too worried about a slight drop in speed.

 

[FWB]

You could swap the petrol outboard for an Epropulsion and have it recharge itself as you sail ?

 

[Chiara’s slave]

Thanks for the replies - Horses for courses I suppose - I'll speak to the dealer and find out what is recommended. If there is no harm to the engine, it is going to be less noisy if I leave it in gear. I'm not too worried about a slight drop in speed.

Our boat is my avatar. 600sq ft of white sail, quite racy. We lose over a knot with the outboard in gear in the water. We do have a 4 blade high thrust prop though.

 

[Hermit]

... there is no way of tilting the engine up.

Is there a room to lift it vertically? Might be able to use one of these lifting bracket Bainbridge Marine > Outboard Bracket - Lifting or a vertically sliding mount.

 

[ylop]

You could swap the petrol outboard for an Epropulsion and have it recharge itself as you sail ?

Can it actually? I know that conceptually you can but are the electronics able to manage that? Could be a handy feature!

Our boat is my avatar. 600sq ft of white sail, quite racy. We lose over a knot with the outboard in gear in the water. We do have a 4 blade high thrust prop though.

Is that >1knot just from putting the engine in gear or is just dragging the leg in the water 70% of the issue and "locking" the prop relatively small? It feels like the impact on your boat may also be different since you presumably aren't restricted by hull speed?

 

[FWB]

Can it actually? I know that conceptually you can but are the electronics able to manage that? Could be a handy feature!

Yes apparently it can Epropulsion Spirit PLUS & EVO 1kW Electric Outboard

 

[Chiara’s slave]

Can it actually? I know that conceptually you can but are the electronics able to manage that? Could be a handy feature!



Is that >1knot just from putting the engine in gear or is just dragging the leg in the water 70% of the issue and "locking" the prop relatively small? It feels like the impact on your boat may also be different since you presumably aren't restricted by hull speed?

That is over a knot with the prop locked, about half that if it’s screaming away spinning in the wake. Our impact may well be more noticeable as you say. But of course any boat isn’t limited by hull speed when the wind is light, when you are in fact below hull speed.

 

[coveman]

Yes apparently it can Epropulsion Spirit PLUS & EVO 1kW Electric Outboard

Yes, it would be possible I think, but not sure that the wife will let me splash out that amount of cash!

 

[Chiara’s slave]

Yes, it would be possible I think, but not sure that the wife will let me splash out that amount of cash!

The regen isn’t astonishing, but it could make sense for you. We’ve recently got the one without regen for the tender. No point in it there, it would be a cold day in hell before we towed the tender.