Side-Power Bow Thruster

A

alan

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I was wondering if anyone has some personal experience of the Side-Power bow thruster EX range?
I do not want to install a tunnel in my boat and these externally mounted thrusters seem like a good alternative on a small boat. I have a Ben 343 and I have seen an installation on an American web site actually of one fitted to a Ben 343.

I just need a bit of extra help when maneuvering out of my berth or when in other marinas and I have a tight turn to make: the Ben 343 (with a Yanmar3YM and autoprop) still has a vicious kick to port when going astern!

I don't want to start a discussion on should I fit a bow thruster or not - I was wondering if anybody has personal experience of the Side-Power EX range and do they work as well as the published blurb says??

Thanks in advance.
Alan.
 
Think you are unlikely to get much response here particularly on a slow Saturday like today!

I doubt many have any experience of the product as it is relatively new and does not seem to have been adopted by any OE builders so the number of retrofits is likely to be very small - even though it claims big advantages in this sector.

Not sure what your objection is to a conventional tunnel thruster, but I have a Side Power in a similar boat (Bavaria 33) and it works just fine.
 
I know someone who works for Sleipner (side power) who is the best and most trusted person who’s worked on my boat. He will give you unbiased advice, if you PM me I will send you his contact details.
 
Hi Tranona,
Thanks for your answer and I have one main reason for not selecting traditional tunnel thruster and that is the positioning of the tunnel would have to be further aft and I have a big water tank right where I guesstimate the tunnel would need to go.

Alan
 
alan said:
Hi Tranona,
Thanks for your answer and I have one main reason for not selecting traditional tunnel thruster and that is the positioning of the tunnel would have to be further aft and I have a big water tank right where I guesstimate the tunnel would need to go.

Alan
Click to expand...

That is exactly the same as on my Bavaria. Think you would have to go that far back anyway to get it deep enough to be effective. Have a look at how the factory option was fitted as a guide to what is possible (if you can find one!)
 
No experience of these personally, but I did notice quite a few external bow thrusters which looked very like that fitted on boats wintering in the Baltic.
There are definite advantages of being lower in the water and further forward compared to a tunnel type installation.
A retractable bow thruster gives these advantages also, without the drag, but would be more complex, expensive and still takes up space internally.
So I would think it is worth serious consideration of an external thruster over the tunnel.
 
Exactly my thoughts, Dunedin.
However, maintenance/repair is an issue! If it fails, then you either have to get hauled out or wait for next haul out before you can get it repaired. This is one of the points I want to talk about at SIBS with the manufacturer: turn around time for repair (either during or after warranty): and do they have to get sent back to Norway for repair??

I am hoping to get some answers this weekend at SIBS!!

Alan.
 
alan said:
However, maintenance/repair is an issue! If it fails, then you either have to get hauled out or wait for next haul out before you can get it repaired.
Click to expand...

It's a very simple bit of kit, just an electric motor with an angle gearbox and a prop. I can't imagine it would be more unreliable than an ordinary thruster which, in most people's experience, are very reliable.
 
you can install bow thruster on that boat. they will remove your water tank and install the tunnel and either make your tank smaller or just fit the tank on top of the motor. The thruster motor can be mounted horizontally or vertically so you can fit your tank on top of it usually.
What you need is a good fitter.
 
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