View Single Post
Old 08-20-2016, 08:26 PM   #138
Great Laker
Senior Member
 
Great Laker's Avatar
 
City: Spring Lake, MI
Vessel Name: Great Laker
Vessel Model: American Tug 34
Join Date: Jan 2011
Posts: 346
Quote:
Originally Posted by Comodave View Post
I would like to have both bow and stern thrusters on our 41' boat. I do not have room for an internal bow thruster due to water tanks under the forward cabin deck. I will be putting in a stern thruster since it is so easy to do. For the bow thruster, I am looking at the external pod thrusters that bolt onto the keel below the water. Does anyone have experience with them? Sidepower looks pretty good with their variable speed controller.
I am in the camp that if I could only have one thruster it would be a stern. I can put the nose in against the dock, stop forward momentum, and push the stern over without moving forward or backward. Plus, I can steer the boat with the stern thruster while backing out of a narrow channel with the stern thruster as well. Consider putting in just the stern and trying it that way. You might find you don't need to spend more on a bow thruster.
__________________
Larry
American Tug 34 - Great Laker, and Gold Looper
Home port on the vast unsalted Lake Michigan
adventuresofgreatlaker.blogspot.com
Great Laker is offline   Reply With Quote