MT Nest
Veteran Member
Has anyone had any experience with the "Sideshift" stern thruster. Thinking about installing one on a 36' Monk. Single screw with bow thruster. First Mate thinks it will help make her life easier.
Stern Thruster
- Thread starter MT Nest
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If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.
psneeld
Guru
If you alreadt have a bow thruster..I suggest practice docking. If you need both bow and stern thrusters to dock..I think you need to see a better docking picture which will ultimately make docking safer and easier in the long run. Even if you have to hire someone for lessons.
Delia Rosa
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Peace of mind is a wonderful thing.... e.g. I've flown commercially alot and have never needed an oxygen mask, but it is nice to know that it is there if required.
Same thing for thrusters.... skill in using engines and rudder is an important thing, as well as good knowledge of how your boat responds to various circumstances. But in addition to that, tools like thrusters can be a wonderful thing.... we have them and I am glad of it!
CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
MT Nest said:
If it keeps the wife happy and eager to climb on the boat it's money well spent.
Nomad Willy
Guru
Having nothing to do w the wife stern thrusters that are mounted above the bottom of the boat on the back of the transom do'nt have any downside that I know of except the cost and I think for thrusters they are prolly cgheap. Any increased control is a plus. If I had a flat submerged transom I'd do it. Half the time prop walk is a blessing but the other half ...............
psneeld
Guru
I would think the old tired argument is whether to do what the first mate/admiral wants because it is "thought ot be a good idea" or get the real skinny from people with experience...but your right...we should answer the question...
... which I can't because I have no experience with stern thrusters at all despite thousands of hours and hundreds of boats I have delivered...so they must not be too popular no natter what brand.
Delia Rosa
Senior Member
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Don't know about anyone elses' thousands of hours and hundreds of boats I have delivered
'we can only state that we installed Side Power bow and stern thrusters... and we love them!!
As you are in the PNW you may be aware of a second option in stern thrusters from Cap Sante Cap Sante Marine Thrusters | Bow, stern, box thruster sales & service. How these compare to the Side Power or "Sideshift" units I have no idea but the couple of people I've talked to over the years who have the Cap Sante thruster as well as the magazine reviews I've read have been very favorable.
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CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
I can't say anything bad about a tool that helps us operate or control our boats more easily or safely. Some folks take pride in doing things the hard way, others take pride in doing things the smart way. That means making use of tools and technology.
We wouldn't pay money to have a bow or stern thruster (or both) installed on our boat but if it had them we'd use them. The GB36 we chartered was a single with a bow thruster and we had no qualms about using it despite the gravel-in-a-cuisinart sound. Of course we were much newer to this type of boat than we are now, but as Ron says a tool that makes it faster, better, easier, or safer is worth using.
We've been in plenty of situations over the last 14 years with our twin engine boat where, while we have always been able to deal with them using thrust and rudder, it would have been easier if not faster to simply hit a button or move a lever.
The original poster made a point that everyone seems to be overlooking and that is that the addition of a stern thruster to his boat will enable his wife to enjoy her boating experience that much more. And that, boys and girls, is what it's all about.
If one's boating partner is less than enthusiastic about going out on the boat, to my way of thinking that sort of defeats the whole bit about getting a boat.
My wife is more confident and relaxed with two engines under the cabin sole. She knows all the "less cost" reasons for having a single but she prefers a twin. This plus the fact I like running multiple engines means we will never own a single engine boat.
So I see no fault in the OP's desire for a stern thruster even if he himself is confident running a single without one. The fact that other boaters don't like or want one is sort of irrelevant.
We've been in plenty of situations over the last 14 years with our twin engine boat where, while we have always been able to deal with them using thrust and rudder, it would have been easier if not faster to simply hit a button or move a lever.
The original poster made a point that everyone seems to be overlooking and that is that the addition of a stern thruster to his boat will enable his wife to enjoy her boating experience that much more. And that, boys and girls, is what it's all about.
If one's boating partner is less than enthusiastic about going out on the boat, to my way of thinking that sort of defeats the whole bit about getting a boat.
My wife is more confident and relaxed with two engines under the cabin sole. She knows all the "less cost" reasons for having a single but she prefers a twin. This plus the fact I like running multiple engines means we will never own a single engine boat.
So I see no fault in the OP's desire for a stern thruster even if he himself is confident running a single without one. The fact that other boaters don't like or want one is sort of irrelevant.
psneeld
Guru
We wouldn't pay money to have a bow or stern thruster (or both) installed on our boat but if it had them we'd use them. The GB36 we chartered was a single with a bow thruster and we had no qualms about using it despite the gravel-in-a-cuisinart sound.
......snip...
himself is confident running a single without one. The fact that other boaters don't like or want one is sort of irrelevant.
I would never say don't have one, don't buy one, don't use one...they make recreational boating more fun for many by making a really frustrating part of boating less stressful...
I do somewhat raise an eyebrow at adding a stern thruster when one already has a bow thruster...again...not really a big deal...but after several decades of teaching hands on boating/docking...I worry that if somene's skill level is that low, (self perceived or by SO) maybe spending the equivalent on training (for both) in the long run may make their boating safer and less stressful.
There can be some situations-- as have been related in this forum from time to time when the stern thruster topic has come up--- in which the ability to move the stern with a thruster can be beneficial. Without knowing the OP's specific situation it's impossible to judge if a stern thruster would make a challenging task less challenging in his case.
But it's not uncommon for marinas in this area to have adverse currents and winds throw a monkey wrench into the most skilled skipper's intentions. The few boaters I've met who had stern thrusters installed all said, as I recall, they installed them to deal with a very specific situation they regularly encountered, like getting into their own slip.
But it's not uncommon for marinas in this area to have adverse currents and winds throw a monkey wrench into the most skilled skipper's intentions. The few boaters I've met who had stern thrusters installed all said, as I recall, they installed them to deal with a very specific situation they regularly encountered, like getting into their own slip.
psneeld
Guru
I hear everyone loud and clear...it's not hard to figure out...especially for someone that teaches docking regularly...often in a place many on here said they wouldn't even call a marina due to the current...
For me it still boils down to improving basic skills...not avoiding them....there are many times I won't take a boat to a particular point in space due to adverse something...but that changes relatively fast with a change in wind, tide, mechanical, etc...so I go there when things change.
But I can honestly say I have NEVER...even when holding barges motionless in tide/current against bridge pilings...I have NEVER needed to move a boat sideways. There is always something easy to do to get the bow or stern over, spring line or not, always something ANY boater should be able to do.
Bow or stern thruster yes...both seems overkill.
mahal
Guru
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To me, thrusters are somewhat like our propulsion engines except that it moves a vessel sideways as opposed to forward and backward. I wonder how the "set-in-their-ways" type people felt when engines were first introduced into boating. Did they say that it was a crutch, and that one will not sail or paddle very well when the engine fails? Just wondering.
psneeld
Guru
Neither set in my way or stupid...to suggest that someone waste their time with thrusters is definitely foolish.
Why not suggest they rip everything out and put in some pod drives and joy sticks so you can not only go sideways and fore/aft...but you can go in ANY direction using your primary propulsion so you can overcome any wind/current.
Plus... we can stop the anchoring arguements too because now we can do dynamic positioning with the proper electronics.
Since you don't understand my point very well I thought I'd go to the extreme to show yours.....
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Adelaide
Senior Member
It was the best $2,815.00 I have ever spent. My wife and I (Weekend boaters) now won't be getting a divorce.
Oh, and I love the tenacity and conviction you have.....I am sure you're one hell of a boat captain.
psneeld
Guru
It was the best $2,815.00 I have ever spent. My wife and I (Weekend boaters) now won't be getting a divorce.
Oh, and I love the tenacity and conviction you have.....I am sure you're one hell of a boat captain.
2 questions...
1. do you have both bow and stern?
2. do you practice occasionally without them or feel you have some skill level past "hands off docking"?
If the answer to both are yes...then great...I'm not against tech/thrusters...I'm just pro skill sets....
Adelaide
Senior Member
2 questions...
1. do you have both bow and stern?
No, just a Stern..... but my Father (owns Montery Jack in my pic) may get the Stern thruster next (already has a Bow). They are nearing 70 years old. My mother who has had Juvenile diabetes since she was a young girl, shouldn't be helping him dock as much as she does. I believe it is a wise decision for THEM to have both. That way they can continue doing what they love to do into their 70's and maybe beyond, God willing.
2. do you practice occasionally without them or feel you have some skill level past "hands off docking"?
Sometimes I don't need the thruster. But anytime I am docking in a tight fit marina with current...... you betcha, I use it.
Skill Set is learned over time. And I hope to one day be a stellar skipper like you apparently are. Training wheels (thrusters) are a useful tool for anyone just getting started in boating a larger vessel. Boy did I need those training wheels.
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JAT
Guru
I'm not so sure about that....we were at the Mega Dock in Charleston a while back and a fellow came in with a new Fleming...stopped parallel to the dock between two boats, walked out on the bow with a little hand held remote control and commenced to dock his boat....he had bow and stern thrusters on that boat...and the Admiral was mesmerized by how the fellow moved that boat into the dock between the other boats..... Took me a while to convince her it wasn't going to happen soon..and if I'm lucky...one day she might quit reminding me about that boat...
mahal
Guru
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Boats with bow and stern thrusters are not that uncommon. I have 2 friends with them, one a twin screw GB42 and the other a Selene 43. They are mostly found on boats owned by people with little ego and plenty of disposable income.
CPseudonym
Moderator Emeritus
mahal said:
Very well put mahal
There are plenty of times I would have liked to have been able to move our boat straight sideways. Since we can't we've learned other techniques to get the boat to the same place.
There have been plenty of times as I've watched another boater maneuver into a slip or up to a dock with a bow thruster or, occasionally, both bow and stern thrusters and have thought, "Well, there's a guy who doesn't know how to drive a boat."
But...... he accomplished the same thing I did, but where I used a multi-step technique of angling in, then manipulating the shifters and rudders to move the back of the boat in and perhaps not gotten quite as far in as I'd have liked and so on, this guy pushed a button or two and was there.
I think in an ideal world a skipper should know how to maneuver his boat with all the tools he has available to him as well as with the minimal number of tools he might be left with in the event of a problem. I've had to maneuver and dock our boat with one engine shut down on two occasions and while I'm certainly no expert at it having had that experience at least exposed me to what I'll be dealing with if I have to do it again.
So I say use it if you've got it, but know what to do if you lose it.
There have been plenty of times as I've watched another boater maneuver into a slip or up to a dock with a bow thruster or, occasionally, both bow and stern thrusters and have thought, "Well, there's a guy who doesn't know how to drive a boat."
But...... he accomplished the same thing I did, but where I used a multi-step technique of angling in, then manipulating the shifters and rudders to move the back of the boat in and perhaps not gotten quite as far in as I'd have liked and so on, this guy pushed a button or two and was there.
I think in an ideal world a skipper should know how to maneuver his boat with all the tools he has available to him as well as with the minimal number of tools he might be left with in the event of a problem. I've had to maneuver and dock our boat with one engine shut down on two occasions and while I'm certainly no expert at it having had that experience at least exposed me to what I'll be dealing with if I have to do it again.
So I say use it if you've got it, but know what to do if you lose it.
mahal
Guru
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Neither set in my way or stupid...to suggest that someone waste their time with thrusters is definitely foolish.
Why not suggest they rip everything out and put in some pod drives and joy sticks so you can not only go sideways and fore/aft...but you can go in ANY direction using your primary propulsion so you can overcome any wind/current.
Plus... we can stop the anchoring arguements too because now we can do dynamic positioning with the proper electronics.
Since you don't understand my point very well I thought I'd go to the extreme to show yours.....
My post was not directed at you but all the participants of this thread. And I do understand your point very clearly.
By the way, what kind of boats have you been delivering? Considering the number of boats you've delivered it is amazing that none of them had both bow and stern thrusters. Any other delivery captains here with the same experience? Yachtbrokerguy? Anyone?
I have both bow and stern thrusters, but I do also practice maneuvering the boat without using them. For a 51' LOA boat, our boat is pretty easy to handle. It's a single that backs strongly to starboard, so it is predictable. In a lot of ways our 25' C-Dory was much harder to handle around the docks. It was flat bottomed with canvas over the cockpit and any breeze would knock it off course. I would be lined up perfectly and the wind would blow me sideways at the most inopportune time.
The bow and stern thrusters allow me to do a 180 in a boat length, move the boat straight sideways into a 52' slot, or move the boat down a fairway with zero space on either side of me. You seafaring men may scoff at me, but my friends from the desert think I'm a hell of a boat handler.
Lyle
The bow and stern thrusters allow me to do a 180 in a boat length, move the boat straight sideways into a 52' slot, or move the boat down a fairway with zero space on either side of me. You seafaring men may scoff at me, but my friends from the desert think I'm a hell of a boat handler.
Lyle
