Line cutters for stabilizers

[BCRyan]

Thanks to the "favorite YouTube channel" thread, I got turned onto Cliff Rome's "An Achievable Dream" series (and quite happy I did). Great content!!

I noticed that his boat, Oasis, has a line cutter tab mounted ahead of his stabilizer fins:

Does anyone have experiences (good, bad, or otherwise) with this? I'm scheduled to haul out in a couple weeks and am considering adding something like this. I haven't yet had a line caught in there but kelp does seem fairly common. Thanks!

 

[mvweebles]

Definitely want something to deflect lines or kelp. I have dragged kelp quite some distance. Naiad may sell them separately or have them fabricated locally.

Good luck with your haul.

Peter

 

[Bertram Guy]

I do have those in front of my Wesmar fins. I think I would consider them more of a deflector than a line cutter. We have a fair amount of kelp on the west coast abd I can't really recall ever seeing anything stuck or wedged in between the hull and top of fin.

 

[magna 6882]

We ended up fabricating them. We did buy a pair but the quality was questionable. I dont remember where we bought them but they were not square so we sent them back. Simple to make out of stainless.

 

[bowball]

I have line cutters on my stabilizers. (Also props)

And that’s my favorite YouTube series. Hope he releases the additional episodes soon.

 

[BCRyan]

Great, thanks everyone! Seems like a consensus.

Bowball, I agree, I'm installing Spurs on my props, too.

Magna, I really like your design. I might be borrowing that!

 

[backinblue]

Just FYI, Spurs a a bit more complicated of an install than some other prop line cutters like Shaft Shark for instance. I have nothing on my boat currently but am thinking about adding Shaft Shark or something similar this season. There is a good youtube video comparing different line cutters for props.

 

[Circumnavigator]

Two comments:


First, the possibility of snagging something -- particularly in lobster or crab waters -- is one reason we have gyros on both boats and not fins.


Second, we took a Spurs around the world on our Swan 57 with no troubles. I wanted a cutter on Morning Light and the yard where we bought her talked me into ShaftShark -- "just as good and easier to install". When we hauled her this Fall, there was a line around the ShaftShark -- waste of $450. I'll put on a Spurs this year.



Jim

 

[backinblue]

Two comments:


First, the possibility of snagging something -- particularly in lobster or crab waters -- is one reason we have gyros on both boats and not fins.


Second, we took a Spurs around the world on our Swan 57 with no troubles. I wanted a cutter on Morning Light and the yard where we bought her talked me into ShaftShark -- "just as good and easier to install". When we hauled her this Fall, there was a line around the ShaftShark -- waste of $450. I'll put on a Spurs this year.



Jim

Thanks Jim for that info. However, if there was some line around the Shaft Shark does that really mean it didn't work? Is it possible that it cut the line and didn't cause any issue that a line wrapped around a prop could have, and just didn't completely clear the line? I've seen Spurs demonstrated and I like them, just that it's a much harder thing to install and more expensive. They also rely on a pretty precise alignment between the sets of blades.

 

[BCRyan]

Just FYI, Spurs a a bit more complicated of an install than some other prop line cutters like Shaft Shark for instance. I have nothing on my boat currently but am thinking about adding Shaft Shark or something similar this season. There is a good youtube video comparing different line cutters for props.

Thanks, but I've already purchased the two sets of Spurs and my boatyard states that they install a lot of them. I'm assuming they won't have an issue... hopefully I'm right...

 

[mvweebles]

we took a Spurs around the world on our Swan 57 with no troubles. I wanted a cutter on Morning Light and the yard where we bought her talked me into ShaftShark -- "just as good and easier to install". When we hauled her this Fall, there was a line around the ShaftShark -- waste of $450. I'll put on a Spurs this year.

Probably borders on holy war issue, but I recently went from Spurs to Shaft Shark. Spurs just didn't hold up well. Last set broke in under a year and around 500 nms. Maybe the smaller 1-1/2" shaft on my Willard 36 means the component is too lightweight.

Peter

 

[backinblue]

Probably borders on holy war issue, but I recently went from Spurs to Shaft Shark. Spurs just didn't hold up well. Last set broke in under a year and around 500 nms. Maybe the smaller 1-1/2" shaft on my Willard 36 means the component is too lightweight.

Peter

Not sure Peter, but my understanding is that you need a very small clearance between the spinning blades and the fixed blades in order to have them act like a scissor. So I would think any kind of play or flex when operating the boat could cause them to collide and break. But mainly I like that a Shaft Shark is a simple DIY job in 5 mins with no drilling or anything else required, just clamp it on the shaft. I probably wouldn't believe they work well if not for the youtube video.

 

[backinblue]

Thanks, but I've already purchased the two sets of Spurs and my boatyard states that they install a lot of them. I'm assuming they won't have an issue... hopefully I'm right...

I'm sure a boatyard would know how to install them. Did you get a price quote for the install?

 

[BCRyan]

I'm sure a boatyard would know how to install them. Did you get a price quote for the install?

Not yet. It doesn't look too complicated, though, just the tapping of the fixed mount onto the prop shaft strut.

At 1 BOAT$ each, I'm hoping these beasts hold up!

 

[Wildbill]

I have a 1980 Hatteras 42 LRC with what I'm told are factory installed stabilizers and they have what I'd call a deflector, doesn't appear to be designed to cut anything.

 

[backinblue]

Not yet. It doesn't look too complicated, though, just the tapping of the fixed mount onto the prop shaft strut.

At 1 BOAT$ each, I'm hoping these beasts hold up!

They look good BC and plenty beastly, wish you luck with them. Have you had trouble in the past with snagging lines or just taking precautions?

 

[Circumnavigator]

Responding to a couple of comments above.


I don't remember the shaft diameter on the Swan, but I'd be surprised if it were more than on a Willard 36 -- it was only 75 horse. And, as I said, we had no trouble at all. Highly recommended.


As for the ShaftShark, the line that was there when Morning Light was hauled is wrapped around the shaft and the propeller. It crosses the ShaftShark. I don't know -- maybe the yard put too small a unit on.


Jim

 

[backinblue]

Responding to a couple of comments above.


I don't remember the shaft diameter on the Swan, but I'd be surprised if it were more than on a Willard 36 -- it was only 75 horse. And, as I said, we had no trouble at all. Highly recommended.


As for the ShaftShark, the line that was there when Morning Light was hauled is wrapped around the shaft and the propeller. It crosses the ShaftShark. I don't know -- maybe the yard put too small a unit on.


Jim

Thanks again Jim. I'm no expert at all on this subject. Maybe you picked up a piece of loose line in the water or maybe the wrong OD on the cutter, or maybe the line just broke before it could get cut. My understanding is that the Shaft Shark and similar devices will cut through a taught line before it stalls your engine or causes damage to your drivetrain. That's what you are trying to prevent. So if you were operating normally and didn't notice anything wrong, I'm not sure it's a bad thing. I would mainly want it to cut a line before it got so tangled that it stalled my engine or broke something and I was dead in the water, especially in bad conditions when things like lobster pots are more difficult to spot.

 

[BCRyan]

I have a 1980 Hatteras 42 LRC with what I'm told are factory installed stabilizers and they have what I'd call a deflector, doesn't appear to be designed to cut anything.

As others have mentioned, it can be either, apparently.

I guess I do see value in having a sharp leading edge, but it seems like even if that dulls over time, it will still function as a deflector. And as long as junk doesn't get into the slot between the fin and the hull, it's all good, I'm thinking...

 

[BCRyan]

They look good BC and plenty beastly, wish you luck with them.

Thanks!!

Have you had trouble in the past with snagging lines or just taking precautions?

Knock on wood, no, not yet. However, we generally try to run only during daylight hours, obviously much better for avoiding crab traps, lines, and floats.

That being said, we're getting ready to move the boat from San Francisco up to Vancouver, and that will involve a night or three. At night we'll run far enough offshore to hopefully avoid all crab traps, but of course you never know if an emergency will force coming in closer to shore.

So to answer your question, I'm just trying to take precautions and add to the overall safety of the vessel.

 

[backinblue]

Thanks!!



Knock on wood, no, not yet. However, we generally try to run only during daylight hours, obviously much better for avoiding crab traps, lines, and floats.

That being said, we're getting ready to move the boat from San Francisco up to Vancouver, and that will involve a night or three. At night we'll run far enough offshore to hopefully avoid all crab traps, but of course you never know if an emergency will force coming in closer to shore.

So to answer your question, I'm just trying to take precautions and add to the overall safety of the vessel.

Sounds like a good plan, good luck! I've yet to run my current boat at night, but in the area I'm in there are lots of lobster pots in places. My main concern is that some may only have a single float and sometimes not very brightly colored or visible. Add to that some rough weather or current and they can get pulled just under the surface or mostly so. Those are the ones I worry about because I can't see them till I'm just about on top of them. So I may install a Shaft Shark or similar this spring as cheap insurance. The Pirana also looks good if you have the space.

 

[Retriever]

We ended up fabricating them. We did buy a pair but the quality was questionable. I dont remember where we bought them but they were not square so we sent them back. Simple to make out of stainless.

Akeeva came to me with very similar kelp cutters to what you installed. Somewhere between Alaska and Mexico, one of them fell off completely and the other is bent and interfering with the fin. I did run over a bunch of kelp a few different times at night, perhaps the kelp is stronger than the kelp cutter.

My biggest problem with the kelp cutters is that they become kelp trappers. Unless the fins are centered, which is rare underway in the ocean, the cutter isn't directly in front of the leading edge of the fin. On several occasions I've arrived at the end of a trip and had kelp wedged in between the fin and the hull, with the kelp cutter blocking me from pulling the kelp forward off the fin. I think I'll still replace the kelp cutters at the next haulout, but they don't eliminate the possibility of snagging kelp.

 

[BCRyan]

My biggest problem with the kelp cutters is that they become kelp trappers. Unless the fins are centered, which is rare underway in the ocean, the cutter isn't directly in front of the leading edge of the fin.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. The same thing had occurred to me. I guess the only thing you could do about this is to quickly (and temporarily) center the fins if you see yourself about to enter a big patch of kelp...

 

[bowball]

I also wonder how much space between the cutter and fin you want. Too close and lesser chance kelp gets in there but harder to get out?

 

[Snapdragon III]

I was planning on installing them on my boat a couple weeks ago when I was in the boat yard, and replacing the seals in my stabilizers. Then I figured out there is a water tank directly in front of the fin on the starboard side, so there is not way to bolt it in, on that side. If I get really ambitious in the future I may try and figure out a way to make something out of surfboard fins/fin boxes, that could be glassed and faired to the outside of the hull. The boat is still fairly new to me, but so far the stabilizers seem pretty good at picking up kelp.

 

[eagle419]

Here's mine - different shape, and again more deflector than cutter.

Nothing jammed yet....

 

[Retriever]

Here's mine - different shape, and again more deflector than cutter.

Nothing jammed yet....

I've seen that style installed the opposite direction, too, so that the "crook" is facing forward. I think the theory is that it "holds" and cuts the debris. Seems like making the leading edge of such a device serrated would help it cut whatever is trapped.

I mentioned earlier in this thread that my line cutters/deflectors have gone missing. A couple days ago, we picked up a longline (6+ miles long, marked with empty coke bottles). The bulbous bow caught it mostly, so it didn't end up in the prop, but one of the monofilament lines and its hook got caught in the port stabilizer fin and I had to dive and cut it. I wonder if a cutter/deflector would have helped?!?

Side note: this apparently wasn't the first longline we'd hit. I also found a little bit of one wrapped around the prop shaft. The shaft shark cutter must have worked, because there wasn't enough to cause any vibration or performance issues.

 

[BCRyan]

Here's mine - different shape, and again more deflector than cutter.

Nothing jammed yet....

Very nice, thank you for the picture. I like it!

 

[BCRyan]

A couple days ago, we picked up a longline (6+ miles long, marked with empty coke bottles). The bulbous bow caught it mostly, so it didn't end up in the prop, but one of the monofilament lines and its hook got caught in the port stabilizer fin and I had to dive and cut it. I wonder if a cutter/deflector would have helped?!?

Very interesting. I hadn't even thought about long lines floating out there. With only empty plastic bottles marking it, it would seem like it's nearly impossible to spot before you're on top of it. How far out was this?

 

[Retriever]

Very interesting. I hadn't even thought about long lines floating out there. With only empty plastic bottles marking it, it would seem like it's nearly impossible to spot before you're on top of it. How far out was this?

Yes, very hard to see even in calm, daylight conditions. We saw this one at the last minute with just enough time to shift to neutral and center the fins. Impossible to see at night or in chop. We were about 20nm offshore, between Isla Isabel and Mazatlan.

We could have cut the long line or the attached monofilament without leaving the Portuguese bridge using a knife attached to a boat hook. This would have just left the hook and a short length of monofilament trailing from the stabilizer. But because it was super calm and warm with great visibility, I chose to dive under to make sure nothing more was tangled.