jarod
Veteran Member
Hello,
I have always thought my motorsailer handled poorly and want to have a plan to in place to improve things when I haul out next time. It cannot back in a straight line unless I have a significant amount of speed and even then it will quite often veer to one side or the other unexpectedly. Also, the turning radius seems to be extremely wide. I am guessing here as I don't have a rudder indicator, but i would guess my rudder at full turn is approximately 25 degrees. This is a physical limitation due to the cylinder throw and the cylinder placement. I would prefer not to change this although that may be the easier option in the long run. I could potentially glass in a new base mount for the cylinder further aft of the current one and re-attach the cylinder further aft on the rudder arm fitting. If this could be done I would gain some further angle and reduce my turning radius...although I am not sure if this would assist me in backing up and i would like to cure both issues if possible. I have heard that some trawler owners are attaching 90 degree angle iron to the trailing edge of their rudders to improve turning radius but I shudder to think what this may do to reverse performance. I could go with a thruster but it is my belief the boat should handle adequately without. The following is a list of things I believe are negatively effecting the boats close quarters performance.
- Severe propwalk to starboard
- A steering setup that doesn't allow the rudder to turn enough.
- A full keel more or less...call it a 3/4 keel that makes turning sharply even more difficult.
I welcome any suggestions and real world examples of what may have worked for you.
Jarod
I have always thought my motorsailer handled poorly and want to have a plan to in place to improve things when I haul out next time. It cannot back in a straight line unless I have a significant amount of speed and even then it will quite often veer to one side or the other unexpectedly. Also, the turning radius seems to be extremely wide. I am guessing here as I don't have a rudder indicator, but i would guess my rudder at full turn is approximately 25 degrees. This is a physical limitation due to the cylinder throw and the cylinder placement. I would prefer not to change this although that may be the easier option in the long run. I could potentially glass in a new base mount for the cylinder further aft of the current one and re-attach the cylinder further aft on the rudder arm fitting. If this could be done I would gain some further angle and reduce my turning radius...although I am not sure if this would assist me in backing up and i would like to cure both issues if possible. I have heard that some trawler owners are attaching 90 degree angle iron to the trailing edge of their rudders to improve turning radius but I shudder to think what this may do to reverse performance. I could go with a thruster but it is my belief the boat should handle adequately without. The following is a list of things I believe are negatively effecting the boats close quarters performance.
- Severe propwalk to starboard
- A steering setup that doesn't allow the rudder to turn enough.
- A full keel more or less...call it a 3/4 keel that makes turning sharply even more difficult.
I welcome any suggestions and real world examples of what may have worked for you.
Jarod
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