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04-01-2013, 09:01 AM
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#1
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Member
City: Peachtree City, GA
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 7
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Size. Does it matter?
Been reading the forum for a while and think it's great. Looking to buy my first live aboard/cruising trawler and will be doing it myself (until/unless I can find a suitable first mate). What's the opinion on length and handling restrictions when shopping for a boat to ultimately do the loop in for the single sailor?
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04-01-2013, 09:59 AM
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#2
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Guru
City: North Carolina for now
Join Date: Aug 2011
Posts: 6,348
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Search around here, there is a recent thread on this exact subject. Many others in the archives.
Here you go:
http://www.trawlerforum.com/forums/s...ions-9263.html
__________________
George
"There's the Right Way, the Wrong Way, and what some guy says he's gotten away with"
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04-01-2013, 12:18 PM
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#3
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Member
City: Peachtree City, GA
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 7
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I've read most of those posts and while informative, I was asking mainly from a handling standpoint since I've never been in anything larger than about 20'. Can one man handle docking, anchoring, locking, etc. on a 40 to 45 foot boat?
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04-01-2013, 12:29 PM
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#4
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Guru
City: Flattop Islands
Vessel Name: Blackfish
Vessel Model: custom
Join Date: Dec 2012
Posts: 724
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
I've read most of those posts and while informative, I was asking mainly from a handling standpoint since I've never been in anything larger than about 20'. Can one man handle docking, anchoring, locking, etc. on a 40 to 45 foot boat?
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You can't do it if you have to ask......
Smaller is better, the smaller boat goes out more often, costs less in every way, and is much easier to handle given reasonable design. Top-heavy, overpowered, underruddered, boats with no keel are really hard to handle no matter what the size.
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04-01-2013, 12:44 PM
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#5
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Member
City: San Diego
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
Can one man handle docking, anchoring, locking, etc. on a 40 to 45 foot boat?
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Yes Sir
All you need is bow and stern thrusters, remote control and 10 hours of practice.After that you can run 65 on the same way like 30 feet vessel.
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04-01-2013, 01:02 PM
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#6
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Guru
City: Hotel, CA
Join Date: Sep 2011
Posts: 8,323
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
I've read most of those posts and while informative, I was asking mainly from a handling standpoint since I've never been in anything larger than about 20'. Can one man handle docking, anchoring, locking, etc. on a 40 to 45 foot boat?
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So there you go, there is no absolute answer. Both replies are right of course.
Myself I'm in Tad's camp and the old advice still rules IMO. In your price range buy the smallest boat that will serve your purpose as the smaller boat will almost always be in better shape. It will also "normally" be cheaper to own, maintain and handle.
__________________
Craig
It's easier to fool people than to convince them that they've been fooled - Mark Twain
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04-01-2013, 03:19 PM
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#7
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Guru
City: Tri Cities, WA
Join Date: Nov 2012
Posts: 4,406
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I took my 60' boat out solo this weekend. The only issue at all was after I backed into the slip was getting lines fastened in the breeze.
By the way I have 40 years of boating experience.
__________________
Mike and Tina
1981 Boston Whaler 13'
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04-01-2013, 03:47 PM
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#8
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Guru
Join Date: May 2010
Posts: 651
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SanDiegoCaptains
Yes Sir
All you need is bow and stern thrusters, remote control and 10 hours of practice.After that you can run 65 on the same way like 30 feet vessel.
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The thrusters will probably be much cheaper and will require less maintenance than a fist mate.
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04-01-2013, 04:41 PM
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#9
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Member
City: Peachtree City, GA
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 7
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Great Advice
Thanks to all who chimed in on my question. I'm not looking to impress anybody but I want to be comfortable. I hear you, Mahal. Besides, my first first mate only left me enough to buy a thruster anyhow.
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04-01-2013, 04:46 PM
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#10
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Guru
City: San Diego
Vessel Name: Circuit Breaker
Vessel Model: 2021..22' Duffy Cuddy cabin
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 6,691
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GFC
By the way I have 40 years of boating experience.
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Just a youngster, huh?
__________________
Done with diesel power boats! Have fallen in love with all electric!
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04-01-2013, 05:03 PM
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#11
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Member
City: Peachtree City, GA
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 7
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Yeah, I wish. I'm getting started late on a lot of things. But I'm runnin' hard! How do you like your Halvorsen? I'm thinking of looking at one in Kentucky.
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04-01-2013, 05:39 PM
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#12
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Guru
City: Campbell River
Vessel Name: Blue Sky
Vessel Model: Nordic Tugs 42 Hull #001
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 1,972
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
Been reading the forum for a while and think it's great. Looking to buy my first live aboard/cruising trawler and will be doing it myself (until/unless I can find a suitable first mate). What's the opinion on length and handling restrictions when shopping for a boat to ultimately do the loop in for the single sailor?
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Having gone from a 25' boat to a 32' boat to a 42' boat (all single screws) I have found that in general the larger the boat, the easier it is to dock. Primarily, I think, because the larger boats tend to go and stay where you want rather than be pushed around by the wind or current. But heaven help you if the larger boat gets away from you!
Single handing any of them while docking is helped immensely by the ease of access between the helm and dock. Thrusters are nice but never had one until our 42 footer, and so far I hardly use it.
Can't speak for the loop, but around here (BC coast) once you're above 40' finding transient docking space along the way can be a challenge during the cruising season.
__________________
Conrad
Berthed in
Campbell River BC
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04-01-2013, 07:41 PM
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#13
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Guru
City: San Diego
Vessel Name: Circuit Breaker
Vessel Model: 2021..22' Duffy Cuddy cabin
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 6,691
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
How do you like your Halvorsen? I'm thinking of looking at one in Kentucky.
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We love it! We cruise it at 8.4 knots (It will go faster but just a increase in speed of 1 knot almost doubles the fuel flow.) She shows 10.3 knots at WOT.
The big draw to these boats is the state room, separate head & shower, large cockpit for a 32 and fit & finish. Also, heavy hardware was used throughout. (Cleats, chocks, hand rails, samson post, etc.
__________________
Done with diesel power boats! Have fallen in love with all electric!
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04-01-2013, 07:47 PM
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#14
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Guru
City: San Diego
Vessel Name: Circuit Breaker
Vessel Model: 2021..22' Duffy Cuddy cabin
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 6,691
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Conrad
I have found that in general the larger the boat, the easier it is to dock. Primarily, I think, because the larger boats tend to go and stay where you want .
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I bought a 54' boat years ago and at first I was a little scared of it. I soon learned that it behaved exactly as Conrad has pointed out.
__________________
Done with diesel power boats! Have fallen in love with all electric!
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04-01-2013, 07:49 PM
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#15
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Member
City: Peachtree City, GA
Join Date: Mar 2013
Posts: 7
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Sounds great. The one I'm going to see is older (1989) and a little bigger (49). It's one of the reasons I asked my question in the first place. 49 seems big but it's got twins so maybe with some practice it would be alright. We'll see.
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04-01-2013, 08:02 PM
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#16
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Guru
City: San Diego
Vessel Name: Circuit Breaker
Vessel Model: 2021..22' Duffy Cuddy cabin
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 6,691
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Quote:
Originally Posted by dmain4
Sounds great. The one I'm going to see is older (1989) and a little bigger (49).
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You'll be fine! My first "bigger boat" was a 48' Offshore and with one 2 hour lesson, I was on my way.
__________________
Done with diesel power boats! Have fallen in love with all electric!
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04-01-2013, 08:27 PM
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#17
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Scraping Paint
City: -
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 13,745
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The thing I am often surprised more boat handlers don't seem to realize is how slowly (relatively speaking) things happen in a boat, and the heavier the boat the slower they happen. We, and I'm sure most people on this forum, see boaters frantically hauling back and forth on their throttles and shifters as they over-react to everything they see the boat doing.
Perhaps we were lucky in that we learned a lot of what we know about larger boat maneuvering from the 25 ton, 60' steel narrowboats we've run in the UK starting in 1990, but we quickly found that applying a little power, a little rudder, a little opposite thrust, and then waiting to see what happens results in a far more controlled and calm maneuver than trying to counter every little boat motion.
While I am not always able to do this, my self-imposed goal when docking our boat is to shift each transmission no more than twice from when we approach our slip or a dock in gear to when we are stopped in or alongside it. The key, we have found, is learning our boat's reaction to inertia, both when applying power and taking it off, and how the boat reacts to the direction the props, or a prop, is turning and the angle of the rudders.
While wind or current can sometimes conspire to defeat meeting my two-shifts-only objective, usually even they do not speed things up so much as to warrant the seesawing of throttles and shifters we so often observe on other boats.
It takes a lot to get a 30,000 pound boat moving and it takes a lot to get a 30,000 boat stopped. Knowing how much it takes in each case as well as being able to judge where inertia is going to make the boat end up is the key to an easy, smooth maneuver in my opinion.
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04-01-2013, 08:40 PM
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#18
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Master and Commander
City: Vallejo CA
Vessel Name: Carquinez Coot
Vessel Model: penultimate Seahorse Marine Coot hull #6
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 12,559
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SeaHorse II
... Also, heavy hardware was used throughout. (Cleats, chocks, hand rails, samson post, etc.
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Yes, strong cleats and so on.
__________________
Kar-KEEN-ez Koot
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04-01-2013, 08:51 PM
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#19
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Master and Commander
City: Vallejo CA
Vessel Name: Carquinez Coot
Vessel Model: penultimate Seahorse Marine Coot hull #6
Join Date: Sep 2010
Posts: 12,559
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Marin
...While wind or current can sometimes conspire to defeat meeting my two-shifts-only objective, usually even they do not speed things up so much as to warrant the seesawing of throttles and shifters we so often observe on other boats. ...
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Agree. When approaching the berth/dock, I'm normally in neutral except when turning (increases turning rate), to maintain minimal forward progress, or in reverse to check forward progress after fully entering the berth, all at idle speed. Wind has minimal effect on the Coot because of its 14-ton mass, keel, and low profile.
__________________
Kar-KEEN-ez Koot
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04-01-2013, 08:57 PM
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#20
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Guru
Join Date: Aug 2012
Posts: 741
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I single hand a 44' quite often...wish it had a bow thruster when it's windy, however.
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