yes...
1st... however, I use the thrusters as an "extra - hand"... like having an extra crew member - since my wife is 70 and I'm 69 - and though we are competent boaters - I'm not going to push off pilings or docks anymore. so, for this purpose - it is great !
2nd... my slip always has a brisk breeze on the port beam - and the port side is along a fixed dock (with pilings - not a floating dock !) - so, when we approach and attempt to kick the stern straight (we back in - remember, no floating docks) the stern thrusters just easily lines us up for the quick reverse in - and for this purpose - it is essential !
3rd... in the slip - we only need 1 or 2 second bursts to bring the boat over to the pilings so my wife can easily grad the lines (in our permanent slip) of tie up on pilings in transient slips.
4th... I've got a bow and stern thruster that uses a single pump - and I can use both the bow and stern simultaneously - and of course it reduces to power to each by 50%... I usually only do this to show off (and you just have to hold the toggle switches a little longer - but, it'll handle it)
most of the time we just use one at a time - it seems we use the stern more often
5th... we've pulled into some tough spots and transient slips (with a current or wind on the beam) this season that we would have never been able to maneuver into - I'm impressed ! I'll never have a single engine boat without a thruster - or 2
lastly... install was easy (my son did all the work - I handed him the tools) and we saved the cost of yard labor - and the controls were "plug & play" and everything you need is shipped in 1 crate - the support was great (we did call them on a Sundays and an evening - and they answered and answered our questions... the instructions were OK - but, we only had 2 questions on hooking up a 12 volt battery charger to a 24 volt system (it comes with a series/parallel switch - and I'm very weak on electrical)
any questions - call me: my e-mail and phone number is on my website:
www.professorwastewater.com
