Sailors Powerboat

[accnick]

This is our sailor's powerboat in her native Maine waters. When we found her, she had the same name and much the same interior look as our last sailboat. It was a natural fit.

 

[socalrider]

This is our sailor's powerboat in her native Maine waters. When we found her, she had the same name and much the same interior look as our last sailboat. It was a natural fit.

Love the blue hull!  

Here's our trawler from our 6 week summer Channel Islands cruise.  Wake at 8.5kt cruising speed, and anchored in "our" secret cove on Santa Cruz Island

 

[Russell Brown]

This is a pretty cool thread. Nige's tastes are the closest to my own, of corse, but kim's 50 footer having ample power with 400 horsepower is pretty cool. That's less power than lots of 20 footers have nowadays. 

The Bieker 30 footer made from a recycled Ultimate 30 was what got me interested in powerboats. That boat goes a lot of miles every year and the owners love it.

The single outrigger still seems like the best option to me for a single engine multihull, but my brain can handle asymmetry and most people can't. I should have built one for myself instead of another power cat, but I had the hulls and needed a project. The single outrigger in the photo is "experienced". That's a Bolger "Slicer" in the photo too. A really good boat.

 

[Raz'r]

This IS a really great thread. 

 

[nige]

when I grow up I'd love to cruise a low power, low profile, efficient power boat up here - like Drumbeat or one of Bob Perry's 60'.

In the mean time, the experimenting is fun....

WAY to many boats doing this up here .

View attachment 479213

 

[kimbottles]

I am a big fan of Nige’s boats and of course Russell’s boats.

I went through a lot of small powerboats while I was commuting so I have a fair amount of time in them.

I am a big fan of LFH’s “keep it simple” philosophy.

 

[Zonker]

Nigel Irens Ocean Eagle 43. Ok that's not the best shot to see what it looks like.



Wave piercing works if you have enough volume. I think this boat could use more.



Better photo of what it really looks like. It's actually an Offshore Patrol Vessel. Designed to keep going in the rough stuff.



His skinnier civilian boats are a bit more sedate but follow the long and skinny theme

 

[socalrider]

His skinnier civilian boats are a bit more sedate but follow the long and skinny theme

View attachment 479225

Ahh MOLLY BAN... she's been for sale for quite some time, no?  Not as light as Bob's version but extant and available.  

A long skinny moderately powered vessel seems perfect for Pacific Coast passages into or with the swell/wind.  16kts would be a dream if the economy were good enough to maintain a decent range.  Molly Ban claims 14kt @ 8gph or 10kt @ 2.6gph.  36,000lb displacement.

 

[socalrider]

Have you outboard efficiency nuts seen the Sharrow Propeller?  This test just came out (literally hit my inbox a few min ago) & looks quite promising.  ~16% speed & efficiency improvement, pretty rigorous independent test from what I can tell.  

 

[fastyacht]

Philadelphia!! Well I'll be damned!

 

[Zonker]

I've seen it. I don't pretend to understand how it works in depth (other than "tip vortices bad") 

Mobius propellers scare me a bit. 

Testing it against a 14.75x15 and 15x15 is great but were those the best props for the boat? I'm not so sure. Were the conventional props deliberately underpropped? (they all reached top engine RPM) Would a 4 blade been better for getting on plane (probably). The test reads like an advertorial.

 

[IStream]

The Bieker 30 footer made from a recycled Ultimate 30 was what got me interested in powerboats. That boat goes a lot of miles every year and the owners love it.

View attachment 479208

I saw Retro for the first time last summer at Lopez Island and chatted with the owners for a bit. Very spartan and not for everyone but it's both unique and special. 

 

[slug zitski]

Diesel / electric 

 

[slug zitski]

Diesel 

 

[slug zitski]

Nigel Irens

electric 

 

[USA 007]

Here's a different take on sailors powerboat.  My Dad and I have covered over 6,000 miles.  Mississippi River from Minneapolis to the Gulf.  Missouri River from Yankton SD to St Louis.  Ohio River from Pittsburg to Paducah, KY.  The Tennessee-Tombigbee waterway from the Ohio river to the gulf.  The Flint river from Albany, GA to the gulf.  And I'm sure there are a few more in there.  Not to mention many days spent duck hunting and fishing.

May I present to you M/V Dumarse - 16ft Express aluminum boat with a 4-stroke 20hp Yamaha.  It burns 2 gal/hour cruising at 22-27 knots depending on the push of the current. 

 

[nige]

I've seen it. I don't pretend to understand how it works in depth (other than "tip vortices bad") 

Mobius propellers scare me a bit.  View attachment 479228

Testing it against a 14.75x15 and 15x15 is great but were those the best props for the boat? I'm not so sure. Were the conventional props deliberately underpropped? (they all reached top engine RPM) Would a 4 blade been better for getting on plane (probably). The test reads like an advertorial.

I looked at these a year or so ago but about $5k each put them out of range for me.   If they really are the bees knees I’d consider it, but it seems very risky - making sure you get the right prob could be an expensive iterative process for my little boat...

 

[MisterMoon]

Depends on the boat. That's about the slowest my Twin Vee will plane. It likes to go 20 knots. It doesn't really like any other speed.

My 'toon boat will go 16 with the throttle wide open, but isn't happy. It seems to like to go 12, less in chop.

My 5,000 lb I/O won't run at 16 knots, 22 is more like the minimum. It's just too heavy to be planing efficiently at that speed. My next boat will be lighter because I like 16 knots a lot better than 22-30.  

 

[Autonomous]

Our C-Dory 22 was a good, easy to find and inexpensive sailor's power boat. It would plane at 10 knots and 14 knots was it's sweet spot for me. On the issue of twins, with it's ~5° deadrise two lower units in the water helped in a following sea. Very efficient but too slow for most power boaters. They are loved by the people they suite, though.

It was good for multi week outings if you planned every third night at a marina for showers and ice cream.

Coming into the dock at Sequim Bay. Bonus question. Can anyone identify the anchor brand?

 

[Russell Brown]

I like C-Dories. Seems like the only popular boat of its type that doesn't need tons of power and they look like a boat.