Bow Thruster on 40CC

[Becca Vitry]

Have any 40CC owners installed a bow thruster?  If so, what model, type, etc.?  Interested in your experiences.

 

Thanks in advance,

Becca and Mark Vitry

S/V Windsong

[Mark J Wilme]

Installed one on a Oceanis 381 - similar sized boat, maybe a tad smaller.

I think I posted about it at the time and that should be in the archives, if not email me back and I'll see if I can find the old content

Mark Wilme
Mark....@Gmail.com

+1 (508) 826 5607

www.linkedin.com/in/markwilme            

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[Eric Pichon]

Installed an Externa bow thruster on our B411. It is a very doable DIY project.

Sent from my iPhone

[bungee.john]

Wouldn't think you would need a bow thruster on anything smaller than 70 foot ,lot cheaper to just learn to park your boat

[Kidd, James]

Yeah, you don’t need electric winches either, right?
Just use all of your strength to pull up that anchor.

And that furling sail....what are you weak? Get up on that deck and learn to furl it by hand.

...Stupid statement...

James

[Jonathan B.]

Our last slip for our Oceanis 45 was in an alleyway that was about 55 feet wide.  With anchors sticking out of other slips, I was glad to have a bow thruster to help us maneuver in the tight space.  

But hey, if we want to turn a leisure activity in to a competition for "who is the best sailor" then by all means, turn off the engine and sail in to the slip.

Cheers,

Jonathan

[dbg...@mindspring.com]

true except for the few situations that actually a thruster would earn its' keep...

thrusters are installed more as a gadget than as a necessary assist... they are bought by price more often than by their capability...
they essentially become useless in any situation other than in a dead calm and zero current, making boat handling skills essential to overcome the short comings of weak thruster...

at 100% reliability / capability level they are great

[Paul Schwab]

Narrow alleyways, steel pilings seperating fixed height slips, 120# 4'10" 58 yo wife trying to grab ' n hold dock lines in a crosswind and the answer is better seamanship?!?

After years of increasing struggle, I will be installing an external bow thruster on our Oceanis 352 next week.  The goal is more sailing and less anxiety getting in/out of a slip.

Paul

[Kidd, James]

The problem with Beneteau's bow thrusters is that they are undersized.
With a really strong wind, say 15-20 kts they are not strong enough to push the bow over.
I spoke with Lewmar people about this....My 473 has a 7HP Thruster..Lewmar reps say a 10HP min would be the proper selection.
Its just like with the anchor sizes and other components....Beneteau, to save money and thus sell more boats, should have gone larger.




James

[Mark Stillwell]

Hi Paul,

My wife, Suzanne, is the 120# 4'11"  60 yo wife...at the wheel. I handle all the dock lines. :-)

We have chartered boats with bow thruster and found them useful in crosswind and current.

Mark & Suzanne Stillwell
S/V Dragonfly II

Beneteau 393

573.819.0436

[Eric Pichon]

Hello all, may I suggest an external bow thruster... Externa. As I have previously stated on another thread it's very definitely a do it yourself project, not having to construct a tunnel or a drop down mechanism. Made by the Swiss (or at least it was several years ago) mine is going strong and is very helpful in cross winds when docking. Reduces the stress level of the "staff" as well as my own. My apologies to the " ole salts" that probably think that going into the marina under power and not under sail is a question of lack of skills. 

Sent from my iPad

[lawrence schneider]

Interesting perspectives.

However, I've noticed that most professionally captained and crewed large yachts and ships have multiple thrusters...


Larry

Dragon3

[Rick L]

Yes - a thruster can become somewhat of a crutch (I find myself using it more than the wheel when backing...) but there are other benefits besides docking - have used it to swivel off of a low spot if run aground, have used it in MOB drills to get a bit closer to the person in the water.  Its also useful in swinging the bow in slip when hanging up dock lines upon departure.  Can I live without it in the case of failure? - sure - but why knock a good thing...  That said, don't depend on it in winds greater than 17-20 knots.

Rick

Beneteau 473