Back To Bow Thrusters...

[lee b]

sorry to pester again ! the sail away i am buying has the bow thruster tube in place,i asked a few days back about blocking it off or putting cables in place.... i have been looking at bow thruster prices ''to be honest i think for myself it would come in handy being a one man crew and a virgin narrowboater'', does anyone know anywhere that can beat £895 including vat on a vetus 55 complete kit? also will i need to fit it before the boat goes in the water or is it possible to fit it in the water without sinking my boat?....no piss taking please,i am good at putting things together but understand very little about boat bow thrusters... other than a canoe this will be my first boat and the only time i sank that was when some tit in a narrowboat hit me...probably a novice boater who needed a bow thruster lol

[Guest]

No piss taking???

 

Your words.....

 

You are joking..surely...???

[lee b]

No piss taking???

 

Your words.....

 

You are joking..surely...???

not really that's why i'm asking...i have was reading somewhere of a weed hatch on the thruster tube but now i am assuming this must be a joke too...if i wanted to tell jokes i would be giving odds on who will be next to life the ahses.... England....6/4.....the Aussies....3/1.....winnie mandela 1/3....Sheryl gascoigne....4/5

not really that's why i'm asking...i have was reading somewhere of a weed hatch on the thruster tube but now i am assuming this must be a joke too...if i wanted to tell jokes i would be giving odds on who will be next to life the ahses.... England....6/4.....the Aussies....3/1.....winnie mandela 1/3....Sheryl gascoigne....4/5

lift ! not life

[Grace and Favour]

The Bow thruster is normally fitted when the boat is out of the water (because when the boat's floating - the bowthruster tube is full of water - and it's terribly messy when you drill into it to fit the thruster)

[DeanS]

One option would be to have the tube installed, and then fit the bowthruster at a later date.

You could also use the cash to buy solar panels, which would probably be better than a bowthruster, especially if you're going to live onboard.

[Maffi]

One option would be to have the tube installed, and then fit the bowthruster at a later date.

You could also use the cash to buy solar panels, which would probably be better than a bowthruster, especially if you're going to live onboard.

.

Come on chaps we have to pay attention here the OP said "......the sail away i am buying has the bow thruster tube in place....." and then ".....will i need to fit it before the boat goes in the water....."

[Chris Pink]

sorry to pester again ! the sail away i am buying has the bow thruster tube in place,i asked a few days back about blocking it off or putting cables in place.... i have been looking at bow thruster prices ''to be honest i think for myself it would come in handy being a one man crew and a virgin narrowboater'', does anyone know anywhere that can beat £895 including vat on a vetus 55 complete kit? also will i need to fit it before the boat goes in the water or is it possible to fit it in the water without sinking my boat?....no piss taking please,i am good at putting things together but understand very little about boat bow thrusters... other than a canoe this will be my first boat and the only time i sank that was when some tit in a narrowboat hit me...probably a novice boater who needed a bow thruster lol

 

I'm with Dean. Hold off. They really aren't that useful on narrow boat or wide beam. Occasionally they are but for £900 you'll go a long way without it. Better of getting a long shaft and learning how to use it. That will serve in the long run.

 

You've got the tube. If it turns out you can't cope without it then fit one later, maybe at your first docking.

 

And buy yourself some training, it's confidence you need, not a bow thruster.

[RLWP]

You are also using the wrong criteria for buying a bowthruster. To be useful, you spend as much as you possibly can on one. I can assure you that a £7000 hydraulic bowthruster is highly effective with a nearly continuous rating. A £700 bowthruster is going to be low on force and able to be used only in short bursts.

 

Either spend a lot and get a good one, or don't get one at all. £900 isn't a lot

 

Richard

[lee b]

i wont be spending 7000 on one thats for sure,i thought vetus would be ok as they seem to be the main runner,its a vetus 55 i was looking at....i may just take deans advice and leave the tube empty for the time being...i'll see what my searches on thrusters bring...900 is ok if its a ok tool for helping me out when i'm on my own,if it saves scrambling up the front end of my boat with a big stick that will suit me...anyone got a vetus 55 on here? thanks for the replies....anyone who needs advice on stone restoration,rendering and general building work feel free to ask....other than the first person who sent a reply...lol building houses/barn renovations etc is my trade...if some one asks me for advice i give it to them....

i am confident with most things when the time will come with kitting my boat out but like i have said,i have never owned a boat so things like bow thrusters i will ask people who know better....cheers

[RLWP]

Pushing the front out isn't always necessary. Try reversing out of a spot instead

 

Richard

[Tam & Di]

i wont be spending 7000 on one thats for sure,i thought vetus would be ok as they seem to be the main runner,its a vetus 55 i was looking at....i may just take deans advice and leave the tube empty for the time being...i'll see what my searches on thrusters bring...900 is ok if its a ok tool for helping me out when i'm on my own,if it saves scrambling up the front end of my boat with a big stick that will suit me...anyone got a vetus 55 on here? thanks for the replies....anyone who needs advice on stone restoration,rendering and general building work feel free to ask....other than the first person who sent a reply...lol building houses/barn renovations etc is my trade...if some one asks me for advice i give it to them....

i am confident with most things when the time will come with kitting my boat out but like i have said,i have never owned a boat so things like bow thrusters i will ask people who know better....cheers

 

This reads as a rather sarcastic reply, but you've actually had some good advice here, especially from Chris. A cheap bow thruster will just give you a false sense of security, and when the chips are down you are probably better knowing how to steer your boat. It can take a long time to get experience, but there are one or two schools which can at least short-circuit the most common problems people have. It will be more difficult for you if you are boating single-handed but nothing takes the place of ability.

 

Tam

Edited July 16, 2013 by Tam & Di

[blackrose]

I think rather than rushing into it you're better off leaving it until you next come to black your boat. If you still think you want a BT do it then. Plenty of people move NBs single-handed without BTs. Also 895 quid is probably just the price of the kit. Then you've got to pay someone to install it (because it doesn't sound like you could do it yourself).

 

By the way, the Vetus unit is a perfectly good BT provided the it's sufficiently sized for your boat (probably), correctly installed (including the means of recharging the BT batteries), and most importantly correctly used (not over-used). As usual, most of the people who seem to be implying it's cheap rubbish have no experience of either owning or using it. What seems odd to me is that on one hand they say you don't need one, but then on the other if you have one you should install a very expensive hydraulic unit!

 

Anyway, I've had a Vetus 95kgf on my boat for the last 8 years and it's been brilliant!

Edited July 16, 2013 by blackrose

[RLWP]

Referring to me Mike?

 

Richard

[mrsmelly]

Pushing the front out isn't always necessary. Try reversing out of a spot instead

 

Richard

How very true. I nearly always reverse out of a mooring, its by far the easiest and best way under most circumstances. No need for any pushing of the bow by any method. It never ceases to amaze me how many narrowboaters have someone shove the bow out into clear water whilst their prop is stuck either in or just above the mud at the canal edge, then wonder why the boat doesnt respond to the helm.

Whatever the boat the prop needs to be in the deepest possible water it is then simple to put the pointy end where you want it to go.

 

Tim

[lee b]

I think rather than rushing into it you're better off leaving it until you next come to black your boat. If you still think you want a BT do it then. Plenty of people move NBs single-handed without BTs. Also 895 quid is probably just the price of the kit. Then you've got to pay someone to install it (because it doesn't sound like you could do it yourself).

 

By the way, the Vetus unit is a perfectly good BT provided the it's sufficiently sized for your boat (probably), correctly installed (including the means of recharging the BT batteries), and most importantly correctly used (not over-used). As usual, most of the people who seem to be implying it's cheap rubbish have no experience of either owning or using it. What seems odd to me is that on one hand they say you don't need one, but then on the other if you have one you should install a very expensive hydraulic unit!

 

Anyway, I've had a Vetus 95kgf on my boat for the last 8 years and it's been brilliant!

cheers,that's the main thing i wanted to know,are they worth having,i just wasn't sure if it was possible to fit them while the boat was in water because if their is a weed hatch i wasn't sure if the tube was totally bellow the water line or water came just bellow the top of the tube to allow access of some description,i was pretty sure out the water was the way but thought i'd ask on here with people who know best...being a builder,multi traded,plumbing,electrics is a second nature,i once fitted a wind turbine in spain on an old villa that was on a dry river bed,this had a 75m bore hole sunk into the river bed and drawn water up to 4 x 4m3 water drums,then that run down hill into a big filter system and into a pump which then gave fresh water to the villa,i installed a 7.5kva diesel generator for electics,wiring the house from scratch,also i installed solar power and a inverter for during the night along with a 12v lighting system for back up,it was a pretty complicated system,as long as i have a set of instructions and advice i'm pretty sure i wont have a problem with installing a bow thruster but help is at hand if i need someone with more experience,if i dont think i cant do the job correctly i wont touch it,...ps...as with my other post this is not being sarcastic in any way shape or form...the first reply to my question was i think full of sarc but heyho,i dont mind,the rest of you have been helpful...vetus or lewmar seem to be the front runners...95kgf....what size boat have you got?

[peterboat]

How very true. I nearly always reverse out of a mooring, its by far the easiest and best way under most circumstances. No need for any pushing of the bow by any method. It never ceases to amaze me how many narrowboaters have someone shove the bow out into clear water whilst their prop is stuck either in or just above the mud at the canal edge, then wonder why the boat doesnt respond to the helm.

Whatever the boat the prop needs to be in the deepest possible water it is then simple to put the pointy end where you want it to go.

 

Tim

Ditto what I do with my widebeam

 

Peter

[lee b]

 

This reads as a rather sarcastic reply, but you've actually had some good advice here, especially from Chris. A cheap bow thruster will just give you a false sense of security, and when the chips are down you are probably better knowing how to steer your boat. It can take a long time to get experience, but there are one or two schools which can at least short-circuit the most common problems people have. It will be more difficult for you if you are boating single-handed but nothing takes the place of ability.

 

Tam

i dont do sarcasm,worst form of wit,soz if it came across that way,i just cant afford 7k on a bow thruster,i will be having a few helmsman lessons so i can at least salvage some of my paint''and the poor sods coming the other way''...cheers