Sails only

[Tetepare]

16’


If you’ve ever been on a hobie 16 in no wind and being hammered by powerboat wake you’d kill for a motor.

[KTP]

We pulled the engine out of our PSC34 and installed an electric only drive which for practical purposes of any distance greater than 10 to 20 miles means we are sail only. We will be the fastest docking of any sailboat though since we don't have to wait for the engine to warm up.

[Dockhead]

Originally Posted by a64pilot

Probably about 300 ft.

However most of us motor more than we would like, very, very few sail almost exclusively. Boat Alexandra if I have the name correct is one of those 1% that only sail.
You may want to look up his posts.

When I first bought our boat I wanted to primarily sail too, but very quickly I found out that you can sail most any day but if you add a destination, then you need the right amount to wind, from the correct direction, then you learn to plan ahead.
It can be done, but most of us get impatient and just crank the motor and go.

This.


Most cruisers motor more than 50% of their miles done. That's because cruising usually involves a destination, so you often don't get to choose your course based on the wind, as you do when just day sailing around the bay for the pure fun of sailing.


It's possible to cruise without an engine -- google the Pardeys. But harbor maneuvers can be so difficult without an engine, that the Pardeys typically got towed in and out.



One of our guys here (who will no doubt weigh in soon), Boat Alexandra, thinks that internal combustion engines are from the devil, and cruises the world using a sculling oar. It the boat is small enough, that can work pretty well, although he's had more than a few hairy moments. He'll no doubt tell you all about it.


Another issue is safety -- what if you are suddenly becalmed while crossing the path of a ship? What if you get caught on a lee shore? Motors give you a lot of options which sails alone can't provide.





So in sum -- if you are ok with being towed regularly, warping in and out of berths, and making a huge production out of getting in and out of harbors, and if you're willing to wait for weeks at a time for the wind to change (or come up), then by all means, do without the engine!


As for my case -- I love to sail, and I probably sail more than most cruisers, but I sail in latitudes with a lot of dangerous weather, so I would never ever want to do it without a good engine. With a good engine, a calm is a great weather window -- you just motor. Without a good engine, you will be sitting around waiting for wind, and in some latitudes in some months you might not have much choice between dangerous storms and dead calms. I motored for four days and nights straight last summer, in the Arctic Ocean, and considered it a terrific passage.



99.9999% of cruising sailboats have robust mechanical propulsion based on diesel engines. That is not an accident.

[GordMay]

Greetings and welcome aboard the CF, Swampwolves.

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by boatman61

Well Tres Hombres is a 32metre cargo ship that plys between the Caribe and Holland with an engine.. in Horta she came alongside the reception dock with their tender acting as a mini tug.. when after a few days a space large enough came up on the outer wall of the marina breakwater they warped her across the old fashioned way.. hawsers and men on the capstan.. old style seamanship and a joy to watch.
Departure was once again using the 25hp ob tender to clear the marina then the sails took over.. Awesome.

https://www.newdawntraders.com/cargo...e/tres-hombres

https://youtu.be/07ngpnsJ02Y

This should read SHIP WITHOUT AN ENGINE.. forgot to check post after posting.. Sorry.

[MartinR]

Originally Posted by Uricanejack

When do you need to upgrade from a paddle as your alternate means of moving the boat?

I have effectively paddled a 24ft sailboat. I can’t say I have tried to paddle my 35 ft boat. Just need a longer paddle.

Have successfully rowed a 86´, 100t schooner. Not that it was fast, but we moved. Needs some crew, though and sweeps.

Once upon a time most smaller sailing vessels were equipped with sweeps. And plenty of crew!

[boatman61]

Originally Posted by MartinR

Have successfully rowed a 86´, 100t schooner. Not that it was fast, but we moved. Needs some crew, though and sweeps.

Once upon a time most smaller sailing vessels were equipped with sweeps. And plenty of crew!

Back in the last century I knew a guy used to scull his 50ft Tehini catamaran into and out of ports solo.. worked with the tides.

[GrowleyMonster]

Both of my boats reside in a marina where it is a violation of the lease to sail in or out. Many, if not most, marinas have similar rules, some enforced more vigorously than others. But do discuss things over with your insurance company before engaging in what some would call "stunt sailing" around other boats, some costing into the millions. Especially when you can buy a brand new outboard and bracket for considerably south of $2k.



If you don't want to mess around with a smoke belching clankasaurus then that is totally understandable, and there are others who share that philosophy. And so, there are options, such as oars (you will need to make or have them made, for most boats over about 26', unfortunately) or electric (serious tradeoffs between bank size and speed/range) which is great for just docking and stuff. A good, efficient, economical electric propulsion setup is a pretty geeky endeavor, and oars, well, it can be hard to find them long enough off the shelf, and rowing is kinda labor intensive.



A Beta diesel at 10hp is only about $8k, or get the base Kubota tracktor engine and marinize it yourself, maybe with a used engine for a few hundred bucks. Lots of work, and you will either be a real diesel geek when you are done, or likely have a pretty whack setup. You might also find an old Atomic 4 that has a few years left in it for a couple hundred, or a new build with a newly cast block and head from Moyer for probably about $4k. Next in order of preference would be the outboard, new or good used. Then oars or electric.


The inboard options of course presuppose the existence of a shaft log and stuffing tube, maybe strut, and hopefully shaft and prop, too. Converting a boat to inboard that has never had one, is not a casual endeavor.


For an otboard, get the best, sturdiest bracket you can get. This is very important. Upsize rather than downsize. The outboard mount on my GF's little 20' Halman is rated for I think a 40hp outboard and has a nifty spring assist that makes the little Tohatsu 6hp practically jump up by itself when raising it. And no wibble wobble hinky jinky steering like with her old one. So it costs a hundred or two more... it will be around as long as the boat, at least, and it is money well spent. Get the best you can get. This is an important purchase. You should be able to install your new bracket in a few hours. Be sure to back up the bolts on the inside of the hull to distribute the stress. The outboard needs to be long shaft, and you set the height of the bolt holes so that the cav plate is always under water. Make sure that there is room to swing the outboard tiller. Also make sure that the outboard is not in the way of the boat's rudder. It doesn't have to be right on the centerline, and usually, it isn't.


If there is any doubt, have a good yard install the bracket for you. They may want you to buy your outboard, first, so they can measure.


Like others have said, there is NO maximum size for a sail-only vessel. But then again, without an engine or propulsion of SOME kind, you are kind of helpless,at times, certainly having less ability to maneuver safely around other floating property, and it is YOUR FAULT, nobody else's. This goes for pretty much any size boat, however small. Hit someone without benefit of propulsion, and some lawyer will gut you in court.