Electric motor

sogood

Anybody have any experience with electric outboard motors, or trolling motors as I think they're called?

The reason I ask is that today I wanted to get out to my boat on it's mooring and although the water was pretty calm, there was a stiff breeze blowing, which pushed me around the place, while I rowed to no great effect. It must be said that I'm pretty much totally inexperienced when it comes to rowing a boat, but this has happened to me before, making it almost impossible to get from my boat back to the pier.

For those of you not in the know, my punt is 8' fibreglass and quite light, but I find that my body acts like a sail in any sort of wind, so........maybe a little mechanical help is called for.

I've seen these motors advertised, measured in thrust (35 lbs. 56 lbs. etc.) and I'm wondering what might suit my needs. I'm also not getting any younger and just thinking ahead.

Any thoughts appreciated.

Pete67

You might be better off with a small (3 to 5 HP) petrol outboard, you would have significantly more thrust available to deal with a headwind, and also would not need to worry about charging heavy lead-acid batteries.

pedroeibar1

You also have tidal flow at your mooring. I'd forget about electric and go for a small engine - a 3hp would be quite adequate (that's what I use on my Avon).

sogood

Thanks for the thought guys. I was leaning towards an electric motor for convenience, bringing it with me when needed and dropping it onto the punt, but I suppose the same applies to a petrol engine.
It seems that petrol is the way to go.
I did eventually get out to the boat last Sunday, on a beautiful calm, gentle morning. I wanted to shorten the mooring rope as I had originally made it too long, but more importantly,the boat was listing to one side and needed investigation.

As it turned out, it had a lot of water on board, following the very heavy rains we had here in Kerry as of late. I discovered that my battery was flat, possibly due to running constantly on the float switch, which I had recently fitted. I suspect that the switch may have stuck "up" in the on position.

So, back home, (fortunately only 5 minutes) and back with a good battery. I pumped out the water and tidied up a bit and now all is good.

I think she'll be coming out of the water soon, and getting a spring clean, before going under wraps, ready for sale in the new year. My plan is to have the Wellcraft finished and in the water by then. This has been put slightly on hold while I finish doing up the kitchen, but I'll get back to it soon.

Thanks again for the responses.

fenris

You can get good light electric motors but you will really pay for them, I put a Torqueedo ultralight on a kayak after having a standard min kota trolling motor with lead acid battery setup.
The difference was amazing, the total weight of the torqueedo and lithium battery was less than the weight of the old motor on its own - approx 12 kg I think, the big difference is that the new motor has a very accurate remaining range readout that adjusts based on your speed and reduced the remaining battery fear factor

sogood

fenris wrote: »

You can get good light electric motors but you will really pay for them, I put a Torqueedo ultralight on a kayak after having a standard min kota trolling motor with lead acid battery setup.
The difference was amazing, the total weight of the torqueedo and lithium battery was less than the weight of the old motor on its own - approx 12 kg I think, the big difference is that the new motor has a very accurate remaining range readout that adjusts based on your speed and reduced the remaining battery fear factor

Thanks for the info. Still undecided as to what way to go. I'll only be using it within the confines of a small harbour, over a distance of maybe 100 feet max. It's not far but seems so when rowing against a tide and/or wind!

I want to do some adjustments on my rowlocks and oars which may help, so we shall see.

Thanks again.

fergal.b

pedroeibar1

@ Sogood – Fergal’s clip proves why they mainly are used by fishermen on lakes for trolling – the advantage being that they can run at slow speed, are silent and unlike a 2 stroke the plug will not oil up at low revs.

Engine - Were I to buy an engine for a punt like yours a 2 or 3hp would be fine but I would consider buying a light 5hp and have it as a spare to the main engine. If for example you wanted to go further afield – Derrynane, or Killmac, you could tow the punt and use it for going ashore. Should anything happen to the main engine you also would have a back-up.

Rowing – are the rowlocks in the right place – are they a little too near the thwart /seat? What length are the oars? That seat is high so if your oars are too short (or you are tall) they will dig in and hop out of the rowlocks. The usual guide / formula (in old money) for oar length is that the inboard length of the oar should be 7/25th of the total. Also, there should be about 3-4 inches between your hands when holding the oars. So, measure the beam at the rowlocks, divide by two, and then add 2 inches. Multiply the answer by 25 and divide by 7. That’s the ‘correct’ oar length. Oars are sold to the nearest 6 inch length, so pick one that suits.

Keel - I think the addition of a keel would help enormously and help the punt from being ‘skittish’. Just a few strips bent and successively glued together, bolted through the hull and then glassed over. That would do a lot to keep the punt on course.

(Of course the real solution would be to fit a dagger board and a mast and make a real sailor out of you by sailing to/from the mooring!):p:)

sogood

Hey pedro, many thanks for the masterclass in the science of rowing! As mentioned in one of my previous posts, I do think the rowlocks are badly positioned, being too near the seat. I am a bit long legged and tend to get in my own way and find the oars jumping up out of the rowlocks as you mentioned.

In the off season, soon, the punt will be brought home and remodelled, with the possibility of adding the strips to the hull as you suggested. I find the punt to be a little bit unstable as it is, with a tendency to rock from side to side very easily. All very new to me! As would be sailing, so that's not going to happen any time soon. (as in never!)

I'll apply the formula you gave me and see how it works out in relation to the oars.

If I ever venture down to Killmac I'd probably do it with enough water to get in and out of the harbour, after a spot of lunch at Helens' Bar, so I wouldn't be using the punt for that, bearing in mind that I'd be using the Wellcraft, all going well. So the notion of a 5hp engine as a back up really wouldn't work as I couldn't see it pushing a 25' boat against a tide. I may keep my Yamaha 30hp off the Microplus and use it as a back up.

Anyway, I digress...........thanks again for the input and see you around.

gaffer falls

I would look out for a second hand 2 stroke Tohatsu/Mercury/Johnson 3.5hp motor , all the same engine re badged.
They do come up occasionally for about €350 and are highly prized as the ideal tender motor

sogood

pedroeibar1 wrote: »

@ Sogood – Fergal’s clip proves why they mainly are used by fishermen on lakes for trolling – the advantage being that they can run at slow speed, are silent and unlike a 2 stroke the plug will not oil up at low revs.

Engine - Were I to buy an engine for a punt like yours a 2 or 3hp would be fine but I would consider buying a light 5hp and have it as a spare to the main engine. If for example you wanted to go further afield – Derrynane, or Killmac, you could tow the punt and use it for going ashore. Should anything happen to the main engine you also would have a back-up.

Rowing – are the rowlocks in the right place – are they a little too near the thwart /seat? What length are the oars? That seat is high so if your oars are too short (or you are tall) they will dig in and hop out of the rowlocks. The usual guide / formula (in old money) for oar length is that the inboard length of the oar should be 7/25th of the total. Also, there should be about 3-4 inches between your hands when holding the oars. So, measure the beam at the rowlocks, divide by two, and then add 2 inches. Multiply the answer by 25 and divide by 7. That’s the ‘correct’ oar length. Oars are sold to the nearest 6 inch length, so pick one that suits.

Keel - I think the addition of a keel would help enormously and help the punt from being ‘skittish’. Just a few strips bent and successively glued together, bolted through the hull and then glassed over. That would do a lot to keep the punt on course.

(Of course the real solution would be to fit a dagger board and a mast and make a real sailor out of you by sailing to/from the mooring!):p:)

Just an update on the above. I applied the formula to my oars, which are homemade and based as much on aesthetics as what seemed practical. The oars are 57" long each, from tip to tip. The punt is 48" wide and using the above formula, the oar size should be 92.5" long. This seems a bit much, so I'm wondering, is this the combined length of the two oars, which would be a bit nearer the mark?

The punt will be getting a keel as mentioned and I will be relocating the rowlocks, a little further forward, away from my seated position.

Anyway, any thoughts welcome. Thanks.

JamesM

sogood wrote: »

Just an update on the above. I applied the formula to my oars, which are homemade and based as much on aesthetics as what seemed practical. The oars are 57" long each, from tip to tip. The punt is 48" wide and using the above formula, the oar size should be 92.5" long. This seems a bit much, so I'm wondering, is this the combined length of the two oars, which would be a bit nearer the mark?

The punt will be getting a keel as mentioned and I will be relocating the rowlocks, a little further forward, away from my seated position.

Anyway, any thoughts welcome. Thanks.

Less than 5' is way to short for oars for a punt that is 4' wide. I am not near a punt at the moment, but the punt I often row at my club is about 4' wide and the oars are much taller than me - at least 7', probably more. The oars I use for my yole leisure scull are closer to 9'.
Jim.

sogood

Thanks for the info. I'm surprised at that as the length of oar seems to be a bit OTT. I've seen inflatables and other rowboats with a similar or wider beam with oars nearer to what mine are. I think I'd find longer oars somewhat awkward to use, but I'm open to possibilities.

I think that moving the rowlocks further back would certainly be a step in the right direction ( no pun intended ) as their current position adds to the tendency to pull the oars "up" vertically as opposed to horizontally.

We shall see and thanks again.

JamesM

I have just looked at your first post and see that your punt is only 8' long. That is a bit small for rowing in any kind of waves. It might be a bit bouncy and I would row it with short fast strokes - as opposed to long steady strokes. I still thing that 6' oars would be better than yours, which are less than 5'. Longer than 6' might be awkward.
Jim.

fergal.b

How about one of these Free wheeling

sogood

That's an interesting little gadget but I think it might be a little bit lightweight for my needs. The tidal flow/current and wind factor that I have to deal with is part of my issue with rowing, the other part being my incompetence!

I fear that I might finish up looking like someone sitting in the bath with an egg whisk! For the moment, I'll wait until I had the alterations made to the punt, ie. move the rowlocks, add a small keel and practice, practice, practice.

I'd like to avoid the need to have any sort of motor, just one less thing to look after. Thanks for the info though.

thebeerbaron

We used a 4hp yamaha on our punt for the same as your. However due to the weight and effort of carrying it up and down we bought an electric engine. I was very doubtful of it at first and thought there was no need to change. However the electric engine is great. It will move our punt in wind but I am not sure against what strength etc. Our punt is no more than 5 feet in length and usually we only have 2 adults on it. However my brother took our cousin and 2 children on it no bother with the electric engine.