towing

[brettonjohn]

Hello everyone! We just bought a 2101 seaswirl striper (21' walk around) to tow behing our 38' marine trader.* The*striper has an outdrive* (I/O)* so I will not be able to get the prop out of the water when towing.*My question is when towing should I leave the striper in or out of gear as we speed to our 8 knot cruise? Thank you for the site and for everbody who will reply!* Brett


-- Edited by brettonjohn on Tuesday 10th of May 2011 10:44:44 AM

 

[Egregious]

With a small outboard I've towed them with the motor down and in neutral.* Otherwise the motor has a tendency to crank up.* I'm assuming you're talking about an I/O so that might not happen so easily.* Freewheeling an outboard won't hurt anything, don't know about an I/O.


-- Edited by Egregious on Tuesday 10th of May 2011 10:14:01 AM

 

[Phil Fill]

I have the 140 HP OB in neutral and up.* However, the Run About has a deep V hull and tracks straight behind the Eagle. I use the anchor bridle as a tow rope which also help to keep the run about centered. If the boat is flat bottom you might have to have the engine down so it tracks straight.* As for neutral or in gear I would call the dealer.*

 

[Steve]

Woody, when you say the outboard has a tendency to "crank up" do you mean it can, or will*start?***From the water flow turning the prop? Even at slow trawler speeds?

I have heard people talk about that but never thought it could actually happen, have you seen it?

thanks Steve W.

 

[Max Simmons]

wI towed a i/o for years tilted up in neutral behind a planing boat. No problem. It was a merc.

 

[Avista]

I have an outboard deep vee (classic 1975 20' Seacraft CC) that tows well with the outboard in neutral and tilted up so just the skeg and a little prop is in the water.* I also have a 20' shamrock inboard that tows great (it is a keel drive) but I 'block' the drive shaft with a shaft lock I made up as the freewheeling heats*up the transmission too much for me to be comfortable. I would think with an I/O you could trim the drive up enough that it would not freewheel (or not much).

Towing puts a huge load on both boats, I recommend you get a good tow eye (check out toweye.com) made up that mounts just above the water line on the Sea Swirl and*to use a bridle on the trawler.

You now have imho about the best 'dinghy' ever!* When we are in the Bahamas, we spend almost every day on the runabout and cover much more area that we would with just the big boat. When at home in the marina,many times we just take the runabout out for a few hours and it's a blast.

 

[Egregious]

Steve wrote:
Woody, when you say the outboard has a tendency to "crank up" do you mean it can, or will*start?***From the water flow turning the prop? Even at slow trawler speeds?

I have heard people talk about that but never thought it could actually happen, have you seen it?

thanks Steve W.

*Yes, if you had a small one, like 5HP, and it was a two stroke, and not set up as a kicker, *and you left it at WOT, and then dragged it at maybe 9 Knots, it might start and then it starts running all over the place.

The OP had a much bigger engine so this is probably not applicable.* Just thought I'd mention it.* I tow a dinghy sometimes and I make sure it is in neutral, but I also pull it out of the water.* I find that the length of the painter is more important than whether or not the lower unit is in the water.

 

[skipperdude]

I have towed an inflatable soft bottom without the motor.

*You have to keep an eye on it in the wind. I have seen my fly like a kite in 30 knt winds.

Actually leave the water.

SD

 

[Tidahapah]

Before I put the electric winch on my crane I used to tow my dingy around a lot.
12' tinny with 15 hp.
It didn't make any difference if I had the motor tilted or not she still towed nice and straight.
Have allways used a bridle tow arrangement .
Benn

 

[hollywood8118]

Last summer I towed my 20' comp ski boat all over on the Columbia and Snake rivers.. on a river I never even knew the ski boat was back there... except it cost me a 1/2 knot of speed. I have towed our 12.5' hard bottom 40hp dinghy in some pretty boisterous conditions.. the tow line length becomes pretty important to get it to track straight.

I watched a 100' yacht with a 25' fishing boat in tow doing at least 20kts on what must of been 400' of tow line.. the loads must of been huge on both ends!. They were headed up the middle of the Straits of Georgia. I guess no matter how big the yacht someone will always want a dinghy that is too big to load on top!

HOLLYWOOD

 

[Per]

bringing back this towing thread...

how much line should be used for towing a 13 RIB?

Not having done this before, what are the big NO NO's?
guess backing up into the tow rope would be one problem...

 

[skipperdude]

If you are using a tow rope and not the painter Be sure it is a floating line.

Tow her back far enough so she rides just behind the hump and stays on an even track not to much wallowing back and forth.

SD

 

[Baker]

If you want max efficiency, I would put it on the front side of the hump so it surfs....but like SD said, it has a tendency to wallow around back there like that. So your choice, stability or efficiency...there is always a trade off.

 

[Per]

just a follow up to this thread..
we towed our 11' RIB recently

on the way out we used a 350# floating line as a bridle with the outport in the down position.
the line broke at seas, i was able to re-trieve the RIB and re-tie it using two docklines tied together.

on the way home, i raised the outboard and it went much better.
i would not recommend towing with the outboard down, it adds significant drag.

we were going around 9 - 10 knots on the way out and 12-13knots on the way home
btw, when maneuvering we would pull it up real close to no chance of rope meeting the props.

 

[skipperdude]

Willy wrote:
. Floating line usualy will not be a defence against pulling it into the running gear.

*Not sure what is ment by your statement.

My propellar is at least 3.5 ft below the surface. How could*I get a floating line caught in the prop?**If that is what you ment by running gear.

What if you need to come to a stop for some reason. The tow rope could easly sink under the boat if you can't get back there to handle the line.

For instance I am cruising along and find myself surrounded by a commercial fishing line strung across my path. I need to stop and figure out how to get around the lines. If someone else is at the helm fine. I can handle the tow line. If it is my brotherin law. I have a tow rope in my prop for sure.*

With a floating painter. No worries

*

SD


-- Edited by skipperdude on Tuesday 30th of August 2011 12:58:31 PM

 

[Egregious]

skipperdude wrote:Willy wrote:
. Floating line usualy will not be a defence against pulling it into the running gear.

*Not sure what is ment by your statement.

My propellar is at least 3.5 ft below the surface. How could*I get a floating line caught in the prop?**If that is what you ment by running gear.

SD

*I managed to do it.* Just got sucked under somehow.* I always shorten the painter or move the dinghy to midships before maneuvering.* I've seen some people put the painter through a "fun noodle" which looks quite effective though.

 

[skipperdude]

Yeah, but the chances are it won't happen as often.

*Or perhaps if you do have a sinking line you will be more carefull about where the line is at all times.

I have trouble keeping track of my car keys.

SD

 

[skipperdude]

You are probably right.* I will be more aware. I just have never had it happen to me.

Famous last words.

SD

 

[C lectric]

Several years ago I saw a sailboat suck his floating line into the prop and it was down a ways. It was a bit of a combination of suction but also backing over the line and forcing it under the water. Several of us yelled but of course too little, too late.

 

[markpierce]

This sailor doesn't look the least bit worried about the line to his dinghy.

This is the southside of Carquinez Strait, betwixt Crockett and Port Costa; sailor is heading eastward to the delta, and the cruiser is anchored in a flood tide.* During the 19th and into the early 20th century, there were many commercial docks here, as evidenced by the many long-remaining piles.


-- Edited by markpierce on Tuesday 30th of August 2011 10:20:30 PM

 

[MauleOne]

Does anyone use an electric winch to pull in their tow line when the dingy gets too close?

 

[dwhatty]

MauleOne wrote:
Does anyone use an electric winch to pull in their tow line when the dingy gets too close?

*I use my two legged wench.

 

[FF]

Folks that cruise , and like marinas will frequently install a pair of discarded sheet winches on each stern quarter.

Helps loads in docking when the bride can pull 1200lbs with ease.

 

[koliver]

In measuring my dinghy painter, I calculate the maximum that will be just too short to foul in my props. That is 15 ft. The 750 lb 12' RIB rides nicely that far behind. When manouvering, I can safely forget the dinghy is there and never need to worry about fouling.

 

[Nomad Willy]

Towing sucks but having a nice big dinghy is really nice. I almost towed my 16' skiff behind Willy this summer but changed my mind. Wish there was a remote to raise and lower the OB leg from the mother boat

so I could use the OB as a drouge in following seas. One thing about a towed dinghy is that as a lifeboat it's already launched. Here's a pic of a big trawler w an 18' Diablo skiff alongside. He towed it to Petersburg from Puget Sound. 2nd pic is my skiff.

The third pic is of my friend Ed w his Willard in the background and our skiff just barely visible just to the right of Ed's hat. Ed lives by himself on Marble Island and commutes to Craig (pop 1800) for mail and supplies usually once a month. He always tows his 14' heavy aluminum skiff w 15hp Mercury OB. Was handy. When I was out w him once I wanted to check out a small inlet he didn't want to enter with the Willard so I just buzzed on in w his skiff and back out. He just made a cup of coffee in the 10 minutes I was gone.

Dude, You must live in the wrong part of Alaska. We just leave our car keys in the car ..almost always. Unless I need money I don't even take my wallet w me. Sure is nice not to have that rock on my but.







-- Edited by nomadwilly on Tuesday 6th of September 2011 10:16:18 AM

 

[yachtbrokerguy]

I have towed a couple of different 21' center consoles on different higher speed yachts, actually would tow at 20 knots with the tender riding on the second stern wave.
You may not plan to run at night but I would suggest a portable set of towing lights that can be mounted on the tow boat. If you ever had a problem without legal towing lights your insurance may not pay off.

 

[Dream Trawl]

What are some of the hazards and concerns of towing behind? How does the dinghy behave in following seas and when encountering big passing wakes?

 

[Keith]

If you tow a lot, you can make an adjustable bridle. Run one long towing line to the dinghy, through a block attached to a second line. This will form a "Y" and make a nice bridle. You can lengthen or shorten the long line to bring the dink to where it rides best. You can also adjust the line with the block on it.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. Tucker raises a good point about mounting lights on a towed vessel. Insurance issues aside, it would make finding it in the dark easier if it ever went adrift.