Stu,
Thank you for your reply and your good insights. I appreciate them.
I will say, though, that as far as experimenting with different positions in relation to the wheel--to the side, in front, behind, sitting, standing, etc.--I've been there and done that. My C30 was a Mk-II with the T-cockpit and I upgraded the wheel to 36". So for a C30 it was about as good as it gets. Yet, for me anyway, I could never find a position that was comfortable for too very long and none as comfortable as with my current tiller steered boat.
I should say also that which position was most comfortable with a wheel did depend upon the wind and sea conditions, as well as the point of sail. So, for example, when beam or broad reaching with surfing down the side of swells, it was hands down easiest to steer in a standing position, behind the wheel. That's because this position gave me the most leverage over the wheel as well as the greatest "throw" to move the wheel the greatest amount from side-to-side without having to reposition my hands. This is critical as the boat tends to round up while coming down the swell and then level out after the swell has passed. (That's all well and good, but on a trip home from the Isthmus, surfing all the way, it could require me to stand at the helm for 3 or 4 hours, which gets tiring.) When heeling on a beat, planting my butt on the coaming often was preferable, which then required me to brace one of my feet against the pedastal guard to keep my body from sliding to leeward. This could work on a beat because on that course relatively small wheel corrections are necessary once the boat is trimmed properly, and the fact that in this position you have relatively less "throw" without having to reposition your hands is not such an issue. And, in calmer conditions where little wheel movement was necessary, sitting in front of it seemed to work OK.
Still, none of these positions was as comfortable as wedging myself in the front of the cockpit and bracing my foot against the opposite cockpit seat, tiller in hand. I can stay in the same position for any steering condition, comfortable and secure.
I should point out that I am only 5' 7"--in other words, short. Perhaps people with longer arms and torsos will relate a different experience. I upgraded to the 36" wheel so I wouldn't have to lean in when steering from the side, and I will say that this did help a great deal in my case. But still, for me at least, nothing beats a tiller on a boat with a light helm.
Of course, there's always the autopilot!
My C30 had an ST4000+ and my current boat has an ST2000 tiller pilot. I found myself using the wheel pilot a great deal more on the C30 because steering it was much less fun than on my current boat. On my E26 I use the autopilot mostly under power, where hand steering isn't much fun on any boat, or when I'm under sail and need to use the head or make a sandwich. Otherwise, I really enjoy the steering part and leave the tiller pilot on standby a good deal of the time.
Thank you for your reply and your good insights. I appreciate them.
I will say, though, that as far as experimenting with different positions in relation to the wheel--to the side, in front, behind, sitting, standing, etc.--I've been there and done that. My C30 was a Mk-II with the T-cockpit and I upgraded the wheel to 36". So for a C30 it was about as good as it gets. Yet, for me anyway, I could never find a position that was comfortable for too very long and none as comfortable as with my current tiller steered boat.
I should say also that which position was most comfortable with a wheel did depend upon the wind and sea conditions, as well as the point of sail. So, for example, when beam or broad reaching with surfing down the side of swells, it was hands down easiest to steer in a standing position, behind the wheel. That's because this position gave me the most leverage over the wheel as well as the greatest "throw" to move the wheel the greatest amount from side-to-side without having to reposition my hands. This is critical as the boat tends to round up while coming down the swell and then level out after the swell has passed. (That's all well and good, but on a trip home from the Isthmus, surfing all the way, it could require me to stand at the helm for 3 or 4 hours, which gets tiring.) When heeling on a beat, planting my butt on the coaming often was preferable, which then required me to brace one of my feet against the pedastal guard to keep my body from sliding to leeward. This could work on a beat because on that course relatively small wheel corrections are necessary once the boat is trimmed properly, and the fact that in this position you have relatively less "throw" without having to reposition your hands is not such an issue. And, in calmer conditions where little wheel movement was necessary, sitting in front of it seemed to work OK.
Still, none of these positions was as comfortable as wedging myself in the front of the cockpit and bracing my foot against the opposite cockpit seat, tiller in hand. I can stay in the same position for any steering condition, comfortable and secure.
I should point out that I am only 5' 7"--in other words, short. Perhaps people with longer arms and torsos will relate a different experience. I upgraded to the 36" wheel so I wouldn't have to lean in when steering from the side, and I will say that this did help a great deal in my case. But still, for me at least, nothing beats a tiller on a boat with a light helm.
Of course, there's always the autopilot!
My C30 had an ST4000+ and my current boat has an ST2000 tiller pilot. I found myself using the wheel pilot a great deal more on the C30 because steering it was much less fun than on my current boat. On my E26 I use the autopilot mostly under power, where hand steering isn't much fun on any boat, or when I'm under sail and need to use the head or make a sandwich. Otherwise, I really enjoy the steering part and leave the tiller pilot on standby a good deal of the time.
