Converting a sailboat into a power boat.

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druid

druid

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Apr 22, 2009
837
Ontario 32 Pender Harbour
Rick Sylvester said:
Aside from the inevitable whiplash motion in a seaway he's got a boat that is now pretty much worthless on resale. We were all left scratching our heads wondering why he didn't just buy a small trawler instead.
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The answer is: there's virtually No Such Thing. "Small trawlers" are sailboats. It's nearly impossible to find a displacement powerboat under 30 ft. And if you do, I suspect the hull would be VERY similar to a sailboat hull, so any "whiplash motion in a seaway" would be similar in a "small trawler".

I see no problem in converting a sailboat to a small trawler. Just remember to remove BOTH sides of the vertical: mast and keel (probably leave a small keel for stability).

I've though of using a Cal20 for my small trawler for my old Volvo diesel. Otherwise I'll have to build it.

druid
 
Ross

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
druid said:
The answer is: there's virtually No Such Thing. "Small trawlers" are sailboats. It's nearly impossible to find a displacement powerboat under 30 ft. And if you do, I suspect the hull would be VERY similar to a sailboat hull, so any "whiplash motion in a seaway" would be similar in a "small trawler".

I see no problem in converting a sailboat to a small trawler. Just remember to remove BOTH sides of the vertical: mast and keel (probably leave a small keel for stability).

I've though of using a Cal20 for my small trawler for my old Volvo diesel. Otherwise I'll have to build it.

druid
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Not so fast! the internet is a wonderful thing: http://www.craftacraft.com/book/export/html/272

They are out there.
 
W

Winkfish

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Jul 28, 2010
914
Boston Whaler Montauk New Orleans
Ross said:
My Islander slips through the water at 4 knots with barely a ripple. My prop disturbs the water with a series of eddies. At 4 to 4 1/2 knots I use less than a quart per hour of fuel. One of my dock neighbors has a new power boat and if he keeps his speed below 20 he burns about 2 gallons per hour and leaves a large wake. His boat draws 3 1/2 feet to the bottom of the stern drive, I draw about 4 1/2 feet. The scows that I see on the news working the gulf clean up appear to me the best gunk hole boats.
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Ross, my point was not so much whether a sailboat leaves a wake or not, and I shouldn't have made that broad of a generalization. Neither can you say that "all powerboats are inefficient at slow speeds." If they were, no one would by them, especially people who use bots to make their living. Powerboat hulls especially are designed differently depending on the use and the conditions you will be in - marsh/shallow estuaries; larger bays and lakes; or offshore - smooth, choppy, or big rollers.
 
W

Winkfish

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Jul 28, 2010
914
Boston Whaler Montauk New Orleans
druid said:
The answer is: there's virtually No Such Thing. "Small trawlers" are sailboats. It's nearly impossible to find a displacement powerboat under 30 ft. And if you do, I suspect the hull would be VERY similar to a sailboat hull, so any "whiplash motion in a seaway" would be similar in a "small trawler".
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Not true, Druid, with all due respect. (Now I'm assuming "trawler" is not referring to a specific design of a boat, but rather any manner of workboat.) The working powerboats down here, shrimpers, crabbers, oysterboats, etc., do not have hulls like sailboats. There may be some that do, but I've never seen one. The workboats down here range from less than 20' to more than 40', and the hull design depends upon what you're doing and where you're doing it. Google "Lafitte skiff" and you'll get a good picture of one type of workboat popular down here.

My original point was that, yes, you can make a sailboat into a powerboat, removing the mast and the keel, but it is still not going to perform as well as a powerboat designed as a powerboat. It may suit your purpose, but that's a different story.
 
B

barryheath

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May 9, 2010
5
Macgregor 26 classic Lake Diefenbaker
I was the guy in Canada - and didn't see any replies - some of the ones below are "ouch"
Good thing I was asking about my Mac26C as they are intended to be a powerboat as well
Now I need to reconsisder and maybe will keep the mast , etc - but will have to find a mast raising system to make.
I know there are commercial ones available , but shipping to Canada is prohibitive.

Barry Heath
 
Ross

Ross

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Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
One of the details lost in this discussion is the fact that small powerboats have only been with us for about a hundred and twenty years give or take a few. But sail boats in every form have been around for several thousand years. The Dutch and the British used sailing barges for as long as the water ways were used for trade routes. Our modern sailboats are made for looks and speed but it wasn't too long ago that all boats were made to work. Only the very very wealthy had their pleasure boats or barges. If you can find a boat with the right lines then using it for motor driven river and bayou travel is perfectly reasonable. Further, setting a sail on it with lee boards is also a reasonable way to propell it.
 
druid

druid

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Apr 22, 2009
837
Ontario 32 Pender Harbour
Winkfish said:
Not true, Druid, with all due respect. (Now I'm assuming "trawler" is not referring to a specific design of a boat, but rather any manner of workboat.) The working powerboats down here, shrimpers, crabbers, oysterboats, etc., do not have hulls like sailboats. There may be some that do, but I've never seen one. The workboats down here range from less than 20' to more than 40', and the hull design depends upon what you're doing and where you're doing it. Google "Lafitte skiff" and you'll get a good picture of one type of workboat popular down here.
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Nope.
I was not referring to a boat that is used for trawling - I was referring to a displacement-hulled boat. The Lafitte Skiff is clearly a planing hull, based on the long, flat stern terminating abruptly at the transom. I have seen discussions about whether or not a "lobsa-boat" is displacement or planing, but I'm leaning towards at least semi-planing.

There's Nordic Tug, but they're WAY expensive! There's Albins, but again very expensive if you can find them at all. And an Albin actually looks a LOT like a sailboat without a mast. And an Albin sailboat looks a lot like an Albin powerboat with a mast...

druid
 
Ross

Ross

.
Jun 15, 2004
14,693
Islander/Wayfairer 30 sail number 25 Perryville,Md.
If you dream you may as well dream big. ;)
 
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