Our boat is currently on the hard for the winter (hopefully, not for long if Mother Nature would just cooperate!) I was thinking about putting on one of those line cutters on the shaft before we splash our girl. Does anyone have any experience with these (good or bad) that they would share? Do they cause they problems with the shaft? Thanks for your help.
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I installed a Shaft Razor because......
I installed a Shaft Razor manufactured by the Evolution Company because I changed from a fixed prop to a feathering prop. I was concerned about potential damage to the prop from lobster pot lines. I chose the Shaft Razor because it was a one-piece design (can't come off) and because it has a serrated edge. Another competing model did not have a serrated edge and I judged that it might not cut as well. I have hit submerged pots and cut their lines on a couple of occasions. Despite the noise at the event, no damage has ever occurred to my running gear. Now if the lobstermen would just refrain from placing their pots in channels or close to them, and ensure that sufficient line was used so that they always float at high tide and with current running, and paint them in colors that actually show in the water, we might have less problems.
I installed a Shaft Razor manufactured by the Evolution Company because I changed from a fixed prop to a feathering prop. I was concerned about potential damage to the prop from lobster pot lines. I chose the Shaft Razor because it was a one-piece design (can't come off) and because it has a serrated edge. Another competing model did not have a serrated edge and I judged that it might not cut as well. I have hit submerged pots and cut their lines on a couple of occasions. Despite the noise at the event, no damage has ever occurred to my running gear. Now if the lobstermen would just refrain from placing their pots in channels or close to them, and ensure that sufficient line was used so that they always float at high tide and with current running, and paint them in colors that actually show in the water, we might have less problems.
Sorry, but I just....
...can't see any need for them. While sailing they are of no affect. While motoring its simple enough to move the wheel a couple of inches to avoid snagging any line. In 20 years of sailing, I've been caught once by a lobster pot and a sharp knife took care of that in a hurry. Seems to me its just another thing to clean below the waterline and then it becomes a danger to you when you go under to clean.
...can't see any need for them. While sailing they are of no affect. While motoring its simple enough to move the wheel a couple of inches to avoid snagging any line. In 20 years of sailing, I've been caught once by a lobster pot and a sharp knife took care of that in a hurry. Seems to me its just another thing to clean below the waterline and then it becomes a danger to you when you go under to clean.
Lobster / Crab Pots
Seems that some of us are blessed with enough in life that we can afford to be out 'playing' on the water; but lets not forget others make a living from it day in and day out. In 19 seasons with a folding prop and 7 seasons with outboard power, only once have I been 'grabbed by a trot line, and never by crab pots. Yeah, they can wrap around your prop shaft and do some damage,and some days they are where we think they shouldn't be, but give the guys a break and pay a little more attention to what you are doing and you will never have a problem. Can't you just picture a waterman coming into your office and cutting off your computer cable because he might trip on it as he passes by?
Seems that some of us are blessed with enough in life that we can afford to be out 'playing' on the water; but lets not forget others make a living from it day in and day out. In 19 seasons with a folding prop and 7 seasons with outboard power, only once have I been 'grabbed by a trot line, and never by crab pots. Yeah, they can wrap around your prop shaft and do some damage,and some days they are where we think they shouldn't be, but give the guys a break and pay a little more attention to what you are doing and you will never have a problem. Can't you just picture a waterman coming into your office and cutting off your computer cable because he might trip on it as he passes by?
You make a good point but
I get really incensed at the crabbers who put their pots in channels. If I put my computer cable across a busy sidewalk I shouldn't be too surprised that it gets kicked out. Also, even though I absolutely pay attention in the daytime to steer around the little buggers, it's not an option at night.
I get really incensed at the crabbers who put their pots in channels. If I put my computer cable across a busy sidewalk I shouldn't be too surprised that it gets kicked out. Also, even though I absolutely pay attention in the daytime to steer around the little buggers, it's not an option at night.
Prop fouls can come from more than pot-lines
Read many of the case histories of COB incidents at US Sailing, and you'll see what I mean. See how many died while their crew struggled to unfoul the prop and return to them. If I go overboard, and my (beloved but lubberly) wife has to try to recover me with our Life Sling, I don't want to have to count on her doing an inventory of jib sheets or other lines that may trail in the water before using the engine to maneuver. (She's not yet able to do a proper sailing quick-stop and circle under sail). I frequently steer through fields of pot buoys, and have never been fouled by a badly deployed line. If I have to do the same waters at night, I like the security of the line cutter, but it's my own lines I'm more worried about.
Read many of the case histories of COB incidents at US Sailing, and you'll see what I mean. See how many died while their crew struggled to unfoul the prop and return to them. If I go overboard, and my (beloved but lubberly) wife has to try to recover me with our Life Sling, I don't want to have to count on her doing an inventory of jib sheets or other lines that may trail in the water before using the engine to maneuver. (She's not yet able to do a proper sailing quick-stop and circle under sail). I frequently steer through fields of pot buoys, and have never been fouled by a badly deployed line. If I have to do the same waters at night, I like the security of the line cutter, but it's my own lines I'm more worried about.
I installed a serrated model,
in '91 and had it in place for 10 years during our cruising from Seattle to Trinidad and back. ONCE, off shore, headed to a Mexican anchorage in the middle of a very dark night, did we hear a pronounced 'chunk'. It sure sounded like a poly crabpot line getting cut but there was no proof. Not once, for the next eight years did we snag a line or cut one, EXCEPT when I motored out of the Virgin Islands. I was single handing to Antigua. The Anagada Passage was in front of me and the wind was on the nose. I needed the engine. No way! The vibration of the propulsion system stopped me before clearing the headlands of Virgin Gorda. I limped back to shelter and dove to check the problem. A huge ball of poly line was wrapped around the shaft. Took several dives to clear it. The biggest danger was from the rope cutter. Anyway, I cleared it and off I went. One thing I'm sure of with the cutter installed on my boat is that with my horsepower and shaft diameter, there is no way the cutter would sever a dacron sheet or halyard. Something would give but it wouldn't be a dacron line. Oh, and prior to launch after our rebuild, I removed the line cutter. It's landfill.
in '91 and had it in place for 10 years during our cruising from Seattle to Trinidad and back. ONCE, off shore, headed to a Mexican anchorage in the middle of a very dark night, did we hear a pronounced 'chunk'. It sure sounded like a poly crabpot line getting cut but there was no proof. Not once, for the next eight years did we snag a line or cut one, EXCEPT when I motored out of the Virgin Islands. I was single handing to Antigua. The Anagada Passage was in front of me and the wind was on the nose. I needed the engine. No way! The vibration of the propulsion system stopped me before clearing the headlands of Virgin Gorda. I limped back to shelter and dove to check the problem. A huge ball of poly line was wrapped around the shaft. Took several dives to clear it. The biggest danger was from the rope cutter. Anyway, I cleared it and off I went. One thing I'm sure of with the cutter installed on my boat is that with my horsepower and shaft diameter, there is no way the cutter would sever a dacron sheet or halyard. Something would give but it wouldn't be a dacron line. Oh, and prior to launch after our rebuild, I removed the line cutter. It's landfill.
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