Worried my 1st cruiser is only a day sailer????......

Cpt. Jon · Jun 15, 2009

A fouled prop on a 1GM can definately cause some serious propulsion issues. I would get in there and clean that prop and give it another go because I don't think that you should normally have those problems.

MoonSailer · Jun 15, 2009

A few barnacles knocked my speed to about 3 kts in my 32' sailboat. A prop works like an airplane wing and a little frost can prevent an airplane from flying. I was shocked at the difference a clean prop makes. I usually scrape with a dive knife and then use sandpaper or a green scrub pad to get the prop as smooth as possible.

Cpt. Jon · Jun 15, 2009

I typically use on of these paint roller scraper tools, no idea what they are really called, but the curved side works well for the shaft and the sharp side works pretty well for the prop.

Scott T-Bird · Jun 15, 2009

We have that same Yanmar 1GM ...

She will easily push our 27' Starwind at hull speed but we don't have the choppy conditions that you will have. If yours is a Cal 27 then you probably have a little more weight than our 5,600 # boat. Don't discount the importance of a clean bottom as well. Just a little algae slim will knock off at least a knot of speed if not more if I let it go too long I have found. Also, make sure your filters are clean and the mixing elbow is clean. I just had performance issues with ours last week that was messing with my head because we just had the tranny rebuilt ... it turns out, cleaning the mixing elbow and changing the filters made all the difference! The chop could have easily been stirring up the impurities in your fuel tank that was causing the primary filter to clog. Cleaning your tank is a bigger project, but if choppy conditions are the norm, it may be essential.

Ron20324 · Jun 15, 2009

Only 7 hp for that size boat is not very much power. Making hull speed is one thing, fighting wind and waves on the nose is another thing. Why did you have to get towed??? I had an 8 hp outboard on my 23, and I needed it ALL to fight the elements a few times. Reading your letter, I doubt a fouled prop would have slowed your engine down and cut the oil psi and rpm's, but if your prop hit a wave, that could have put a slowing load on your engine. Or, perhaps the prop might have been out of the water (like an outboard can do) and when dropped back down, the engine bogged down? Shafts and other things can break when brought to a sudden stop like that. You were fortunate nothing gave way. Yes, a clean prop is essential to maximum performance, but you won't get Corvette power from a Volkswagon engine.

larryw · Jun 15, 2009

A clean prop/bottom are very important; so is clean fuel. Engine problems in choppy conditions are a warning that your fuel system needs attention. First thing to do is to pull the fuel pickup tube and check for a screen on the lower end. If there is one, CUT IT OFF, then change all your other filters, (if not installed already, install two Racors in parallel, the kind with water drain bowls) bleed it, fill the tank with new fuel, add a stabalizer and biocide if the fuel dock doesn't use them already. Here in SoCal, Union 76 fuel docks add that stuff already. Once your fuel system is up to scratch, you've eliminated one side of the disaster triangle.

BobM · Jun 15, 2009

What RPM was/is it running at? I agree with Larryw that you should look at your fuel system, but a drop in performance can also be due to a partially blocked mixing elbow.

Don't be too hard on your boat. 35 mph and white caps is a small craft advisory.

it sounds like the current in the ICW was against you too. What was the speed and direction of the current at the time. Did you check the tide/current charts?

ancientmariner · Jun 15, 2009

35mph headwind? That would almost bring my O'Day 28 to a standstill, with a Yanmar 2GM (16HP). In those conditions, I would tend to tack a little to allow the keel to bite.
But yes, all of the above advice still applies.

bffatcat · Jun 15, 2009

engine size

I have a pearson 26w with an 8hp outboard Displacement 5200 lbs. The outboard pushes
the boat at hull speed about 6.25 kts using less than 1/2 throttle in calm conditions. With 20kts on the nose the outboard will still l move the boat move the boat at hull speed but full
throttle is required. Your 7hp diesel inboard should put out more power than my outboard.
Your boat might be a little heavier than mine but you should still have ample power provided you clean the prop regularly and your bottom is not too fouled

Gail R · Jun 15, 2009

Did you have any sail up at all? In conditions like that, putting up the main and tacking enough to keep the main full with the engine still running should give you a more comfortable ride. We've done this in both our Pearson 26 and 30 and it's amazing what a difference that makes.

Bad Obsession · Jun 15, 2009

My boat HATES motoring into a chop. It is a Catalina 30 with a 23 hp diesel. She strongly prefers, if I want to make progress, to have a piece of the main up to motor into chop. What having the main up (single reef in those conditions or double reef if I had one) does is make the boat settle down and not hobby horse.

Going directly into the wind and the waves is really tough on a sailboat. Steer off of the wind slightly if you aren't going to run up the sail anyways so that you aren't going directly up and down the faces of the waves (it elongates the action). In the Chesapeake Bay when the wind goes against the current the wave action is short, steep, and nasty.

Try running just a little main and it will help considerably.

Ross · Jun 15, 2009

I am inclined to think that propeller size has a lot to do with the level of power a boat has at low speed and heavy load. I turn a 13x13 three blade with a 3:1 reduction gear. It will abosrb all of the engines power in a heavy load at 4 knots. I often throttle back when going to the weather in a steep chop just for comfort. When I had a 7x13 two blade I could get the same speed in calm flat water as I do with this prop but strong wind and waves slowed me down.

Prime Time · Jun 15, 2009

I have same engine

I have the same engine in my Mirage 27. At 2500 RPM on flat water no wind, I can make 4.5 to 5.0 knots under engine alone. Powering against 15-20 knots of wind with 2-3 foot chop I make around 3 knots. I have found having the prop clean is very important. I have a 2 bladed fixed prop. My engine is in good shape, recently checked out with normal compression and a new injector. I think in the conditions you were in, that is all you can expect.

I don't know why you would have lost oil pressure.

Hermit Scott · Jun 15, 2009

I am in the Corpus Christi bay in a marina. I redid the bottom, new prop and new prop shaft. I left the yard in Rockport,house of boats, and motored to the marina right by downtown CC. My boat has been in the marina there I guess 6 weeks. The day I went to the marina I was going 5 to 6 knots with wind and some chop. I took it out 3 weeks ago I was doing 3 or 4 knots. I backed it out of the slip this weekend and was barely able to fight against the wind to get it back in a slip right next to mine. I dove and looked at the prop, it was caked with barnacles. 6 weeks and that things was loaded. The marine growth down here is very accelerated compared to up north it appears.
A guy that cleans boats for a living told me to use an axe head to scrape the prop, because of the convex shape of the head.
A clean prop is very important if you want power and the blazing speed these sailboats are capable of.
I met a guy in my marina that has a full keel 25' boat with an 8 hp yanmar. He said his dad took him to the bahamas when he was a kid in that boat. You can cruise your boat just fine.

MoonSailer · Jun 15, 2009

Ross IMHO you are right on. A prop that is perfect for perfect conditions..no wind flat water clean bottom will be overloading the engine in less than perfect conditions. I reduced the pitch on my prop to get full RPMs under normal conditions. ie not perfect bottom, head winds and chop.

sailingdog · Jun 16, 2009

I'd point that the engine on most sailboats is an auxiliary engine, and that the primary motive force should be the sails. Most storms give you more than enough horsepower to move if the sails are setup properly.

Jumpstart · Jun 16, 2009

7 HP not enough?

IMHO 7hp is not enough for a Cal27. I'm a bit prejudiced because of what happened around here about 15 years ago. Catalina 27 with 7HP one lunger going towards yacht club entrance trying to beat thunderstorm in. 40-50 knot winds drove boat onto breakwall because engine could not turn the boat into wind even with main up. Of the 4 aboard 2 died, one hit when mast came down and the other drowned, with PFD on, when wedged into rocks. I casually new the skipper who survived. He has been devastated ever since. A 11-13hp engine would be a far better choice. The older Cal27s came with an Atomic 4 (effective 18HP) for a reason.

Ross · Jun 16, 2009

Re: 7 HP not enough?

Every seaman knows that the most dangerous parts of the sea are the thin places around the edges. The account of a Cal27 being driven onto a lee shore was not the fault of an under size engine but of too much dependance on an engine to avoid unpleasant weather. Driving a boat into deep water and riding out bad weather or dropping an anchor is the prudent approach. You should never run for a lee shore.