If I have twins and one dies.....

[slasmith1]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

yes when tilted you limit your steering and are still off center so puts side load on motor and mounts still big potential for handling problems if offshor in any significant swells. at least you still have 1 to get you home even if its slow.

 

[Randybeall]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

Ok, if steering is going to be a problem, take the prop off the dead engine. If it can be done seperatly, jack that engine up as high as the adjustment will get it. The point is to reduce drag and the asymetrical loading.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

Single engine operation with inboards is significantly different than with an I/O or outboard. Trying to plane an inboard with a dead engine may either not be possible, or not be advisable because of the tremendous drag created by the prop on the inoperative engine.

On a boat with outdrives or outboards, that drag can be eliminated by tilting the unit up. The main problem with asymetric thrust in this case is when the boat is at slow speed. The problem is also more pronounced the further off centerline the motors are. Once the boat gets moving, however, a little bit of offset steering should overcome any tracking problems due to the offcenter thrust line.

I'm not going to say that there aren't boats that don't behave well at planing speeds on a single engine, but there are many that do just fine. As with any boat, you just have to figure out what works for the one you own. For that reason, its a good idea to practice single engine operations before you have an actual engine failure.

 

[slasmith1]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

I suggest you read your manuel. and don't cry here when the manufacturer won't honor you warranty issues.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

That's an interesting thought, but I'd have to say that I have never seen an owner's manual that places any restriction on single engine operation of a twin engine setup. That said, I think I'll do some research on the matter because keeping an open mind is always a good thing.

 

[Fl_Richard]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

My twins are mounted on a Wellcraft 238 Coastal .They sit very close together and either engine will plane the boat in smooth water or light gulf chop with one engine tilted up. Steering and fine, and handling is fine too. Other than the reduction in speed and everything responding a little slower than with both twins fired up shes runs great!

It sounds like other than running it at WOT this is a good thing? I certainly feel safer knowing I have a spare powerplant that can run the boat if things go wrong.

Cheers!

Richard

 

[Silvertip]

Re: If I have twins and one dies.....

Lugging and engine is like smoking cigarettes. Is one pack a day ok, two packs, or no packs. If you are lucky you might get by smoking two a day and never develop lung cancer. But I can assure you lugging an engine is not good anytime. Ever try to climb a steep hill in high gear in a stick shift car? If you are talking an emergency situation, then you need to do what you need to do. What you don't need to do is be in a hurry to get back to port on one engine if you don't have to. There is no magic number here. An engine with lots of hours may grenade the first time you lug it. A low hour engine can tolerate it more than the high hour engine.