• Untitled Document

    Join us on March 29rd, 7pm EST

    for the CBEC Virtual Meeting

    All EYO members and followers are welcome to join the fun and get to know the guest speaker!

    See the link below for login credentials and join us!

    March Meeting Info

    (dismiss this notice by hitting 'X', upper right)

Reverse steering

mfield

Member III
I have just moved slips from a port reverse out into a wide fairway (perfect for prop-walk assist) to a new slip with a starboard reverse out into a narrow fairway.

Given this and new currents and wind directions to deal with I am suffering anxious moments getting out of the slip.

I am tempted to reverse out of the slip and all the way down the fairway. Does anyone have any advice on how well a 35-3 will keep a straight line in reverse one you have gotten up to a reasonable speed (1.5 kts?)

Is it easier to look over your shoulder or slip around to the other side of the pedestal and retrain my hands to work the throttle and gear shift backwards?
 
Last edited:

Afrakes

Sustaining Member
Should track fine

No experience with your boat but once you get it moving you should have no problems controlling it in reverse.
 

llenrow

Member II
No experience with your boat but once you get it moving you should have no problems controlling it in reverse.

I have a starboard reverse out with port walk in my e38. Key is to get up gumption to throttle enough initially —2 or 3 seconds— to get moving enough that rudder has authority. Once in neutral then anything you lost left initially can be corrected starboard. Practice practice with pole holders on standby

doug
 

Geoff W.

Makes Up For It With Enthusiasm
Blogs Author
Is it possible to reverse into your slip, so departure is in forward? This itself may not come without moments of anxiety.

I have a 32 so maybe different but I find once I'm at 1.5-2kts the boat handles nicely in reverse. The pivoting feels different, obviously, but it's been manageable so far.
 

bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
Key is to get up gumption to throttle enough initially —2 or 3 seconds— to get moving enough that rudder has authority.

^^^this. Flow over the rudder is key.

My slip involves backing out to port for a very short space before turning to starboard to go down the fairway. My "trick" is to pre-set the wheel to steer the stern a little bit to port, then give the boat enough of a shove (often in neutral, sometimes in reverse at low throttle, depending on cross-wind) to get flow moving over the rudder. Then I jump on, put into gear, and make my maneuvers. So far, so good.

ObNote, I *have* backed my 32-III backwards all the way down the fairway on a couple of occasions. Did it with Sati aboard, in fact, thanks to the fact I missed the turn into my slip because I was so busy telling a story... Boat tracks just great in reverse. What I've found works for me is to keep the speed low, so as to not load up the rudder too much, and to stand forward of the wheel facing aft rather than trying to watch and steer over my shoulder. Turn the wheel the direction you want the stern to go, the rest of the boat follows quite nicely.

$.02
Bruce
 
Last edited:

c.gustafson

Member II
I have an '87 38-200. I routinely back out of my slip, turning to port, and stay in reverse for 100 or so feet until I get past all the slips and have plenty of room to turn around. I've had no problems and find the boat fairly easy to maneuver in reverse. Of course, heavy winds can always present a challenge. I think it's worth a try.
 

mfield

Member III
Screen Shot 2019-03-21 at 1.11.47 PM.jpg
I am located by the arrow. You can probably see from the angles why reversing is an attractive option. Thank you all for you advice.
 

bgary

Advanced Beginner
Blogs Author
Yeah.... mine involves backing out of the slip in the other direction, but I totally get the challenges.... My fairway is not much more than a boatlength wide, and when Makana is out of the slip and pointed down the fairway, I generally have about a half a boat-length between my transom and the main walkway. Not much room to deal with "surprises", so I try to avoid them...

everett marina.jpg
 
Last edited:

markvone

Sustaining Member
I am tempted to reverse out of the slip and all the way down the fairway. Does anyone have any advice on how well a 35-3 will keep a straight line in reverse one you have gotten up to a reasonable speed (1.5 kts?)

Is it easier to look over your shoulder or slip around to the other side of the pedestal and retrain my hands to work the throttle and gear shift backwards?

Mike,

E36RH with Martec folding prop. Strong port walk and very slow acceleration in reverse.

I've backed out of my fairway (half your length, I'm in the middle), into the creek, down a few piers and into another long fairway down to the travel lift with no issues what so ever. Boat went straight at speed of 4-5 knots and was easy to steer. It was blowing very hard down my fairway from the creek so my bow was pushed hard to starboard toward land (I was stern in) and I had to turn toward starboard to even get out. Once out of the slip facing land with the wind blowing hard on my stern, I cranked it up in reverse and backed right out the fairway. It was two reverse turns to port to get where I was going and it was so easy I just kept going all the way in reverse. They wanted me stern in at the travel lift.

My boat was much easier to board in the slip being stern in so I always backed into the fairway and reversed to port into the slip. My only minor issue was letting other boats (following me) know where I was going when I stopped and turned AWAY from the fairway so I could back down it. For you, backing OUT of the fairway you won't have any issues and you will actually get a better view at the end of your fairway going stern first.

I usually stand sideways behind the wheel facing inboard (toward the pedestal) and look 90 degrees toward the stern. I've seen many drive in reverse from the front of the wheel. Whatever you're most comfortable with. You'll get used to the reversed throttle/shift.

Mark
 
Last edited:

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
Mike,

Your photo in #7 describes my slip orientation.

My prop walk helps with that backing turn--although it tends to help too much.

I have to make sure nobody "pushes the bow off" to help the turn, or I will over-turn.

However, with a brief use of prop walk and then coasting in neutral until "straight" is achieved, I can back up straight under power for unlimited distance.

It took me a while to get used to it. The "chicken" method is to not use the engine at all in the initial back-out. Just push the boat backwards out of the slip, steer, and only engage reverse gear once she is headed backward.

(I guess you could stand backwards at the helm, but that would really confuse me)
 

kiwisailor

Member III
Blogs Author
I had a slip for the first two seasons and had to back into it due to the short finger piers. Nothing like strong prop walk to port in reverse with a strong wind down the fairway to blow the bow around and make for a very frustrating time.

Now on a mooring so much easier getting on or off!
 
L

Leslie Newman

Guest
Seems every boat I have had, including this one, I like to back into the slip. Making leaving that much easier.
I always stop outside the fairway, a little past it and then get up some speed in reverse before turning into the fairway. Once you get any sailboat moving a knot or two it should steer fine and hold a straight line. I always just look over my shoulder, but some like to step around the pedestal and stand behind the wheel. For me I like being in front of my controls and looking over the shoulder seems natural.

Not sure of your experience, but what I have found is, get some speed up so you can maneuver, but not too much speed. Slow is best. I come up to the fairway, drift past, typically already at idle, shift into reverse, gun the engine a bit to stop and start backing, once I am moving in reverse and have steerage I back off the throttle to an idle and only give it a little fuel if I think I need more speed, but I am shooting for as little speed required to keep steerage. I typically stay at idle and alternate from neutral to reverse as needed. I putter into the slip in reverse, often in neutral way before I am making my turn into the slip unless the wind is doing crazy stuff. I am ready to shift into forward to bring the boat to a stop. If you gun the engine too much forward you will cause the stern to walk over, so you are finding a balance with throttle and boat speed. Of course you learn your boat and what works for you.
 

paul culver

Member III
I used to be in a slip where my prop walk to port put my stern perilously close to the rocks. I found that running a long starboard stern line around the finger-end cleat (looped, not tied) and back to the boat allowed me to keep just enough tension while backing to minimize the prop walk. Of course you want to get the last bit of line out of the water quickly to keep from fouling the prop. There might be a midship spring line solution that works even better if you study your angles.

Paul
 

steven

Sustaining Member
I have used the stern line technique described by Paul for many years spanning several boats.
Takes a little practice. The trick is to be able to pull in the warp line and keep it away from the prop.
This is relatively easy if stern it turning to starb. because the warp line is on the same side (starb) as the prop wash, not the intake.
Also I find it safer to go from reverse to neutral after the pivot; then into fwd only when the line is aboard.
I use floating line which I think makes it easier.

In the absence of significant wind or current, and with reasonably practiced boat handling skills, I find the maneuver to be low stress compared to other techniques.
Routinely do this single handed.


--Steve
 

Christian Williams

E381 - Los Angeles
Senior Moderator
Blogs Author
I need some clarity here. In tense situations Iʻve always manhandled the boat into the correct position, then engaged the gearshift. When I use to rent boats for a week from our local charter outfit here, they "required" renters to leave the slip that way. I think it kept people unfamiliar with the boats out of trouble.

Apparently, obviously, this doesnʻt always work. What defeats it, current, wind?
 

mfield

Member III
Apparently, obviously, this doesnʻt always work. What defeats it, current, wind?

My usual technique was to manhandle the boat moving parallel to the fingers, pulling on a line attached to the forward port cleat. Jump aboard close to the end of the finger then engage reverse for a burst to get some maneuvering speed before making the starboard turn to get out into the fairway, then engage forward to go down the fairway to the channel.

The combination of prop-walk, wind and currents wanted to push the stern over to make the starboard reverse out difficult in a narrow fairway.

I tried the same push out, jump onboard and then a port turn to reverse all the way down the fairway to the main channel this weekend and it worked beautifully. I did stand facing to the stern and steering was remarkably natural.

Thanks once again to all for your advice - it was great to get out on the bay this weekend after to incessant rain we have had all winter.
 

markvone

Sustaining Member
Mike,

From my experience, the port prop walk combined with a reverse turn to port can be done completely from the wheel with no manhandling. It turns almost too well this way so be careful not to over steer. This ease of turning (reverse to port) will also counteract quite a bit of adverse wind and current pushing the stern to starboard. This (the prop pulling the stern to port) is what makes a reverse turn to starboard in a tight space difficult. You don't have enough room to get speed up and cut the throttle (to stop the prop walk) so your rudder can work steering the stern to starboard. The port prop walk is pulling the stern to port against the intended turn to starboard.

Mike
 
Last edited:
Top