On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 13:29:10 -0500, wrote:

Obviously my opinion as an owner and user of an outboard on a sailboat
is different than yours.

My question is whether or not you do any long range cruising - several
hundred miles outside of Long Island Sound for example - or if you
live on the boat away from a dock for two or three weeks at a time?

The few times that I've done that sort of thing on an outboard powered
sail boat were totally unsatisfactory for all the reasons mentioned.

You mentioned 1/2 gph fuel consumption. Using a standard 6 gallon
outboard tank that gives you a range under power of less than 75
nautical miles, not even enough to return from Martha's Vineyard or
Nantucket. Our first cruising boat had a 10 gallon diesel tank. It
could go non-stop from Stamford to Block Island or Martha's Vineyard
with plenty of fuel left over, burning about 1 quart per hour. When
you've got to be back at work on Monday morning a good engine is a
nice thing to have.

Bruce in alaska wrote:

I've run Diesel from 55USG Drums filled during WWII, with no problem,
whatsoever. This stuff is over 50 years old, and makes power in my
Gensets, just spiffy.....

Interesting. Were those drums sealed all these years? I wonder if WWII
diesel (different stuff than we have today) sealed into drums with the
intention that it would be stored for a long time would give the same
results as modern diesel that's been sitting in 3/4 to 1/2 full drums in the
sun for a few weeks.

My original comment about drums was really just shorthand for the reports
I've received about poor fuel quality up in Newfoundland where the fishing
restrictions have slowed sales to the point that stuff which is a long way
down the supply chain anyway gets pretty funky. There were a few problems
here in Maine this summer simply because the long hoses at some marinas
would grow stuff when no one came along for days to buy due to the high
prices earlier in the summer.

--
Roger Long

And another thing, if you keep your tanks full, you miss out on the washing
action of boat rolling fuel around against the sides of tanks that are less
than half full which helps keep down the crud growing there.

All in all, from the standpoint of fuel quality, there is probably more
downside from keeping tanks full than using most of the stuff up and then
refilling.

--
Roger Long

"Capt John" wrote in message
...
snipped some

: In order for "the gumk" to grow in your fuel tank their must be water
: present, no water, no gunk. This is the main reason it is always
: reccomended that you keep your tank full. A full tank will not draw
: moist air into the tank through the vent as the fuel expands and
: contracts when it warms and cools.If you've got water in the fuel,
: your going to have some kind of growth unless you treat your fuel with
: an aditive like Biobor. Filtering it, or as some prefer to call it,
: polishing it, will remove the growth, but it may not remove the water,
: depending on how long your fuel pickup is. Your best bet is to treat
: your fuel on a regular basis, keep the tanks full at all times, and
: change filters at the first sign of trouble. Polishing is only going
: to make the problem go away for some period of time, but it will be
: back.
snip


Wrong!


http://64.233.183.104/search?q=cache:_vvnJuQXrjUJ:www.dieselpage.com/art1110fd

"Once water has been removed from the fuel system, bacteria can still grow
in the fuel. This bacteria is introduced by the water but can use the diesel
fuel as a medium to feed and multiply."

Wilbur Hubbard

wrote:
On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 11:11:35 -0800, "Capt. JG"
wrote:


wrote in message
. ..

I have a Yamaha 9.9 high thrust 4-stroke outboard that is
specifically designed to propell a sailboat efficiently. It has a
HUGE, slow turning prop. This prop would look more at home on
something north of 60 or 70 HP. I can cruise at hull speed at about
1/4 throttle, and we can carry on a converasaton in the cockpit
without raiseing our voices any louder than when we are at home at the
dinner table.


Did the prop come with the engine or did you change it out when you bought
it?


That's the way it comes. Has different gearing to accomodate the
specialized application. I tell people it's like having my own private
tug boat along everywhere I go. Honda makes a model that tries to
complete with the Yamaha, but it truly does not come close. When I
replaced the Yamaha I did a LOT of research on both brands, before
buying another Yamaha.



I once had a 5 horse British Seagull that I felt the same way about.
Little light weight 2 stroke thing with a huge 5 blades prop.

It would push anything at 5 knots - sail boat or coal barge.
(might take a bit longer to accelerate the coal barge, but it would
get 'er done!)



--

Richard

(remove the X to email)

On 2008-11-12 08:58:38 -0500, said:

In fact, once you leave the realm of the weekend sailor and get into
actually going somewhere in a sail boat I don't know a single boat,
with the possible exception of the Pardies (who have been known to
call into a marina asking for a tow to get in and tie up) , who
doesn't have an engine.

Chased down a guy who sailed an engineless boat into Soper's Hole one
year, caught up to him in the bar. Only after we got back home did I
figure out that it was Iolaire skippered by Don Street.

Pic and fuller narrative at
http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/sopers/harbor/6-21.html

--
Jere Lull
Xan-à-Deux -- Tanzer 28 #4 out of Tolchester, MD
Xan's pages: http://web.mac.com/jerelull/iWeb/Xan/
Our BVI trips & tips: http://homepage.mac.com/jerelull/BVI/

On Nov 12, 12:18*pm, Capt John wrote:

snip

Another point, those 2 micron filters on your Racor, check with your
engine manufacturer, I've never heard of one reccomending more than a
30 micron filter as the promary. Using more restrictive filters can
cause problems with your supply pump, or, even worse, cause the engine
to run lean. That will cause the engine to run hot and, over the long
run, cause all kinds of other problems.- Hide quoted text -



As I recall, if you check with Racor I think you'll find the 2, 10 and
30 micron filters have the same flow rating. And for the most part we
are talking low power, low flow rate engines here. So it's really a
non-issue.

FWIW I've been running 2 micron Racors on Lehman 120s and 135s, as
well as other brands, for decades with no problems of any kind.


Capt. Bill

On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 15:14:09 -0500, wrote:

I don't seem to have any scheduling problems, and my engine is very
good. If I'm not back on Monday, I'll be back on Tuesday... or
Thursday. And it sounds as if I use a lot less gasoline than you used
diesel fuel.

If you always have time to wait for the wind to come up, you don't
need any engine at all. How do you charge your batteries when you
spend weeks on the boat?

Yves Gelinas of Cape Horn fame also sailed around without an engine.

Much depends on your objectives. If you just want to go around, stopping at
the minimum number of ports for resupply, the space and weight of an engine
may well be better devoted to other things. It can make landfalls
nervewracking though with sleep deprivation due to higher traffic, light
winds, currents, and unfamiliar waters all piling up into a situation that
could be pretty dangerous. It nearly happened to Yves approaching Ireland.

A major objective of my cruising is to explore and photograph the shores
closely and extensively when I get there. This is often best and most
enjoyably done under power. I get plenty of sailing in on my cruises. This
is also the times, the wind often being light or non existant, when engine
failure could be most threatening to the boat. I plan to be doing a lot of
this close up to the cliffs in Newfoundland where it's too deep to anchor if
the engine quits.

--
Roger Long

On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 23:58:01 -0500, Wayne.B
wrote:

On Wed, 12 Nov 2008 15:14:09 -0500, wrote:

I don't seem to have any scheduling problems, and my engine is very
good. If I'm not back on Monday, I'll be back on Tuesday... or
Thursday. And it sounds as if I use a lot less gasoline than you used
diesel fuel.

If you always have time to wait for the wind to come up, you don't
need any engine at all. How do you charge your batteries when you
spend weeks on the boat?

Other than instruments, VHF, and a DVD movie here and there on a
little player, I don't really use any power, so a pretty small solar
panel, coupled with limited amounts of motor sailing usually leaves me
with a surplus. When I run the outboard, I often have to turn on some
lights in the cabin to avoid overcharging. It has never been a
problem. If I wanted all the comforst of home on my boat... I'd stay
home.

I obviously didn't say or even imply that I never have use for an
engine Wayne. If you need to invent arguments, then I guess we have
our answer.

I agree that a diesel has some advantages. The truth is that both
diesel inboards and gasoline outboards have both advantages and
disadvantages. Neither is perfect, and neither can be said to be
"better".