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Electric Sharpie

2K views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  Dave Szulewski 
#1 ·
Would like to power a yet to be built approx. 20 foot sharpie ie Reuel Parker "El Gato *****" type with inboard electric. Probably cat ketch rigged. Need power to get out of 100 yard canal (always upwind) and back and forth under a bridge where tide/ current can be going in or out.Will live on a trailer. I thought I could place batteries on either side of centerboard to act as ballast. Can anyone suggest similar builds or info?

Dave
 
#3 ·
I have a Catalina 22 that weighs about 2,200 pounds and I power it with a 74-pound-thrust Minn Kota trolling motor. It's a 24-volt motor, so I have two group 27 batteries in series.

According to Minn Kota's documentation they prop their trolling motors for acceleration, not top speed. My experience confirms this. It feels quite powerful, but it maxes out at 4 knots. I have motored in 25 knots of wind and it had plenty of power for that.

My calculations show that I should be able to run for about two hours at max speed, but I've never tried. I'm usually just motoring for five or ten minutes.
 
#4 ·
Mbianka, I'm sure the torqueedo would do the job but im going for a more old school , inboard look.
Minnesail, I thought about taking the power head of a 24 volt motor and mounting it in the hull. I wonder how much the motor will affect sailing? I estimate total weight with 2 on board to be 1000-1200 lbs. Do you think a similar setup as yours would push my size boat upriver against a possible 5 mph current? ( I would only need to go upriver for 200-300 yards to make it under bridge)

Thanks, Dave
 
#5 ·
I don't think I could make much if any headway against a 5mph current.

From Minn Kota's website:
By changing prop pitch, you can trade acceleration for top speed. Our trolling motors have props designed for maximum acceleration. When you hit the power, the boat responds immediately. This also allows you to hold the boat in high wind conditions. Top speed with our motors and props is about 5 mph.
So that would have you pretty much standing still in a 5 mph current. There might be aftermarket props that would give you higher speed, I don't know.

I'm sure it affects the sailing a bit. I often leave mine down when sailing and I don't notice much difference. But if I see someone gaining on me I'll usually pull it up :)
 
#7 ·
If you are primarily concerned with noise and the appearance of an outboard interfering with your lines, you could do a trolling motor inside a cockpit well. That's what my new boat has. She has a sharpie inspired hull. I went outside to try and get some pics for you, but it's pretty dark and rainy out.
 

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#8 ·
To Stumble-Parker suggests a few hundred pounds of lead in the bottom of the boat anyway . I don't want an IC powerplant so the batteries would kill 2 birds with one stone. I also think the current under the bridge is more tidal than river flow, I'm just not familiar enough yet with the water. I feel I might only be able to motor northward under elec. power on a slacktide or incoming tide.
Arcb- I'm thinking along those lines, A small well or possibly a cutout in hull bottom where I can raise and lower trolling motor head with just the shaft that motor attachs to coming through hull. Thanks for pics.
Dave
 
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