Had a big hole cut in my boat yesterday!!!

mnm99

mnm99

Well-Known Member
Oct 2, 2015
2,447
Long Island
Boat Info
2004 340 SeaRay Sundancer
Engines
Twin 8.1 Merc
Yes you guessed it...I had East Coast Bow Thrusters come by yesterday and do my install.. I can say there work is Awesome. I had to leave in the middle of the process, but when I got home everything was clean, and this is the result. I also had him flare the bow side of the Thruster hole.It's gonna be a long winter...
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Very nice! Congratulations! What size is it and what was the total bill?
 
Thanks mnm99. Without calling them for an actual quote, I was just trying to get a ballpark number for what it would cost to have one installed on my boat in case the day came that I lost all of my docking skills.
 
At risk of slightly derailing this thread, if I was in a slip with nasty current or wind, I think I might be more inclined to install a stern thruster rather than a bow thruster. I can swing the bow with the engines much more so than the stern. So help at the stern with a thruster so I can pivot the bow with the engines could allow me to put the boat just about anywhere. Might be cheaper too?
 
mnm, is that an 8" tube? I see it's a Vetus (at least the joystick is). Do you know how many pounds of thrust it is rated at?

That's a great looking installation. Even out here on the left coast I've heard of that company and the quality of their work. Nice job picking the company and having them install it.
 
I had second thoughts about cutting a hole in my cockpit for a speaker. The thought of a project like this would give me an ulcer! Very cool though. Looks like a quality job. Thanks for sharing the pics!
 
Creekwood said:
At risk of slightly derailing this thread, if I was in a slip with nasty current or wind, I think I might be more inclined to install a stern thruster rather than a bow thruster. I can swing the bow with the engines much more so than the stern. So help at the stern with a thruster so I can pivot the bow with the engines could allow me to put the boat just about anywhere. Might be cheaper too?
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Creekwood, general consensus is that if you're only going to install one thruster it's better to install a bow thruster. The reason is, especially if you're backing into your slip) is that you use the shifters/props to swing the stern into position it so you can be backed into the slip. Once it is aligned you can then swing the bow around using the thruster.
 
electricaldoctor said:
Thanks mnm99. Without calling them for an actual quote, I was just trying to get a ballpark number for what it would cost to have one installed on my boat in case the day came that I lost all of my docking skills.
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loss of Docking skills? OKAY.. I have pretty decent south winds by me that keep a lot of people from not going out during the season. I wanted not to worry as much when coming home and the winds picked up by 15-20mph.. It is not a something that I needed, It's something that I wanted!
 
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Gofirstclass said:
mnm, is that an 8" tube? I see it's a Vetus (at least the joystick is). Do you know how many pounds of thrust it is rated at?

That's a great looking installation. Even out here on the left coast I've heard of that company and the quality of their work. Nice job picking the company and having them install it.
Click to expand...

No it's a 6" tube. 121lbs I believe.
 
electricaldoctor said:
Thanks mnm99. Without calling them for an actual quote, I was just trying to get a ballpark number for what it would cost to have one installed on my boat in case the day came that I lost all of my docking skills.
Click to expand...
He deserved that. He made us work too hard for the answer. Like you, I was just curious.
 
Congrats, nice.

Not needed all the time but, darn nice to have.....No denying with a thruster you can do things a boat without one, just can't. Unless it's one if the new joystick systems.
 
Gofirstclass said:
Creekwood, general consensus is that if you're only going to install one thruster it's better to install a bow thruster. The reason is, especially if you're backing into your slip) is that you use the shifters/props to swing the stern into position it so you can be backed into the slip. Once it is aligned you can then swing the bow around using the thruster.
Click to expand...

This. Everyone in our neck of the woods stern docks. We have a finger pier on our port side, but the current and wind always pushes us away from the finger. Having the bow thruster allows me to easily pull the bow back while one of my helpers secures a bow line. It also is nice to use it to push the bow off the fuel dock, especially when I have someone just a few feet behind me. Once my bow is out I can use my engines to go where I want to go.
 
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