[Paddlewise] Fwd: Adding an outboard to a Klepper!

As we have found that it is not very easy to paddle with the sailing rig up
 to get favourable wind. At times one need to transport oneself quite a
 distance and it is very messy with a main sail in your lap and then the
 leeboards clashes with the paddle, and the outrigger we have further
 restrict our movements.

So what to do? Ah, add a motor - say a Minn KOTA electric propulsion unit -
but then the range is restricted - even with quite a heavy battery, and to
 get a saltwater proof unit costs a wee bit.

For lakes and rivers nothing could be better, even pricewise. Seen prices for
a suitable Minn KOTA at $154!

But travel a lot in saltwater and wanted a fairly quiet and evironmentally
acceptable, so we opted for a Honda BF2, short rig outboard.

At Faltbootbasteln.de (click on "faltboot m. Motor") you are given an example
of a Pouch equipped with a BF2, fitted so that the rear paddler can operate
the outboard, but as Juergen Engert explained to me, it is not as easy with a
Klepper, as the rear of the coaming is very flimsily supported on the Klepper
Aerius II, not suitable for attaching an outboard to.

As we also wanted a hiking board when sailing, so that one can compensate
for the wind's power I got the idea to combine the two: Add a sturdy
 aluminium angle to the board's starboard end for an outboard and you've
 killed two mice with one stone! As that is the side we have our outrigger it
 makes the uneven loading with a 14 kilos motor on one end of the board a
 non-problem.

And so it proved! Steering with the outboard was quite useless, but it could
be locked at an angle (less than ten degrees to port) so that the boat ran
straight with the rudder neutral at a certain throttle setting. From there it
was normal rudder operation, with roughly normal turning radius!

The hiking board sits on top of frame # 4, held by Klepper J-bolts and with
an extra support strut in the middle (an aluminium tube permanently fixed to
the frame). Our board is over-strength, as we took what we had (a piece of
a massive table top, about 1" thick and made of oak, or something similar),
but it worked excellently as a test item!

The torque when the motor quickly was opened up made the outrigger run
deeper for a while, and the boat then turned very slowly to port, if no
corrective action was taken (adjusting engine thrust angle or using the
rudder).

At Faltbootbasteln they added a plate on the outboard's vertical shaft, and
that is probably wise, as it does splash some water at high speed.

Otherwise we had no problems at all, after I remembered to open the fuel cock
(sigh!). Ours was an outboard that had been forgotten in a shop, so I got it
quite cheap compared to the going price (yes, it still is this year's model

:-) ). Goes for four hours at full throttle on one litre of fuel!

Had hoped to upload pictures at Michael Edelman's Folding Kayaks site,
but there is some sort of Unix computer problem there for the moment, so
uploading is out for the time being!

Yours,

Tord

-------------------------------------------------------
***************************************************************************
PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed
here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire
responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author.
Submissions:     PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net
Subscriptions:   PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net
Website:         http://www.paddlewise.net/
***************************************************************************