paddlewheel

Chains do require looking after as do pitman arms or anything else around water or salt water.
I was frequently asked what drove us. Most people thought the wheel was for decoration. A number of them are just fakes on tour boats.
Sure would load a kayak but I saw an ad a few years ago for a kit to put a wheel on a jon boat and use a B and S motor. In stumps or shallows it would work great.
There was also an article about a Yukon Delta house boat with a wheel added.

 

are there many planing paddlewheels?
I was thinking it would be fun to put a paddle wheel into a jon boat.

i did hunt down a guy who had this video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGdkHIMbHYM

he claimed you could ride around the lake and steer by leaning.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meDcNK0-tio&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tccrBWtSda4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eaGLNcIkSm0
http://www.youtube.com/user/fasttrackdriver

 

I would think the paddle tire guy would be faster if he turned his tires around so they "lifted" rather then "dug".

The worst thing you can do is throw water straight up in the air, as that provides downward thrust and lost work.
Lifting at the front of the tire isn't all bad. The worst thing that will happen is you climb up on top of the water and lose "traction."

I've done a fair amount of work with deep powder snow and snowmobiles, and the whole goal is to get up on "plane". You do this with lift as much as "thrust."

 

I can answer the question about why there are no steam powered ones easy enough. In the US, coast guard regulations required the engineer of the steamer to have 4 years of full time apprenticeship to run a steam powered boat. The Ticonderoga of lake Champlain ran into this issue in 1953, when all the engineers were in their 80's and new guys just couldn't get the needed experience. This is how the Ti ended up at the Shelburne museum.

The Ti used 2 tons of coal per hour at max speed. To use wood you need almost twice the amount. The best wood has 17m BTU per ton, coal has 26m BTU for its best type. the worst coal has 16.2M btu. Plus coal requires less handling.

It was a sidewheeler, but I still feel it relavent info. The Ti had paddles that changed angle as the went into and exited the water. i can't remember the name of the system, but it was commn in the mid 1800's on up to the end of commercial wheelers.

Thanks for all the info guys! I've always liked paddle wheel boats, so this is a good thread to learn some practicle info with.

 

My slant exactly,
Consider a snowmobile,
I was trying to apply prop calculations to the problem
I was hoping someone could give a cookbook approach for me.

 

A little late to the discussion, but loving it

Snowmobiles crossing water:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OdjI9s7cotI

Motorcycle crossing water:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=paGZ07nvIxk&feature=related

Jeep (if you want to call it that) crossing water:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjLH...D7271291&playnext_from=PL&playnext=1&index=33

Whenever I've considered paddlewheels, it's always been in the context of speed and performance boats. I'm a novice and I'm here because I love this stuff.

The faster the boat travels the more it's on-top of the water. It seems there is planing with minimal displacement, but it seems there's high-speed skimming, which is planing with very minimal displacement. It seems that as you approach speeds of say 100 mph +, a wheel rolling on the water would achieve be the best in terms of minimal drag.

A surface-propeller on a high-speed boat is really a wheel screwing across the water. It seems in efficient, but really what's so inefficient about it?

I love reading the discussions at this forum. Thanks to all for sharing your interest, knowledge and experiences.

 

hopeing to revive a thread.

Paddle Wheel Revive

Hello, I am new here but have done much reading recently.
I am posting in this apparent abandoned thread hoping to revive.
In my opinion, most of the information in this thread is incorrect:
Paddlewheel design, spacing, etc…

I have read some good information on paddlewheels in other thread and I hope to develop a positive dialogue and to share what I believe will revive paddlewheels.

I have a U.S. patent on automation of paddlewheel trimming which solves many problems with paddlewheels.

I have built many small paddlewheels, all worked well, my perspective is the search for efficiency, is why I stated incorrect information above. There are no rules to making paddlewheels; it is what you are looking for. My technology works with all paddlewheels for propulsion.

For an overview of my technology, and my current project:
www.PowOarsMarine.com

Please note technology in the pages is proprietary and so u must ask to use them in the U.S.

Hope you enjoy.

Peter

 

Interesting.

Peace.

 

It never ceases to amaze me that folks will attempt to "re-invent" things that have long since been superseded by evolving technologies.

If you'd like to look into smoothing out the inefficiencies of paddle wheel drives, it might be best to look at the efficiencies of props (in their various configurations). This will give you an idea what you'll have to do battle with in regard to efficiency.

For what it's worth, you're not the first to think this, though you will be the first to prove everyone else's conclusions incorrect. Good luck with that.

 

"re-invent things" i have reinvented nothing, rather introduced a system for deployment of paddle wheels that solves the majority of paddle wheel problems of the past. why, in an effort to find efficiency, which is not provided from screws.

"inefficiencies of paddle wheels" is this personal knowledge or where do you derive this position from, or is this just an opinion? :?:

Paddle wheels are one of the oldest machines on this planet, thousands of years old, k+ for propulsion, because they work, and are easy to build.

Screws where adapted, because they better fit the the evolution of steam power etc. faster rpm = more power. and we cant forget our ever waring society.

However they days of cheap fuel (energy) are over.

Do you (PAR) think you could build a 20' pontoon (enclosed patio) boat with 2500 lbs displacement that cruses at 4 knots at 60 watts total input, <1/10 hp, with a screw prop?
my first boat (when adapted with a PW) never consumed over 110 watts, acceleration was basically immediate (less the 3 seconds and then back down to the typical 60 watts), ease of control was superior to any vessel i had been on, my 6 year old daughter could drive and park it, well.

i actually reduced my motor capacity (changed the motors) from 1000 to 500 watt input and gained 7% to achieve the 60 watt average. both gear motors sets where rated at 86% in to out, so actually <50 watts to the prop!

with screws, (I tried a few), (the apparent problem was the implied surface area (friction) ratio to volume of water pumped.) i consumed 10-20 times the power to achieve similar speed, very poor control, uncontrollable in moderate winds.

Fortunately the batteries i had to buy for this failed attempt very well capacitate the boat when efficiency was found!:idea:

"everyone else's conclusions" I am amazed, how often apparent intelligent people speak in absolutes! I think this is why global intelligence has fallen 20 points in the last 40 years, or so i have read and come to this conclusion.
what happened to science, objective thinking, sorry rant.

hope all are having, had a great weekend.

 

Ssphb1, you're absolutely right, I haven't a clue and please accept my attempt at a graceful bow out, as you're skills and understanding far exceed that of me, in spite of my two engineering degrees and marine history buff nature.

Naturally, being the history buff that I am, I probably shouldn't mention the two commercial hulls, that were built side by side then raced across the Atlantic, one a wheel drive, the other a screw, both using the same steam engine. The results would just piss you off if you're a wheel fan, but then of course they where using "your" wheels. Maybe you can improve the 2:1 thrashing the wheel drive took.

 

The site www.PowOarsMarine.com although very interesting has so many embarrassing spelling mistakes. You should get someone to go through it and correct them all! "yatchs" for yachts etc!

 

If you joined this forum hoping people will listen to what you have to say, you probably shouldn't have started by getting snotty with respected, long-standing members whose worth has been proven time after time. We have a surprising large number of experienced, knowledgable (and yes, educated) professionals contributing their time here.

If global intelligence has indeed fallen in the last few years, it's probably due to the proliferation of self-anointed internet experts drowning out science and facts with their arrogance and pseudo-knowledge....

 

Windmaster, thanks for the critique, i have a disability with spelling, you are correct, i have done too much editing without a full review, this is my first web sight, but am learning. i appreciate the "!" and will get right on it.

PAR, there are very few absolutes i know, probably because of my (poor?) choice not to be educated to think within the box. i chose to work and create.

One of many reasons i chose to follow this was the MIT professor (the one who held the human powered boat races in the 80's) statement that after years of holding these competitions it appeared to him that a PW propelled hydrofoil would obviously be dominate, if some one could figure out how to do this, which i have.

it appears to me PAR you see no value in paddle wheels, so i am asking are you only here to be a neigh sayer? I've read a few of you posts, and i do see insight and sharing.

i am here to share my insights, and hoping to learn, grow. i did, do not mean to be insulting.

i am not a fan of PW i never actually saw one, that i recall, befor i built one. i am a fan of efficiency, PW are just the most promising propulsion i have found yet and so i tweeked it. and the have many many advantages over and above efficiency. i laughed as most do when they hear of it, untill they see it work.

it seams very odd to me though, that just because two similar ships with apples and oranges for propulsion seams like a fair test. but yes incorporating my tech would of helped, or why else did my floating turd perform so well.