Planing Hull / Sterndrive Tidal (Drying) Harbour

Hi, Stupidly I have just purchased a Scandinavian (Finnish) 26' fast cruiser with a Volvo DP sterndrive and hope to keep it on my mooring which dries out each tide to fairly hard sand. The added issue is that the sterndrive does not trim up high enough to clear the keel line and sits approx. 2" lower.

I am hoping for some ideas on how I can overcome this dilemma which will both raise the keel clear of the beach to protect the leg but which will also keep the boat upright at low water. I have been considering both adaptions to the hull or some form of cradle however please bear in mind that the harbour often has a small swell in certain wind directions and the fore and aft moorings allow considerable lateral movement.

I would really appreciate any thoughts and ideas.

Many thanks

Tom.

 

What if you put the helm right over ?

 

Ha! I feel a bit stupid because I didn't think of that. I will go and check tonight. The hull is deep v through to the transom so there is a chance that it would clear. Thanks for the tip!

 

Sailboats use legs, but they may look goofy on a powerboat.

 

Thanks gonzo I have seen those and they are quite common here but only stop the boat tipping over with the main load still supported by the keel. Unless the sterndrive is clear I will need to lift the hull off the beach somehow.

Thanks Tom.

 

When you trim the sterndrives all the way up, do they not clear the keel?

 

Not when the helm is straight but I am just going to check what happens when the helm is hard over as suggested by Mr Efficiency above.. When its straight its about 2" lower and that's not allowing some settling of the keel into the sand.

 

Just been to the boat and unfortunately even at full lock the sterndrive still sits approximately 2" below the keel line so I'm back to the original question.

Any thoughts on adaptions either fixed or removable which will both lift the keel up to clear the outdrive and also keep the boat level when on the beach?

Thanks!

 

Tie a couple of used tires under in stern, put some rocks in then to make sure they sink.

 

You may have to install legs on the stern.

 

Defeats me why the tilt range does not have the drive clearing the depth of the bottom, easily. I can't visuailize how this is occurring.

 

http://i67.tinypic.com/30xa1op.jpg

 

Wow! That's big sorry! First time I have tried to do that... Hopefully you can get an idea from this pic!!

 

Our second last boat had diesel DP's and there was a setting that controlled the height that the leg would tilt up. I was told this was so the leg would not hit the bottom of a swim platform.

When we had an issue with the tilt on the legs, the mechanic had to reset the upper limit.

Not sure if this would be the situation in your case but probably worth contacting Volvo or a knowledgeable Volvo dealer to confirm

Mind you the upper part of the leg appears to be pretty close to the gimbal housing