43 DC in beam sea

[Finalee]

Wondering if anyone else experiences a squirrely helm in a beam sea. My boat is great in all but a beam sea. This has always been the case. Yesterday in 20 knots of wind, which she handles fine, and an incoming tide as I headed down the James the river the boat acted like it had a mind of its own. This happens with or without the stabs. I have owned more boats than I can remember. Sail to power. This one fights me more than any of them did. Perhaps I am getting older and weaker ?

[Vincentc]

Beam or stern quarter?
Lilly Marie Ian a handful with the waves at her stern quarter. I recall either little fondness a crossing of Mobile Bay one afternoon when I grew very tired of fighting the helm.
I suppose the 43DC is only almost perfect for us.

[Vincentc]

Beam or stern quarter?
Lilly Marie is a handful with the waves at her stern quarter. I recall with little fondness a crossing of Mobile Bay one afternoon when I grew very tired of fighting the helm.
I suppose the 43DC is only almost perfect for us.

Cannot edit with the Ipad.

[Finalee]

Stern quarter is worse.

[sgharford]

Mine definitely way over reacts to being kicked in the side or rear. If taking folks out, I tell them to grab onto something quick if they hear the horn blasts twice. Its the only thing I can bitch about regarding my 43 DCFB - she's a roly poly pig in a quarter sea. I blame a high center of gravity, the FB is as high as most 70' yachts.

[gbharrington]

Fred, did I read you right; you have stabilizers?

[Timeout]

You probably already know this but it will run better in these conditions with the tabs all the way up.

[Finalee]

Fred, did I read you right; you have stabilizers?

Yes , they where installed by the original owner. They work so good that I probably have gone out in conditions that should have kept me tied up.

[saltshaker]

It's also due to the deep keel. Push the throttles forward and she will behave better. My 46C would get tossed around when in a beam or stern quartering sea. With the 8V71Ns I'd run wide open to help fight the seas. After I repowered it was a much better sea boat. These hulls need significant HP to do what they were designed to do.

[rwappleton]

I have done what Jack suggested. Did not go way up but just enough to manage the rolling. she behaved much better at about 10kts.:cool:

[GJH]

Stabilizers are more effective at higher speed too.

[motoryacht lover]

I used to have a 42 Bertram MY that was a handful in a following sea. It wasn't scary but you were working the wheel. The Bertram topped out at around 22 knots with a cruise of 17-18 knots. I now have a 54 Viking MY that tops out at 30 knots with a cruise of 23-24 knots and it is much better in a following sea. I always thought it was the nature of a semi displacement hull to wallow a little. I agree that more speed helped things out.

[Avenger]

We've had the same thing with the 36C. We get caught in a go-slow area with some turkey that can't read the signs and we end up wallowing all over. Push her up and get some water presure under the hull and things get better. Same things as previously stated apply as well, lose the tabs in a quartering or following sea and let the stern get a grip on the water.

[spartonboat1]

Wondering if anyone else experiences a squirrely helm in a beam sea. My boat is great in all but a beam sea. This has always been the case. Yesterday in 20 knots of wind, which she handles fine, and an incoming tide as I headed down the James the river the boat acted like it had a mind of its own. This happens with or without the stabs. I have owned more boats than I can remember. Sail to power. This one fights me more than any of them did. Perhaps I am getting older and weaker ?

I have had my '72 43' DCFB since 1997. She rides best with the sea on the nose or quartering. I don't so much any more, but she can run at cruise (12.7-13.0 kts), into those seas; 2-4's yes, 3-5s', a little less.

Beam seas are always bad in the 43's of that period. I just don't run with my beam to the seas. Just like a sailboater, I tack left and right to achieve a quartering effect. I think I have seen the term "snap-roll" to describe the ride in a beam sea.

She does not seem too bad in a following sea. You can actually oversteer in a following sea. Instead, I let her "find herself" against the following sea. By steering too far, left or right, she will catch and run to hard to the left or right, rolling hard over...unsettling. When I steer left or right, she will find a groove, which I then steer slightly back against the pressure and she seems to steer a steady course.

The worst following sea, was in 55 mph winds and 12-15' seas for about 30-40 minutes, before I could find 7-9's seas and come about the put the seas on my nose and to the heading to our destination. Running with the seas, I was showing 16.5kts on the GPS, which is 3 kts more than my usual cruise speed. One very large wave tried to roll us and I was hard over to stbd, to fight the roll, and laid the stbd deck level with the water, with the left prop a little out of the water, but the bow never went under and water never came on the deck. Even though the rudder was hard over, she ran straight ahead, since we were fighting the effect of the following wave. I learned that my wife spoke Latin. My 89 yoa father was spread eagled in his chair to my left, and I was held hard against the bulkhead. I did check down somewhat, to slow going down the face of waves.

Once we came about and were running into the 7-9' seas, we ran at about 10-12 kts and threw a lot of water, but ran ok; the on-the-nose effect with sharp nose/prow and the deep keel. It was chilly (mid-Oct, N. MI, about 3) and raining hard, with the windshield somewhat fogged over, so we were using the radar and gps heavily to stay on course, but avoid four very large abandoned ships piers about 1 mile offshore. Seas came down as we got closer to shore and out of the wind.

Off topic, but my concerns in big seas are stirring up dirty fuel and plugging filters, so as to lose an engine. Also, cracking or losing a steering system hose, fluid and control, due to taking the rudders hard left or right. I have had the lube and fuel lines replaced and need to replace the steering hyd lines.

[Canuck Dennis]

Interesting thread,Chapmans recommends a slowing down in following seas to allow the sea to slide under the vessel that broad stern is a real target for a big sea and can push you around and even pitch pole if not careful specially crossing a bar.

[bobk]

Interesting thread,Chapmans recommends a slowing down in following seas to allow the sea to slide under the vessel that broad stern is a real target for a big sea and can push you around and even pitch pole if not careful specially crossing a bar.

This is exactly what I had to do with the trawler except in places like the Albemarle Sound, slow down meant about 5 knots.

Bobk

[rsmith]

We fish in all kind of seas coming from all directions when we're working an area @8 kts trolling speed. I've never seen any problem with any deep keel Hatt I've ever run. Wow yeah! You actually have to turn the wheel to keep the boat headed in the general direction you want. Imagine that!!!

[Canuck Dennis]

Ahhh, that's what that thing with spokes sticking out is for .......hmmmm, well, you learn something every day.

[Finalee]

Is the ratio of boat size to rudder size different on a Sports fish as compared to the DC ? I totally agree that a boat is supposed to go where it is pointed. In order to understand the issue on the 43 DC you have to experience it. I think if it had a larger set of rudders it would be better behaved in quartering seas.

[Canuck Dennis]

Compromise is the word when trying to design cruising vessels , high speed ones , slow speed ones etc..there is no perfect single design of hull etc that can cover all sea states, the exception is your K Mart toy in the bathtub.
My 2c,based on 30,000 miles of cruising in power boats in calm seas and big owly ones.