R-25 Thrusters

Yesterday, when I turned the thruster battery switch to "on". the rear thruster came on for a second. I had not even turned the thruster control switch on. Later in the day, I discovered that the rear thruster was coming on - erratically for a second or two - as I cruised along. It was a little bit of a surprise as I pulled from the dock the thruster shoved the stern back to the dock - maybe it didn't want to leave yet? 😉

When I turn the battery switch off, it does stop. Of course that means I don't have thrusters - and have to actually dock the boat myself. :cry:

I can't figure what's going on since the thruster control switch is in the off setting. Must it be a short in the thruster itself?

mac

Mac,

You are correct. You have a short in the thruster itself. E-mail Andrew when you get a chance and he will contact Side Power. He is on his way to Chicago and may not get back with you until next week.

Thanks,

Jeff

hey tugnuters, notaclue here, finally got the c-dory r 25 into the sacramento river tuesday only to get a loud soloniod click after attempting to engage the stern thuster after. launching. the boat had not been iN use for a couple of months , not really needing it, spent a great day on the river . pulled out and that nite woke upin cold sweats wondering how to fix it, having noticed how buried the vetus was deep down in the bowels of the stern. next morning first thing removed the plastic prop, the replaced the 1/2 nylock nut on the thruster shaft and sloooowlly with a 3/8inch drive broke loose the heretofore frozen windings on the thruster motor, you can only imagine the joy in my heart to hear that mother wind up when i hit the stearn thruster toggle, getting that motor out would really have been a bitch...... lesson learned???? every once in awhile,, even in dry dock,, lite up the thrusters [both stearn and bow to keep the windings from freezing up from whatever the reasons mine did after only being out of the water a couple of months.. look for the quick fix first. i almost started by removing the entire motor first, hoping no one has to use this tip,,,... skipper steve,,, i have...notaclue

Running thrusters out of the water is bad for them.

😀 hey tomray, i'm not looking to get into a pissing contest here, but i am not talking about running them , just engaging the motors very briefly to keep condensation ,, or whatever from locking up the windings, had i done that , i do think i could have eliminated the problem i had on the sacremento river, respectfully yours, notaclue

For Mac's situation here it is typically because the thruster motor got wet. I have experienced a number of things that happen when the "older motors" get wet. We have been installing the sealed thruster units on the R25 for some time now. The thruster is not the easiest thing to remove but can be done with a lengthy person like myself. You are welcome to give me a call on my cell phone at anytime Mac. I will be out of the office for a while atending boat shows.

As for running the thrusters out of the water there are a couple things. After speaking with Imtra on this, its ok to run them out of the water to test as long as you dont go in different directions before the props slow down. They have a delay on them from going port to starboard and while in the water it slows them down in time where it will not affect them. I haven't had any problems testing them out of the water as long as you follow those instructions.

Thanks Andrew -

Does that mean I need to replace the entire thruster unit?

Mac

This seems to be the place for this...

Our stern thruster shorted out at the end of last summer and the manufacturer sent us a new, sealed one under warranty. I had no real problems getting the old one out but putting the new one in turned out to be another story. Since it was the end of the season I decided to wait until spring. Happily that time is right around the corner. I can get the thruster into it's location but to hold it in place and insert and tighten the bolts has proved impossible. The only way that I can see that I can do this is to disconnect and move the waste tank to the side so that I can get both arms into the area at the same time. Does anyone have any other suggestions that might help?

My Ranger 25 is hull #7 with the Yanmar engine.

Doug Kersten
NautiDream

Andrew,
I am close to getting BANJO back in the water and ready for the season. R 25, Hull #52 i believe...
Can you tell me whether the thrusters on this boat are the "sealed" units?

tom mchugh

Well I finally tackled the job of installing the thruster and let's just say it was...painful! I tried everything I could think of, including moving the waste tank out of the way to get to the area. Here is what finally worked. First, the sealed thruster didn't really fit where the unsealed thruster did. The sealed thruster has the cables coming out the rear of the unit where the unsealed model did not. Luckily, it was just a matter of cutting off about an inch of the board the waste tank sits on. This was pretty difficult, actually, since you don't have much room to maneuver. In the end, rather then using a saw, I used a Dremel with a wood cutting saw/tool. I was able to reach down and remove the offending wood. Not perfect but functional.

Next, I removed the cockpit seat cushion and the locker under it (It was just a matter of unscrewing it and lifting it out. You might want to check in case you have any plumbing hooked up before you try to pull it out). This allows you to open the deck hatch completely in the floor of the cockpit cabinet. I also removed the doors to the cabinet to give me more room.

Next, I opened the battery hatch and disconnected the self-draining cockpit hose so that I could easily reach into the area that holds the thruster, since this hose blocks part of it.

I can tell you now that if you are trying to position the thrusters and insert the hex bolts at the same time you will fail. I tried every trick I could think of and ultimately determined it was impossible. So here is what I did. Go to your local marine store and bring the hex bolts with you. Buy two stainless steel bolts with the same thread and diameter ( I believe 6mm) but 1" longer then the hex bolts. Also buy two nuts to go with the bolts. When you get home, whip out your Dremel and chop off the heads of the bolts. Then cut a notch in the end of the bolt (the side where the head used to be) so that you can use a regular screw driver to screw/unscrew the bolt.

Now comes the fun part. Did I say you would be lying on your stomach a lot, with your head wedged in the cockpit cabinet, while not being able to really see what you are doing? You have been warned 🙂

Take your bolt, reach down into the thruster space and screw it into the appropriate mating hole. I found that inserting my head in the left door and reaching down with my right arm though the right hole worked. I could not really see anything and had to do this by feel. Take your time so that you don't drop the bolt. Screw the bold in as far as you can. The problem is that you need to make sure it is screwed in enough so the thruster can get around it but you have to have enough thread left over to screw on the bolt. The notches for the regular screw driver solve this problem because you can screw the bolts in, slide on the thruster, and then user the screw driver to bring out the bolts far enough so that you can screw on the nuts. Do the same for the other side but reach down through the battery compartment.

Next you have to drop in the thruster. I used packing tape to make a strap handle that supported the main body of the thruster and the control cable to lift and adjust the back. Make the strap longer, rather then shorter, so you don't have to reach in so far. Using the strap and the cable, lower the thruster into the space. It should just fit. Now, using the straps and the cable, jostle the thruster until you get it to slide onto the bolts. I actually cut the strap in the middle and fed one out through the battery side to help me center it better. BEFORE YOU DROP IT IN MAKE SURE THAT THE PIN ON THE RECEIVING SIDE AND THE SLOT IN THE THRUSTER ARE PROPERLY ORIENTED SO THAT THEY WILL SLIDE TOGETHER NICELY. If you forget you can have someone turn the thruster prop so that they line up, but this is not much fun.

Once the thruster is on the bolts you have solved the hardest problem with replacing the thruster. Now, reach down in and install you non-slip washer (almost forgot about those) and the bolts. Again, the left side with your head in the left cockpit cabinet door and your arm in the right and the right side with your arm going through the battery side. Hand tighten the bolts, alternating between bolts and jostling the thruster every once and a while to make sure you have taken out all the slack. Use a flashlight to make sure the thruster is firmly seated. Once it is hand tightened, reach down with an open end wrench and tighten the bolts securely. Connect the power and control cable. Be careful and take your time so that it is correctly done. IT'S DONE! Go to the helm, yell out the window to make sure no one is near the thruster, and test away! What a sweet sound when it kicked over.

Make sure you reconnect the self-draining cockpit hose and reinstall everything in reverse order. I took advantage of the situation to lube the rudder and put a seal around the locker.

By the way, this is just how I did it. Don't blame me if something breaks or doesn't work, it is a chance that you are taking but I can say it worked very well for me.

Doug Kersten
NautiDream

Well said. I have replaced a few myself and I take everything I can out of the way including the exhaust hoses. Not a fun job but the new sealed unit is worth it!

Andrew, at what hull number did Ranger utilized the sealed thrusters on the R-25?
Henry

Andrew,
Ditto. Does my hull #52 have the sealed thrusters?

tom mchugh

I am pretty sure we started in the late 40's on the sealed thrusters. You can look back at your thruster and see if the two cables coming off of the back are sealed onto the thruster or bolted on with our battery cable.

Andrew, Any chance the factory will change to a thruster with a slip clutch and no shear pin - or at least with a shear pin you can reach located in the prop hub.

I can't reach the thruster on my R-25, and the local Side Power dealer said they won't do it again.

Hello Stuart,

We do not manufacturer the thrusters but may switch suppliers or to a different model one day that might be more accommodating. I'm assuming you have a 25 classic? The 25SC and 27 are now much easier to access. I can do a pin in about 30 minutes versus the classic at or around 2 hours. Still doable just a bit tougher to reach.

It's amazing how companies turn down work. It's not all easy and fun but it is still work!

Thank you,

Andrew Custis

Andrew,

I looked at several Cutwater and Ranger models as a possible trade and agree you have done everything possible to make access to the thrusters better on the newer boats.

But, Side Power thrusters are a bad design. The shear pin protects against an extremely unlikely event - sudden jamming of the propeller and simultaneous failure of the fuse to blow.

When I was learning my new Ranger, I accidently caught a line in the thruster - immediately blowing the fuse. No problem.

But, each time I use the thruster in one direction and reverse it to the other direction, a tiny bit of the shear pin is weakened until, eventually it fails.

The best analogy of dual protection is the sky diver who wears a backup parachute tied around their neck. It may not be needed, or it may be needed and gently lower the dead body to the ground, or it may - as I think it did for me - just open without cause.

Better to offer a stronger shear pin that won't break and let the fuse protect the motor. The motor will take the beating for the 2 seconds or so it takes the fuse to do its job.

Or, better yet, change to a manufacturer that relocates the shear pin to inside the propeller where it can be changed like an old model outboard.

Even best is to get rid of the shear pin completely using a slip propeller that will free spin for a second or so until the fuse trips.

I came to Ranger boats via blue water sailboats. My hope was to extend my enjoyment of boating for many more years by owning a boat that took less physical exertion. I think many of your potential and current customers did the same.

I can't reach the thruster on my R-25 and, best I can tell, can't reach the stern thruster on any of the similar size Ranger or Cutwater boats now on the market.

I love my Ranger, think the decision to give up big boat sailing for a more friendly power boat was right for me. I don't think I'm alone in the Ranger customer base when I say the decision to use a thruster mounting that even the Side Power dealer in South Florida doesn't want to service is not the right decision for Ranger, Cutwater and their customers.

Thank you for your note and interest. I'd just be grousing if this weren't a relatively simple problem for Ranger to solve by changing thruster vendors.

/Stu