Cockpit Steering Utility

JoshM

Member
Joined
Dec 25, 2023
Messages
8
Fluid Motion Model
R-21 EC
Hull Identification Number
FMLC2816J819
Vessel Name
Lyllis
Greetings,

For those with the aft steering station… do you find you use it often in docking and trailer loading/unloading? I’m seeking input on how much to value this option in the used model search. Many thanks!
 
I have had my R29CB for two years. I have 165 hours on it. I do have the aft cockpit. I ordered it for fishing. I'm still learning the boat and have not done much fishing yet. All that to say: I have never used it even once for landing, docking, anchoring or putting it onto its trailer. I am able to accomplish all of those things without use of the aft cockpit controls. I have one friend with an aft cockpit who fishes a lot and uses his all the time. Hope this is helpful.
 
Josh, I have a R21 EC that I installed a cockpit helm station on, the basic use is for fishing and crabbing, usually for docking and trailing the main helm station is used. If using the boat solo and don't want to depend on others it is worth its weight in gold. Depending on how you use the boat will decide if the aft helm station is necessary and worth the extra cost. A few pictures of my aft helm station are in my photo album. Best of luck finding your dream boat. Bob
 
I use it for fishing and as a way to let kids think they are driving the boat from the main helm.
Never used it for docking.
 
I have the aft helm station on our 2018 R29s.
I don't use it very much. I expected to use it docking, but that isn't necessary.

I do use it shrimping and crabbing. I do use it when we run across friends and chat "boat to boat." I have used it while looking at whales.... I am not a big fisherman. I can see that it would be handy for that.

All that said, I am glad I have it. In my case, I probably wouldn't miss it if wasn't there.

I hope that helps.

Rocky
 
It was on our wish list when shopping two years ago. The boat we bought does not have it. So far (in the two years since) I have never wished I had held out for it. I don’t fish from the boat.
 
I have one in our C28 and while I appreciate having it at times, I’m not sure I’d pay extra for it.
I thought I would use it for docking and fishing but that hasn’t been the case. For docking, I find that much easier from the main helm as it’s more central to the boat and easier to know where the bow is at.
For fishing, it depends. I rarely fish alone so there’s usually at least 3 of us. It’s much easier to have one person steering from the forward helm as it leaves a lot more room in the cockpit for playing and netting fish. The helm person can focus on steering without getting tangled up in the fishing chaos.
Having an extra person in the cockpit who can’t get out of the way because they need to steer is a pain.
When I am fishing short handed I rely heavily on the autopilot and remote as I can be fishing but still move around and assist with netting.
In hindsight I’d rather use the space for added storage.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Thank you all for the many, diverse, and substantive replies. They resound with the ideas I’d had centering on this. I’ve read of good things about this forum for awhile now in other publications and appreciate the validation. We’re on the lookout for a C28 in the 2013-2016 range, of which there are a small handful on the east side of the country. Thanks again for the input on this. Cheers,
 
We ordered our R29 without the cockpit steering. We often exit and enter the boat from the Starboard side and the existence of a steering wheel in that location would be a major inconvenience.
 
I have had a 2017 R29 for three years and never used my cockpit steering. It looks cool and looks important yet I would not pay extra for it. So far it is useless to me. I heard it is thousands of dollars. My preference is to pocket the money and buy the fish at the store! I was a hard core fisherman growing up, then became a hard core waterskier, now I just retired and became a slow cruiser and buy my fish at the store. I would rather work on boats than fish. Maybe someday I will be a fisherman again.
 
Another great point… the accessibility to the bow was also one I wondered if stepping over the aft station… and the reliability of store bought fish!
 
I have it on my C-30 and it can be helpful when docking single-handedly in the strong currents of the Columbia River. As for it obstructing access to or over the starboard side, I’ve not found this to be a problem on this particular model. I can’t speak to other CW or RT models.

Rob
 
I sometimes fish alone and find the aft cockpit steering to be very useful. Even with a friend its great, we can both be in the cockpit and talk to each other.

Docking single handed, the aft steering is very useful, especially when paired with the thruster remote.

As an aside, the combo of aft steering and remote for auto pilot works very well. I've noticed that some folks are unaware that the auto pilot has a zig zag feature you can use when going over a reef. Really does help catch more fish.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/oh3JDc78xXn9PD8C6

-martin610
 
We had it on our C30 and I agree that it was very helpful for single handed docking in the PNW, in fact approaching essential in my opinion since there was no helm door on the C30.

One of our home marinas regularly has erratic 3+ kt currents at the dock and it was very valuable to steer and cast on directly from the cockpit. Again, when single handing.

OTOH we never used it except for single handing, so that depends on your mission.
 
I wonder if the C30 crowd found more utility due to the size of the boat... or if that's coincidence.
 
We have a 2020 R29 CB NW with cockpit steering, bought from our friends (original owners) in late winter 2021. We didn't use the cockpit station at all for the first two seasons, but one of my goals for 2023 was to practice solo operation and take some solo trips, which I did, and I use the cockpit steering station with thruster remote exclusively when docking and undocking solo. It's much more convenient and safe, in my opinion, to be right where I can quickly step off the boat and tie the lines, particularly if there is any wind. I haven't tried solo operation from the helm yet, and it's probably fine in no wind, but it seems like it could be a bit nerve wracking in any wind.

Any others operate solely from the main helm under solo operation, without a helm door?
 
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