helm placement pros and cons

[kfa4303]

Hi all. Just wondering if anyone knew the pros and cons of the most popular helm positions in small boats. While I still run a tiller set up, I've been toying with getting a side/center console helm for awhile now. However, I see all sorts of various positions for the helm itself. Lots of the bay boats and flats skiffs in my area tend to put the console at or near the center rear of the boat, while other folks in Jon boats/Riverboats will often ride much closer to the bow using a stick steer set up while others will put the console right in the middle of the vessel forming a true "center console" set up. Is any one set up "better" or "worse" than another. I don't do much fishing, so I'm more interested in performance, balance and handling. Just curious. Thanks for any input.

 

[floatfan]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

Around here, the people that mainly fish and boat the rivers have the stick steering option while sitting near the front. It allows you to see the logs and trees that are at water level better than if you're riding in the back. It also allows you easier access to tie the front of the boat to a limb while you're in heavy current.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

That's what I was thinking. Does it make their ability to get on plane any better/worse, or about the same? thx.

 

[floatfan]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

My dad has a 14' Lowe aluminum with a 25hp Tohatsu (flat bottom john boat setup). Whether it's me and him, or just me, it gets on plane with no issues. In fact, I'd say that it actually planes easier than some setups. With stick steering, your weight is dispersed more evenly, whereas on a tiller steer setup, all the weight (driver & motor) is all in the back, especially when running solo.

 

[scoutabout]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

In our little 14 foot Springbok tinny, I found it rides better with one or two people in the middle seats - hence the centre/side console has worked quite well. I haven't verified this with GPS - it just "feels" better. I also like the somewhat improved visibility getting out from in back as well as it drops the bow a touch and she runs flatter.

Many years ago we were T-boned by a kid in a tinny who was too small to see over the two adults sitting in front of him in the middle seats (facing backwards...). I - rather foolishly, I admit - had stopped at the mouth of a busy bay leading into a marina to bring my fenders on board and so was basically adrift. The tinny was approaching in an arc heading into the bay. At first we took no real notice until the line of their tragectory clearly indicated a collision course.

We started waving and shouting, then honking. Nothing. I knew because I couldn't see the kid's face he had no idea what was coming (or he was coming to!), and he obviously couldn't hear us seeing as his ear was a foot from a racous two stroke. The adults...I mentioned they were facing backwards, right? :facepalm:

Because it looked like he was going to hit our starboard quarter I figured a heavy shot of reverse might pull us out of the way. Wrong.

Engine screaming, water boiling, the poor SeaRay tried its best to get underway but the kid still collided with our bow and bounced off. Poor folks - it was a complete and total shock. The adults fell over backwards into the bottom of the boat, the kid fell across the middle seat - and rather interesting, their little outboard stopped (although I saw no lanyard attached).

Because it was more a glancing kind of blow it wasn't as bad as it could have been. The tinny was relatively light and its gunwale and my rubrail made most of the contact. The SeaRay sustained a small gouge under the rail but that was it.

After making sure everyone was ok, and apologies were exchanged (along with my recommendations, to the adults that they either sit facing forward, or far enough apart so the poor kid could at least see), we parted ways none too much the worse for wear.

My lesson in all of this was to be more careful where I choose to drift, not too mention I ditched the feeble OEM electric horn in favour of a nice, fat, LOUD, portable compressed gas horn. It was also probably a mistake to try to avoid the collision by using reverse. We all know it ain't the most effective, thrustwise compared to forward. My split second bet that it would be faster to pull the front five feet of our boat out of harm's way rather than push the rear eleven did not pay off.

Wow - was a windbag I am tonight! My apologies...

Anyway - my point was there can be cons to having the helmsman in the very back of a loaded boat...

 

[kfa4303]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

yeah, I'm thinking about doing it primarily for visibility reasons too. There are lots of oyster bars, logs, alligators, manatees, etc.... around here and it's hard to see 'em coming when sitting in the back with a tiller. I'm using a PVC tiller extender, which works great and lets me sit closer the the middle as you described. It also lets me stand up on the back bench while underway at low speeds, but it's still less than ideal :/

 

[scoutabout]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

"...lots of oyster bars, logs, alligators, manatees, etc...

LOL - alligators and manatees - at least that's two things I don't need to worry about colliding with up here, no matter how obstructed the visibility...

(do the gators get grumpy when you boink them on the snout with your boat?)

With respect to the tiller extender. Does the longer reach it gives you reduce the range of throw side to side at all? I figure you might lose some, phyics of levers and all.

 

[kfa4303]

Re: helm placement pros and cons

The gators really aren't a problem unless you're in a canoe at which point you're more or less the same size, but even then they rarely mess with you. They're just like big frogs with teeth....basically. The manatees are just sweet and slow so you just have to go slow and be mindful. The tiller extension works amazingly well. Because it makes for a longer lever, so to speak, you only need to make slight adjustments to steer and it makes turning a breeze. Best of all it only cost about $5 and I can pop it on and off in 2 sec. The only downside is that because the stock tiller comes off at a bit of an angle, by the time you add the extender it kicks off to one side quite a bit, but it's not bad and I still have plenty of range of motion. Ironically, I see lots of fancy new flats boats going back to tiller set up with whizbang $100 carbon fiber tiller extensions. Everything old is new again, but I'd like a set up similar to yours, but perhaps in more of a console config. Btw, do you notice if your boat steers/drifts to starboard because the helm is on that side? Thanks.

Here's a pic of the PVC tiller extension and some other PVC accessories. All made for less than $10 total.

PVC bilge pump
PVC tiller extension, PVC rod holder, bamboo pushpole circled in red. Sine painted in alternating white bands to match boat.


happy little gator
manatees
Pretty water where we all hang out