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John1967
Ireland
6 Posts |
 Posted - 22 Apr 2020 : 12:26:03
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Hello,
Forum newbie here.
I'm considering restoring a Norman 20. I'd be using on Lough Ree (River Shannon, rep of Ireland) I'm v familiar with this waterway which is large and the lake can get rough at times. Hence, It would need to plane. I'm thinking of a Honda 50 hp 4 stroke. Question. What planning /top speed could I expect? Any figures on fuel consumption at crusing speeds would be great.
Thanks in advance.
John. |
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df
United Kingdom
5991 Posts |
Posted - 22 Apr 2020 : 13:45:22
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Can't help on speeds but check the transom condition before hanging a 50hp 4 stroke on the back as they are prone to rotting inside.
NBAS--The communal colostomy bag of the boating community.
 Visit leomagill.co.uk |
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John1967
Ireland
6 Posts |
Posted - 22 Apr 2020 : 15:19:54
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Yes, had a look at that. All looks good a strong.
John Doyle |
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Fred
2007 Posts |
Posted - 22 Apr 2020 : 16:44:17
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This might help a bit, particularly the last paragraph. It's originally from Motor Boats Monthly.
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Edited by - Fred on 22 Apr 2020 16:45:26 |
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cliveshep
Thailand
1324 Posts |
Posted - 27 Apr 2020 : 13:12:48
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I'd say with power they are pretty sea-capable, mine i fitted from new with a Ford Cross-flow 1.6 and an Enfield. It was reluctant to plane but trim tabs overcame that and it would easily do 25-30 knots I'd say.
Used it a a sort of water-taxi in the Solent out to the Nab and down to Souton Water, operating out of Langstone on the mainland to Bembridge Haven on the Island where my parents lived over the harbour, this was before British Rail sold the haven off and it became a twee raggie haven full of pretentious fair-weather (swear filter engaged here it seems!).
In the configuration I had it was brilliant and handled the sort of seas that chucked it about so much you had to helm standing and wedged in - you couldn't sit without spinal damage but the constant deadrise medium vee hull was sea-kindly for it's size.
As for the raggie (another edited swear-word), went over one day to pick up my parents form the quay and had to moor in said raggie haven bit on a pontoon outboard of 2 sloops. One arrogant git came up on deck to superciliously inform me that "it was the duty of the vessel coming alongside to put out proper fenders, that I must not tie-off to him but take my lines to the bollards". He finished his little speech by announcing loudly that he "wouldn't go around the harbour in that plastic bathtub!"
We moored there overnight as it blew a hooley with rain so slept at my parents place, but the following morning the forecast was 8 gusting 10 and we had two choices of tide that day but one would mean a night departure and outside some much bigger stuff went out but turned around and came back as it was just too rough. We were in a quandary - I and my then wife had to be back in London for Monday morning so we went to have a look - the wind was onshore, the halyards of the yachts were slatting noisily against the ali masts and it was crap.
The only thing in it's favour was it was only a 7 mile "fetch" so in theory with even that amount of storm coming off the mainland the further out we went the less of a banging about we'd get, all we had to watch were the Solent's notorious double tides where two opposing tidal currents meet causing the seas to lump up unpredictably with no pattern for a helmsman to run with,
So we decided to take off on the morning tide regardless and loaded cat and dog who always travelled with us plus bags, stomping over the arrogant one's foredeck. He was battened down with an awning lashed over the boom and after a couple of trips across to load up stuck out a head and shouted over the din of slatting halyards all around "You surely aren't going out in THAT??"
Told him we were proper sailors in our "plastic bathtub" and to be careful he didn't get his hair wet as we started up and cast off. Silly sod was open-mouthed - I loved the put down.
We followed a RYA yachtsman - a proper seaman flying the defaced RN Ensign, and a converted MGB that changed his mind just before the bar - not enough power/weight and only two of us carried on.
That little Norman handled the waves beautifully, using the power to force it up a wave, throttle off at the tom to slide down the other side, spray everywhere, grp dinghy on the davits prevented us being pooped as one wave actually came up under it and lifted it so hard it bent the stainless steel gunwale hooks holding it from swinging so wife took the helm while I passed a stern warp around it and lashed it to the taffrail. We made our way back and the waves did get smaller as the wind-driven fetch decreased but it was the wildest ride ever. We actually passed about a cable length astern of a container ship stonking out from Souton Water heading for the channel and never even noticed his wash it was so lumpy generally.
So the moral of the story is a sterndrive Norman 20 boat with tabs and a powerful and responsive engine is very handy even in really bad seas so long as driven with care and some skill.
And not all raggie skippers are real sailors hahaha!
Finally living the dream!
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Edited by - cliveshep on 27 Apr 2020 13:19:17 |
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Norman 20 planning top sped.
