I sailed a double helm Pacer 42 from Tortola to Bermuda. (It's pretty much a fat-transomed South African sled). From a driving perspective, the double helm is really nice. You can be high side or low side depending on your preference and sight line requirements.
However, unless you're going to duplicate all instruments at each helm, you may end up moving between them more more than you'd like to. Putting the instruments in the centre is a compromise that just means you won't be able to see the instruments from either helm seat. Keep in mind that we all wear polarized sunglasses - so looking at the instruments from an angle all the time will really piss you off in a hurry. So basically, if you go the double helm route, budget for dual instrument displays and you'll be happy. Cheers, Colin PS - It's only 8 months after New Year's Eve. (so much for Wal's math!) On Mon, Sep 2, 2013 at 11:12 AM, Wally Bryant <w...@wbryant.com> wrote: > Double your pleasure, double your fun, with Doublemint Doublemint > Doublemint gum. (Sorry, but when I was 3 years old I had a real crush on > those animated twins that danced across the TV... > which just goes to show the power of Madison Ave back then.) > > You're right that you'll double the maintenance. You would probably mount > your expensive instruments on the back of the big party table, so you can > see them from either helm, and put a simple multi-control by each wheel. > > Some guys are really into big wide hineys, but I like them skinny. They > say that a wide stern surfs better downwind. My skinny IOR boat surfs > pretty darn well, and frankly has surfed through some pretty scary stuff. > When's the last time you saw a fat surfer? <VBG> > > I think the point of dual wheels is so you can see well when heading to > windward at a steep angle of heel. If you have a lot of crew that makes > sense, but if you're pleasure sailing you probably won't have a full crew. > If you're pleasure sailing you'll probably will have at least one type of > self-steering system. If you have a self-steering system, you can leave > the helm alone and deal with lines, make a sandwich, or even take a good > look around. > > Madison Avenue strikes again... Many new boats are designed to sell to > retirees, who have seen pictures of 'round the world' racers on performance > monohulls, which usually have two wheels. Then they get 'practical' and > order an in-mast furling system, which is convenient but really can't > provide decent sail shape. Then they go out on the ocean and get scared > witless and spend the rest of their retirement years motoring or at the > dock. But that big wide transom, and that big cockpit table, provides room > for dock parties where they swap stories that they read about in Sail > Magazine. And even 32 foot boats have two 'bathrooms.' > > Uh oh, I think I'm ranting. Gotta go. > > Wal > > PS. Happy Labor Day. BTW, it's called Labor Day because it's nine months > after New Years Eve... it actually has nothing to do with work. > > > > > Richard wrote: > >> I imagine twice as much maintenance, twice as many instruments to >> purchase, and twice as much to go wrong. <snip> >> >> >> Has anyone sailed a twin-helm boat? What were your impressions? Do we >> want one? Is this the future of boat design? >> > > > ______________________________**_________________ > This List is provided by the C&C Photo Album > http://www.cncphotoalbum.com > CnC-List@cnc-list.com >
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