21pilothouse":wg9kga8b said:
boy i tell ya this backing up into a slip is a pain in the ass...tried everything-- i thinking the mirage 15 3/8 x 18 prop maybe my answer...??
A prop with more 'bite' could possibly help, but it isn't a slam-dunk.
I tried a 4-blade on my boat and while it did bite well around the dock, cruise suffered and I eventually went back to a 3-blade Merc Mirage Plus.
Tipping the motor up slightly (but not too much!) will help push the water under your hull and assist backing down.
Even though a Parker pilothouse is a lower sail area than similar designs by other manufacturers, the p-house can still act as a sail in a cross wind.
The lighter weight of the 21 and 23 (versus the 25) might complicate that.
I've been in situations in ~20kt cross winds that made docking a challange.
In those instances, checking the wind direction on approach and compensating accordingly has helped.
I had a friend years ago who told me that the builders put rub rails on their boats for a reason.
He showed me how to allow the wind to push the stern against a piling on the downwind side, then use the motor to pivot the boat on that piling, and into the slip.
If you have crew aboard, this is the time to tell everyone to keep their hands inside, and off the piling! A shove-off will definately wreck your pivot plans.
If there is not a downwind piling, approach the slip at a 90 degree angle and use a warp line to keep you tight to the upwind piling, and rotate off of that.
Chapmans has a whole section (Chapter 9) called "Seamanship under Power" that outlines many of the methods you can employ to help you land a single screw outboard. Check out the diagrams and see if any of their examples pertain to your situation.
Hope this helps!
