Use of a "wing" or auxilliary engine

Brian · 21 July 2018, 09:39

Out of sheer interest...........
how many of you have HAD to actually use your aux engine.
I don't mean just for trolling or fishing, but on a real, live, "need to" occasion.

Nordburg2001 · 21 July 2018, 09:45

Never thankfully![emoji106]

Bushrider · 21 July 2018, 10:15

Once when the rectifier of my former F100 fried up

jeffstevens763@g · 21 July 2018, 10:25

Never but did run up now and then don't now

beamishken · 21 July 2018, 11:11

Had to use mine when a yamaha drive gave up on me just north of largs so only a couple of miles away
Also came back from loch creran to largs on 1 engine after a head gasket failure but that was a twin engine boat
Nothing like being self sufficient when something goes wrong

sunrider · 21 July 2018, 13:51

I used a yanmar 27hp diesel outboard for several hundred miles when my main engine oil cooler failed crossing the Indian Ocean....pushed a Zodiac 733 about 4 kph with following seas and did the job......

M.Thornton · 21 July 2018, 15:14

When we cruise in company which is 90% of the time we don't carry an auxiliary engine,but if "solo" we usually take one as a comfort blanket.Its no good carrying one if you don't practice using it in a simulated emergency situation.I would think that most people just fit and forget. One time that I was thankful of a second engine was in my 11m Redbay.I was cruising off the south side of Mull when I hit something ,I was in clear water and can only assume that it was a half submerged container .I knocked one leg off and when we stopped we were surrounded by 6 basking sharks,my then 11 year old grandson wailed "are you sure they only eat plankton grandad!! "I strapped the trailing leg up and limped back to Ardfern.I was glad of secondary propulsion that day.

paintman · 21 July 2018, 18:22

Twice.
First when I had a 'Where's all that oil on the water coming from?' moment which turned out to be a fractured 2 stroke oil pipe.
Second was just after I'd changed tanks & the engine faltered, died & wouldn't restart. At the end of a drift with the shore & big lumpy things looming. Turned out to be the pickup hose in that tank (Quicksilver 25 litre) had split at the top. Not visible without unscrewing & pulling the pickup assembly out.
I always check start the aux before going out on the first trip of the day.