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View Full Version : Left or Right side



Aquaholic502
12-12-2006, 02:26 PM
Ok, not sure if this has been done before so here it goes. Would you rather Drive on the left or right side of your boat. The view is from the back of the boat so left side would be like a car.

phebus
12-12-2006, 02:36 PM
Right, I like working the controls with my right hand.

shippingguy
12-12-2006, 02:39 PM
I have had both and I like right side.

Aquaholic502
12-12-2006, 02:41 PM
Ok but some boats have the controls on the left side of wheel but seat is on the right. So if you had the option to sit on the left and have your controls still on the right what would you rather have then?

Havasu_Dreamin
12-12-2006, 02:47 PM
Right, I like working the controls with my right hand.
Agreed. Starboard side drive 'feels' more natural.

Aquaholic502
12-12-2006, 03:04 PM
Does anyone know why most boats are on the right anyway?

Jbb
12-12-2006, 03:11 PM
Port side ....Real boats have a gas pedal...:D

Tom Brown
12-12-2006, 03:14 PM
Port side ....Real boats have a gas pedal...:D
Having starboard side helm, I had to position my pedal away from the side of the boat. .... I suppose I could have just thru-bolted it. Anyway, it puts my leg on a weird angle when I'm sitting down.
After almost killing myself with a hand throttle, the weird foot feed is a minor issue but I'd rather go port side drive with a foot throttle.

BADBLOWN572
12-12-2006, 03:14 PM
If it has a peddle, it goes on the port. If it is a hand throttle on the stbd.

grads2112
12-12-2006, 03:15 PM
Doesn't really matter what side I drive on but the throttles always have to be on my right.

Tom Brown
12-12-2006, 03:17 PM
Doesn't really matter what side I drive on but the throttles always have to be on my right.
Haven't you been banned from ***boat, yet? :confused:

John.
12-12-2006, 03:18 PM
Doesn't really matter what side I drive on but the throttles always have to be on my right.
i agree with grads. feels more natural to have the throttle on the right side. I think my my next boat I'd like pedals for the trim tabs though.

ratso
12-12-2006, 03:19 PM
Having starboard side helm, I had to position my pedal away from the side of the boat. .... I suppose I could have just thru-bolted it. Anyway, it puts my leg on a weird angle when I'm sitting down.
After almost killing myself with a hand throttle, the weird foot feed is a minor issue but I'd rather go port side drive with a foot throttle.
Tom, just drill a new hole for the steering and move the damn thing... shouldn't take more than 15 minutes.:D

Jbb
12-12-2006, 03:23 PM
Put the pedal to the met.......er......carpet!...:p
http://www.***boat.com/image_center/data/520/860DSCF0158.JPG

Aquaholic502
12-12-2006, 03:33 PM
I like the port side myself because of the more natural feel I guess because of driving a car that way. But nobody has been able to explain the reason most boats are on the starboard side.

Aquaholic502
12-12-2006, 07:16 PM
I like the port side myself because of the more natural feel I guess because of driving a car that way. But nobody has been able to explain the reason most boats are on the starboard side.
Are we all stumped on this question? I know there has to be some boat builders on here.

98 Vector 21
12-12-2006, 07:22 PM
My Vector is left side drive with foot throttle & trim, The Venom is right side & feels natural since I drive a stick all day....

phebus
12-12-2006, 07:23 PM
I hang left, but drive right :) :shift:

YeLLowBoaT
12-12-2006, 07:26 PM
Had both, it really does not matter to me that much.

work2play
12-12-2006, 07:28 PM
Back when boats weren't as high teck as today. The steering is on the starboard side to offset the torque of the prop. There is always a driver and his weight keep the boat from rolling up.

bordsmnj
12-12-2006, 07:35 PM
welll the steering wheel is on the right but ....my foot throttles on the right....i like driving from the middle or the back ,whatever. just floggit till it screams and goes fast.

slowinhavasu
12-12-2006, 07:36 PM
Drive on the port side with throttles on my starboard side, but in my boat you can have the passenger throttle, but that makes me VERY uncomfortable.....

acatitude
12-12-2006, 07:36 PM
I like my foot pedal and sitting on the left side, lol:hammerhea

98 Vector 21
12-12-2006, 07:45 PM
Drive on the port side with throttles on my starboard side, but in my boat you can have the passenger throttle, but that makes me VERY uncomfortable.....
Ok I'll drive you throttle....:idea:

squirt'nmyload
12-12-2006, 07:47 PM
sitting on left with pedal!!!:mix:

Boatcop
12-12-2006, 07:50 PM
I like the port side myself because of the more natural feel I guess because of driving a car that way. But nobody has been able to explain the reason most boats are on the starboard side.
Some say it's to off-set torque, but most boats drive from the right to give the driver clear visibility to the starboard side.
The clear view to the right is necessary due to other boats on the right having the "right-of-way".
The torque issue is moot, due to different propulsion systems having different torque rotations. Jet vs V-drive vs direct drive vs out-drive vs dual engine (which, with counter rotating props, doesn't produce any appreciable rotational torque)

HOOTER SLED-
12-12-2006, 07:51 PM
I believe starboard is supposed to be the correct way because LE or Coast Guard is supposed to approach on that side. That's why I have a jet, so I don't get rolled up. :D

Thorsinc
12-12-2006, 10:16 PM
In the middle

RiverPirate
12-12-2006, 10:20 PM
I've had both at one time or another. Didn't really make much of a difference to me. It's usually what ever you get into first that you are most comfortable with.

voodoomedman
12-12-2006, 10:44 PM
I think there are a couple different theories. I think Boatcop might have been the one that posted it a while ago.
One theory being about counterbalancing the torque steer. The other being about boats and such going through ports and channel locks and such and the captain being close to the land side or something like that.
Anyways, I would say that either most don't care that much or like it on the right. At least in this crowd anyway. I mean most of us own custom boats. If I really wanted it on the left hand side I would have ordered my boat that way and if I couldn't get it that way I would find a reputable builder who would build it for me that way.

upsman105
12-12-2006, 11:12 PM
It is kind of nice to get out of my truck and go straight back to my seat without having to cross over to the right side.

38687
12-12-2006, 11:15 PM
I like to sit just a little bit to the left ofthe center of the seat. This makes it easy to reach around and twist the trottle and steer with my right hand. But, I usualy turn around to my left to pull the starter cord with my right hand.

LuckyStrike
12-13-2006, 05:44 AM
In The Middle !!! This is my 3rd center console boat.

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 12:58 PM
I think boat builders should take this poll into consideration when building if they dont always go by orders because so far most people like to be on port side but most boats are built on the starbord side. I should have added the option for the center consols.

HCS
12-13-2006, 01:03 PM
Ya...if you have a pedal you'll be on the left.
Mine's right hand drive so it's a stick.

ChumpChange
12-13-2006, 01:07 PM
I think boat builders should take this poll into consideration when building if they dont always go by orders because so far most people like to be on port side but most boats are built on the starbord side. I should have added the option for the center consols.
Just about 50/50. Wow. I am surprised it's this close.

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 01:15 PM
Yes it is very close. Wonder if the option for center would have made a difference?

AZKC
12-13-2006, 01:17 PM
Left is Right:) Just like in Politics:D

Froggystyle
12-13-2006, 01:17 PM
I have heard a couple of real solid reasons for the difference between left and right drive, but don't hold me to them... They are purely anecdotal, but I have asked a million people and several who should know concurred that this was correct.
Everything was right hand drive early on. It had something to do with the location and style of tillers and such, and the cables came off the right side. Commercial vessels always have the throttle controls on the right side of the helm wheel.
The outboard powered boats were designed to be driven with your right hand, twisting the throttle etc...
Then jets came along. They behaved so differently from prop-driven boats that they shifted the controls to the port to force a different mindset as well. Seriously. You had a throttle pedal instead of a handle, and it was engineered to remind you that power is required for steering and separate your concentration between the two types of boats if you had to drive both types.
Like I said... nothing substantiated other than hearsay.

Keith E. Sayre
12-13-2006, 01:24 PM
If I say this, people will laugh but it's the truth. Most boat
manf's put the foot pedal driver on the left or port side of the boat. 1 reason is a great deal of the owners of these
companies raced flats and/or circle boats. They felt more
comfortable leaning left when turning left in the races, the
natural place to put it was logically on the left or port side.
Plus, there's tons of room for your right leg and the pedal
to be located.
On the boats with hand controlled throttles, it's really quite
simple, most people want to use their right hand for the
throttle. With that in mind, if you put them on the right side or stbd side, it's extremely easy to mount the shifters
and you have a straight run going backwards for the cables. If you put them sitting on the left, allowing them
to use their right hand again, now you have to find a way
to mount the shifters in the center of the boat. How do you get those long cables to go from the shifter, make a
90 degree turn to the side of the boat and then another 90
to get them going towards the rear of the boat. It's a
minor nightmare. One that can be overcome but it takes
a cable that's 6 or 8 feet longer for the port side shifter
and the shifters are in the middle of the boat hanging out
in nowhere land for people to bump into. Then what if it
is an open bow boat? Now we don't have a "middle of the
boat" to even work with. The one exception to all of this
is the Fountain Powerboat company. very often he'll have
the driver on the right or stbd side with the shifters on the
left side of the steering wheel and I have no clue why.
Keith Sayre
Conquest Boats

spectras only
12-13-2006, 01:40 PM
My old spectra brochures include some interesting info from the 70's .The coast guard chose spectra with port side helms back then. The article mentioned that the coast guard prefers port side helm to pull up to other boats for the ease of communicating with drunk drivers :rollside:
All my spectras had port helm .
32's had starboard !
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/32%20%20spectra%202.jpg
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/spectra3
It doesn't matter to me what side the helm is on . It only took me a few hours to get used to drive on the wrong side of the road , with the wrong side of steering wheel/shifter when renting a car in england .

Havasu1986
12-13-2006, 01:40 PM
When we ordered our boat I had them make sure the steering wheel was on the left, like my truck.

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 01:48 PM
If I say this, people will laugh but it's the truth. Most boat
manf's put the foot pedal driver on the left or port side of the boat. 1 reason is a great deal of the owners of these
companies raced flats and/or circle boats. They felt more
comfortable leaning left when turning left in the races, the
natural place to put it was logically on the left or port side.
Plus, there's tons of room for your right leg and the pedal
to be located.
On the boats with hand controlled throttles, it's really quite
simple, most people want to use their right hand for the
throttle. With that in mind, if you put them on the right side or stbd side, it's extremely easy to mount the shifters
and you have a straight run going backwards for the cables. If you put them sitting on the left, allowing them
to use their right hand again, now you have to find a way
to mount the shifters in the center of the boat. How do you get those long cables to go from the shifter, make a
90 degree turn to the side of the boat and then another 90
to get them going towards the rear of the boat. It's a
minor nightmare. One that can be overcome but it takes
a cable that's 6 or 8 feet longer for the port side shifter
and the shifters are in the middle of the boat hanging out
in nowhere land for people to bump into. Then what if it
is an open bow boat? Now we don't have a "middle of the
boat" to even work with. The one exception to all of this
is the Fountain Powerboat company. very often he'll have
the driver on the right or stbd side with the shifters on the
left side of the steering wheel and I have no clue why.
Keith Sayre
Conquest Boats
Keith,
I noticed that on some of the pictures on fountains website. Have you heard of fountain ever putting the driver on the port side?

Ziggy
12-13-2006, 01:49 PM
Generally speaking Jets are on the left, I/O's on the right. I've had both and either works for me. Right now I drive on the right.

spectras only
12-13-2006, 02:16 PM
like this 36 Nor-tech . Choose wich ever side you want :D
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/06%20PBNW%20run%208

Zaairman
12-13-2006, 03:03 PM
My wheel is on the right, yet my throttle controls are on the left... :hammerhea Mounted down on the seat by the floor...
http://memimage.cardomain.net/member_images/1/web/2245000-2245999/2245926_26_full.jpg

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 03:35 PM
I would like to be on the port side with throttle controls on right side of wheel, that would be nice. Has anyone seen a fountain with driver on port side?

spectras only
12-13-2006, 03:56 PM
Has anyone seen a fountain with driver on port side?
Fountains are made on the starboard side of the US . The answer is NO !:D
Reggie at the wheel >
http://www3.telus.net/spectrasonly/Fountain24.2.jpg

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 03:58 PM
I would like to be on the port side with throttle controls on right side of wheel, that would be nice. Has anyone seen a fountain with driver on port side?
Poll is still really close. Has anyone seen a fountain like this?

HCS
12-13-2006, 04:50 PM
Poll is still really close. Has anyone seen a fountain like this?
I'd say. It's 50/50. :mix:

ChumpChange
12-13-2006, 05:03 PM
Starboard side takes a one vote lead!!

86 catalina
12-13-2006, 06:57 PM
left/port is the best and only way.My boat aint from friggin europe

Aquaholic502
12-13-2006, 09:47 PM
Looks like port side is takin it back. Bummer on the fountain not making it port side.

Dan Lorenze
12-14-2006, 05:09 AM
I prefer boats with port side helms with controls on the left, and a big ole foot throttle on the floor... :)

Keith E. Sayre
12-14-2006, 11:40 AM
No, I've never seen a Fountain boat with the driver on the
port side. I have however seen several of the old 10 meter
(33 foot) Executioners with driver on the stbd side but throttles on the left side of the wheel.
Keith Sayre
Conquest Boats

Robert1050
12-14-2006, 01:07 PM
Port side ....Real boats have a gas pedal...:D
I agree - I've only owned 1 boat with the steering wheel on the Starboard side and never got used to it. Been driving cars for over 32 years - Port side is it! Besides - my foot controls the throttle, like it should!

Aquaholic502
12-14-2006, 02:05 PM
Still one post ahead for port side. If I could ever afford it, I would ask fountain if they would build a boat with driver on port side.

One Particular Harbor
12-14-2006, 02:17 PM
I agree - Been driving cars for over 32 years - Port side is it! Besides - my foot controls the throttle, like it should!
Exact opposite experience for me. Begain driving boats before I got my driver's license and a boat just doesn't seem like a boat if the wheel's on the port side.

TAF
12-14-2006, 02:56 PM
I like center steer. The TAF's I've work on have been center and the weight is evenly distributed. I hope to get my next boat which ever type w/ center steer. Any pit falls I haven't thought of?

Aquaholic502
12-17-2006, 02:36 PM
What happen? Looks like more for starboard side now.

shockwaveharry
12-17-2006, 03:00 PM
When I ordered my boat I had only had jets before so I insisted on a port side helm and a foot throttle even though it was an outdrive. I love driving the boat like that as it just feels right. Plus, I got both the trim and the tabs in the wheel... Very nice!
http://www.rivertoys.com/images/harrysboat/Hshockwave4.jpg
I've since driven quite a few starboard helmed/hand throttled boats and don't have a problem with them anymore... They just don't feel as "sporty" to me.

Trailer Park Casanova
12-17-2006, 03:12 PM
Right, I like working the controls with my right hand.
Ditto

LUVNLIFE
12-17-2006, 04:48 PM
Having starboard side helm, I had to position my pedal away from the side of the boat. .... I suppose I could have just thru-bolted it. Anyway, it puts my leg on a weird angle when I'm sitting down.
After almost killing myself with a hand throttle, the weird foot feed is a minor issue but I'd rather go port side drive with a foot throttle.
I believe this to be the answer. In a boat that is driven from the right side, the pedal has to be mounted to close to and interfers with the side of the boat. Instead of moving the pedal to the left foot which would be ackward, they just move the driver position to the left side:) I also recall hearing in a thread it was for better visibility on larger vessels.

Aquaholic502
12-26-2006, 09:47 AM
When I ordered my boat I had only had jets before so I insisted on a port side helm and a foot throttle even though it was an outdrive. I love driving the boat like that as it just feels right. Plus, I got both the trim and the tabs in the wheel... Very nice!
http://www.rivertoys.com/images/harrysboat/Hshockwave4.jpg
I've since driven quite a few starboard helmed/hand throttled boats and don't have a problem with them anymore... They just don't feel as "sporty" to me.
I believe we will see more and more boats like yours. Must be almost like driving a car in your boat. Nice set-up.

dumbandyoung
12-26-2006, 09:57 AM
i have a left/port side with a petal. drove a right/starboard side and really like it.. i like being able to stand up to grab a skier or pull up to a dock...next boat will be a right side