Click for Nordhavn Click for Abeking Click for YF Listing Service Click for Glendinning Click for Northern Lights

Hampton 630 motoryacht

Discussion in 'General Yachting Discussion' started by Bad Kitty, Jul 26, 2018.

You need to be registered and signed in to view this content.
  1. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    New Hampton 630 owner would like to connect with other Hampton owners to share knowledge and experiences. I've learned a lot in 8 months but im hoping the sharing of info peculiar to the Hampton would facilitate the learning process.
  2. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,432
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    What things about the boat would you like to know?
  3. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    She does seem to have quite an unfriendly sea manner. Stabilizers seem to be worthless.
    I'm coming from a 44' sailing catamaran that was infinetly more comfortable on crossings.
  4. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,432
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    I have managed a 62' Hampton for several years now. The boat has Wesmar digital stabilizers and I find it to handle quite well, but it's a pretty wet boat in anything above 3' seas.
  5. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    How fast do you typically cruise and what size fins do you have ?
    I'm a blow boater by nature but moved to the dark side as my ex-friends say. So 8 or 9 kts seems like I'm getting on down the road quite nicely. But therein may lie my poor stabilizer performance. My boat has 6 sq ft fins.
  6. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,432
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    The fins are 6 sq foot. I run it 80 % load, around 20 knots. What rpm are you at, at 9 knots.
  7. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,120
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    What kind of seas are we talking about ? Stabilizers can only do so much but even at hull speed they should keep things comfortable at least in reasonable seas. Also depends on the angle of the waves, sometimes with waves on the stern the AP doesn't react fast enough and you may be beteer off hand steering
  8. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    I like to run one engine @ 1250 or so and shot for 8 knots. According to Wesmar, the system with the 6' fins is meant to run at at least 16 kts and they suggest I trade out 6' for 9' fins to get better control at slower speeds. But this is about a $15k upgrade that I'm not sure will be the fix.
    Also, underway I've noticed the actuator arms are jerky. Wesmar says thats not normal and could be a hydraulic accumulator tank might help facilitate the hyd pump keeping up.
    Last edited: Jul 30, 2018
  9. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    Having only made crossings from Florida to Isla Mujeres, MX and the trip I'm on now from Isla to Guatemala, I've only seen quarter following and beam seas. But those seas were pretty benign with maybe 5 footers tops on the following seas from Florida.
    I think too, I'm used to a 24' wide sailing cat that was really a very stable and comfortable passage boat blue water boat.
  10. olderboater

    olderboater Senior Member

    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2013
    Messages:
    7,132
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    Well, I have a friend who just recently built a Hampton 630 and loves it. Of course he runs it on both engines as it was designed to be run, not on one, and at above 8 knots. As to your jerky actuator arms, that's another issue to explore. Did you tell Wesmar you were running on a single engine?

    If you wanted to run on one engine at 8 knots, I must ask why you chose this boat?
  11. motoryachtlover

    motoryachtlover Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jan 29, 2007
    Messages:
    645
    Location:
    smithfield, VA
    Olderboater are you being a little hard on him by questioning his decision to buy the boat knowing he wanted to run at 8 knots on one engine? I can see where on those long runs from Florida to Isla Mujeres he might want/need to go 8 knots to conserve fuel. And maybe when he is elsewhere where fuel stops are near by he runs at his normal cruise. I enjoy your posts and not intending to start any drama.
  12. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    I love my 630 too - the quality is outstanding and we love the livability, as we live on the boat full time.
    Why do I need to run above 8 kts if I'm not in a hurry to get somewhere and quickly get back? This boat functions quite well as a semi displacement hull trawler and I kind of like getting 1 mpg. I think it was designed to run at hull speed as well as planning speeds. But nice to know that I can get up and go at 20+ knots if I have the need to. And why do I need to utilize 1700+ horsepower to trawl at 8 kts. To run two engines would be overkill dont you think?? Diesels would rather run at 1250 rpm as opposed to 1000 or less if I ran both. My catamaran did quite nicely on one engine on crossings and at the end of 5 years circumnavigating the Caribbean, my little Yanmars had 1200 hrs each instead of 2400 hrs each. Fuel was a little better running on one engine as well.
    So as to why I bought a Hampton 630 for my full time cruising boat - I must ask you, why not ??
    This is a great boat!
  13. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,120
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    First i d get the system serviced and solve the jerkyness you mentioned. Wesmar answer about putting an accumulator is a littl odd as the system shoudo have been set up right in the first place...

    I ve never run Wesmar. With Trac there are a number of settings that can be adjusted to improve how they work. They also have a speed sensors on the prop shafts for the system to adjust how it works. At low speed, under 10/11kts i have to set the speed manually of the stabs do not kick in. Again, dont know about Wesmars.

    I would think 6' fins should be enough on a boat that size

    I too enjoy cruising at hull speed sometimes although 8kts is a bit slow. Less noise, smooth ride etc... I m not a big fan of running single engine as you loose efficicieny due to rudder angles. And on many boats you have hydraulic pump or power steering pump on one engine so you cant really alternate.
  14. d_meister

    d_meister Senior Member

    Joined:
    Mar 4, 2010
    Messages:
    468
    Location:
    La Conner, WA.
    I wonder about two things:
    First, do you use a shaft brake on the trailing prop or somehow assure that the transmission is adequately lubricated?
    Second, how is hydraulics supplied to the stabilizers (assuming they're hydraulic)?
    It would seem to me that a PTO hydraulic supply at 1250 rpm from a single engine would be short on volume and pressure for stabilizers unless specifically sized for that service. I've seen hydraulic pressure drop to zero on Naiads at slow speeds with two 12V71's both supplying hydraulics.
    I would echo Olderboater's question about having informed Wesmar about the single engine method of operation. It certainly wouldn't be something they would take for granted.
  15. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    Pascal - we went thru a trouble shooting with Wesmar and they seem to think the system is functioning properly and other than too slow of a speed thru the water for a 6' fin, they suggest the hydraulics could be not keeping up and hence the suggestion to install a accumulator tank - makes sense but not sold on the idea either.
    This is a 10 yr old system so the old gyro system and no adjustment for speed.
    If your aim is to arrive at your destination after sunrise so as not to enter an anchorage in the dark then 8kts is not too slow. To make 10kts and arrive at your anchorage at 5am in the dark, then I would contend that 10 kts is too fast.
    We took speed and GPH reading and we got a higher mpg with the single engine so that would pretty much negate the argument of rudder drag.
    I do believe that both engines have hydraulic pumps so the issue of supply to the Wesmar Stabilizers is a moot point.
    And BTW, we do run with both engine some of the time and no difference in stabilizer performance.
    When we were looking at these boats, I would mention that I wanted to look at available space for solar panels on the roof. Most brokers looked at me and asked why in the hell would I want to put solar panels on a boat like this. For the same reason I put solar panels on my catamaran. I guess I just don't fit the mold of a power boater. I do have 1280 watts of solar on my 630 and it was indeed, some of the best money I've spent on my boat so far.
  16. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres

    d_meister - As mentioned above, we have had ample experience running the boat on both engines and did not find any difference in performance of the Wesmars. However, we have not operated the boat with both engines at 80% or even close to it. You may indeed have a point that the pumps are not delivering enough flow to satisfy the hydraulic requirement of the stabilizers. But- my experience with PTO pumps on diesel engines it that typically, pumps reach max output at 25% rated rpm or less, but cant say without reservation that additional rpm might not increase hydraulic flow.

    No, we do not try to stop the dormant prop from windmilling. The transmissions are ZF which are fine with freewheeling according to the manufacturer. There is likewise a crossover cooling line that lubricates the freewheeling shaft seal. And keep in mind, we are doing all this at relatively low rpm and speed.

    With all due respect - I'm betting you dont have solar panels on your boat either.

    I am listening with open mind at all the advice I'm getting here and appreciate it all.
  17. Pascal

    Pascal Senior Member

    Joined:
    Feb 29, 2008
    Messages:
    8,120
    Location:
    Miami, FL
    Well I ve looked into solar and refuse to drink the cool aid... it doesn’t add up. You won’t run air con off solar, or cook. A good compromise is an inverter and big bank run everything except AC and recharged by generator 3 to 4 hours a day. You can use that time in the evening to run the water maker and cook. Even at out island fuel prices that s $15 a day Solar can’t compete as it takes years to recoup the costs. Even when government waste half a billion dollars on companies like Solyndra :$

    As to arriving before sunrise well it comes down to timing it right. Nothing wrong coming in at night anyway with the right Nav equipment
  18. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    Spoken like a true stink potter. You should talk to people out here cruising - we swear by solar. But if your typically a dock boat then it probably wouldnt work for you. We are living on this boat probably 10+ months out of the year.
  19. Capt J

    Capt J Senior Member

    Joined:
    Jul 11, 2005
    Messages:
    14,432
    Location:
    Fort Lauderdale
    You're burning MORE fuel, running one engine at 1250 rpms, versus running both engines at 800 RPMS to maintain 8 knots. TWICE as much fuel actually, aside from the vessel crabbing, dragging one propeller and most likely a shaft spinning without any cooling water to the dripless, and an engine running in an overloaded state. WHY on earth would you run the boat that way? Of course the stabilizers cannot keep up, of course the vessel is riding like utter crap. Run the yacht on both engines like it was intended to be run at. C18 cats above 1000 rpms, start drinking the fuel......800 rpms, with both engines you're burning about 8 gph……..one engine at 1250 rpms is going to be closer to 16 gph, maybe 20 gph. There is NO way you got a higher mpg reading with both engines underway. C18's at 800 rpms barely sip fuel, at 1250 the turbo's are starting to spin and they are drinking fuel. Also the engines should be run at 80% load for 30 minutes after every 6 hours at slow speeds, at a very minimum. And yes, I have extensive experience running the sistership of your yacht. And the quality is ok, it surely isn't a Hatteras, there are a lot of little engineering disasters on that boat that drive me bonkers.

    I also agree solar doesn't work, all of the weight it adds, usually up high. I managed one yacht that had 2 very big solar panels on the hardtop. 90% of the time, they put out 50% of what they were supposed to generate.....not to mention the charging loses, conversion loses from DC to AC power, etc. etc. 1280 watts of solar? That's not even enough power to keep up with 1 refrigerator.
    Last edited: Jul 31, 2018
  20. Bad Kitty

    Bad Kitty New Member

    Joined:
    Jul 29, 2017
    Messages:
    18
    Location:
    Isla Mujeres
    No offence, but you have an awful lot to learn. Also you should take the time to read what been said previously in this thread.