Hampton With Hydraulic Drive

[jackson]

Hello, I have found a Hampton three with hydraulic drive, it is driven by a 2 cylinder 15 hp  nanni, very early engine about of  1978, would this be powerful enough for use on the broads us, MANY THANKS TO ALL any information greatly received    (NUBI)

[annv]

Its been used since 1978 so i guess it goes/sailes, it will be economical, quiet and won't break the speed limit over Brayden,  define powerful enough .John

[jackson]

my concern with the low hp engine would be THE FAST TIDES  around the lower Bure and Yare  any advice with small hp engines with hydraulic drive is welcomed, 

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

Many of the old broads boats of around 35 - 40 ft of years ago were powered by the BMC 1.5 diesel, which I believe was rated around 35 hp. When I hired an Alpha 42 fwd drv back in the 90s, she was powered by a BMC 1.5 and coped very well even against strong tides. So depending on the power of your Nanni twin, it shouldn't be a problem. I did sea some years ago on the Hampton Owners Association, that someone had done that, and the engine was rated around 18 hp. I would think that would be fine for the North rivers, but may struggle against the stronger southern tides?. 

If Vaughan is reading this, he Will know for sure, as he's had many years experience in running hire fleets. 

[Vaughan]

53 minutes ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

If Vaughan is reading this, he Will know for sure, as he's had many years experience in running hire fleets. 

Depends what you mean by a Hampton. I assume you mean the Safari 25 and all the ones I have known have almost  all had BMC 1.5 centre engines on a shaft drive. Almost always in a box which was half in the galley and half the other side of the bulkhead under the seat in the saloon. This made them noisy as well as sometimes smelly.

To be honest the BMC 1.5 was too big for such a small boat but there was not much else available at that time, so I can imagine one being powered by a 2 cylinder Nanni but have never seen one. In the mid 70s a lot of day boats were being fitted with 2 cyl Nanni and Yanmar diesels and they were used a lot in auxiliary yachts.

Also depends what you mean by hydraulic drive. Some people will call a PRM or Borg Warner a "hydraulic" gearbox but they are actually hydro-mechanical, as the clutch is held in gear by oil pressure from a pump. Boxes such as the Hurth and the old Parsons are mechanical as the gears are held in by a spring and they have no oil pump. Lubrication is splash fed.

Hydraulic drive is when you have a pump on the back of the engine and a motor on the end of the shaft, connected by pipes. Personally, I have never seen a Hampton with hydraulic drive.

[jackson]

Thank you for you reply, the engine is a 2 cylinder Nani. there is a pump at the back of the engine and a motor on a stainless steel shaft as you suggest , The engine is located in the area used for a gas bottles  the engine  cooling is a closed system  very neat , as it  IS a 15 hp engine my concern was the power would not be enough for the lower Bure and the Yare   with a strong tide running. Thank you Paul Jackson

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

54 minutes ago, jackson said:

Thank you for you reply, the engine is a 2 cylinder Nani. there is a pump at the back of the engine and a motor on a stainless steel shaft as you suggest , The engine is located in the area used for a gas bottles  the engine  cooling is a closed system  very neat , as it  IS a 15 hp engine my concern was the power would not be enough for the lower Bure and the Yare   with a strong tide running. Thank you Paul Jackson

I`m sure that was the one that was posted on the Hampton Safari Owners association.  There was also one with a 15 hp twin but in the conventional central position like all the others. 

[finny]

The hampton in question has been around for years i remember i even thought about refitting my Hampton to a similar but putting the engine behind the forward bulkhead - got that idea from the many broads dayboats ......well that was until i did a fag packet cost list and it didnt happen 

my advice for what its worth is try it and if you feel its struggling against a stiff tide maybe look at changing the prop  it doesnt take much to push a hampton with a 2ft 6 draft ,i was not happy with my hampton after seeking advice i slightly over propped it and gave the performance i was looking for .the potter bridge pilot once told me going through the bridge it was one of the most responsive hamptons he had ever helmed 

finny    

[jackson]

thank you for your advice finny regards  pj

[eddybear]

On 24/09/2019 at 16:10, Vaughan said:

Hydraulic drive is when you have a pump on the back of the engine and a motor on the end of the shaft, connected by pipes. Personally, I have never seen a Hampton with hydraulic drive.

I've got a Hampton Safari Mk 4 with a Thorneycroft 1500 mated to a hydraulic drive in the Stern very smooth and very quiet and doesn't have that horrible diesel smell I had in my previous boat a Mk 2 Hampton shaft drive

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

3 minutes ago, eddybear said:

I've got a Hampton Safari Mk 4 with a Thorneycroft 1500 mated to a hydraulic drive in the Stern very smooth and very quiet and doesn't have that horrible diesel smell I had in my previous boat a Mk 2 Hampton shaft drive

I thought the Mk4 was the sedan version?. The Mk 1 + 2 being the sliding roof, and the Mk 3 being the fwd cockpit fixed top version?.  I`ve seen one of the sedan versions had been "de- sedanned" if you know what i mean?. Strange thing to do, but gives you a nice big cockpit, but at the expense of the salloon?.

[Smoggy]

I would imagine a third of that hp would be lost in heat to the hydraulic oil.

[Turnoar]

Back in the sixties my dad used to build marine ply ski boats with morrinised bmc mini engines, 4 cylinder maybe but minimal hp. No trouble towing a skier or two even across the English Channel and back, but on shaft with the right prop of course. No water jackets, straight raw cooling. With 40 footers of old running with 1.5 bmc’s the Hampton twin sounds potentially optimal, indeed said ski boats trialed with a jag engine more than twice the size were hopeless and guzzled more fuel to do the same job, not good in the seventies...

[eddybear]

14 hours ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

I thought the Mk4 was the sedan version?. The Mk 1 + 2 being the sliding roof, and the Mk 3 being the fwd cockpit fixed top version?.  I`ve seen one of the sedan versions had been "de- sedanned" if you know what i mean?. Strange thing to do, but gives you a nice big cockpit, but at the expense of the salloon?.

Yes that's right the sedan version, Out of the three that were built the first one had a nasty accident with a bridge and could not be economically repaired so was altered internally and fitted with large canopy, That just left 2 and both are in the Hampton Safari owners club, mine is the last one built and is called wild thyme,The picture was taken this Sunday 22//9/2019  at the Hampton Safari club's  Autumn meet at Acle.

[jackson]

hello ,it is a mk 3 with sunken well and door at the front, the engine Is in the gas compartment at the rear

[Bluebell]

Hello Eddy Bear, good to see you at the Hampton meet at Acle Bridge. You certainly  have a one off boat. We are members of the HSBC, but don’t actually still own a Hampton! 

[Bluebell]

There we are under way on the Waveney courtesy of young Dave.

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

13 hours ago, eddybear said:

Yes that's right the sedan version, Out of the three that were built the first one had a nasty accident with a bridge and could not be economically repaired so was altered internally and fitted with large canopy, That just left 2 and both are in the Hampton Safari owners club, mine is the last one built and is called wild thyme,The picture was taken this Sunday 22//9/2019  at the Hampton Safari club's  Autumn meet at Acle.

I always thought they should have done a conversion on your model with a longer front cabin, and a lowering roof over an aft cockpit. I think that would look nice.

[eddybear]

10 hours ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

I always thought they should have done a conversion on your model with a longer front cabin, and a lowering roof over an aft cockpit. I think that would look nice.

I think Alex Hampton got it spot on really think it has classic lines for a modern boat, the only thing that he got wrong was having the Stern open when cruising no good in the winter, the canopy had to be folded back onto the roof as it was sloping with no means of getting off from the side when mooring the last owner of my boat had a square canopy made with an extension frame at the Stern and zipped side panels as can be seen in the photograph, and as he commented to me probably one of the best Improvement now allowing side and Stern mooring while leaving canopy up.

[Seagypsy]

10 hours ago, SPEEDTRIPLE said:

I always thought they should have done a conversion on your model with a longer front cabin, and a lowering roof over an aft cockpit. I think that would look nice.

 

3 minutes ago, eddybear said:

I think Alex Hampton got it spot on really think it has classic lines for a modern boat, the only thing that he got wrong was having the Stern open when cruising no good in the winter, the canopy had to be folded back onto the roof as it was sloping with no means of getting off from the side when mooring the last owner of my boat had a square canopy made with an extension frame at the Stern and zipped side panels as can be seen in the photograph, and as he commented to me probably one of the best Improvement now allowing side and Stern mooring while leaving canopy up.

Seem to think one of these sedans was a hire boat back in the 70s

[SPEEDTRIPLE]

1 hour ago, Seagypsy said:

 

Seem to think one of these sedans was a hire boat back in the 70s

I think they all were, as they were designed and built by Hampton Boats, who were a hire fleet.