400: Lagoon 400

[peterp]

Hello Hanafe, my understanding of the definition of a screecher is it is a king size jib that finishes on the stern side of the mast, I will now duck for cover.
Regards Peter

[bman]

Hi

I have been thinking about adding on the overhead cabinet. The cost of the add on to an existing boat seems to be a bit much. I have been told $1650.00 US plus shipping, taxes etc to Canada and aprox 10 hours labour. Have any of you heard different prices? I have also been looking into gettig a couple sheets of the finished plywood and having some custom work done. Would like to improve storage or at least have some storage in the galley.

As for the Genaker we have one that uses a snuffing bag rather then furling. Can't say that I have used it yet. Last time on the boat I spent the weekend without my crew and I was not so bold as to try and sail a Genaker without help.

What other modifications have other owners done and how have they worked out.?

Regards

Bruce

[hanafe]

Thanks Peter,
it is a more flat cut than my genaker, looks more like a code 0. I am sure it is good upt to 60 - 70 app wind angle and it will furl better than a genaker.
I would not go for the furling anymore but for the sock.

HanaFe

Originally Posted by peterp

Hello Hanafe, my understanding of the definition of a screecher is it is a king size jib that finishes on the stern side of the mast, I will now duck for cover.
Regards Peter

[hanafe]

Hi Bruce,

I heard about the same costs of the cabinet and as well and about around 10 hours difficult labour.
I did some modifications on mine but I guess it was all discussed here already.
Reling gate
Added two bimini beams and alterated the bimini (sunbrella)
raised the helms seat
foot rest
and the camera for starport side of course
You can find pictures under http://groups.yahoo.com/group/lagoon...24929/pic/list

As well I changed the reefing system to a classical with snap shakles to hook on. On the above link you see how Lagoon recommends to do the reefing line, bit this does not work at all. Do not get mislead.

Inside I did not change anything yet. I want to add some shelfs in the master cabin and wanted to get the original wood as well.
HanaFe

[bman]

Hi Hanafe

Have you had any luck on pricing for the wood? My thoughts are to modify the office to make a pantry of sorts. I am also thinking about making a cabinet that sits on top of the electrical panel box. This of course would have to be removable to get access to the fuses etc. I could also access it through the little door that is already there. My inverter is on the front of the electrical panel so there is nothing there anyways. This would be an attractive storage area and the custom work would likely cost far less then the overhead cabinet. I don't particularly like the look of the cabinet as it does not seem to follow the lines of the boat.

I have heard rumor about a change in the davits so that there the lines lead to the dinghy properly and without the line overriding the wheel on the davit. I have to use a bridle now and this makes the dinghy very unstable. Does anyone know if the bridle has been changed.

I have not had problems so far with the reefing system however I have had little need to put in any reefs. Primarily I have been using the reefing lines to assist in hauling down and flaking the main. I don't see the need for a third reef having regard to the amount of wind we receive in my cruising grounds and I may simply remove it and in the event I head out to areas where a 3rd reef may be necessary then I will add it again. The third reef line adds a lot of line to have to pull out as the main is raised and pull in as it is lowered.

Another issue that I have noticed is the sailbag for the rain. The zipper is on the top and when it rains water collects inside of the bag. If you leave the the main halyard attached the bag can not be closed fully. Here in the pacific northwest we get our share of rain and you do not want watter pooling. I am considering changing the bag.

Has anyone had experience moving the freezer from the salon into the cockpit under the helm seat and if so how difficult was it to do?

I like the gate that you put in the lifelines Hanafe and I am considering doing the same thing. It looks like there are pads set up already on the 400 for that very project.

When I had a survey done on the boat the surveyor noted the lack of gel coat in many areas of the boat. It is odd that Lagoon would have left exposed fiberglass as it can not be cleaned. I guess they saved a couple of dollars in construction costs. I plan on gel coating the areas under the floorboards in both hulls so that the area can be better cleaned and so that it can be used for storage.

I will also be finishing off the ends of the wooden bulkheads with apoxy to avoid swelling. This is another issue that the surveyor pointed out and recommended that I attend to. Again this is something that Lagoon ought to be doing in the first place.

Regards
Bruce

[paulrack]

It is really cutting corners if they do not finish the boat off properly with raw fibreglass. To finish it off properly it is better to flo-coat the area instead of trying to apply gelcoat.

[bman]

Hi paulrack

The gelcoat or flowcoat is on the wish list. It is a job that I expect to hire someone to do. I will do some more research on the difference. Thanks.

bman

[bman]

Hi Hanafe

Please let me know how the changes you are making to the reefing lines are working out. When you talk about classic snap shackle cleat are will ther be a cleat at both the clew and tack? I am trying to visualize the system however it has been some time since I have seen the old style reefing system. In any event the last place that I want to be is on top of the roof messing about with the end of the boom. Its a long way down.

I like what you did with the footrest. I don't know if I will raise the helm seat but the footrest would be great. I am not short 5'11" but my feet dangle when I am sitting. Have you been using the foot rest to better reach the clutches? They are certainly placed a distance back making it a reach. Has the footrest helped?

Regards
bman

[hanafe]

Hi Bman,

some quick replies.
The cost for the over hang cabinet I got are similiar to yours. We do not mind not to have it. While standing it is taking the view and my wife complains she would never be able to reach it without climbing on the stools.
A cabinet on top of the electrical box is not suitable according to my opinion as it would block the access to the cabinet in the corner. At least on my boat the door of the cabinet opens above the electrical panel.
The sailbag always takes a lot of rain water. And a good little hint is ALWAYS to keep the front saloon hatches closed when raising the sail, even on the sunniest hottest day without wind. We made our experience. Once, when raising the sail a lot of water run down and through the saoon hatches. Luckily we were fast in closing, but still a slight mess.
There are no pads set up for the opening of the life lines. The pads you see on the port side are for installing the outlets for the holding tanks in the charter version. You will not find it on Starport as there are the outlets for the owners head installed.

Concerning reefing I maybe did not express myself detailed enough. With classical I mean at the front of the sail, next to the mast I have a snap shakle on each side of the boom with is hooked into the strap of the sail when lowered. At the back I still have the block and the reefing line to bring the sail down and totighten it. I do not need to go to the back on the roof, but I need to step on the roof at the mast to hook in the shakle, but that is not a big deal.
By the way I have no problem stepping on the roof. I always step on the anchor windlass and use it like a step. I saw some comments in this thread about that.

We step on the footrest for handling the jib winches if we do not use it electrical. Specially my wife needs to step on it. The winches are too high, you need to winch just out of your arms. You do not get any body weight on the winch to support. By stepping on the foot rest it improves a bit.

Cheers HanaFe

[Garold]

My L400 has also not been flocoated under the floors. The under floor edges of the cross beams are also rough and the gel coat blocks some of the drain holes between bilges.

All these are minor irritations which my dealer, Ancasta, are pursuing with Lagoon.

However, it is clear that Lagoon are cutting back on quality but they have misjudged the expectations of their customers.

Whatever the response from Lagoon, I intend to remedy the lack of underfloor finishing this winter and I am sure that it will be the awkwardness ot the work rather than cost that will be the challenge. It just would have been a much easier job if they had attended to it during the build.

Also, my last L380 was well finished under the floors, so this is recent change.

Otherwise, the L400 and me are getting much cosier every week that we spend together!

Cheers

Garold

[paulrack]

Hi Garold, glad you are getting to grips with your boat, can you not get the dealer to do the flowcoating for you under the warranty?

Did you weigh your boat when it went in the water? I am interested because it seems most builders are grossly underestimating the weight of their boats. The leopard 38's beng launched at the moment seem to be about 2 to 2.5 tons over their stated weight. I wonder about the lagoon whether they are closer. I only know of a 500 which was quite a lot over.

[Garold]

Hi Paul.

The dealer is trying to get Lagoon to acknowledge that the lack of flocoating is an oversight and needs to be retro-done.

However, unfinished bilges appear to be the new policy of Lagoon, certainly on L400s. Not sure if they will change their stance but all I was trying to say was that I don't intend to bust a blood vessel over it. Either Lagoon do the right thing and pay for the work to be done this winter or I shall organise it myself.

As for our familiarisation period, it's going well.

We are just at the end of a two week local cruising trip. We have had the opportuntiy to go into a couple of marinas, anchor 4 or 5 nights, and use out-of-the-way river pontoons a few times. All of this has gone well and my new Rocna anchor is proving to be very quick acting and sticky once set.

We have a phantom bug on the owners toilet. The seawater flush pump seems to work intermittently and we have not yet found the fault. I will ask the dealer to take look at it at a later date.

We have a week at work next week and then another 2-3 weeks on board and we go further afield as we have more faith in the boat.

Cheers

Garold

[paulrack]

Hi Garold

I sounds like you are getting good use of your boat which is fantastic. I also specced a Rocna anchor for my cat, which size did you go for? I am taking my boat out for its first commissioning sail tomorrow morning to get all the reefing lines etc sorted very excited. Very envious of you cruising for a couple of weeks already!

[Garold]

Congratulations Paul, and hope the commissioning sail goes well.

We have the 25kg Rocna anchor. I actually ordered the 33kg but when I went to collect it, I thought that it looked a bit large. Luckily I switched to the 25kg which was a 25% increase on the 20kg Delta anchor originally supplied with the boat. The Rocna is probably more effective too, so I thought that the increase would be significant.

On reflection, I don't think that the 33kg Rocna would have fitted too well because our Rocna already snags the bowsprit cable and the jib furl line if we haul the anchor in too quickly. This is not a problem because we always rinse the anchor off in the sea as we move off for a few hundred metres and then haul the final metre or two carefully.

Having used the Rocna for 2 weeks during which we anchored overnight 4-5 times and used the anchor for daytime breaks another 5-6 times, we are quite impressed with the Rocna. Never broke out once, and is often so firmly embedded, it tends to make the boat dip down nose first a bit just before it breaks out on the final bit of the retrieval.

Cheers

Garold

[Garold]

If it works................ a few photos of our recent exploits.

First one is in Yarmouth, an old fashioned English Harbour where we normally fasten to the piles (bit tricky but usually with help of harbourmaster). The second darker shot is in Ryde, a drying harbour just before it rained. And the others are dried out on the beach at East Head, in Chichester Harbour.

Running my new boat up the beach and drying out was a bit frightening but gave me chance to scrub the bottom, check a noisy rope cutter, and surprise a few beach walkers!

Cheers

Garold