KISS Boats???????????

[sailorboy1]

I was reading the other day and the author was going on and on and on about how important it was to have a "keep it simple sailor" boat. Later he started talking about systems etc and near as I could tell he had pretty much all of the "standard" ones and even had a watermaker. Seemed that KISS to him was not having satellite TV.

We read here on CF people writing over and over and over about having a "simple" boat. Yet they seem to have what I consider the "normal" stuff" plus other things that they have justified as "not counting".

My boat has "standard" systems of: pressure water, chartplotter, autopilot, windlass, inverter, hot water, furling headsail and these things rarely require any maintenance. It doesn't have AIS, radar, watermaker, working generator, electric winches. By far the most anti-kiss thing on my boat has been the POS diesel generator and it finally has died so now I don't need to fix it anymore.

So just what is a KISS boat? What system does it have or don't have. What systems/items are the KISS people willing to do without because they may have to fix it once in a while? You KISS boat cruisers let's hear what systems you do and don't have on your boat as I have a feeling the differences are small.

[Adelie]

Available on board:
A. Tiller
B. Drifter
C. Windvane or sheer to tiller equipment and practice using same
D. If there is a watermaker aboard storage to carry water sufficient for 3/4gal per person for full length of passage. If no water maker then a lot more.
E. Manual fresh and saltwater pumps for galley sink separate from pressure water.
F. Bypass around propane solenoid.
G. Paper passage chart, paper harbor charts for destination and 1 or 2 bailout refuges along the way.
H. 2gal ziplock in a metal 50cal ammo box with 3 handheld GPSs using AA or AAA batteries, NiMH batteries and a solar battery charger for same. Hand bearing compass. Lion jumpstart battery topped up every month or so.
I. Parallel rules, dividers and mechanical pencils.
J. Manual handle for the windlass so anchor can be retrieved even if power fails.

[sailorboy1]

Let me add that we are talking a cruising boat not a day sailor.

[jmh2002]

Yeah I think the line has definitely moved as far as defining what "simple" means.

I'll try to post up some more thoughts later maybe.

[jmh2002]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

By far the most anti-kiss thing on my boat has been the POS diesel generator and it finally has died so now I don't need to fix it anymore.

This made me laugh It seems you are already simplifying your boat

[SwellGuy]

The K.I.S.S. principal is simple. More complexity = more probability of failure.

Complexity may be in the presence of certain things, as you've defined it, or it may be in the components that make up those certain things.

So when you have a choice between a device that accomplishes a task with 3 moving parts, or a device that accomplishes the same task with 25 moving parts plus hydraulics plus electronics, it's a fairly safe bet that the former will be more reliable.

Obviously when speaking probabilistically about a space that includes billions of examples of things, there will be enough counter examples to satisfy a lifetime of arguments.

[boatman61]

KISS boat for trans atlantic solo crossing 2000.
HH GPS.
VHF
TILLER PILOT + 1
20W SOLAR PANEL + SEPERATE BATTERY.
PAPER PASSAGE CHART.
SPEED & DEPTH LOG.
COOKER + 2 GAS BOTTLES
240L WATER. MANUAL PUMPS.
40L FUEL.
The trip took 47 days non stop..
SMX to UK.

In 2005 solo NC to UK.. pretty much as above but no tiller pilot and solar panel just a crap new Simrad WP that died just N of Bermuda leaving me to hand steer the rest of the way.

[Adelie]

K. Sewing machine
L. Boat heater would be a drip feed diesel.

[conachair]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

So just what is a KISS boat? What system does it have or don't have. What systems/items are the KISS people willing to do without because they may have to fix it once in a while?

Kiss boat is whatever anyone says it is Personally it's a boat which has some rock solid simple kit which can keep the boat seaworthy when all the 'nice but don't actually need it' breaks. Which means on this boat windvane steering, LED masthead/anchor lights, simple sail setup with slab reefing, some solar, anchor can be rasied manually, standalone AIS receiver, handheld VHF. Standalone radar is on the outskirts of Kiss but been reliable so far, after getting some decent batteries anyway.

So engine's bust, all the toys are bust, no great hardship, at least the boat can keep sailing for as long as it takes to get to a country where the toys are fixable

Kiss doesn't have to mean oil lamps and hemp ropes, have all the toys but better if you don't rely on them for the boat to function

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by Adelie

K. Sewing machine
L. Boat heater would be a drip feed diesel.

Wouldn't KISS be needle and palm?


My first cruising boat had very little. Pre-nav gear, so just lights, motor, engine, VHF, and sails. We went out for weeks at a time, working off paper charts, a cooler, and warm clothes. That was NORMAL 30 years ago.


I really liked my last cruising boat, with heat, AC, a shower and the like, but I wouldn't call it KISS.

[Jammer]

The most complicating thing usually found on a cruising boat is refrigeration, both because it is, itself, failure prone and difficult to repair, and because it places great demands on the electrical system. (Unless one of the remaining engine-driven systems which pose their own complexities and problems)


The next most complicated thing is the autopilot, because it too places considerable demands on the electrical system, and because (in most installations) it depends on various other components in order to work properly (windex, heading sensor, chartplotter).

[Steve_C]

Originally Posted by conachair

Kiss boat is whatever anyone says it is Personally it's a boat which has some rock solid simple kit which can keep the boat seaworthy when all the 'nice but don't actually need it' breaks.

Kiss doesn't have to mean oil lamps and hemp ropes, have all the toys but better if you don't rely on them for the boat to function

I agree wholeheartedly!

I love to tinker and I love playing with automation, I just want to make sure I either absolutely don't need it, or I know how to quickly and easily bypass/remove it if its not working properly.

Relying on a complex system that you don't understand or can't work on or bypass is not good seamanship in my opinion. At least in terms of venturing out into bluewater away from easy quick help!

As for toys and comfort bring it on

[sailorboy1]

Originally Posted by Jammer

The most complicating thing usually found on a cruising boat is refrigeration, both because it is, itself, failure prone and difficult to repair, and because it places great demands on the electrical system.

Not even close!!!!!!!!!!! In 2 boats and 11 years, including the last 3 full time on the boat, have only ever had 1 problem with my refrigeration and that was just the thermostat for the spillover fan.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

Not even close!!!!!!!!!!! In 2 boats and 11 years, including the last 3 full time on the boat, have only ever had 1 problem with my refrigeration and that was just the thermostat for the spillover fan.

What about all the electrical gear that supports it?

[thinwater]

Originally Posted by sailorboy1

Not even close!!!!!!!!!!! In 2 boats and 11 years, including the last 3 full time on the boat, have only ever had 1 problem with my refrigeration and that was just the thermostat for the spillover fan.

Face it, you're not a KISS sailor. It's OK!