Making Ex-Racer My Cruiser . . . Am I Mad ?

[Wotname]

Originally Posted by Weyalan

Here we are in sunny Southport


Note the new (sexy looking) windows. We are now lighter by precisely 160 x 5/16 bolts, washers and nyloc nuts... that being what held the old ones in... guess that was how it was done back in the day.

The new prop / shaft is awesome - motoring performance is improved out of sight!

Still no interior shots, sadly, although the saloon is looking really good now (in my rather biased opinion).

The big news, however, is that we have taken a giant step towards becoming real cruisers, not just racers pretending to be cruisers... we have just taken delivery of a shiny new headsail furler! Yay!

The photo tells me it must be Southport Southern Tas () not Southport Gold Coast ().

Good news about prop, shaft, windows (an rudder) but it will be the new furler that will be the making of you as a real sailor man

[Weyalan]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Ahhh, Patrick me lad,

You've just taken the first step to perdition... soon I suppose you will be fitting a microwave thingy or maybe a Jacuzzi or bow thrusters.

But you should also be practicing looking at your headsail, slightly reefed and slightly baggy, and saying " it doesn't really matter. it doesn't really matter".

Seriously, enjoy the furler. Having one, like skateboarding, isn't a crime!

Looking forward to seeing it in person... we've beaten our way to Moreton Bay, and will be continuing south next week.

Cheers,
Jim and Ann s/v Insatiable II lying Manly, Qld, Oz, southbound

No plans for a microwave (the 3 burner + oven + grill seems luxury enough) nor jacuzzi (aren't we surrounded by jacuzzi?). The plan, currently, is new spinnaker, new mainsail, new genoa,, lazy jacks, dodger...thats going to keep us on the bread line for the next 4 - 5 years right there, I think.

We will look forward to seeing you when y'all finally get here. The Aleenas are currently beating south, approximately abeam St Helens, so you will have to get wriggle on to get here before them!

[delmarrey]

Bout done it all on mine. Sealing the hull/deck joint now but on hold due to the weather (snowing today). Then an arch, paint job, the interior and the electronics. Soon we'll be off into the Pacific.

It's been a long hall but it'll been worth it, not only at half the price but knowing every little bit about the vessel, no surprises at sea.

.

[Weyalan]

She is a beauty, right enough. You should be justifiably proud!

[Jim Cate]

Originally Posted by delmarrey

Bout done it all on mine. Sealing the hull/deck joint now but on hold due to the weather (snowing today). Then an arch, paint job, the interior and the electronics. Soon we'll be off into the Pacific.

It's been a long hall but it'll been worth it, not only at half the price but knowing every little bit about the vessel, no surprises at sea.

.

Looks really good, Del, and that must have been a job engineering the mount for the Monitor on your transom!

Cheers,

Jim

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

and that must have been a job engineering the mount for the Monitor on your transom!

Cheers,

Jim

Nope! it took a whole a day to mount. Monitor already had the plans for it and had it to me within a 2 weeks.

I've been think of changing the dodger a bit to give it a lower profile, but I'll get my money's worth out of it first.

[Weyalan]

Just out of interest, Del, what are those mushroom shaped things on the deck just outboard of the primary & secondary wiches?

[delmarrey]

Originally Posted by Weyalan

Just out of interest, Del, what are those mushroom shaped things on the deck just outboard of the primary & secondary wiches?

Those are solar powered driveway lights getting a charge. One is for the head and the other three are bundled together for the solon or cockpit. They save on power while on the hook. I hate stumbling around in the dark if I have to get up for some reason.

Sears: Online department store featuring appliances, tools, fitness equipment and more

[Weyalan]

Nothing is easy, is it?

We spent a while on the weekend looking at how we are going to install our new roller furler. The problem is, of course, positoning with respect to the launcing and retreiving of the anchor. On the one hand we could (as many others have done) raise the posoiton of the drum. But on the other hand, this is both (a) ugly (in my opinion) and (b) inefficient. Ideally we want the drum as low as possible to maximise the potential sail area and also to keep the sail's centre of effort as low a spossible.

At this stage it looks as though we will install the drum as low to the deck as possible, then work out how to get the anchor working afterwards, even if this necessitates changes to tha bow roller arrangement.

[daddle]

The anchor does not really have to be near the centerline...

[Weyalan]

Originally Posted by daddle

The anchor does not really have to be near the centerline...

This is, of course, true. But having recently installed a shiny new anchor winch, we can only move the launching position so far without necessitating significant rework of the anchor winch.

[Weyalan]

Which begs the question: might it be worth considering building on a short fixed bowsprit? This would (a) allow the bow roller to be moved forward, clear of the furler drum and also (b) facillitate use of asymmetric spinnakers... damn, now theres a Pandora's Box right there!

[hoppy]

Originally Posted by Weyalan

Which begs the question: might it be worth considering building on a short fixed bowsprit? This would (a) allow the bow roller to be moved forward, clear of the furler drum and also (b) facillitate use of asymmetric spinnakers... damn, now theres a Pandora's Box right there!

If you want to head that way, check these out. With the strength of the Aussie dollar these may not be so expensive now

Photo Gallery

Product Catalog

Batsystem

[Weyalan]

Originally Posted by hoppy

If you want to head that way, check these out. With the strength of the Aussie dollar these may not be so expensive now.

Thanks for the link, hoppy. Food for thought, for sure.

It seems like you Swedes know how to make good boat gear... the last 2 major purchases for Insatiable have been Swedish... Selden Furlex headsail furler and Flexofold propeller... keep up the good work!

[dennisail]

Hey Weyalan. You said the new prop made a big difference to powering. Can you give a few more tech details on that, like what RPM and speeds you were getting with the old and new prop, and the pitches and size of the 2 props?