St. Francis 50: "Wayfinder"

[Hugh Howey]

Originally Posted by flyingboat

The freezer normally used is "Minus 40" which is normally used in off grid and 4X4 applications. These are normally very reliable and reasonably efficient too.

"Marine" spec is normally overrated and overpriced in my experience.

Graham

Hey Graham, thanks for chiming in. How is your boat coming along?


As for questions on loading, we were working on the new davit system until late last night. Should have it mounted and tested this week (we hope). It's either a great idea or a really awful idea. The suspense is killing me.

One thing that really worked out well is the speaker arrangement and the sound system. I can't imagine spending money on a boat like this and skimping on the music. We installed two extra Fusion amps, for a total of 4 sound zones, and the entire boat is full of music. One zone each in the forward staterooms, a zone in the saloon, and a zone in the cockpit. When it's all on and balanced, it is simply jaw-dropping.

So much coming together with the boat right now. This week is going to be an exciting one. The wiring is going in, the plumbing is just about done, only a few more touches to finish off the furniture. Major things left are:

- Rest of the electrical (including distribution boards)
- Mount the solar panels and GPS/WiFi antennas
- Get the genset in
- Get ceiling panels up and overhead lights in
- Finish the cushions (just the cockpit cushions left to do)
- Minor nicks and dings to repair
- Step mast and rig lines
- Aft deck and davit system
- Underwater lights to install
- Get the fridge in and frame out the microwave
- Flatten the stripes painted on the hull and polish the hull
- Load the rode and anchor
- Fit two windows in the saloon and the 4 in the hard dodger
- Mount the props / zincs

The rest is minor stuff. Lots of testing to do, but that'll get done in the water.

[2Hulls]

Originally Posted by Hugh Howey

- Underwater lights to install

You do understand, don't you, that by international convention, illuminating underwater lights on a sailing vessel in any anchorage with other sailing vessels present, indicates that all within sight are invited aboard and YOU provide the libations? Thanks in advance.

Dave

[flyingboat]

Originally Posted by Heath68

Hi Graham,

I'm just checking as it didn't look like a typo.. did you have an 800KG boat on the back of your cat? That seems like a heck of a lot, what type and size cat was it?

Heath

Hi Heath

Delivering a St Francis 50, the factory had us take one of their "Funboats" to the Bahamas (seephotos in my previous post) If memory serves me correctly, the all up weight including the 60hp 4 stroke was 870kg. It did hurt the boat's speed somewhat, but otherwise no issues.

The sad part of it is that I have seen other SF 50's so loaded they were actually as deep in the water astern with a "normal" dingy!

Best

Graham

[edhargre]

Hugh-
first of all, I wanted to show you my appreciation for what you are posting here..
Do you think the weaker ZAR will make the St Francis cheaper in USD terms?

[Brian Pokosh]

Originally Posted by edhargre

Hugh-
first of all, I wanted to show you my appreciation for what you are posting here..
Do you think the weaker ZAR will make the St Francis cheaper in USD terms?

I'm told the price is creeping up in ZAR and remaining stable in USD.

[edhargre]

I see, well, I'm sure some of their cost are USD based but labor, for ex, is certainly not...I guess their profit margin is getting juicier..

[Hugh Howey]

Originally Posted by edhargre

Hugh-
first of all, I wanted to show you my appreciation for what you are posting here..
Do you think the weaker ZAR will make the St Francis cheaper in USD terms?

I think the profit margin might be getting a little better, but not much. There's some savings in labor, but the cost of some USD items has gone up (some materials and some of the equipment).

What's really crazy about the SF 50 is looking at the boat you're getting for less than you might pay for an Antares 44i. And the SF 50 is a whole lot more boat than the Antares. And is faster. With more room. And holds a bigger dinghy. But costs less.

Not to knock the Antares, which I'd be thrilled to own and live on, but when you shop around, the SF 50 stands out not just for being one of the best cruising cats built today, but an outstanding value.

[Tory Salvia]

Check out this video about installation of lithium batteries and a Master Volt system aboard Suliere, a St. Francis 50.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I4X8tACugcE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h2HtZQAkzxM

Check out Suliere documentaries at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/sulierethecrossing

[Rugger]

The batteries in the "Suliere needs power" video are the LiPO batteries i was referring to in my earlier posts.

Very expensive but very enticing.

[Hugh Howey]

Originally Posted by Rugger

The batteries in the "Suliere needs power" video are the LiPO batteries i was referring to in my earlier posts.

Very expensive but very enticing.

Same batteries and system going into Wayfinder.

[OceanPlanet]

The Suliere batteries are Genasun, not Mastervolt...

[Hugh Howey]

Some pictures of the boat from this week, plus a look at what life is like in St. Francis Bay while they're finishing up the build.

The Wayfinder Build: Part 11 - The Home Stretch - The Wayfinder - Hugh C. Howey

Got some more updates coming, including a look at the music system, which is AMAZING.

[monte]

Haha Hugh; you have mentioned the Music system a few times! It must be good !!
Like a kid in a candy shop hey, or more like the week before xmas..
Enjoy!

[gixxxer]

What kind of price tag you are looking at the end?

I had the assumption that St Francis is close to a million but on one post here some said that it's cheaper than Antares.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

[Hugh Howey]

Originally Posted by gixxxer

What kind of price tag you are looking at the end?

I had the assumption that St Francis is close to a million but on one post here some said that it's cheaper than Antares.


Sent from my iPhone using Cruisers Sailing Forum

The Antares is just under a million, right? My boat won't be that much. I'm getting a lot of options, but the base price is much lower. I think the Antares is a fine boat, but I feel like it's overpriced for what you're getting. They just do a good job of scaring you out of galley up and hydraulic steering and other things that aren't as bad as they make them out to be (in fact, are often better than the alternatives).