Manitu's project: Finessa 33

[manitu]

Thanks for all the support , barnakiel , your posts have helped a lot.

I've accepted my fate as a refugee in sweeden for the winter.
I think this is one of the best places to get my boat outfitted for some serious sailing next year.

The girl I had as crew has gone home for the winter to work but she might come back come spring, to sail some more.

It is time to sum up my experiences and lessons learned this fall.

First of all , my big plan to have a electric engine installed won't happen..
I've seen how easy it is to get water into the boat , and neither a electric engine , nor Lithium is wery fond of water to say the least, especially not the salty kind.
Another thing I've learned is that a outboard engine is next to useless on the open water , specially on a boat designed like mine , with a large overhang astern.
The old inboard engine is a Marna 10a, and its the same engine as the Volvo penta MB10A. I've allready made a deal to install a Volvo Penta MD6B og MD7B Diesel engine , wich actually fits right on the existing motor mounts and propeller axle wich is still mounted in the boat. Man , Im glad I did'nt remove the engine and axle this summer when I was thinking about it. The engine will also give me hot water an suffient charging power.

Batteries.. If I had made the lithium battery system wich I planned , We would have had a unstoppable fire on top of all the other problems we had on our last sail. I will still make emergency powerpacks of lithium 16650 cells, but not mounted below the waterline , hell, not even below the deck level.

Furling mainsail.. I need a furler to sail solo. Now that it seems like I've lost my old genua , I'll get a drifter instead for those light wind days, and a bit smaller genua on furler. I still got the yankee , and I'll keep it for now. New loose footed mainsail is still a priority.

Navigation.. I'll continue to tune the OpenCPN computer , and maybe one day I'll trust it to guide me , but for now I'ts a geonav 11 flash with navionics Gold maps wich is my main map source (+ the mandatory paper charts offcourse)
I've installed a 100mm compensated magnetic compass, and a fluxgate compass for the plotter would be nice if I find a bargain, but not a priority.

NMEA echo sounder is my next investment , after the diesel engine and Gold charts for europe.

So it looks like it will be some time before I can finish the interior of the boat. I'll finish isulating the hull right away , just the bow cabin left anyway.

So I can't see that ther will be time to get bored this winter.. plenty of time to be broke though..

Work in Sweeden.. I don't know.. First I'll have to get a bit better after the MC crash, and the salaries are lower in Sweeden than Norway. would have to work close to full time to get better paid than the sick-pay I got now.

Well that's the technical stuff so far..

.manitu, In swedish exile.

[barnakiel]

I bet Sweden to a Norwegian must be like Canary Islands to a German ;-) nearly too hot ;-)))))

Look, we have an MD7A here (converted to fresh water though). Great engine and I would happily buy a new one, if they still made them ... my advice is fix yours up very well prior to departure - older VP parts are both harder to get and also extremely dear at times. Goteborg is the home of VP though.

On our engine we have replaced the exhaust elbow (do check yours for internal carbon build-up and corrosion). If you notice any compression issues, maybe you can still get some rings and pistons. These engines have no cylinder jackets so if they run out of compression the block has to be re-bored (whatever the spelling) - this can be easily done in Sweden but is next to impossible once you leave the Northern countries of Europe.

Bueno. Have fun, stay cool and keep warm, enjoy Goteborg and let us know how it is all going.

Regards,
barnakiel

[roverhi]

If you want engine heated hot water, you'll need to have an engine that's freshwater cooled. Salt water engines have to run at a very cool temperature to keep salt from crystalizing in the cooling passageways. That usually means not hot enough to make hot water. My raw water cooled MD2b would only heat the water to a few degrees above ambient. Virtually worthless for a shower. Used one of those black shower bags if I wanted a hot shower. The freshwater cooled Yanmar in my current boat makes scalding hot water after a very short run time.l

[manitu]

The Motor I'm getting is from a technical workshop , it is checked thorougly , new exhaust bend, new piston rings and new crankshaft seals. and ofcourse mine will be freshwater cooled.

The difference between 6A and 6B is that 6A has a dynastarter ,while 6B has separate starter and dynamo. Both are 10 hp/2400rpm ON THE PROPELLER, not on the crankshaft.

7A/B is an newer version of the same engine with bigger bore 7A=13,4hp/2600rpm, 7B=17,5hp/3000rpm , all measured on the propeller.

A fun detail is that all of theses engines share the same serial number serie,
0-8000=6A, 8000-10975=6B, 10795-32549=7A and 32550 and on is a 7B

They are actually not volvo egines at all, but based on the Albin X-2 engine wich volvo bought all rights for in 1971
Here in sweden there are lot of workshops specializing in these engines , and some parts are still made new.

Rings , pistons , seals , exhaust parts , etc are no problem to get hold of here.

Damn , it blows 22m/s here now, I'm glad Im not at sea, but it is hard to get some sleep here now.

Edit: Yeah, yanmar is great engines too , They are pre-chamber diesels , so the are quieter than volvo engines , but uses slightly more diesel per hp, and does not burn as clean. Better quality than newer Volvo engines too,much better engine than the peugot made volvo engines. The MD6/7 is known to be allmost impossible to destroy though , as long as well maintained.

.manitu

[Zindab]

It has always been my opinion where steel touches timber and moisture is involved you get rust.The oak idea is great but I would oversize the holes in the Oak and fill the holes with cavasil and epoxy mix then re-drill the holes to correct size this will stop water getting into your timber and if the rest is sealed well no rusty bolts and no rot one hopes.

[manitu]

Oak?? all oak in the keel mounting is long gone , replaced by polyurethane/polyester sandwich with overbuilt skins. all the rest of the oak goes the same way this winter.

.manitu

[minaret]

Like your new location, Manitu. How's the hound?

[manitu]

Hi Minaret!

Well , I'm not in gotenburg yet, still in tjorn , about one day north of goteborg. I'm mostly finished repairing , but there has been some stormy weather yesterday , and still lots of waves outside the harbour. I'm sailing alone for the moment , and with a outboard engine.. I got lots of time , so I'll wait for flat water , before motoring to goteborg.
I'm using my time working on the boat , and searching for equip on the net.

The dog is just fine , no problems att all after the bath.. she is a bit more cautious when going to and from the boat , so I doubt she'll try the same again.

.manitu

[minaret]

Every sailing dog learns some lessons the hard way sometimes. That way they remember. Chin up and keep at it, sunnier days will come. Some time in the future when you're taking it easy in the islands you'll look back on your time "shipwrecked in Sweden" with nostalgia.

[manitu]

Hi again folks!

I've ben busy lately repairing the boat + a little r&r time to get over the recent happenings, but it's time to post a little again.

After the incident , we were guided into Engeviken harbour , a small private harbour , just north (i know , wrong direction) of Skarhamn , where we started from last.

I've stayed here since then , because this is one nice harbour! "Lollo" , The harbourmaster here is one of the kindest people I've met, Have paid almost nothing here , got 220V and toilet , he actually open'd the showers and the laundry room , just for us , even if the season is long past.

This harbour is aprox. 15 minutes from Skarhamn with the zodiac , wich has been my "car" lately.

Wich leads to the next part of the story.. The other day, I drove the zodiac into town , to the shop. When I arrived at the docks , there were this nice swede , who took the rope and told me that he was in the harbour working on his boat. He asked me how I liked the sailing this late in the season , what kind of boat I had, where I had my boat , and so on.
We walked to his car , on the way to the shop , and said bye.
On the way to the shop , I found him again , stopped by the road , and he continued to as q's. about wich kind of diesel heater I had , and what I would reccomend. What the norwegian buy and sell webpage was named , and such..

I walked to the shop , and back again , and the zodiac is gone!

I panicked, thinking this guy know were I got my boat , and that the harbour is closed for the season , noone at the harbour office.
I called the police told the story, and got the following answer:
"Sorry , but you just have to call tomorrow during office hours to report it!"
I try to explain that I most likely will get robbed in about 20 minutes!
The answer? "Sorry , but we dont have the resources to do these kind of things after 4 o'clock"!! If you ever go to sweden , you'll have to look after your own property...

I called the local cab service , no answer.. Then , I started stopping cars..
The second car I stopped , driven by this dude , Kim , Drove me the 9 miles back to the boat, fast as hell! the boat was untouched. I took the chart plotter inside ,took with me my most prized piece of equip wich I wont mention here, left the dog in the boat , and we drove back.

When we came back to town , he helped me look for the boat for an hour or so, and just before we gave up , we found it at the tip of a pier , at the far end of the harbour. It looks like I didn't tie it properly , but there are some odd details. The petrol tank ventilation is closed and vacuum inside, the oars are hanging in into the water , and I can't find the outboard toolkit. I don't know...

Kim "The Driver"

I'm still not shure what really happened , but I've started to realize that there was more that was damaged in the motorcycle crash than just my balance. I do not think as fast as before , my memory is'nt what it was , and I've lost a bit of my calmness.

Everything has worked out until now , but I realize that I have to take som precautions to stay safe while sailing. I have started to use a notebook, and write notes , while working on the boat and studying sailing and maintenance of the boat.

Luckily , the balance seems to be getting better , and just the realization of my other problems should be a sign of improvement.

.manitu

[manitu]

Back on topic.. Today , a boat arrived in the harbour , wating to get hauled tomorrow.
This boat has a small cheap furler, wich can be founted on my existing headstay in 15 minutes. It has no profile, but has SS roller bearings both at the bottom and top of the stay and I can use my sails as is.

I know, I know.. "it will not be useable for partially furling, It will twist the sail, you will need a foam luff" , and so on.
The boat owner is actually the guy who makes these , he has just bought the patent and tradename. He claims that it is useable for partially furling but I got my doubts. But still.. it costs 600$ and I can mount it tomorrow , before singlehanding to goteborg. I'm tempted to test it out,

.manitu

[roverhi]

Without a foil that that is attached to the furler section and runs to the top of the stay, the sail will only furl, not reef. Without the foil, the bottom of the sail will wrap tighter and the top looser (less wraps/revolutions}. If it isn't set up like all the other reefing furlers on the market with a foil, I'd pass on it.

Dinghies have a strange ability to go walkabout. We had ours take off on its own twice while we were cruising. Fortunately had a second dinghy and rowed downwind till we found it. We had about a 15' length of 7x7 SS wire nico pressed to the dinghy and started locking it up. Not because we were afraid of theft but the dinghies amazing ability to untie the painter. The wire wouldn't stop a serious thief with a bolt cutter but would the kid looking for a joyride on impulse.

[barnakiel]

You can get a proper Plastimo furler at about the same price. We have the 6XX model works fine for us. When we get a new one I want the 8xx one (it is slightly stronger and accepts thicker furling line).

BTW great reading your updates every time!

Hugs,
barnakiel

[manitu]

I've been offered a Facnor furler from a Hanse Yachts 312 at a good price.
Only problem is that this one has been on a 6mm forestay , while my headstay is 7mm. Does anybody know what model number wich is used on the Hanse 312??

I checked the homepage , and I can use a bigger profile , if this is to narrow to fit over my 34mm eyelets. should be possible to sell the profile wich I get with the furler.

What do you guys think?

.manitu

[barnakiel]

34 mm eylets? what are the eylets? wire terminals?

The lower terminal should be of a stalok type then you can use the upper one of any design you like, feed the wire thru the foil, then lock the lower terminal. When replacing an existing wire it is most practical to feed the new one in by taping the two together then using the old one to feed the new one in.

I am not sure all furlers are the same, but this is how it works with ours.

Facnor are fine and simple units. If yours is sound, it can be a good buy.

b.