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BRITAIN’S BEST-SELLING BOATING MAGAZINE NO. 667 SUMMER 2021 £4.85

DIY engine health check

GEAR · PROJECTS · SEAMANSHIP · CRUISING · DIY

Simple ways to keep it ticking over

Ultimate guide to seabirds How to rescue a small boat

ELECTRIC INBOARDS Time to convert?

We ask 3 boat owners

Fast track to RYA Yachtmaster Qualified in 5 months

‘Proper’ powerboat

Nimbus 320C tested

Practical cruisers 7 great German yachts

BAVARIA, HANSE, DEHLER...

20 PAGES INSIDE

HOW TO...

a new tank gauge Charge lithium batteries Restoring a clinker hull Fit CO detectors ‘I owned a Combat condensation mahogany Replace a toerail colander’

PLUS

Amazing ...& MORE adventures

Baltic odyssey in a 12ft dinghy Fleeing a volcanic eruption Calamitous Channel crossing

Contents

Welcome to the Summer 2021 issue

BRITAIN’S BEST-SELLING BOATING MAGAZINE NO. 667 SUMMER 2021 £4.85

DIY engine health check

GEAR · PROJECTS · SEAMANSHIP · CRUISING · DIY

Simple ways to keep it ticking over

Ultimate guide to seabirds How to rescue a small boat

Fast track to RYA Yachtmaster Qualified in 5 months

ELECTRIC INBOARDS Time to convert?

We ask 3 boat owners

‘Proper’ powerboat

Nimbus 320C tested

Practical cruisers 7 great German yachts

BAVARIA, HANSE, DEHLER...

20 PAGES INSIDE

HOW TO...

w tank gauge Charge lithium batteries R Fit CO detectors owned a Combat condensation ‘I mahogany Replace a toerail colander’

PLUS

Amazing ...& MORE adventures

Baltic odyssey in a 12ft dinghy Fleeing a volcanic eruption Calamitous Channel crossing ISSUE 667

£4.85

Cover: Westerly Oceanranger Shiatsu enjoying a pleasant sail in the sunshine.

Photo by David Harding

submiN

When it’s time to switch from sail to power... page 28

REGULARS

PRACTICAL

BOATS,CRUISING &SEAMANSHIP

22 Practicalcruisers

7 German yachts that make great second-hand buys

28 A‘proper’powerboat

Giving up sail for power? The Nimbus 320C is a popular option

Cruising the Baltic in a dinghy – page 40

32 Ultimateguidetoseabirds Know your gannets from your gulls 5 Waitingforthetide and your petrels from your fulmars 6 News 10Regionalnews MO SAVE 36 Fleeingavolcaniceruption A cruising family escape an ash AND cloud in the Grenadines 12Readers’letters SUBSNEY CR E! Great offerIB with 40Balticodysseyinadinghy 16DaveSelby FREE LIFECOR D A father and son camp out under the 18SamLlewellyn GIFT page 21 stars on an historic German waterway 20MarsaliTaylor 46Electricinboards Is it time to convert to green power?

50NewGear We quiz four owners who have done just that 76Practicalprojects 78Asktheexperts 68 CalamitousChannel crossing 90 Sketchbook Concussion, ghostly apparitions and desertion during a tiring voyage

repaeL eveiveneG

Practical Boat Owner • www.pbo.co.uk

A step by step health check to keep your diesel engine running sweetly

56 Replaceatoerail

Restorers of a classic Atalanta show how to steam bend a new toerail

58 Restoreaclinkerhull Tips, trials and tribulations learned from restoring a wooden gaffer over a four year period

72 Fasttrackto RYAYachtmaster

64Fitanewtankgauge

80Upacreek...

83 DIYbatteryalarm

How lockdown helped one keen sailor to achieve his dream

Your ultimate guide to British seabirds – page 32

52 Enginehealth

How an engine fault, lack of wind and a falling tide led to an embarrassing call to the coastguard

Measuring your boat’s water capacity is essential for any cruiser

How to design and build a low voltage battery alarm

3

EDITORIAL

Future PLC 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP Editorial Tel: 0330 390 6467 Email pbo@futurenet.com Editor Rob Melotti robert.melotti@futurenet.com Features Editor Alison Wood alison.wood@futurenet.com News Editor Laura Hodgetts laura.hodgetts@futurenet.com Art Editor Robert Owen Deputy Art Editor Daniel Franklin Production Editor Julian Peckham Group Art Editor Neil Singleton Head of Art Kevin Eason Contributors Willem Bijl, Bob Connell, Peter Crouch, Rupert Holmes, Roger Hughes, Sam Griffiths, Simon James, Jake Kavanagh, Kia Korropp, Genevieve Leaper, Max Liberson, Josh Lindley, Greg Manning, Gilbert Park, Peter Poland, Clive Robertson Photography All copyrights and trademarks are recognised and respected Advertising Media packs are available on request Advertising Director Sasha McGregor 07917 769177 sasha.mcgregor@futurenet.com Commercial Partnerships Director Duncan Wilde 07767 873080 duncan.wilde@futurenet.com Account Manager Chelsea Speakman 07432 609945 chelsea.speakman@futurenet.com Ad Production Coordinator Peter Burton 07531 46623 peter.burton@futurenet.com International editions Practical Boat Owner is available for licensing. Contact the Licensing team to discuss partnership opportunities.

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ISSN 0032-6348 We are committed to only using magazine paper which is derived from responsibly managed, certified forestry and chlorine-free manufacture.

The paper in this magazine was sourced and produced from sustainable managed forests, conforming to strict environmental and socioeconomic standards. The manufacturing paper mill holds full FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification and accreditation All contents © 2020 Future Publishing Limited or published under licence. All rights reserved. No part of this magazine may be used, stored, transmitted or reproduced in any way without the prior written permission of the publisher. Future Publishing Limited (company number 2008885) is registered in England and Wales. Registered office: Quay House, The Ambury, Bath BA1 1UA. All information contained in this publication is for information only and is, as far as we are aware, correct at the time of going to press. Future cannot accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in such information. You are advised to contact manufacturers and retailers directly with regard to the price of products/services referred to in this publication. Apps and websites mentioned in this publication are not under our control. We are not responsible for their contents or any other changes or updates to them. This magazine is fully independent and not affiliated in any way with the companies mentioned herein.

If you submit material to us, you warrant that you own the material and/ or have the necessary rights/permissions to supply the material and you automatically grant Future and its licensees a licence to publish your submission in whole or in part in any/all issues and/or editions of publications, in any format published worldwide and on associated websites, social media channels and associated products. Any material you submit is sent at your own risk and, although every care is taken, neither Future nor its employees, agents, subcontractors or licensees shall be liable for loss or damage. We assume all unsolicited material is for publication unless otherwise stated, and reserve the right to edit, amend, adapt all submissions.

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Chief executive Zillah Byng-Thorne Non-executive chairman Richard Huntingford Chief financial officer Rachel Addison

Waiting for the tide

G

with the editor

To receive the editor’s monthly email newsletter, go to our website: www.pbo.co.uk

DIY boatbuilding reat news from regular contributor Nic Compton this month. Regular readers will remember that Nic set up a Facebook Group for DIY builders of the Western Skiff – the 14ft Nigel Irens/Ed Burnettdesigned rowing and sailing skiff for which the plans are available via PBO for a small donation to the Ed Burnett memorial collection on justgiving.com There are two options for building: order pre-cut parts from Jordan Boats, or download the fullsize plans and cut your own parts by hand. According to Nic, both options have appealed to readers.

“Chris Hackshall started building his kit in October 2019. His only previous

experience was building a 12ft Thames skiff designed by Selway Fisher for some friends in Cornwall,” says Nic. “He chose the Western Skiff for his second build partly because its narrower beam allowed him to get it in and out of his garage, but also just because he thought it was’ a cool-looking boat’.”

Chris launched the finished skiff in April 2021 and named it Lottie P after his daughter.

Meanwhile, over in Schipluiden, near Rotterdam in Holland, Jelle Joustra used the free plans to build a cardboard model by printing the templates onto A4 paper which he stuck onto a sheet of cardboard.

“Building the model taught me a lot,” he says. “It gives you an idea of how everything fits together and where the tricky bits are.” n pbo.co.uk/western_skiff Rob Melotti

PBO reader Jelle Joustra made a cardboard model of the Western Skiff before starting to build in his back garden. Meanwhile Lottie P (inset) has been launched We work hard to achieve the highest standards of editorial content and are committed to complying with the Editors’ Code of Practice (https://www.ipso.co.uk/IPSO/cop.html) as enforced by IPSO. If you have a complaint about our editorial content, please contact the editor.

Practical Boat Owner (incorporating The Yachtsman, Yachtsman & Boat, Helmsman, Practical Boating, Yachting & Boating Weekly, Yacht & Boat Owner, Boat and Yachts & Equipment) is published monthly (13issues pa) FuturePublishing, 161 Marsh Wall, London, England E14 9AP. Published every fourth Thursday. One year (13 issues) subscription rates: check the subscription page or www.pbo.co.uk for our latest offer. Airfreight and mailing in the USA by our mailing agent Air Business Ltd, c/o Worldnet Shipping Inc., 156-15, 146th Avenue, 2nd Floor, Jamaica, NY 11434, USA. Periodicals postage paid at Jamaica NY 11431. US Postmaster: Send address changes to Practical Boat Owner, Air Business Ltd, c/o Worldnet Shipping Inc. Subscription records are maintained at TI Media Limited, 161 Marsh Wall, London, England E14 9AP. Distributed by: Marketforce (UK) Ltd, 5 Churchill Place, London E14.

PBO is also available on these digital platforms

Tel +44 (0)1225 442 244

Practical Boat Owner • www.pbo.co.uk

5

News

SEND US YOUR STORIES

Email news editor Laura Hodgetts at pbo@futurenet.com, tel: 0330 390 6738

News and current affairs from the world of boating

Inspirational Olle sets sail on a round-Britain circumnavigation

6

yhpargotohPtsaoCtsaE

AnIpswichsailorhasbeguna circumnavigationofGreat Britainwiththeadditional passageplanningchallenge ofongoingcancertreatment.

OlleNash,63,setsailaboard Renegade,a1989Moody376 fromFox’sMarinaon23May, andisdeterminedtosail aroundEngland,Walesand Scotland,despitebeingon chemotherapyforbowel cancer.Thefather-of-threeis permanentlydependentona colostomybag,whichhis familyhavenicknamedBoris.

“CircumnavigatingGreat Britainmightnotbemuchofa challengetomostsailorsbut whenyou’vegotcancerand youneedtocontinueyour chemotherapyand radiotherapyenrouteit’sa massivechallenge”,saidOlle, “Itwillbeaseriesofdaysailing tripsandI’vegotareallygood supportgroupoffriendsand familytohelpmegetaround.”

TheGulfWarveteran’s anticlockwiseroutewillfeature ‘twocheekyshortcuts’ throughLochNessandthe CaledonianCanal.The schedulewillworkaroundhis radiotherapytreatment,along withtides,weatherandcrew availability,buthehopesto returntoIpswichinSeptember.

Olle,whohadlongdreamed oftakingtotheseascome retirement,wasanITsecurity manageruntilhisworkinglife wasbroughttoanabrupthalt in2018byadiagnosisof extramammaryPaget’s disease,whichrequiredan operationtoremovepartofhis largeintestine.Thesurgery, however,revealedfurther problemsthathavelefthim needingchemotherapyevery fortnightfortherestofhislife.

Theblowfollowedtheloss ofhisdaughterToni,whodied ofpancreaticcancerin2017,

ABOVE Olle aboard Renegade LEFT Departing Fox’s Marina, Ipswich, bound for Lowestoft BELOW Olle with his daughter Toni on her wedding day, she was being treated for pancreatic cancer at the time

butOllefeltsafeinthe knowledgethattheMacmillan professionalswhohad supportedherwouldalsobe thereforhim.Headded:“I didn’task‘whatdoesthis meanformylife?’Ijustwanted togetonwithit,butIdidthink thatperhapsIwouldn’talways beasfitasIamnow,soif therewerethingsIwantedto do,Ishoulddothem.”

OllemustreturntoIpswich threeweeksintohisvoyageto undergoafive-weekcycleof intensiveradiotherapy

treatment.Buthehas receivedapproval fromhisoncologist tosubstitute intravenouschemotherapy treatmentfortablet-based medication,whichhecan self-administertoavoid numeroustripstoIpswich. Olle,whowasjoinedonthe firstlegbyson-in-lawJohn andfriendsAlanandNick, wasdelightedtoreceivea videomessageofsupport fromyachtswomanTracy Edwards:“Thereisthe

possibilityIcanmeetupwith herandMaiden astheyalso plantocircumnavigateGreat Britain.Iwascompletely blownawaytohavesomeone sofamouscontactme.”

HelpOlleraise£10,000for MacmillanCancerSupportat: justgiving.com/fundraising/ olle-nash Followhisjourneyat: sailingwithcancer.co.uk

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

NEWS

Bangor Marina, NI

NI red diesel ban reprieve

TheUKGovernmenthas delayedimplementing thereddieselbanfor privatepleasurecraftin NorthernIrelandby threemonths.Itfollows lobbyingeffortsby BangorMarinaand othersintheNIleisure boatingindustrywho emphasisedthelackof whitedieseloptionsin theregion.Thenew dateofimplementation is1October2021,with moredetailedguidance expectedinJuly.

ABOVE Dan Monk skippering for the Trust in RTIR 2015 RIGHT Dan Monk with Ellen MacArthur in 2005

thedockafterfinishing,and everyonewasabsolutely stoked.Itwasareally specialfeeling.”

DanMonk,whowas diagnosedwithacutemyeloid leukaemiaaged15in2002, said:“Ihonestlybelievesailing andtheRoundtheIslandRace savedmylife.Twodaysbefore IwasduetosailwiththeTrust inthe2005race,IdiscoveredI hadrelapsedandneededa bonemarrowtransplant.When Iwasinhospitalthethoughtof beingbacksailinginthenext year’sracewaswhatkeptme

going.Tothenbeskippering fortheTrustintheraceexactly 10yearsaftermyrelapsemade itaveryemotionaldayforme.” n justgiving.com/campaign/ RoundTheIsland2021

Simplified cruising yacht administration is already underway for Le Havre in Normandy and other ports will follow on rapidly

marinasandofficials,the Frenchgovernmenthas announcedaprocesstoallow entryatanyFrenchport. Aformcanbedownloaded fromhttp://bit.ly/immigration-

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

form,completedandemailed tothelocaladministrativePort ofEntrypriortoarrival. Providingallisacceptable, boatsmaythenenteranother port.

The RYA’s ICC certificate

RYA’s ICC reinstated in Spain

ymalA/kcotSrepuS/serutneVBGR

New process to allow entry to UK cruisers at any French port

TheCruisingAssociation(CA), throughitslocalrepresentatives, hashelpedtomakecruisingto Franceeasier,post-Brexit.

SinceleavingtheEU,boats arrivinginFrancefromtheUK orChannelIslandsarerequired tosailto‘PortsofEntry’–mainly ferryports–andsearchoutthe relevantauthorities,usuallythe PoliceauxFrontières,toregister theboatandcrew’sarrival.

Thissameprocesswould alsobenecessarybefore departingFrancefortheUKor ChannelIslands,presenting sailorswithapotentialproblem formanypassages.Now,asa directresultoftwoCruising Associationmembers’tireless effortsworkingwithlocal

AYR

DameEllenMacArthuris callingonRoundtheIsland Race(RTIR)sailorstoinspire youngpeopletobelieveina brighterfuturelivingthrough andbeyondcancerbyraising £90inhonouroftheevent’s 90thanniversary. The‘raceforall’,runbyIsland SailingClub,willseeyachtsof allsizescompetingaroundthe IsleofWighton3July.

Sincebecomingtheofficial racecharityin2005,some £299,266hasbeenraisedfor theEllenMacArthurCancer Trust,makingahugedifference tohundredsofyounglives.

Youngpeopleneedsupport morethaneverasCOVID-19 hasamplifiedtheisolation, lonelinessandanxietythey haveexperienced.TheTrust willbesupportingthem in-personthissummer,on regionaldaysailsandfive-day cruisingandresidentialtrips.

DameEllensaid:“Roundthe IslandRacehavebeen incredibleTrustsupporters overthepast16yearsandI havesomanygreatmemories fromtheraceandthecrewsof youngpeoplewhohavesailed withusinitovertheyears. “Myfavouriterecollectionwas finishingtheraceafterquitea windyone.Weallmetupon

ymalA/srevliSyerffeJ

Round the Island’s ‘90 in 90’ call

TheRoyalYachting Association(RYA)has receivedconfirmationits InternationalCertificates ofCompetence(ICC) andothercertifications remainvalidfor skipperingSpanishflaggedboats. Itfollows‘persistent’ consultationsthrough theUKGovernmentwith Spain’sGeneral DirectorateforMerchant Marine.TheRYAraised concernswhenit becamecleartheUK’s new‘third-countrystatus’ meanttheSpanish Governmentwouldno longerrecogniseRYA certificates.Following reinstatementinto Spanishlaw,RYA certificateholderscan continuetoskipper boatsregisteredin SpainandintheUK.

7

NEWS

Fair winds to PBO friend John Goode Tributes have been paid to sailor, instructor, long-time contributor and friend to PBO John Goode, who has died after a short illness.

John, 71, trained thousands of sailors through his Southampton-based sailing school and taught many more through his books and articles on seamanship and pilotage.

PBO’s former deputy editor Dick Everitt said: “John Goode was a rough diamond, his tough exterior was honed by many years in the Merchant Navy. But he could also be very kind, with endless patience for students. On leaving the Navy he set up a company installing motorway crash barriers, which taught him to be a canny businessman, and gave him enough cash to take over the

John Goode was ‘a laugh a minute and will be greatly missed by many’ – says PBO’s Peter Poland

Southern Sailing School. There John developed loads of simple teaching methods, which tied in beautifully with PBO’s thinking.”

John edited Sailing Today from 2001-2007 and went on to write for many other titles. He was a senior RYA examiner, a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation and a consultant to various marine bodies.

PBO contributor Peter Poland

said: “John was a long-standing best friend. He even launched me on my freelance scribbling career back around 2003 after I had sold Hunter Boats Ltd. “John was a laugh a minute and will be greatly missed by many. In the days when I used to roll my own, an illicit smoke with John and his pipe was a highlight of the London boat show.”

Armchair powerboat adventure

Pioneering disabled yachtsman Geoff Holt, founder of the Wetwheels charity, has launched a video adventure to bring the exhilaration of a boating to people’s homes.

The Wetwheels’ immersive video aims to give young disabled people, particularly those isolated while shielding during the pandemic, a seafaring experience via virtual reality headsets. It will also be made available on YouTube.

The high-definition film, produced by Soundview Media, has 360° boat and sea views.

Geoff was paralysed in a swimming accident in 1984

from Hampshire, Kent, Cornwall, Yorkshire and Jersey, enables disabled people to access the sea aboard fully-accessible powerboats.

Geoff said: “There is something very special about being on the water. For Geoff Holt and students at someone with a disability, Treloar College, Hampshire, being at sea offers unparalleled at the launch event freedoms. Your mind and imagination fill with things that and uses a wheelchair. In 2007, once didn’t seem possible. he became the first disabled “The VR version of this film is person to sail single-handed important because it opens up around Great Britain, and in the on-water opportunity to 2009 he sailed unassisted anyone anywhere in the across the Atlantic Ocean. country, not just those who are Wetwheels, which operates able to go out on the water.”

Seadogz report warning

In the wake of a fatal crash on Southampton Water, UK operators of small commercial high-speed craft such as Rigid Inflatable Boats (RIBs) are being urged to abide by their industry’s voluntary code of conduct when carrying passengers.

Fifteen-year-old Emily Lewis sustained fatal internal injuries, and 10 out of the 11 passengers were injured, when the RIB Seadogz collided with the north-west Netley buoy in August 2020: “Because the RIB’s skipper was concentrating on conducting high-speed manoeuvres in close proximity to another vessel and did not see the fixed navigational in time to take avoiding action.”

The Marine Accident Investigation Branch’s (MAIB) interim report into the investigation is at: bit.ly/seadogz

Sister vessel Jack Black – illustrating a similar seating arrangement to Seadogz

The

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Practical Boat Owner • www.pbo.co.uk

Visas and Schengen interaction

DIARY DATES

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SailorsintheUKconcerned abouthowthe‘Schengen shuffle’willimpacttheir Europeancruisingplansare beingassuredbytheCruising Association(CA)thatdays spentinanEUcountrywitha visaorresidencepermit,donot countasdaysspentinthe Schengenzone.

NowthatBritainisoutofthe EU,Britishcitizenscanonlyvisit the27SchengenAreaMember StateswithintheEU–suchas Denmark,Germany,Greece, Iceland,Norway,Poland,the Netherlands,Portugaland Spain–for90daysinevery 180-dayperiod.Howeverthe EUhasnowconfirmedtothe CAthatdaysspentinanEU

Find detailed information at www.theca.org.uk/180-day-campaign

countrywithavisaorresidence permitgrantedbythatcountry donotcountatallinthe Schengen90/180calculation.

CurrentlySwedenandFrance

aretheonlySchengen countrieswithcruising groundsthatoffer180-day visasorresidencepermits toUKcitizens.

Conviction for trading illegal teak

CampaignsLeaderforthe EnvironmentalInvestigation Agency(EIA),said:“The court’ssentencingiswelcome andthetimingsignificant. Sincethemilitarycoupon1 February2021,wehavebeen urgingtheinternational The seized teak in the communitytorespondby Netherlands sanctioningtheexportof Bührich,givena21-month Myanmartimbertoitsmarkets. suspendedprisonsentence “Profitsfromtimberexports and€r200,000fine–oneofthe benefitthemilitaryjuntaand largestpenaltieseverimposed thecriminalsyndicates onatimbertraderintheEU. operatinginanevenmore FaithDoherty,theForests brutalandchaoticMyanmar.”

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AGermancompanyhasbeen convictedandfinedforevading sanctionsontimberimported fromMyanmar.

TheRegionalCourtin HamburgfoundWOBTimber hadevadedtheEUsanctions on31separateshipmentsof timberworthmillionsofeuros from2008-11,whenthe previousmilitaryjunta–the StatePeaceandDevelopment Council–wassanctionedby theEU.On27April,the companywasfined€r3.3million anditsdirector,Stephan

Why are statues wearing lifejackets?

ABOVE LEFT Annie Moore Statue, Cobh, Cork by Marcus Kircher ABOVE RIGHT A Whitby’s Walk with Heritage Project statue

peopledieatthecoastaround theUKandIreland;lastyear, theRNLIlaunched8,000-plus timestothoseinneedofhelp. GarethMorrison,RNLIhead ofwatersafety,said:“Our adviceissimple,alwaysweara

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

lifejacketwhenyou’reonthe water,asaccidentscananddo happentoanyone,regardless ofyourexperienceorability.”

Anewsafetycampaignhas seenlifejacketsappearon statuesacrosstheUK.

sekaOireC

ekruoROkereD

NearlyhalfofUKboatersdon’t wearaPersonalFlotation Device(PFD)whenonthe water,accordingtonew researchfromHellyHansen,a partneroftheRNLI. Mostofthesurvey respondentsconsidered themselvestobeagood exampletootherswhenit comestowatersafety(81.6%), howeveronly56.2%always wearaPFD,andofthosewho donot,justhalf(50.76%)would wearoneinbadweather, 22.84%saidtheydidn’tneedto becausetheycanswim,and onlyathird(29.44%)wearone whensailingalone. Everyyear,around150

n Bangor Town Regatta,24-27June, BelfastLough, NorthernIreland, bangortownregatta.com n Round the Island, 3July,IsleofWight, roundtheisland.org.uk n Cowes Classics Week 2021,3-9July, cowesclassicsweek.org n Classic Channel Regatta,6-14July, DartmouthtoStHelierand Paimpol,www.classicchannel-regatta.eu n British Classic Week, 17-24July,atCowes, britishclassicweek.co.uk n Royal Solent Yacht Club Regatta,16-18July, royalsolent.org n Plymouth SailGP, 17-18July,sailgp.com n Cowes Week, 31July-7August, cowesweek.co.uk n Salcombe Regatta, 1-6August, salcombeyc.org.uk n Whitstable Harbour Day and Boat Show, 7August, whitstablemaritime.org.uk n Falmouth Sailing Week,8-14August, falmouthweek.co.uk n Rolex Fastnet Race, 8August,Cowesto Cherbourg, rolexfastnetrace.com n Torquay Royal Regatta,20-22August, www.rtyc.org n Whitby Regatta, 21-23August, whitbyregatta.co.uk n Dartmouth Royal Regatta,26-28August, dartmouthregatta.co.uk n Southampton Boat Show,10-19September, MayflowerPark, southamptonboatshow. co.uk n Ocean Village Boat Show,10-19September, Southampton, mdlmarinas.co.uk n North Essex boat jumble,19September, HorsleyCross,CO112NU, Tel:07802282193.

Send your diary dates to pbo@futurenet.com, see more online at www.pbo.co.uk/events

9

Regional News

News from your cruising area

Sendusyourlocalnewsstories.EmailPBOnewseditorLauraHodgettsat pbo@futurenet.com,tel:03303906467,orwritetotheaddressonpage5

SOUTH COAST AND CHANNEL ISLANDS

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Popping the question

SincetheDrascombeLugger Scillabubwasdonatedtothe StokeGabrielBoating Associationthreeyearsago (andfeaturedinPBO, December2019),she’s becomeabelovedmemberof theSBGAfleet.However, rooferAlfieDunntookthat affectiontoanewlevelwhen heproposedtohisgirlfriend MelissaJonesonboard.

SGBACommodoreChris Mooretookthecoupleouton atouroftheRiverDartand Alfiewentdownononeknee andofferedMelissaa diamondring.“Itwaseither shesaidyes,”hesays,“orI’d getchuckedintheriver.” Thecouplearegetting marriedinSeptember,witha honeymoonafloat–thistime onacruiseship.

TrinityHouseistoreplacethe ChannelLightvesselwithone ofitslargestSafeWaterMark buoysinmid-August. Thevessel,whichhas markedthewesternendofthe EnglishChannelTraffic SeparationZonesome35 milesnorth-northwestof Guernseysince1979,wasfirst mannedandthenautomated from1989. neeKmadA

LUGGER ROMANCE

FAREWELL ICONIC LIGHTVESSEL

End of an era

BATS APPEAL

TheBlindatSea–BATs– charityinMylor,Cornwallis seekingskipperstodonate theirtimetosailaWesterly Konsortandhelpblindand partially-sightedpeopleto experiencesailing.Contact: 07952710452.

RYA STUDLAND STANCE

TheRoyalYachtingAssociationpositionstatementonthe MarineManagementOrganisation’srestrictedanchoring proposalsforStudlandBay,Dorset,recommends:The establishmentofamooringareathatpreventsdamagetothe seagrass;Plus,theestablishmentofananchoringareawhere recreationaluserscansafelystop:http://bit.ly/RYA_Studland

WEST COAST, WALES AND IRELAND The Grade II-listed slipway, built in 1820, is in a state of disrepair

SAVE OUR SLIPWAY TheRockFerryWaterfront Trust’s‘SaveOurSlipway’ campaignaimstorestoreRock FerrySlipwayontheRiver MerseyatBirkenhead.

FollowingWirralCouncil approvalofTheMerseyCoastal ParkStrategy,RoyalMersey YachtClubmemberssetup theTrustandareseekinggrant

10

fundingandsponsorshipfora restorationprojectthatwill eventuallyencompassthe waterfrontesplanade,acar park,amaritimehubwitha watersportscentre,boatyard andmarina,aresidentialblock ofapartmentsandnewdirect accessofftheA41bypass. rockferrywaterfront.org

VOLUNTEER LIFEBOAT HISTORIAN CALL

PenarthLifeboatStationis searchingforavolunteer historiantoresearchthe storiesbehindthefacilitysince itreopenedin1980.

WhileRNLIPenarth’s19th Centuryhistoryiswell documented,datafromthe past40yearsissadlylacking. RNLI Penarth’s crew in 2018

VISITOR CENTRE MAKEOVER

TheVisitorCentreatTrevor Basin,whichwelcomes touriststotheUNESCO WorldHeritageSiteat PontcysyllteAqueduct,has beengivenamakeoverby volunteersfromtheCanal& RiverTrustinWales. Theawe-inspiringaqueduct Trevor Basin’s visitor centre carriestheLlangollenCanal has been refurbished inside acrosstheRiverDeevalley. and out

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

SCOTLAND

BANFF MARINA CLOSED TO BOATS MARINA CHOCOLATIER egnellahcgniliasretsamruobrah@

COCOChocolatierismoving fromPortobellotoPortEdgar Marinatoinstallanew manufacturingfacilityand visitorcentreina10,000ft2 warehouse.

Openingthissummerat SouthQueensferry,thefactory replacespreviousoccupier Shapes,tositnexttoPort EdgarWatersports,thelargest watersportcentreinScotland.

Local boats are trapped inside the marina

tothewestisverycrowded withoverflowboatsand althoughtheharbourmaster, BertieMilne,isverywelcoming largervesselsmayfindtheir choiceofrefugeharboursin thispartofScotlandlimited. “Peterheadtothesouthissafe butitisnottakinginforeign boatsatthemoment.Further west,thedeepcommercial harbourofBuckieisavery goodoptionwiththeHarbour MasterDarrenBremner extremelywelcoming.”

Plansforthe£150million regenerationofanAyrshire seasidetownhavebeen revealedandincludean extendedmarina.Thelocal authorityhastakenownership ofArdrossan’sHarbourand NorthShoresitefollowingan agreementwithPeelPorts. Proposalsincludeextended marinafacilities,tobebuilt overafivetotenyearperiod.

OYSTERS RESTORED

Restorationeffortstoreturnnative oysterstoUKwatersiscontinuing undermarinapontoonsinScotland. Some1,300nativeoysterswillbe returnedtotheFirthofClydeaspart ofaprojecttobringthese‘ocean superheroes’backfromthebrinkof extinction.TheWildOystersProject partnershipbetweentheZoological SocietyofLondon,BlueMarine FoundationandBritishMarineaimsto restorewaterqualityaroundtheUK.

Oyster nurseries will be suspended underneath pontoons in Largs Yacht Haven and Fairlie Quay Marina

LSZ

BanffMarinaisclosedto visitingboatsandlocalvessels aretrappedinsidethemarina behindalargecofferdamas workisundertakentorepair theendoftheharbourwall.

MarkAshley-Miller,whois undertakingtheround-Britain HarbourMasterSailing Challenge,toldPBO:“Workis estimatedtobefinishedthis AugustbutIthinkthatis optimisticastheythenhaveto dredgetheentrance.Asa consequenceWhitehillsMarina

AMBITIOUS REGENERATION

EAST COAST AND SOUTH-EAST

ALL ABOARD CLUBHOUSE

SussexYachtClubis readytowelcomenew andoldmembersintoits newShorehamvenue.

SYCformedin1892. TheoldBrightonRoad, clubhouse,opensince 1950,istobedemolished tomakewayforriverside flooddefences.Thenew building,furtherback fromtheroad,boasts fullyaccessiblefacilities.

After150years,London’s oldestyachtchandleris closingitsstoreat194 ShaftesburyAvenue.

AnArthurBealespokesman said:‘TheimpactofCOVID-19 meansthecompanycanno longerwarrantpayingtherents thatacentralLondonshop demandssowehaveno choicebuttomoveonto pasturesnew.Theshophasa clearancesalewith20%off everythinguntil24June,sodo

London’s oldest yacht chandler will soon be online only

popinasthereisarealtreasure troveofstockonoffer.Wewere leftinaveryprecariousstate asaresultofthepandemic, butluckilyforuswehave foundtwoenthusiasticnew investorstohelpinjectsome muchneededcapitalbackinto thebusiness.Thismeanswe willbecontinuingtooperate onlineatarthurbeale.co.uk.’

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

ku.oc.tsurtroislecxeeht

ARTHUR BEALE STORE CLOSURE

Interior work at the new clubhouse is complete

EXCELSIOR BOOST

TheExcelsiorTrustin Lowestofthasreceiveda £80,000grantfromthe Government’sCulture RecoveryFund.The77ft Excelsiorsailingtrawler,which reacheditscentenarythis year,ismaintainedbya charitabletrust.Trustchairman JamieCampbellsaid:“This fundingismostwelcomeand comesatatimewhen,along withsomanyothersmall charities,wearefacinghuge uncertaintyofthefuture.”

SUTTON HOO RESURRECTION ASaxonking’sburialship, discoveredafter13centuries undergroundinSuffolk,is beingresurrectedin90ft

replicaform.The£1million projectwillseetheship launchedontheRiverDeben. saxonship.org

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Letters

Emailor write pbo@futurenet.com to us at the address on page 5.

Photos are appreciated, letters may be edited.

Readers share their thoughts and opinions On your uppers

Save our soles

Iwonderifyourreadershave noticedhowtheirdeckshoes becomeslipperyafter spendingawinterinthe cupboard.Ifnotworn regularlythenaturalbrown rubbertypeofsolesdevelop ashiny,hardsurfaceasthey ageandcanbelethalona wetdeck.

Scuffingshinysoleson roughtarmacorhand sandingthemishardwork andproduceslittlebenefit. I’vefoundthebestresultsare achievedwithabeltsander with80-to100-grit.Thetime tostopsandingisthe momentthepowdered rubberstopsflyingoffthe soleexposingnicesoft, grippyvirginrubber.

Thisprocessmightsound

abitharshonyourexpensive deckshoesbutit’snobad ideatoshortenthelifeofour solesifitcouldsaveour souls.

Somewordsofcaution.A beltsandercansandyour skintotheboneinasecond sodon’tholdyourshoe againsttherunningbelt. Securetheshoeupside

Boating archivist wanted

OvertheyearsIhaveacquired boxesandboxesofboatrelatedliteratureinmyjobasa freelancemarinejournalistand photographer.Anopportunity nowexiststotakeonand manageaprojectthatinvolves sortingandstoringitalltohelp preservehistoricalinformation.

Thiswouldbeprincipallyfor posterityratherthanformoney, thoughtheremightbelimited muchthebetter.Please commercialopportunitiestoo. contactenquiries@ Spaceandtimewouldbe sailingscenes.co.uk. essential.Ifyouhavetheability David Harding todigitiseprintedmaterial,so Poole, Dorset

David Harding has a huge collection of archive boating material

12

downinaviceorclampittoa benchandsandtheexposed partofthesolewhileholding yoursanderinbothhandsso there’snopossibilityanypart ofyoucantouchtherunning belt.Otherpoweredsanders couldbesafer,effective alternativesbutmaytakea littlelonger.

Chris Mardon, via email

Manyofus,particularlythose withapracticalbackground, includestitchingleatheras partofropeworkandsail repairinourskillset.

Wouldn’titbegreatifwe couldbuyastitchityourself boatshoekit.Itwouldinclude amachinestitchedupperand anonslipunitsole.The stitchingoftheuppertothe unitsolesisvery straightforwardandsatisfying.

Astheshoesbeginto acquirecharacterwecouldat anytimeunstitchthesoles andstitchonnewones.The pieceknownastheapronof theshoecanalsobestitched onmakingtheshoefully repairableandenablingusto say:‘Actually,Imadethem myself...’.

Nick Rogers

There’s more than one reason for a mainsail to be hard to hoist

Hoisting the main IdidenjoyreadingRupert Holmes’articleonmainsailluff hardwareinPBO’sJulyedition (andonpbo.co.uk).It remindedmeofapuzzling experiencethattookmeyears toresolve.I’dthoughtthe increasingdifficultyIwas havinghoistingmymainsail wasduetoadirtyand/or corrodedmasttracksoIfitted theexcellenttrackandsliders madebyTidesmarine.

Althoughitmadehoisting mucheasiermostofthetimeit wasstilloccasionallyveryhard tohoistmorethanhalfway.

Therewashardlyanyfriction inthetrackasitwasmuch easiertoreefandwould alwaysdroplikeastoneonall pointsofthewind.Sowhythe intermittentlyhardhoist?This red-facedskippersuddenly realisedthatthefrictionwas causedbytheluffreefinglines beingstuffedtidilyawayinthe tightfitbetweenthesailand thecanvassideofthestack pack.Likemostgoodskippers Inowpullthereefinglinesout beforehoisting;problem solved.

Chris Mardon, via email

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Give an inch...

ImustdisagreewithMike

Greenland(‘Measurement Madness’,June2021).

TheUKhasnotbeen exclusively‘metricfor50 years’.Mycardoes40miles pergallon.Isaila21ftboat.I walkhalfamiletoreachit.My newteak-facedmarineplywas 8ftx4ft.Imeasuremydistance sailedinnauticalmiles,the windspeedinknotsandthe compassindegrees.Onmy returnIwilldrinkapintwitha 10inpizzabeforeheading hometowatchmy48inTV. Pleasedon’tbothertoconvert everythingfromtheworld’s othermajormeasurement system.Itdoesusallgoodto learntodothatourselves.

John Taylor, via email

Unhappy electric owner Myexperienceofthe

Torqeedo1003Iboughtis verydifferenttotherosy picturepaintedintheopening paragraphsofyourarticle ‘PoweringAhead’PBOJuly.

Inbrief,itfailedafteronlysix yearsandonlyatenthofthe 2,000chargecyclesquoted. Theonly‘help’fromTorqeedo wasthatIbuyanewbattery (£829.00plusdelivery)or alternativelyanewmotor.

Myadvicetoanyone thinkingofgoingdownthe electricmotorrouteisdon’t. Theyarehugelyexpensive, shortlivedandthereis no-onearoundtohelpwhen theygowrong.

Geoff Kew, via email

One of Escapade’s previous escapades

That’s my boat!

ImaginemysurprisewhenI turnedtoyourarticle ‘Familiaritybreedsa grounding’(June2021)and sawmyBavaria34,Escapade, beachedonagravelbank!

Iwasunawareofherracy pastbutcanconfirmshe survivedunscathedandisin

excellentorder.Webought Escapadein2018andsheisa fantasticboat,comfortable,a joytosailandfairlyquick.We’ll betakingextracarenavigating theSolentthissummer. HopefullyEscapadewon’t sufferthesameindignitytwice!

Neil Gozzard, via email

SEADOG OF THE MONTH IainBirrellsentinthisphotoofseadog Barneythecockapoo,whoalways enjoysspendingtimeaboardhis BeneteauFirst24,currentlyonKielder WaterinNorthumberland.Iainsays: “Barneyhassailedwiththefamilysince hewasapuppy.Helovestokeep watchandhistailneverstopswagging!”

£30

Send us your seadog photos for our web gallery www.pbo. co.uk/seadogs and your pet may become Seadog of the Month and win you £30

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Channel hopping

Essential monthly highlights from the world of online sailing channels with Kass Schmitt

Roll on 2024!

ThenextVendéeGlobewillstarton10November2024,and

manyofthe2020skippersarealreadyhardatworkpreparing forit,includingPipHare,whosesponsorMedalliahassecured Bureau Vallée IIforheruse,afoilerwhichwas3rdthisyear and1stin2016.Therewillbenewfacesin2024,andyoucan betthey’realreadyonYouTube,ifyouknowwheretolook... intheMiniTransat,beforelast yeartradingherClass6.50for aBénéteauFigaro3.

Nowinhersecondseason ontheFigarocircuit,sheis currentlyracingintheTransat enDoublewithBritain’sAlan Roberts,buthashersights firmlysetonthe2024Vendée Globe.TheFrencharehoping The2020/21VendéeGlobe they’vefoundtheirEllen Racehadits‘seasonfinale’in MacArthur.Watchandsee… theformofaglitzylive QUAND C’EST PLUS television(andstreamedon DIFFICILE VendeeGlobeTV)production youtu.be/iMUvVWDoMXY oftheprizegivingceremony atLesSablesd’Olonne’s conferencecentrewithstrict anti-covidmeasuresinplace.

Thetwohourprogramme retoldthestoryoftherace, witheachskippergettinga briefinterviewbythehosts, culminatinginthepodium skippersbeingpresented withtheirtrophies.

Internationalfavourites BorisHerrmannandAlex HugoPicardakaTheSailing Thomsonwereunabletofit Frenchmangothisstarton the10daysofquarantine YouTubebychroniclinghis requiredtoenterFranceinto refitandsolotransatlantic theirschedulesandjoinedvia cruiseofhis1973Ecumede videolink,butany Mer.Havingreachedthe awkwardnessintheir Caribbean,hethensupported appearanceswasmorethan himselfasacharterskipper madeupforbyJapan’s onlargecruisingcatamarans. KojiroShiraishi’scomic Nexthelandedajobasmate lip-syncingtoFrench onthe2019/20ClipperRound translationsofhisreplies. theWorldRace,andwhen Award Ceremony Vendée thatwassuspendedhe Globe 2020-21 [EN] jumpedstraightintoaMini youtu.be/23y2NxnGxOo Transatcampaign.It’sallin hisveryengagingvlog.

The Sailing Frenchman youtu.be/7Q-B8RC69Hs VioletteDorangeisa20year oldFrenchsailor,whogrew upracingOptimistsand420s atahighlevel.Atage15she capturedthepublic’s attentionbysailingher OptimistacrosstheEnglish Channel.Byage18shehad comeaveryrespectable16th

The voice

Captain Picard

The new Ellen?

13

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When elbow grease is simply not enough...

ChrisMardon’squeryandStu Davies’sresponseinPBO May2021’sAsktheExperts ‘WhyisthereWaterinmy Bilge?’takesmebackto2013 whenwelearnedaboutVolvo Pentaelbowsforthefirsttime. WelaunchedinAprilonlyto findnomorethanaround 1,000rpmavailableand cloudsofblacksmokeifwe triedforanymore.Ifairwas gettinginproperly,whichit was,thenexhaust mustnotbe gettingout!The culpritwasthe elbow,the boreofwhich wasdownto abouthalfan inchin diameter.We didn’twasteany timeonitand trustyVolspechad oneontheshelf,andsentit tousnextday.

Thiswinter,Idecideditwas

Sticky compass rose

Quick nav tip

timetohavea lookagainsooff cametheelbow.The borewasdowntolessthan 25mmsotheinspectionwas notbeforetime.Nowthisis

Sheet cutting bit fitted to an air chisel did the trick of cleaning the hard deposits from Simon Westmacott’s exhaust elbow

Making sense of sextants

AsusualIenjoyedthelatest issueofyourmagazine.

I’mparticularlyintriguedby GilbertPark’sarticleabout usingasextant(June2021).I havebeenadeckofficerinthe MerchantNavyforover50 yearssouseofasextantis secondnature.Hisstatement thatimpliestheuseofasextant shouldbelimitedsolelytouse welloffshoreisdisplayinghis unfamiliarityoftheinstrument andIamshockedifhis instructorsimpliedthisalso.

Thesextantisnotonlyuseful indeterminingpositionby takingsightsofcelestialbodies –itisanextremelyusefultool indeterminingpositionsclose

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INSET LEFT Clogged exhaust elbow in the vice ready for clearing work ABOVE The elbow cleaned out and ready for refitting to the boat’s engine

notmeresootthatclogsthe elbow,it’smorelikebasalt! Forgethammerandchisel. Aftermuchheadscratching,I foundasetofSeeleyairchisel bitstofitmyairchiselandthe middletoothofthesheet cutterbitdidanexcellentjob diggingoutthecrud.

Simon Westmacott, Meopham Green, Kent

Sun sights well offshore aren’t the only use for a sextant, says Angus Macleod

AviationitemsIusefor sailingaretransparent, self-adhesivecompass roses.Stickthem anywhere;theyare especiallyusefulifyoulike tofoldachartinaplastic folio.Useparallelrulersto makeafeintpencillinefor accurateplacement.

Iliketoenterthecentre ofacompassroseasa GPSwaypointonmy hand-held.Makeyourself asimplecardruler, markedoffinnautical miles,thesamescaleas yourchart.Thehand-held GPSwillgiveyoudistance andbearingtothe compassrosecentreso yousimplylaythehome maderulefromthecentre, alongthereciprocal bearing(addorsubtract 180°),countalongthe milesandthat’syour position.Ittakesabout5 seconds.

Visitflightstore.co.uk andclickonpilot accessories/chart accessories Mark Shiner, Shetland

Mystery log meter

What is this?

Cananyoneidentifythis tolandbyusingittotake horizontalorverticalangles andplottingtheresultsin conjunctionwithpapercharts andnauticaltables.

Don’tgetlostwhenthe electronicsgiveuporget jammed!

Angus M Macleod by email

log/knotmeter?It’s currentlyonaNewbridge Eclipse22.

Les Tappenden, via Facebook

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Dave Selby Mad about the boat

DaveSelbyistheproudownerofa5.48m(18ft) Sailfish,whichhekeepsonaswingingmooring onthepicturesqueBlackwaterestuaryinEssex

“OK, you pump and I’ll bail”

Make or break situation How you can get snookered when sailing

A

s last month’s issue of PBO seemed to be almost entirely devoted to sinking, and how to do it, the editor has asked me to be a little bit more buoyant this month, and write something about floating, and how to do it. For this you will need a boat, and this article will help you acquire the right one.

Firstsomebackground.Wewouldn’t wanttogivetheimpressionthatsinkingis allthereistosailing,despitethefactthat statisticsfromtheRNLIrevealthatatleast 100%ofthe200sinkingincidentsit attendedlastyearinvolvedboats,asmy eastcoastchumJohnRogerspointedout inhisfeaturelastmonthaboutattempting tosinkhiswifeDiontheirwedding anniversary.

DiisapparentlydelightedwiththeDick EverittpaintingoftheepisodethatJohn earnedforhiseffortsandpresentedto her,andhe’spromisedheraframeforit ontheirnextanniversary.

Moreover,atleast100%ofthose incidentsofsinkingwereattributedto

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water,asdemonstratedbyourAmerican contributorRogerHughes,who successfullytestedthetheorybyusinga hosepipetofillhisboat.So,yousee,there seemstobeaclosecorrelationbetween boats,sinkingandPBOcontributors. Bystarkcontrastthenumberofsinkings attendedbytheRNLIasaresultof cribbage,dominoesandsnookerwas preciselyzero,whichislessthan1%–but itcouldsoeasilyhavebeenmore. That’sbecausesnookerdoeshaveits perilsforsailors,particularlyatMaldon YachtClubwherethesnookertableisin theholdofoursometimesfloatingand slightlyleakyThameslighterclubhouse.

Aswellasbow-ties,whichmustbeblack andcertainlynotoftherevolvingtype,the committeehasdecreedthatplayersalso wearchestwaders,thoughgaloshesare permittedforlow-watermatchesonthe signingofalegalwaiver. Thishascausedoutrageaschest wadersandgaloshesaregenerallygreen andunderminethedignityofthegame. It’salsodownrightdangerous,asaplayer nearlydrownedonceashischestwaders

filledtothebrimwhenhedroppedhis chalkandbentovertopickitup. Afterthatthecommitteemadeit mandatorytowearlifejacketsforsnooker, butdidn’tspecifywhethertheyshouldbe wornunderoroveryourwaistcoat,and thatcontroversyisstillrumblingon.

Eitherway,it’sgoingtomakebreak buildingadealmoredemanding, particularlyatlowwaterwhenourThames lightersettlesatanangleandalltheballs rolltooneside.Apossiblesolutionis squareballs.Athighwateralso,there’s quiteaknacktokeepingsteadyonastun run-throughshotwithabitofcheckside whilesittinginarubberdinghy. Whileseveralmemberscantiea bow-line–orsomethingresemblingone, –behindtheirbackwiththeireyesclosed atthesecondorthirdattempt,noonehas successfullymanagedtotieabow-tiewith theireyesopeninfrontofamirror.Asa resultalotofmembershaveresortedto sailing,orsomethingcloselyresemblingit.

Thistheydoindinghies,whichismost certainlynottoberecommended,asit mostlyinvolvesbailing,alongwith

‘If floating is your aim, what you need is a Sailfish 18’ shoutingandscreaming‘help’and–ona goodday–beingrescued.No,ifit’s floatingyou’reafteryouneedayacht, whichcanbeacquiredeitherwithmoney or,forthoseonabudget,bysubterfuge. Varioustypesofyachtareavailable includingyawls,cutters,sloops,pilot cuttersorsingle-mastedketch-rigged bilge-keeledfoilingbarquentines.Butin truthwewouldn’trecommendanyof thosebecausetheymightsink.No,if floatingisyouraim,whatyouneedisa Sailfish18. Thisisbecause,asprovedbyscience, watercomesinthroughholes,andthe Sailfish18simplydoesn’thaveany–nota one:nopropshaft,noinlets,nooutlets whatsoever.Theadvantagesofthiswere broughthometomewhenIwaslaunched offafork-lifttruckinaLondondock,and thedriverinstructedmetoinspectthehull sealswhileheleftmehanginginthe stropsandwentoffforacupoftea.Iwent belowandmadeacupofteawhileItried tofigureoutwhathewasonabout.

Buttherearedisadvantagestoo.Having aboatwithoutholesgivesmeprecious littletowriteabout,whichiswhyIresorted tosnooker.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Sam Llewellyn Flotsam and jetsam

SamLlewellynsailsa 30ftketchherescued fromdereliction

Seaspiracy claims to lift the lid on the fishing industry... what do you think?

Red herring

Seaspiracy is righteous rather than right

T

he world has been talking about Seaspiracy. This is a film which claims that thanks to the greed-crazed behaviour of fishing boats and their owners the oceans will be empty of fish by 2048. The thing ends with a plea to viewers from the narrator, a half-shaved snowflake in a beanie with a powerful sense of his own intrepidity, to renounce once and for all the eating of fish, by which means the oceans will be saved.

Thefilmhasbeenextremelypopular, andmakessomeinterestingandalarming points,someofwhicharetrue;othersnot. Thelearnedarticleonwhichitbasesits contentionthattheseaswillbeemptyof fishby2048didnotclaimthattheseas wouldbeempty,onlythatfishpopulations wouldbereducedby90%,badenoughto besure,butalevelfromwhichrecoveryis possible.Thefilm’sclaimthat40%of plasticpollutioncomesfromfishinggear ratherthanland-derivedplasticdatesfrom the1980s,andisspecifictothePacific GarbagePatch;thecurrentmore-or-lessglobalfigure,alarmingenoughinall conscience,is20%.Andtheconstant dissingofconservationorganisationsis bothwearisomeandinaccurate–youcan proveanythingbycraftyediting,butthat doesn’tmakeittrue.

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Still.Seaspiracymaybepap,butanyone whohasbeensailingsinceinfancywill havenoticedthatthemarinebiosphereis increasinglyintrouble.Thisisinlarge measureduetotherapeoftheoceansby fishingfleetsoutside200-milelimits, wherejustaboutanythinggoes.

Unaccountability

Bigfishingboatsusedtohaveowners.Now theyareownedbycompaniesthatare ownedbyothercompanies,andcrewedby staffingagenciessomeofwhomcouldbe mistakenforold-fashionedslavetraders, andflaggedbystateswithonlythevaguest connectiontoshipping(Problemwitha Moldova-flaggedship,sir?Youcanalways writetothePresident.Goodluckwiththat, sir).Asforwhattheycatch,muchofitis unmonitored,vastquantitiesofitare wasted,andthelessofitthereisthemore moneyitattracts,afactthathasnot escapedthenoticeoforganisedcrime.

Closertohome,marineconservation zonesareopentomostformsof destructiveactivityexceptwaterskiing.The greatbluewonderthatcoverssevententhsoftheearth’ssurface,onwhichthe healthofthelanddepends,isnonetoo cleanandincreasinglydepopulated,ifnot totheextentSeaspiracyclaims.

Theworldisnotmerelyathinghumans liveon,butavastandintricatesystemof

whichhumansareonlyapart.

Sowhatarewedoingaboutitasleisure seafarers?Greenwashprevails.

Hilariously,enlightenedmarinashave linkedtheirgyms–gyms?–tothe electricitysupply.Variouscruiseships, famousforpumpingeffluentintothesea through‘magicpipes’andburningfilthy bunkercrudewheneverpossible,have madegreatplayofbanningplastic drinkingstrawsfromtheirbars,though theyaresilentonthecompositionofthe littleumbrellas.

Boatyardshammeruppostersfromthe GreenBlueinsistingontheharvestingof everystraydripofantifoulingfromyour Drascombe,whileinthedrydockround theheadlandsupertankersarereceiving multiple-football-pitch-sizedcoatingsof toxicpaint.

Ropemanufacturerswillswapyourold ropefornewrecycledrope,thoughnotif youareafisherman.Inshorefishingboats, inDevonasinMauritania,scrapingby withcreelsandnetsandothernondestructivefixedgear,areinspectedhalf todeathbythegovernmentthatwithholds theirsubsidies,whilelavishingcashonthe gangstersdevastatingwholeecosystems withtheirpulsefishingandbeamtrawls.

Yachtiescan,alas,bepartofthe problem.Someappeartoseeeffortsto protecttheseagrassbedsofStudlandas fascisticrepression.Theirscepticismis assistedbytheauthorities,who,pausing onlytotelltheyachtiestosuckitup,nip outtolunchwiththetrawlerowners’ agentsandgivethempermissiontogo

‘Marine conservation zones are open to most forms of destructive activity except waterskiing’ beam-trawlingintheDoggerBankMCZ andscallop-dredgingintheCardiganBay MCZ,activitiesaboutassensibleas bulldozingcathedralsforhardcore. PreventionislefttoGreenpeaceandits splendidboulders,andfurtheroutatsea theintrepideco-piratesofSeaShepherd. Theactionsoftheseorganisationsare aboutallwehavegotatthemoment. Meanwhileitlookstoacyniclikemeasif aslickofgreenwashshinesiridescenton theoceans;andrabblerouserslike Seaspiracy,sensationalbutsloppilyeasy torefute,arenotsomuchpartofthe solutionaspartoftheproblem.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Marsali Taylor Living with the sea

MarsaliTaylorsailsanOffshore8M,Karima S.She’sa dinghyinstructorandauthorofThe Shetland Sailing Mysteriesstarringliveaboardsleuth,CassLynch.

It would be good to see those enthusiastic faces again!

‘Simmer dims’

Shetland’s long, light evenings are upon us...

S

ummer is beautiful here in Shetland. The hills are soft green, with bright marsh marigolds filling every burn.

After a winter of grey, the guillemots are smart in their black and white summer plumage, the kittiwakes are in pairs on the cliffs, chittering Arctic terns have made it back from Africa, and there are puffins in the voe, along with otters, seal, porpoises and even whales. The winds are softer, the temperature soars. Best of all, there are the ‘simmer dims’, the lovely long nights, when you get to drift home at eleven, in the last of the wind.

Wesailorsaredesperatelyhopingtoget backtonormalthissummer.Itwouldbe sogoodtogetthebairns’sailinggoing, forexample.It’sbeentwoyearsnowsince therewasalineofenthusiasticfacesin frontofme,withthemostlycorrectly riggedpink-sailedPicosreadyatthepier. They’llnothaveforgotteneverythingthey knew–afterfifteenminutesofchaotic buzzingaroundthemarinaentrancelikea flytryingtogetthroughawindowpane, thenit’llclickbackin,andthey’llbe whizzingallovertheplace.

We’relookingatstartingagainduring theholidays(Julyandthefirsthalfof

20

August,hereinScotland),whichmight givethechancetodoaproperexpedition. Bairnslovegoingoutsidetheirusual limits,soitwouldbefuntosailthethree milesdowntotheotherwiseinaccessible islandofPapaLittle,maybebuildafireon thebeachandheatatinoffrankfurters, exploreabitandsailhome. Thentherearetheregattas.Upherethe firstsailingregattaisatBrae,onthefirst weekendofJuly.There’saraceroundthe islandofLingaonWednesdayevening, thoughit’sactuallyagentledrift,because it’salwaysflatcalmforthatone.Thereare racesalldayonSaturday,withapausefor

Hughie and Mary aboard Cynara

lunch,andSundayafternoonisalonger race.Afterthat,thepartygoesroundthe westsideofShetland,weekendafter weekend.Aith,myhomeport, incorporatingRoundPapaLittle;Walls, whichusedtoincludeaRoundFoula race,Foulabeingtheisland17miles offshoretothewest,withspectacular seabirdcliffs;Skeld,whichincludesa carnivaltheme.Scalloway’sthelastof thewestsideregattas,andthen,forthe reallykeenracers,there’satriparound thesouthofourmainislandtoarrive inLerwick,ontheeastcoast,intime fortheShetlandInterclub.

Numbers?Well,maybetenyachts ranginginsizefroma22ftPandoraupto aMoody36.MostofthemarefromBrae, andtheyworkonafiendishlyesoteric handicappingsystemdependingon howeachyachthasdoneintheprevious year’spointsraces.Thereareahandful ofkeendinghies,aMirrorclass,andthe occasionaldippinglugboat–aVikingstyledouble-enderwithasquaresail whichneedstobedroppedtotack.

Healthy exercise

There’snorealreasonwhywecan’thold regattas.Outintheopenair,associally distancedastenyachtsonashortstarting linecancontrive,issurelyconsidered healthyexercise?You’dhavethoughtthe NHSwouldbecheeringuson.Wecould stayaboardourownboatsthroughout, andcatchuponthenewsspeakingfrom cockpittocockpit.As theultimatesacrifice,wecouldeven bringourownlunches.Yes,our spectacularlygoodsit-downregattalunch ofsoup,beefandtatties,teaandbiscuits mayhavetobesacrificed.Isaidasmuch toPhilip,mynon-sailingspouse,who crewsfortheAithregatta,andhemadea horrifiedface.‘Doallthatwork,’hegasped, ‘andnotgetalunchtoseeyouthroughit?’

Thingis,thoughImanagedplentyof sailinglastyear,Imissmyfellowsailors. Imissthecameraderie,andthose leisurelyconversationsthatstartwith ‘I’mnotsureaboutthepositionofthose jibcars’andendupanhourlaterwith theaforesaidjibcarsbackalmostexactly wheretheystarted.Imissthesailing gossipandtheoutrageousjokes. Ahwell,we’llsee.Inthemeantime,there isexcitementlooming:Aithisgetting regularvisitsfromapodofkillerwhales. SofarIhaven’tbeenoutwhenthey’ve beenaroundbutIreckonit’sjustamatter oftimebeforethe6ft-highsailofthebull comesupbesidemyKarima.Solongas hedoesn’tmistakemeforaseal...

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BOATS

Made in Germany

Rupert Holmes looks at top-notch German yachts of the past 40 years

F

rance is often seen as the powerhouse of innovation in the sailing world. However, Germany has long been responsible for some of the biggest brands in the industry.

BavariawasamongthefirstEuropean boatbuilderstoinvestheavilyincreating thecapacitytobuildyachtsonatrue productionlinebasis.Asaresultitsboats arecompetitivelypriced,bothnewandon thesecond-handmarket,andareofa

generallyconsistentquality.

Inthelate1990sIvisitedboththe BavariaandWesterlyfactories.Atthetime thelatterwasstillfittingoutboatsina time-consumingtraditionalfashion–while Iwasonsiteateamofsixcarpenterswas workingwithjigsawsinsideaboat,which alreadyhadthedeckfitted.

Bycontrast,theGermancompanyhad investedheavilyinslickproduction engineeringprocesses.Allfurniturewas cutusingCNCmachines,beforepassing

throughautomatedspraybooths.Itwas thenputtogetherintosubassemblies suchasgalleyunits,whichcouldbe droppedintothehullandbondedinplace beforefittingthedeck.Thisisamuch fasterwaytobuildaboatandeveryoneis thesame,whichmakesforeasierquality control.It’sthedifferencebetweenthe BELOW Sailing on the Kiel canal in Germany’s Schleswig-Holstein region near the Baltic coast

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Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

GERMAN SECOND-HAND BOATS handbuiltcarsof40yearsagoand today’svehiclesthatareassembledby robotsandaremuchmorereliable.

WithinafewyearsofmyfirstvisitBavaria wasusinglaserstoquicklyandaccurately alignkeels.Thisagainspeededup production,whilesimultaneously improvingquality.

Sailing in Germany

Germanyoffersawidemixofsailing experiences,fromthemassiveElbe estuaryontheNorthSeacoast,to stunningBalticdestinations,aswellasa

myriadofoptionsinland.

Thecountryhas1,500milesof enormouslyvariedcoastline.Thefirst experiencemanyBritishboatshaveof sailinginGermanwatersistheeastern sectionoftheEastFrisianIslandsoffthe mouthoftheRiverElbe,ortheestuaryof thisgiantriveritself.

Brunsbüttelisthegatewaytothe 60-mile-longKielCanal,builtasashipping routetoconnecttheNorthSeawiththe Baltic.However,it’salsoworthcontinuing afurther35milesupstreamtoHamburg.

You’reneverfarfromthewaterinthis

BELOW Aerial view of the landing stage on Alster lake in Hamburg

‘A huge amount of sailing activity takes place on the Baltic, especially in the former West Germany’

ymalA/aideMIPPD

ABOVE The Farr 40 One Design fleet racing at Travemunde Week

cityofalmosttwomillionpeople,which hasalargerareaofcanalsandlakesthan VeniceandAmsterdamcombined.The20 squaremilesofdocksisalsohometo Europe’sthirdlargestcontainerportanda numberofsmallmarinas,whilethelarge MarinaRüschisjustsevenmileswestof thecitycentre.

Ahugeamountofsailingactivitytakes placeontheBaltic,especiallyinthe formerWestGermany,whichcanbe crowdedinsummer.

Theeasthashistoricallybeenquieter andhasthebenefitofanumberofnew marinasbuiltsincereunification,which havehelpedtoboostpopularityamong bothboatownersandcharterers.

Travemünde,forinstance,hasbeena popularresortformorethan200years andbenefitsfromextensivesandy beachesbackedbydunesandforests.It’s alsohometoGermany’ssecond-largest regatta,the130-year-oldTravemünde

Wocher,whichhasdozensofclassesfor around800boatsrangingfromdinghies to40ftoffshoreracers.

TheTraveriverisnavigablebydeep draughtyachtstoRostock,sixmiles upstreamofTravemünde.ThisHanseatic Leaguecityhasafineseafaringtradition andwasexceptionallywealthyinthe14th and15thcenturies.Todayit’senjoyinga renaissance,includingmanybarsand restaurantsontheextensivewaterfront.

AswithmuchoftheBaltic,summers hereareverypleasantwithgloriouslylong days,generallylowrainfallandaverage maximumtemperaturesof22-23˚CinJuly andAugust.

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Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

23

BOATS

Dehler 34 £16,000-£33,000

ymalA/KPS

ThismodelhelpedDehler,whichhad previouslyfocussedmostlyonraceboats, becomefirmlyestablishedinthe performancecruisingsector.The34isa thoroughlycivilisedandeasilyhandled fastcruiser,withthehulldesignbasedon thatofthehugelysuccessfulVandeStadt designedDehlerDB1andDB2models thatbothwontheThreeQuarterTonCup intheearly1980s.

Theproductionversion,launchedin 1983,isanexcellentboatthatwasahead ofitstimeinmanyways,whilemany modificationsandimprovementswere madeduringthemodel’slifespan.Asa resulttheDehler34wasanongoinghit, withsome1,300boatssoldduringa decade-longproductionrun.

Waterlinelengthisrelativelyshortand thebeamsomewhatnarrow,so accommodationvolumeisnothuge. However,theupsideofthehullshapeis thisisabeautifullybalancedboatthat slipsalongnicelyinlightairsandyetcan takeheavyweatherinitsstride.Later examplesalsobenefitfromaredesigned keelwithalowercentreofgravity.

Earlyboatshadafairlytraditionallayout, withtheheadsseparatingthesaloonfrom

thedoubleveeberthintheforepeak. There’sareasonablegalleytoportatthe footofthecompanionwayandalarge foldingoutboardfacingnavstation oppositethis.Insteadofaconventional narrowquarterberthaftofthecharttable there’sabigdoubleberth,butthisisnot inaseparatecabin.

Laterboats,fromaround1986/87 onwards,hadtheheadscompartment movedaftnexttothecompanionway.This forcedthesaloonfurtherforwardinthe

boat,whichcanmakeitfeelsmaller. However,thisismorethanoffsetbya properseparateaftdoublecabin,alarger galleyandmorehangingspace.

Giventhelongproductionrunandthat newerboatsareofahigherspecification, withabetterinteriorlayout,Dehler34s tendtochangehandsatawidevarietyof prices.Tiredolderboatsmaygoforlittle morethan£15,000,butnewerwell equippedexamplesinexcellentcondition mayfetchcloserto£35,000.

Morethan25,000Dehlershavebeen built,theycanbefoundacrossEurope andtheUSA,andaccountforan estimated13%ofsailingyachtson Germanwaters.

TwofurtherDehler34shavefollowedthe original.Amoreraceorientedmodelwas launchedintheearly2000s,whilethe 2017Dehler34isacontemporary twin-rudderdesignthatblendsexcellent performancefromapowerfulhullshape withaccommodationthat30yearsago wouldnothaveseemedpossibleina quickandwellmanneredboatofthissize. ndehler.com LOA LWL Beam Draught Displacement

10.1m 8.3m 3.4m 1.7m 4,000kg

33ft2in 27ft3in 11ft2in 5ft7in 8,800lb

Hanse 291/301 £17,000-£25,000

24

Tokeepthepricein checkthedecklayout wasverysimpleas standard,butwithsingle linereefinganda self-tackingjibthatmade forimpressivelyeasy handling.Theresultwas alovelyboattosail– quick,wellbalancedand responsive.

In1997theinteriorwas updatedtobringasmall headscompartmentaft nearthecompanionway andtocreateadouble berthunderthecockpit, whichgreatlyupdatedthe concept.Thismodelwasdubbedthe301 andbecameoneofthefirstHansedesigns tobemarketedintheUKinabigway.

Twokeeloptionswereoffered–a

ymalA/nosugreFllaiN

FollowingthereunificationofGermany in1990,MichaelSchmidt,thenowner ofanetworkofyachtbrokersacross Europe,wasquicktoseethepotential toestablishaboatbuildingoperation intheformerEastGermany.TheBaltic portsbenefitedfromastrong sea-goingheritagethat’sreflectedin theyard’snameandlong-standing traditionofyachtbuilding.Hechose Griefswald,oneoftheformer Hanseaticportsjust50milesfromthe Polishborder.Atthetimethecity offeredabundantinexpensiveskilled labouranddistinctlylow-costpremises intheformershipyards.

Hanse’searlymodelswerelargely revampeddiscontinueddesignsfrom thewell-regardedSwedishAphrodite rangeofcruiser/racers.The291was originallytheAphrodite29from1980,a lightweightfastcruiserinitsdaywith moderatebeam.Ithasalsoachieveda stringofracingsuccesses,notably notchingupafourthplaceoverallin theRoundtheIslandRace.

conventionalfinandawingwithadraught ofbarelymorethan1m.

I’vesailedthisversionwithwindsvarying fromlightairstoaForce5/6andfoundit

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

GERMAN SECOND-HAND BOATS

Hanse 371 £48,000-£68,000 WhileHanse’sinitialproductionwas basedonrevampedexistingdesigns, founderMichaelSchmidt’slongterm ambitionsextendedfarbeyondcopying otherpeople’sideas.Nevertheless,the earlymodelshelpeddevelopand streamlineproductionprocessesin readinessforarapidexpansionthatwould seeHansebecomeoneofEurope’s largestboatbuilderswithinadecade.

Inthelate1990shecommissionedthe renownedGermanJudel/Vrolijkdesign officetocreateadistinctiverangeofbang uptodateyachtsaimedattheheartofthe cruisingmarket.

ThefirstofthesedesignswastheHanse 371,launchedin1999.Itmarkeda step-changeforthecompanyintermsof qualityoffinish,standardofequipment

andadesignthatpushednew boundaries.

Itestedthefirstboatto arriveintheUKandfounda thoroughlylikeableyachtwith spaciousaccommodation, includingtwolargedouble cabins,withathree-cabin option.Thewellthoughtout decklayoutwasconceivedfor easyhandling,withsingle-line mainsailreefinganda self-tackingjib.Despitethelarge accommodationthisisaboatwithgood mannersandanimpressiveturnofspeed.

Saleswereundoubtedlyhelpedbythe choiceoftwolowcentreofgravitybulb keels,whichsignificantlyboostedsail carryingability,aswellasacentreboard optionthatswingsupintoastubkeel givingadraughtofonly1.25m.

Thenextcoupleofyearssawthelaunch oftheHanse311and411,thelatter

offeringwhatwasthen consideredalargeyachtata surprisinglycompetitiveprice. By2006therange encompassedninemodels from32-63ft.Schmidt’sdream hadbeenrealisedandthe Hansenamewasfirmly established.TheHanseGroup wouldgoontoexpandand absorbmanywellknown buildersincludingMoody, Dehler,catamaranspecialistPrivilege,and Fjordonthepowerboatside. nhanse.com LOA 11.25m 36ft11in LWL  9.85m 32ft4in Beam  3.59m 11ft9in Draught  1.98or1.69m6ft6inor5ft6in Displacement 7 ,200kg 15,873lb Sail area  65.50m2 705ft2

Bavaria 34 £35,000-£43,000

LOA 8.99m 29ft6in LWL 7.95m 26ft1in Beam 2.78m 9ft1in Draught (standard)1.68m 5ft6in Draught (wing) 1.08m 4ft3in Displacement 2,800kg 6,200lb

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

ymalA/mahnraGtnylC

tobeabrilliantboat–fast,yetwith goodmanners,andanimpressively smalltackingangle.

Abasepriceofonly£30,000 undercutrivalsbyahugemargin. Therewerewaysinwhichtheboatwas clearlybuiltdowntoaprice–alackof trimonexposededgesofmarine plywoodintheinterior,forinstance.

However,deeperinspectionrevealed asolidlybuiltboatandit’samodelthat didmuchtohelpestablishtheHanse name,especiallyintheUK. nhanse.com

BavariaYachtbau’slocation,300mabove sealevelinsouthernGermany,mayseem unlikelyforoneoftheworld’sbiggest boatbuilders.However,thislocation enablesthecompanytoaccessits marketsintheMediterraneanandin northernEuropewithequalease.

Whenthismodelwaslaunchedin1999 Bavariawasrampingupoutputto1,000 boatsperyear.Eventhenitcouldn’tkeep upwithdemandandthefirstyear’s productionsoldoutbeforethefirstboat leftthefactory.

PartoftheattractionwasthattheBavaria 34wasoneofthesmallestandmost keenlypricedyachtsofitseratooffera layoutwiththreegenuinedoublecabins.

Therewasalsoatwocabinoptionwhich benefitsfromalotmorespaceinthe forecabin.Bothlayoutsincludeaproper forwardfacingcharttablewithitsown seat,althoughthegalleyisonlyofa moderatesizewithasinglesinkandno fixedworktopspace.Agenerousbeam helpscontributetoaspacioussaloonand traditionalistswillappreciatethesolid plywoodfurniturewithadarkveneerthat’s offsetbyawhitedeckhead.

Twokeeloptionswereavailable–a

shallowfinwitha1.35mdraughtanda deepfinwitha1.85mdraught.

Todaythestylingandhullshapelook maylookalittledated,buttheBavaria34 isstillasolidchoice–Bavariaachieveda decentbalanceinproducingavery spaciousboatthat’sgoodtosail. nbavariayachts.com Hull length 10.35m 34ft0in LWL 8.45m 27ft9in Beam 3.48m 11ft5in Draught 1.85(6ft1in)or1.35m(4ft5in) Displacement 4,500kg 9,920lb Ballast 1,400kg 3,090lb

25

BOATS

Dehler 25 £10,000-£14,000

Varianta 37 £60,000-£80,000

ThisHanseGroupbrandfocussedon providingstrippeddownfastcruising boatsatexceptionalprices.When launchedin2014thebasepriceofthis modelwasonly£72,000includingVAT, althoughequipmentwasstrippedback beyondthebareessentials–eventhe anchorwasontheextraslist.

Still,it’sanattractiveperformancecruiser fromtheboardofJudel/Vrolijkwithachoice ofkeels,apowerfulrigwithaminimally overlappinggenoaandamoderninterior. Thestandardkeelisa1.95mperformance option,withtheballastslunglowina

T-bulb,whiletheshallowalternativehasa conventionalL-shapebulb.

Theinterioroffersplentyofspace,with threelargecabins,ahugecombined headsandshowercompartment,plusa decentsizegalley,althoughitlacksa permanentsit-downnavigationstation. nhanseyachtsag.com LOA 11.55m LWL 10.05m Beam 3.75m Draught (standard) 1.95m Draught(shoal) 1.60m Displacement 6,900kg Ballast 2,300kg Sail area 77m2

37ft7in 33ft0in 12ft3in 6ft 4in 5ft3in 15,200kg 5,070lb 830ft2

ThisVandeStadt-designedwater ballastedtrailersailerbuiltonthe successoftheearlierDehler22and soldinlargenumbersbetween1984 and1995.The375kgofwaterballast kepttotaldisplacementdowntoonly 1,100kg,whichmakesthisoneofthe largestboatsthatcanbetowed withoutaLandRoversize4x4vehicle.

Ageneroussailplanandsleekhull shapeconfersgoodperformance, whileafurther375kgofballastinthe daggerboard-styleliftingkeel helpsprovidedecentstability. Thekeelcaseiswellforward, sodoesn’timpingeonspace inthesaloon,whichhastwo extra-longsetteeswitha slide-outgalleyunit abovetheaftendofthe portone.Theheadsis belowtheheadofthe doubleberthinthe forepeak.

Boatsofthissize canbeahandful

Sirius 320DS From t130,000 Germanyishometoanumberofsmall yardsthatproducefinelycraftedvessels fornichemarkets.SiriusWerft,basednear Kiel,isoneoftheseandnowproducesa rangeofthreedecksaloonyachtsfrom 31ft-40ft.

The320DSwasproducedfrom1995 until2011,with100boatsbuiltbeforeit wasreplacedbythe310DS,whichisstilla currentmodel.It’sasolidheavy displacementyacht,withapowerfulrig.

Neverthelessit’sapropersailingboat, notanunderpoweredmotorsailer,with performancethatbeliestheadvantagesof thedecksaloon format.Thelow wettedsurfacehull shapeevenmeans lightairsspeeds undersailare reasonablygood, despitetheheavy displacement Theyardwasable toaccommodate owner’swishesintermsoffitoutandthe accommodationlayout,withtheresultthat 14differentinternalarrangementswere produced.Alloffermorespacethanthe

26

modestdimensions ofthehullsuggest andareoptimised foreithertwoorfour people,plusoccasionalguests.Secondhandthepricesreflectthenatureofthese individuallycraftedboats. nsirius-werft.de

LOA 9.75m (32ft0in) LWL 8.75m (27ft8in) Beam 3.18m (10ft5in) Draught 1.15,1.35or1.70m (3ft9in,4ft5in,or5ft7in) Displacement 5,900kg (13,000lb) Ballast 2,300kg (5,070lb)

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

GERMAN SECOND-HAND BOATS

whentrailersailingandtakean inordinatelylongtimetorig,butDehler developedaslicksystemforraising andloweringthemast,alongwitha customfour-wheeltrailerwitha separatelaunchingcradle.Asaresult Dehler25shaveheldtheirvaluemuch betterthanotherboatsofasimilarera, providingthetrailerhasbeen maintainedingoodcondition. nhanseyachtsag.com LOA 7.60m 25ft0in Beam 2.50m 8ft2in Draught 0.45to1.30m 1ft6into4ft3in Displacement 1,100kg 2,425lb Water ballast 375kg 836lb Lead ballast 375kg 836lb

Bente 24 £35,000-£55,000 Thisdistinctivedesignfrom2016was intendedtoappealtoanewgenerationof boatowner.Thepowerfulhullshapehas thegenerous9ftbeamcarriedwellaftand thereforeprovidesplentyofformstability whichhelpstamethelargerig.

There’snotenoughfreeboardfor standingheadroom,thoughthewide beamcreatesimpressiveaccommodation volume.Theboatwasavailableina

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

numberofdifferentversions,includinga cut-priceoptioninwhichbeanbagswere substitutedformuchoftheconventional heavyandexpensiveinteriorfurniture. TherewasalsoanEcoversionbuiltofflax fibresandbioresins.

Thedesignalsoimmediatelyattracted attentionthankstothepractical,yet cleverlystyledsolidsprayhood–ahuge benefitinanykindofinclementweather.

Problemswithdevelopingacomplex 39ftmodelledtothecompanyfilingfor bankruptcyinearly2020.Bythistime120 Bente24shadalreadybeenordered. nbenteyachts.com LOA 7.55m 24ft9in Beam 2.75m 9ft0in Displacement 1,400kg 3,087lb Draught 1.45or1.80m4ft9inor5ft11in

27

BOATS

Peter Poland tests the second-hand Swedish production powerboat that just looks ‘right’ to so many ex-sailors

A

fewyearsback,Itookaparty outtowatchtheAmerica’sCup anniversaryjubileefleetparading intheSolent.Ourspectatorcraft wasanippy,low-washHunterLandau20 motorboat.Oneofmyguestshadbriefly ownedanelderly12myachtandhewas keentoseehersailingagain.Beautifully restoredbyhernewGermanowners,she wasasightforsoreeyes.Aswereallthe other12soutonthewaterthatday.Itwas amemorableandmagicalexperience. Butthisglimpsebackatsailinghistory wasmarredbyoneunpleasantmodern phenomenon.Largenumbersofgin palaceswerecareeringaroundathigh speed,ploughinguptheSolentintoa ruttedmess,makingalotofnoiseand generallyblockingourview. “Ohdear”,mutteredmyex12m-owning friend.“Whydoallthosenoisymotorboats havetogoflatoutallthetime;andwhydo theyalllookliketrainers?” Abitharshperhaps,buthewasalover

28

ofclassiclookingboats.Hegotme thinking...andIrealisedhehadagood point.Theydidindeedlookabitlike trainers,withtheirsloping,shiny whitesuperstructuresandassertive, over-styledwindows. “Icouldneverbeseeninsomething thatlookslikethat,”myfriendadded. “Iwonderwhatsortofmotorboatsex sailorsbuywhentheystopsailing?”

Afewyearslater,Igotananswerto hisquestion.Anotheroldfriendtoldme hehaddecidedtobuyamotorboatafter alifetimeofsailing.Hehadsailed countlessracesinsuchboatsasSigmas, Hustlersandawildmini-tonner.He wasayachtsurveyorbyprofession, soheknewwhathewastalkingabout whenitcametostructures,performance andqualityofbuild. “Whatsortofmotorboatareyou goingtobuythen?”Iasked.“There’sonly oneanswerasfarasI’mconcerned,”he replied.“Iwantsomethingthatiswell

made,isseaworthy,cruisesalongat around20knotsandlookslikeaproper boat.AndofcourseIdon’twanttofeel embarrassedwhenIrollupattheYacht Clubinit.SoithastobeaNimbus.” And,sureenough,hepromptlywent outandboughtone.Itwasasecond-hand Nimbus280Coupé,whichhasbeen oneofthemostsuccessfulmotor boats everbuilt.Thelater280Familiaversion (withanaftcabin)wasthenintroduced in2004,addingfurtherimpetustothe prodigioussalesrecordofthishugely successful,top-sellingmodel.

Shortlyafterthat,oneofmyHunter customersalsodecidedtoforsakesail forpower.“Whichboatareyouthinking aboutbuying?”Iasked,alreadyhalf guessingwhathisanswerwouldbe. “ANimbus,”hesaid.“MywifeandIfeel thatwecanlivewiththewayitlooksafter alltheseyearsspentcruisinginsailing boats.Andwereallylikethewayitis finished–abitlikeayachtreally.”

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

submiN

The right look

The elegant Nimbus 320 Coupé travels at speed

NIMBUS 320C ON TEST

dnaloPreteP

Founded by Volvo

ABOVE Easy access via the teak-trimmed stern platform RIGHT A conventional and moderate V section gives each Nimbus a soft and dry ride

‘There’s nothing flash about Nimbus – they are subtly styled and pleasing on the eye’ in1981byChristopherHarridgeand hasbeenimportingNimbusmotor boatsformanyyears.Asaresultithas extensiveknowledgeandexperienceof thebrand–whichwillbeinvaluableto anyonebuyingaNimbus;beitnewor second-hand. TheOffshorePowerboatsteamhelps ensurethatnewboatcommissioningand aftersalesservicingrunsmoothly.This mayhelpexplainwhyIwastoldthat repeatbusinessfromsatisfiedcustomers hasrepresentedsuchasizablechunkof thecompany’sannualturnover.

TheNimbusIwenttotestwasa320 Coupé;amodelthatwasrapidlycatching upthe280asaworld-widetopseller.I wastoldthat628hadbeenbuilt,with productionrunningat85unitsayear. Myguideforthedaywaspowerboat schoolownerandyachtdelivererMichael Morgan;soIwasingoodhands.

Offshore Powerboats also sells the popular Axopar range of powerboats

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

dnaloPreteP

TheNimbusstorystartedbackinthe 1960s,whenVolvoPentawaslookingfor anewwaytomarketitsmarineengines. Asuitableleisureboatwasneededand thethenMDofVolvoPenta,Harald Wiklund,askeddesignengineerPelle Pettersontocomeupwiththegoods. Pettersondulynamedhisnewdesign ‘Nimbus’andthefirsttestrunswere madeonLakeVänerninSeptember 1969. Ayearlater,theNimbus26wasvoted BoatoftheYear;thenontheeighth anniversaryofthelaunchofthe26, brothersHansandLarsWiklundstarted thecompanyknownasNimbusBoats. Nimbuswentontobecomeoneof themostsuccessfulboatproducing companiesinEurope.Andeventhough boatbuildingbusinessesingeneralhave oftenbeenbesetbyviolenteconomicups anddowns,NimbusBoatsinitscurrent formisstillaScandinavianpowerhouse, takingontheUK,French,Germanand Italianmotorboatbuildersatthequality endofthemarket.Thestraplineonthe currentNimbuswebsitesays“Feelthe difference.Nimbusboatsarebuiltin Swedenanddesignedtomeetthe requirementsoftheconsciousyachtsman whoappreciatesproperfunctionality, comfortandsafety.Propertieswe consideressentialwhetheryougofora quickdrive,asocialweekendoralong internationalcruise.”Whichsoundsfair commenttome.

IntheUK,Nimbusboats(andthe increasinglypopularspecialisthigh performanceAxoparrange)arestill distributedbyOffshorePowerboatsin Lymington.Thiscompanywasfounded

MyfirstimpressionswerefavourableasI approachedtherowofNimbuscruisersof varyingsizes(current2021modelsrange from9.87mto13.33m)ontheOffshore PowerBoatsdemonstrationberths.These struckmeaselegantlooking,purposeful, seagoingmotoryachts.There’snothing flashaboutthem;theyaresubtlystyled andverypleasingontheeye. AsIboardedthe320Coupéviaherteak deckedsternplatformandcrossedthe cockpittowardsthesaloondoor,the extensivebutconservativelystyled wrap-aroundwindowslookedrobust. Andtheyfloodedthesaloonwithlight. All-roundvisibilityfrominsidethesaloon isalsoexcellent.Thecockpititselfcan almostdoubleasanextracabin,thanks toawell-tailoredcanopy(whichwaseasily andquicklyremoved)anditboasts comfortableseatingacrosstheback andalongtheportside. Thereareplentyoflockersunderthe cockpitseatsandacavernousstowage arealurksunderthetwinopening hatchesonthecockpitsole.Thisarea alsogivesusefulaccesstotheseacocks andtherearoftheengine(s).Ialso notedthelonggrabrailssituatedabove thesaloonwindows,ensuringsafe accesstotheforedeck.

Thesaloonitselfhascomfortable U-shapedseatingtoport(thatcan alsoconvertintoadoubleberthby

29

BOATS

ABOVE The saloon looking forward.

Note the clear visibility all round, opening windows and galley to starboard

droppingthesaloontable)andan eminentlyusablelineargalleyto starboard.What’sreallynice,though,is thelightandairyambienceandthefact that–whetherloungingaroundthetable orcookingatthegalley–youhavea panoramicviewoftheworldoutside;while largetwinoverheadopeninghatches throwevenmorelightontheproceedings (andextraventilationinhotweather). What’smore,thefrontendofthesettee areacan‘flipover’andturnintoaforward facingdoubleseatwithbackrest.This meansthat,whenunderway,two crewmemberscansitbeside(and

‘What’s really nice is the light and airy ambience and the panoramic views’ socialisewith)thehelmsman,whileheor sheisensconcedinthewellupholstered bucketseattostarboard. It’sallbeenverycarefullythought throughtomakesurethatthecrewis ascomfortablewhenunderwayaswhen inharbour.Whichreinforcesthefeeling thatthisNimbusisdesignedbypeople whounderstandwhat’swhatwhenit comestogoingtoseainamotorcruiser.

Theforwardpartoftheaccommodation isaccessedbyacoupleofstepsdown. Thiscomprisesanowners’doublecabin,

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ABOVE Blue upholstery and rich woodwork create a classic feel

guestdoublecabin(toport)andheads compartment(tostarboard). Aselsewhereintheboat,theblue upholstery,richwoodworkandlight colouredheadliningpanelscombine toproducearelaxing,conservativeand tastefulambience.Putsimply,it’sanice placetobe.Nothingflashy–justavery well-finishedandattractivelyplanned accommodationlayout. It’seasytoseewhyownersmaking thebigmovefromsailtopowerfind Nimbusmotorboatssoappealing.

ABOVE The linear galley to starboard in the saloon has everything you can need - and is well finished. The heads (right) is well fitted out

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

NIMBUS 320C ON TEST The current model Nimbus 305

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ABOVE LEFT The airy saloon looking aft BELOW LEFT The helmsman’s view forward is always clear and unobstructed

Onceclearofthemarina,the320Coupé trundledoutoftheharbouratasedate andpeaceful8knots(at2,200rpm). ThisexamplewasfittedwithtwinYanmar 125s,drivingthroughconventionalshafts. ButIwastoldthatmostcustomersopt forthesingleVolvoD4225hpoption. Whichisinitselfinteresting.Ifasingle engineisgoodenoughforalmostevery professionalfishermanwhoputstosea (inallweathers),whynotfortheleisure sailor?Perhapsitispsychological:“If onebreaksdown,you’vealwaysgota back-up.”ButmaybeNimbusownersare morepragmaticandprefertoeconomise withthesingle-engineoption.

HavingreachedtheopenSolent,Mike openedherup.At2,500rpmshemade The current model Nimbus 365 Coupe

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

LOA Beam Weight dry Fuel capacity Water capacity

9.70m 3.10m 3,700kg 340lt 180lt

Original engine options 1xVolvoD4210 1xVolvoD4225 1xVolvoD4260 2xYanmarJH3DTHE125

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Performance at sea

NIMBUS 320 COUPÉ SPECIFICATION AND STATISTICS

10knots.Applyalittletrimtaband pushherupto3,000rpmandan effortless17.4knotsappearedonthe GPSandtheviewforwardremained goodthankstotheleveltrim. At3,500rpm shecruisedat22.5knots;fullthrottle(3,800 rpm)gave25.4knots.

Evenwhenshewasflatout,wecould happilyconverseatnormalvolume.Most ownerswouldprobablycruiseataround 19to20knotswhenonpassage.Afterall, theaimofvoyagingunderpoweristodo soincomfortandatreasonablespeed.It alsosavesalotonfuel.Besides,those whoinsistonchargingaroundat30knots (especiallyincrowdedareassuchasthe Solent)borderontheantisocial. WhenItookoverthehelm,Iwas impressedbythedocilewayinwhichthe

Nimbushandled.Thepowersteeringgave justenough‘feel’andtheboattracked well,evenwhenbarrellingalonginand acrossthewakeofanotherNimbusthat alsocameoutforaspin.Shealsoturned preciselyandeasily.Infact,ifthereisone wordthatsumsupsteeringandcontrolling the320Coupé,itis‘easy’.Everything aboutthisboat,whetherunderwayorin harbour,feltreassuringandjust“right”. It’seasytoseewhyshehassoldinsuch largenumbers.

What’s the secret?

Ifyouinsiston30knots,the320won’tdo thejobforyou.Butifyouwantamotor boatthatwillgetyoucomfortablyfromA toBatamorerestful cruisingspeedthen shefitsthebilladmirably.Andnowwith highertaxratesonmarinedieselusedfor propulsion,20knotsisaneconomical cruisingspeed.Addin elegantlinesand Scandinavianqualityandyouhavean attractivepackagethatshouldgive pleasureforalongtimetocome. Atthetimeofwriting,anumberof320 CoupéswerelistedonYachtmarket.com withVATinclusiveaskingpricesranging from£82,000for2002modelstoaround £110,000for2007models.Ifyourbudget canextendtoanewboat,PaigeHayward ofOffshorePowerboatstellsmethatthe latestNimbus305and365Coupémodels arecurrentlythetopsellers.

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SEABIRDS

The UK coast has one of the richest breeding grounds in Europe, and there’s no better place to spot birds than from the cockpit of your boat, says Genevieve Leaper

S

ailors have been watching seabirds for thousands of years.

Early navigators in the Pacific used their knowledge of how far different birds ranged from land to judge when they were approaching an island.

The white tern was known as the ‘navigator’s best friend’. Birds carrying fish back for their young will even indicate the direction to follow. European sailors on long voyages also noticed the birds but often viewed them in a more superstitious light. It was good luck to see an albatross but bad luck to kill one.

These days we watch birds for pleasure rather than navigational cues; sailing and birdwatching go very well together – for a start there are usually binoculars to hand, and there is little effort involved – just keep your eyes open. By getting out to sea we encounter many birds that are difficult to see for the shore-based birder.

As a child, it was one of the things I loved about sailing, whether anchoring close to a clamorous colony of blackheaded gulls in a Solent harbour or the occasional sighting of a shearwater skimming the waves when we headed further west. Being a sailing birdwatcher led to working on surveys of seabird distribution at sea. The highlight was fieldwork around St Kilda in the breeding season, but I still enjoyed going to sea and watching birds after weeks of counting little but fulmars in the North Sea in the depths of winter.

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UK birdlife

The UK’s productive waters are internationally important for seabirds, with almost half the European total breeding around our coasts. I didn’t fully appreciate how lucky we are until I sailed in the Mediterranean where there is nothing like the numbers or variety. We have 25 breeding species (not counting the sea ducks and divers) ranging from the familiar herring gull – the archetypal ‘seagull’ – to the elusive Leach’s petrel, which breeds on a few of the remotest Scottish islands, forages miles out at sea and only visits colonies by night. Several other species come to feed in our waters in winter or pass through on migration.

Although they belong to several different bird families, seabirds tend to have some characteristics in common. They are long-lived and slow to mature. Guillemots and razorbills can live 40 years, fulmars and shearwaters have reached 50 and some fulmars don’t start to breed until 20-years-old. Seabirds lay few eggs, often just one, and frequently pair for life.

There are some big differences too; British seabirds vary in size from the 3kg gannet to the sparrow-sized storm petrel weighing just 25g. Some spend quite a lot of time ashore and regularly roost on land.

Herring gulls are equally at home following the plough for earthworms as following a fishing boat for discards.

Others, like the shearwaters and petrels, are truly marine animals which only come ashore to breed and spend most of their lives out at sea.

There are coastal species which can be seen without even leaving the harbour.

Birds will approach much closer to a boat than a person on shore so sitting in the cockpit at anchor can be the best way to enjoy close views of terns fishing, a cormorant drying its wings or a black guillemot swimming underwater. If you want to see rare petrels, head out to the edge of the continental shelf, but the majority of birds are found within the inshore waters where most of us sail. The best places are often where strong tidal currents concentrate their prey.

‘The majority of birds are found within the inshore waters where most of us sail. The best places are often where strong tidal currents concentrate their prey’ Practical Boat Owner • www.pbo.co.uk

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Identifying seabirds

SEABIRDS PREVIOUS PAGE Kittiwake FAR LEFT Great black-backed gull LEFT Guillemot

Breeding season spectacle

For sheer spectacle there is nothing like sailing past a big colony in the breeding season.

Most seabirds choose to nest in inaccessible places such as steep cliffs and small islands so the sights, sounds and smells of Guillemot tens or even hundreds with chick of thousands of birds combine with some of the most dramatic scenery. The largest colonies are concentrated in the north and west, especially islands such as Shetland, Orkney, St Kilda and the Western Isles, Rathlin Island and the Pembrokeshire islands. Flamborough Head in Yorkshire is the largest mainland colony. But there are birds to be seen around all coasts and all times of year. The lesser black-backed gull is most abundant at Walney Island in Cumbria while the Solent and East Anglia hold some of the largest tern colonies.

The South Coast is also the place to see the Mediterranean gull – a recent arrival to the UK. Some of our breeding birds fly south or disperse offshore at the end of the breeding season but then there are others arriving. Sooty shearwaters pass through from late summer on their return to breeding areas in the South Atlantic.

Little auks move into the North Sea from the Arctic, along with a few glaucous and Iceland gulls.

Identifying seabirds

While it’s not difficult to find seabirds, identifying them can be tricky and a good field guide will be a worthwhile addition to any boat’s library.

Most seabirds come in various combinations of black, white and grey, while skuas and juvenile gulls are brown.

Colour is Puffin reserved for beaks and feet – most flamboyantly in that charismatic favourite, the puffin.

Different groups can be told apart by body shape and flight characteristics but for closely related species we have to look for

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more subtle differences. Do the black wing tips have tiny white patches like fingernails? That will separate a common gull from a kittiwake. Common and Arctic terns both have red beaks, but the common tern’s beak has a black tip.

Guillemot and razorbill can be hard to separate at a distance but close up the different beak shape is obvious.

To complicate matters, many birds look quite different in non-breeding plumage – guillemots and razorbills have much whiter faces, puffins lose their big colourful beaks. The black-headed gull (which actually has a chocolate brown face in summer) has a white head in winter. Not to mention the different plumages of juvenile birds. Gulls moult through several immature plumages and can confuse even experienced birders.

Unlike many young gulls which look rather scruffy in their mottled brown plumage, the juvenile kittiwake, called a tarrock in Cornwall, has a smart black ‘M’ shape on its wings and is one of the prettiest seabirds. No wonder early naturalists thought it a separate species.

Plunging gannets

One bird that is easy to recognise is the gannet, the largest European seabird with a 1.8m wingspan and brilliant white plumage. The pale yellow head is not always obvious at sea but it has a distinctive shape in flight, very streamlined from long, dagger-like bill to pointed tail.

Gannets also have an impressive feeding strategy, folding their wings Adult gannet back to plunge into the sea from heights of up to 30m. A diving gannet can hit the water at over 50 knots, the momentum taking it down to 15m or more where it also uses wings and feet to swim in pursuit of fish. Gannets have several adaptations including strong neck muscles, membranes to protect the eyes and a spongy bone plate at the base of the bill to cope with the impact. They take sizeable fish such as herring and mackerel and can be seen feeding with

dolphins, no doubt taking advantage of fish chased to the surface. A fast swimming pod of common dolphins with gannets diving ahead of them is an unforgettable sight. More than half the world population breed in the UK, mostly in Scotland. The Bass Rock in the Firth of Forth is the largest gannetry in the world.

Clyde sailors can also enjoy the local gannetry at Ailsa Craig and there is even a small colony in the Channel Islands.

Fulmar sense of smell

The fulmar is the closest we have to an albatross. Although its grey and white colouring is similar to a gull, the fulmar has a very different style of flight, fast and efficient with wings held straight. The head shape is also unlike a gull with tubular nostrils on top of the beak.

Along with the other tubenoses (albatrosses, shearwaters and petrels) fulmars have a good sense Fulmar of smell – unusual in birds – which they use to locate food and possibly for navigation.

Fulmars have shown a phenomenal increase in range over last 200 years. Until the mid-18th century, this species only bred on St Kilda and Iceland; now they nest all round the British Isles. Human activities have probably contributed to the fulmar’s success, with whaling then fishing providing vast quantities of offal and discarded fish. I’ve counted flocks thousands-strong following trawlers in the North Sea.

Burrowing shearwaters

Shearwaters are well named, the tips of their long narrow wings almost brushing the water as they soar the waves. On a perfectly calm day I have even seen shearwaters soaring the wash of a large motoryacht. Perfectly adapted for long distance flight, they are clumsy and vulnerable on land and nest in burrows.

Shearwater colonies are restricted to the western seaboard, totalling 80% of the global population and including the largest colonies in the world on the Isle

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SEABIRDS FAR LEFT Razorbill LEFT Black-headed gull in winter plumage

of Rum and Skomer in Wales. Manx shearwaters leave our waters after the breeding season, migrating to the rich fishing grounds off Patagonia. Like the early European navigators they use the prevailing winds, following the west coast of Europe and Africa then taking advantage of the trade winds to cross the Atlantic to Brazil. Taking a different route on the way back they use the westerlies to cross from the Caribbean. A male from Skomer flew 4,800 miles south in 6.5 days. How do we know? The first clues about the travels of individual birds came from the occasional recovery (often once they were dead) of birds that had been ringed. But recent advances in technology have enabled researchers to fit even the smallest seabirds with a whole range of dive recorders, geolocators and GPS loggers, revealing their lives at sea in fascinating detail.

Storm petrels

Bird numbers are generally low in the open ocean but I remember a passage from the Azores to Ireland when the storm petrels lived up to their name; for three days of gales we were surrounded by ‘stormies’ fluttering low over the foam streaked sea, completely at home in the huge swells. Around Scotland I have mostly seen these diminutive birds in exactly the opposite conditions. They feed on zooplankton by pattering the surface with their feet and perhaps an oily calm is also good for feeding.

Bold herring gulls

Have you ever wondered whether it is the same herring gull that always perches on your dinghy in a particular anchorage? It might well be. Herring gulls take a wide variety of food and can be found foraging from sea to shore to refuse tip, but individuals may specialise in where and what they eat. While some make a habit of following fishing boats, I think there are yacht specialists too. For several years, whenever I visited Canna harbour in the Hebrides, a particularly bold gull would soon arrive onboard. I could recognise Henry, as I called him, by the pattern of black flecks in his yellow eyes – it wasn’t difficult to get close up photos of a bird

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who would join us in the cockpit.

Tern migration

Not everyone loves gulls, but their relatives the terns are generally more admired and have been called sea swallows. They feed in shallow coastal waters, hovering and swooping down to catch fish at the surface. Terns don’t like to sit on the water; out at sea they will often perch on driftwood or buoys. Common, sandwich, and little terns all breed around the Solent and Poole harbour. Their preference for flat ground, such as sand or shingle beaches makes them vulnerable to rising sea levels and disturbance. Only the Arctic tern is more abundant in the north.

These beautiful birds spend more of their lives in daylight than any other creature by making an epic migration from Scotland and further north to the Antarctic for a second summer.

Juvenile Herring gull

Amazing auks

If the fulmar is the closest we have to an albatross, the auks are the northern hemisphere equivalent of penguins, although they are not related. Penguins hold the deep diving records but guillemots can descend to 180m. Like the penguins, the great auk gave up flight entirely – and was hunted to extinction in the 19th century. The surviving auks have compromised; their short wings are best suited for swimming underwater but they can still fly – most of the time. Guillemots and razorbill chicks jump from the breeding ledges when only a third of adult size with tiny, ineffectual wings. At the same time the adults moult their flight feathers all at once so for a few weeks around August the population is flightless.

The puffin, most recognisable and probably best-loved of our seabirds, is also an auk. Despite those bright conspicuous beaks, puffins can be surprisingly hard to spot at sea. They are small and spend even more time underwater than other auks. While a guillemot will carry a single fish back to

feed its chick, puffins are well known for their ability to hold a whole beakful of sandeels – one was recorded with an incredible 126 fish. All the auks are most abundant in the north and west but there are small puffin colonies on the Channel Islands, Isles of Scilly and Portland Bill so you might see one in the Channel.

Population decline

When I started working on seabirds in the late 1980s, most species were doing well, but sadly the last few decades have seen an alarming reversal in fortune. As elsewhere, many seabird populations are declining, some drastically. We have lost around half the kittiwake population since 2000 and even the adaptable herring gull is in trouble. Arctic skua and lesser black-backed gull have suffered the steepest declines and the puffin was recently added to the ‘red list’ of Birds of Conservation Concern as globally threatened. Birds which feed on sandeels have been particularly badly hit, probably due to a combination of overfishing and warmer seas affecting the sandeels’ planktonic prey. Climate change will undoubtedly have multiple impacts on marine ecosystems. At sea, birds are accidentally caught in fishing gear and vulnerable to oil pollution and the ever increasing tide of plastic. Introduced predators can have a devastating effect on island colonies, though there have been some successful rat eradication projects.

Disturbance can also be a problem so please be careful not to approach too close whether afloat or ashore.

We all hope the puffin won’t go the same way as the great auk, but enjoy the birds while you can. If you keep a good watch, you never know what might fly by – last summer a black-browed albatross turned up among the gannets at Bempton cliffs!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Genevieve Leaper has been sailing and birdwatching all her life. She worked for the Nature Conservancy Council (now JNCC) for several years, carrying out seabird and cetacean surveys. She now sails mostly around Scotland and Greece.

Practical Boat Owner • www.pbo.co.uk

SEABIRDS

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Seabird families breeding in the UK Fulmars & shearwaters (1) Northern fulmar Fulmarus glacialis, (2) Manx shearwater Puffinus puffinus n Relatives of the albatrosses n Fly with stiff wings held straight, several wingbeats followed by long glide n Shearwaters often seen in large flocks

Cormorants (6) Great cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo, (7) European shag Phalacrocorax aristotelis n Large, dark birds with a long neck n Use large webbed feet to swim underwater n Often rest on rocks and navigation marks; Hold wings Storm petrels outstretched to dry feathers (3) European Storm petrel n Cormorant has white patch on Hydrobates pelagicus, face; shag has a crest in Leach’s petrel Oceanodroma breeding plumage leucorhoa Gulls n Small dark birds with a white rump (8) Herring gull Larus argentatus, Lesser black-back n Fly close to the water, flight often erratic Larus fuscus, Great blackback Larus marinus, Blackn Rare Leach’s petrel has a slightly forked tail headed gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus, Mediterranean Gannet gull Larus melanocephalus, (4) Adult gannet (9) Common gull Larus canus, (5) Immature gannet Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla n Related to the boobies of tropical seas n A familiar but confusing group.

Juveniles and immatures look n Conspicuously large and white with black wing tips very different to adults n Juveniles are brown n Look at head and bill

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n Great black-back is the largest n Great skua, also known as a and darkest Bonxie (the Shetland name) n Mediterranean gull has blacker resembles a heavy, brown gull head than the commoner n Arctic skua has pale and dark black-headed gull colour forms, most Scottish birds are all dark brown Terns n Only breed in north and (10) Common tern Sterna west Scotland hirundo, (11) Arctic tern Sterna paradisaea, Sandwich Auks Sterna sandvicensis, (12) (14) Guillemot Uria aalge, (15) Little Sterna albifrons, Razorbill Alca torda, Puffin Roseate Sterna dougallii Fratercula arctica, (16) Black guillemot Cepphus grylle, n Slimmer and more elegant than gulls with pointed wings Great auk Pinguinus and long forked tail impennis (extinct) n Little tern has white forehead n Compact diving birds with and yellow bill and legs short wings n Roseate tern is the rarest n More often seen on the water breeding seabird in UK, with one than flying, form large small colony in Northumberland mixed flocks n All migrants which leave UK n Fly straight and waters in winter level with fast wing beats Skuas n Black (13) Great skua Stercorarius guillemot or skua, Arctic skua Tystie is Stercorarius parasiticus black with white n Related to gulls and terns; steal fish and sometimes prey wingon other birds patches

CRUISING

Fleeing a volcanic eruption Kia Koropp and family up-anchor and grab their face masks when a cloud of black ash descends on the Grenadines

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ocircumnavigationiscomplete withoutacollectionof‘one-up’ storiestotell.We’vehiked dormantvolcanoesandlooked intothefierypitofactiveonesduringthe decadewe’vebeencruising.Recounting theseuniqueexperienceshasbeenfun. ThankstoLaSoufrièreinStVincent,we cannowadd‘runningfromanerupting volcano’toourcollectionoftales.This ishowmyhusband,John,andI experiencedtheeventwhilecruisinginthe GrenadineswithourtwochildrenBraca (nine)andAyla(seven)onboardAtea,our 50ftGanleycutter-riggedsloop. NolongeriscruisingtheCaribbean definedbyacarefreetransitthrougha successionofislands.In2020itbecame allaboutnegotiatingthecomplexitiesof Covidregulationswhichrequirean in-depthunderstandingofthecurrent policiesofeachcountryandresultinless movementwithinthearchipelago.The Frenchislandsarecurrentlyclosedto non-Frenchcitizensandthelargedisparity betweenthecostofPCRtestsandthe varyingquarantinerequirementsmeans youhavetodoyourresearchbefore

36

movingon.Havingdoneourresearch,we settledonspendingachunkofourtimein theGrenadineswhere,afterthepainand priceofentry,wewouldberewardedwith alargegroupofidyllicislandstoslowly explore.Whatwedidn’tincludeinourlist ofconsiderationswasthedisruptionofan activevolcano. StVincentisthelargestandnorthernmost ofthe32islandsthatmakeupthe Grenadines,andisuniquewithitsblack

sandbeaches,denseforestandimpressive waterfalls.Themanyattractionsonthe mainislandwouldcallusback,buthaving justspenttwoweeksinquarantineand £750onfeestoenter,weboltedatthefirst chancewegot.Wesaileddirectlytothe neighbouringislandofBequia,ahighlight destinationofmine15yearsagoforits chilledislandvibes,excellentdivingand stiffhappy-hourspecials.Covidmadean impact,however,andtheusualtourist ABOVE Volcanic plumes rise from neighbouring St Vincent LEFT John and and Braca aboard Atea

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

GREAT SAILING IN EUROPE LEFT The kids are alright with smoke on the water BELOW Admiralty Bay is free of traffic but the air is choking

buzzwasgone.Luckyus.Ratherthan havingtoplonkouranchorattheback ofagridlockedbay,therewereonly aboutthree-dozenboatsinAdmiraltyBay. Wespentthenexttwoweeksplaying withthekidsonemptybeaches,diving undisturbedinsecludedsitesandsipping rumpuncheswiththesmallcommunity ofothercruiserswewerewith.

What were we thinking?

Justaswewerewrappingupourtime inBequia,theunexpectedturnedour leisurelyislandcruiseintoafastdashto itsfurthestreaches.Ireceivedatexton Fridaymorning:‘Becareful.She’sabout toblow!’Atmiddayon9Aprilthefirst eruptiononLaSoufrière,StVincent’s youngestandmostdangerousvolcano, sentahugeplumeofashupandover theisland.Otherthanreportsofamass evacuationofresidentsinthenorth,there

werenoobvioussignsofconcernin Bequiaatwhatwasunfoldingonits nearestneighbour.Shopsremained open,restaurantscontinuedservice, peoplemilledaroundthestreetswith noindicationofdistress.Thatairof indifferencecontinueduntilalarge plumeofashbecamevisiblearound2pm. Abuzzofexcitementgatheredasthe crowdsonthestreetgrew.At5pm,a seconderuptiondumpedmorethick ashintotheatmosphere.Onlyafew boatspulledupanchorandafew touristspackedtheirbags.Therestof usignorantlystoodbyaswewaitedfor eventstounfold,thenheadedtothe barforsunsetcocktails.Somethingsare justtoosurrealtodoanythingbutcarry onasusual. Wehadtoaskourselvesthefollowing morning:‘Whatwerewethinking?’Ahuge expandingcloudofashwasspreadingby

‘That air of indifference continued until a large plume of ash became visible around 2pm’

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

theminutefromavolcanothathas eruptedtwice,andwedidn’tthinktoget asfarawayassoonaspossible? ThefirstthingInoticedwhenwewoke inthemorningwasthegritinmymouth. Thenitwasthethicknessoftheairin mylungs.Thenitwasthefineashthat coveredeverysurfaceoftheboat.The countertopshadafinelayerofash,the bedandsetteesaswell.Wewalkedupon deckandthegravityofoursituationsunk in–wewererightinthemiddleofahuge depositofvolcanicashthathadfloatedup, over,anddownonusthroughthenight. Westoodondecktakinginthesurreal scenethatsurroundedus.Everyinchof theboatwascoveredinash–alayer restedonthewater,theboatsaroundus wereblurredbythehazeandtheshoreline wasbarelyvisible.Kids,beingastheyare, thoughtthebizarrelandscapearoundus wasmagicalandtheyhadablastturning chaosintoagame.Theypoppedupon deckwiththeirbiohazarddefencesin place:snorkellingmaskprotectingtheir eyes,surgicalmaskcoveringtheirnose andmouth,skinblanketedinrobesand bucketsofwaterinhand.Wesloshed

37

CRUISING

FAR LEFT Another rum anyone?

ABOVE The flotilla departs as ash clouds descend LEFT Activating biohazard mode BELOW Islands loom in the volcanic gloom

thedeckonlytoturnthefinepowdery surfaceintoarunningmessofsludgy mud.Wesoongaveupcleaningand focusedonourescape.

Mass exodus

Amassexodusofboatsstartedpulling outofthebay.Thetrafficontheradiowas heavyasboatscalledeachothertomake impromptuplans.Whatweretheoptions? Howfardidtheashspread?Where shouldtheygo?Shouldtheymotoror wouldthatkilltheengine?Shouldthey unfurlthesailsorwouldthatdamagethe sails?Itdidn’ttakelongforustofollow suit.AsweturnedontheGPSthe graphicshighlightedthegravityofthe situation:triangulariconsofyachts doubleduponeachother,everysingle oneofthemheadingduesouthinan overlappingstraightline. Sailingthroughtheopaquehazewas surreal.Islandsvisibletwomilesawayon

theGPSwerehiddenbehinda veilofash,theshadowofaboat avaguesilhouetteinfrontof them.Wethoughtwe’dgoonly asfaraswehadtogountilwe reachedclearair,butthatnever happened.Thelineofboats keptgoinguntilcorneredinthe furthestislandswithinthegroup, trappedbyCovidrestrictionsthatbanned usfromfreelyenteringneighbouring countries.Trappedandoutofoptions, everyonespreadoutbetweenMayreau, UnionortheTobagoCays.Afewcruisers andlive-aboardsailorsstayedinBequia, butintheendIdon’tthinkitmattered.The north-easterlywindblewforthreedays andspreadtheashevenlythroughoutthe entireislandgroup.

Crunching grit

Forthedozenofuswhosoughtshelterin theTobagoCays,thefirstfewdayssawlittle

‘What were we thinking? A huge expanding cloud of ash is spreading by the minute from a volcano that has erupted twice’

38

changeintheamount ofashbeingblown downonus;the airwasimbued withafinelayer ofit.Everyone permanentlywore surgicalmasks throughoutthe dayandmanyofusthroughoutthenight;a slightbreakinthedefencesandyou’dbe crunchinggritinyourteethandblowing outaclotofdustfromyournose.Likea choreographedprocessionofsynchronised deckhands,wewouldgrabacoffeeanda bucketandspendthemorningscrubbing thefinelayerofashoffthedeck.

Wealsokeptaneyeontheweather, hopingforabreak.Wegotourfirst indicationthatconditionswereimproving whenwesawthesunsetforthefirsttime inthreedays.Bymorning,thewindhad settledtotheeast,blowingtheashaway fromusandbringingtheclearairwe’d beenwaitingfor. LaSoufrièrehasnotsettledand continuestoerupt,sendingcloudsofash intotheairandpyroclasticflowdownthe mountainside,butthosesouthofSt. Vincenthaveremainedfreeofany recurringfallout.Iaskedmykidswhat theythoughtoftheexperience.Onesaid ‘fine’andtheothersaid‘fun’.WhenIthink back,Irecallthegritinmyteethandthe eeriehazethatblindedmysurroundings fromviewandthewordthatcomesto mindis‘flexible’.In2020itwasallabout negotiatingthechangingcomplexitiesof Covidregulations.In2021ithasbecome allaboutracingfromvolcaniceruptions andathunderstormofash.Iamnotsureif wewillreturntoSt.Vincentasplannedas thedamagetotheislandwilltakealong timetorepair.TheonlythingIdoknowfor certain,however,isthatthenexttimeIsee ahugeplumeofashrisingonthehorizon, I’mnothangingaroundsippingrum.

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Viking adventure Sam Griffiths and his dad camp out under the stars in a 12ft dinghy to enjoy the delights of an historic German waterway

Sam Griffiths with his father at the tiller sailing their Morbic 12 Pigeonneau, nicknamed Pig

40

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W

hen10thcenturychronicler AbrahambenJacobvisited Haithabu(Hedeby)nearthe southernendoftheJutland Peninsula,hedescribeditas‘averylarge cityattheveryendoftheworld’socean.’ Thesettlementbecameatradingcentre attheheadofthenarrow,navigableinlet knownasthe Schlei.Itwasaconvenient basewheregoodsandpossiblysmall Vikingshipscouldbepulledona corduroyroad(timbertrack) overlandfor analmostuninterruptedseawaybetween theBalticandtheNorthSea,avoidinga dangerousandtime-consuming circumnavigationofJutland. Re-enactingthisfamousrouteonour 12ftplywooddinghywassomethingI’d dreamedofforalongtime,andin November2019theideacametofruition whenIflewovertoabirthdaypartyin nearbySchleswigandwasabletovisitthe excellentmuseuminHaithabu.

OverthewinterIplannedaweek-long journeythatwouldstartattheentranceto theSchlei,involveapickupnear

INLAND CRUISING Haithabu,beforetrailingtotheTreene river,whichwewouldthentaketo Tonningand(fingerscrossed)sailtomy wife’sfamilyislandhomeonFohr.

Itwascarefullyconsidered,elaborate and,asitturnedout,completely impossible!AtfirstCOVIDseemedtobe thespoilerbut,bylateJuly2020, lockdownwasover,tobereplacedbythat otherstubbornadversary;aconsistent westerly.

Theambitiousvoyagehadalwaysbeen dependentonaneasterly,andsoI ditchedtheromanticideaofone continuousjourneyeasttowestand decidedtogowiththenowdecidedly strong20-knotwesterly. LateoneeveninginJuly,mydadandI trailedPigeonneau(Pigforshort),our Morbic12dinghy,intopositionjusteastof Haithabu.BlessedwiththeuseofaVW camper,wewereabletoparkatFahrdorf, oneofthemanybeautifullittleharbours ontheSchlei’ssouthernshoreandquietly popuptheroofinthedark. Wewokeearlyinordertopretendwe

hadn’tcamped,andtoslipPiginthe waterbeforethewindbecame unmanageable.Weweregoingtoattempt tosailthewholeoftheSchlei(around20 miles)inoneday.

A wet affair

Freeoftheburdenofourcampingkit,we reefedthemainwhich,alongwiththe handkerchief-sizedjib,wasplenty,and rocketedoffeast.Wemadequick progresstoLouisenlund,asmallboarding schoolonthesouthshore,inspiredbythe famousGermaneducatorKurtHahn. Wecamealongside,andwererewarded withabriskstretchofourlegsaroundthe tranquilcampus.Backon board,wenow hadtoreachacrosstothenarrow entranceguardedbythestunninglittle townofMissunde. Thisprovedtobeawetaffairwithwaves crashingoverthebows,aswestruggled tofindthenarrowentrance.What’smore, tryingtotack(definitelynotgybe!)would leadtocertaincapsizeunlesswepushed rightintothefarshoreinordertofinda littlesheltertoforcePiground.Task achievedwesurfed,funnellingthrough theentranceasifonathemeparkride, beforeroundingthecornertoemergein toatranquilbaywithsolittlewindthe boateventriedtospinitsway dangerously–inanactofsenselessness –intoanotherquaintlittlemarinawith

‘At first COVID was the spoiler, but with lockdown over it was replaced by that other stubborn adversary: a consistent westerly’ North Sea

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Reconstructed Viking village at Haithabu, a UNESCO World Heritage Site at the former medieval city of Hedeby

Dagebüll Schlüttsiel

FOHR Utersum LANGNESS

Leg 3

North Sea

DENMARK Copenhagen NORTH FRISIAN ISLANDS

GRODE

Hamburg GERMANY

NETHERLANDS

HOOGE

N

Eider Tonning

Malmo

Baltic Sea

Maasholm

i Schle Leg 1 Lifting bridge Missunde

Schleswig Haithabu SCHLESWIGFahrdorf HOLSTEIN Louisenlund GERMANY Leg 2Hollingstedt Friedrichstadt 10 0 River Treene

PELLWORM

ST PETER ORDING

nautical miles

ABOVE Fishing boats and nets drying on the Schlei LEFT The port at Haithabu

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ymalA/HbmGranooZ

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Baltic Sea

SWEDEN

CRUISING

TOP LEFT The head of the Schlei. Haithabu is in the background next to Schleswig LEFT Camping on the beach. ABOVE Where are the Viking galley slaves when you want them to row you against the wind?

woodenboatsgalore.TheGermanssee thisthinstretchofwateras‘LittleEngland’ andthereisnodoubtthatit’sapastoral delight. Mostvillagesarefullof(decentlypriced) holidayhomes,withA-framehouses dottedaroundtheforeshore,butthere werealsovaststretchesoffieldsand woodlandwithoutasoulinsight;wereally wereinsomesortofsailingheaven! Buttheincreasingwindwasenoughto fixthemindasweroundedanothercorner tobefacedwithalongstraightsectionof thefjord,knowingthatthefurtherwewent, thegreaterthewindspeedandfetch wouldbe. Dadletthemainfullyoutaswepowered alongwhileIsatonthecentreboard, franticallybalancingtheboat.Thiswas similartooursailingintheEastFrisians thesummerbefore,butthistimeweknew thewaterwouldnotdisappearandwe couldalsoeasilyswimashore!

Onceortwicewenearlybroachedand soitwaswithnolittlereliefthatwe nudgedintoabayjustshortofthelifting bridgeatLubbe,wonderinghowonearth weweresupposedtogetthrough. Aswetackedtoandfro,yachts(under engine)lininguponeitherside,wealmost endedupembarrassinglytrappedin irons;wehadonefinaltacktomakeitout andjustmanagedtoskulkroundbefore hearingthebellsofthebridgeand scootingunder,almostcertainwewould bearrested!

speeds,motorboatscomingbyjustto checkwereweren’tcompletelymad,one evenaskinghowwewerestayingupright! WecarriedontoMaasholmatthe entrancetotheBaltic.Bynow3pm,time wasonourside,buttheelementswere not,thewindnowcominginhugegusts asweenteredthemarinainsearchofthe (promised)slip.Spottingtheslipalittle toolate,weslammedoverthetiller,but shewouldn’tcomeround.Thebowsprit impaledthehighconcretewallaswe careeredallovertheplace,eventually droppingthesailsandpaddlingashore feelingsomewhatchastened.Ataxitook usbacktothecamperandtrailerwhere wecelebratedourreturnwitharefreshing dipinthebrackishwater.

WeheadedbacktoMaasholmtoretrieve Pigthenrewardedourselveswithalovely supperinthelocalfishrestaurantbefore drivingthelengthoftheSchleiforathird timeinsearchofHollingstedtontheRiver Treene.Bynowitwasnearly11pm,butour luckcontinuedaswehuntedforacamping spotforthenight,eventuallyfindinga perfectlittletrackinthedarktopopupthe rooftentandgetourheadsdown.

Upearly,therewasnowdaylightto inspectourgrassyslip,usedbycanoeists ratherthanhairyVikings.Thatsaid,justas westruggleddownthebank,asiffrom nowhere,alargebodybuilderofaman wasabletohelpusliftPigintotheTreene andoffwewenttotheseaonLeg2ofour journey.

‘The back-breaking work of boat retrieval began as we used a towing rope to bring Pig out from where we’d only recently launched her’

Solitary Strandkorp

Suchwasthedrama,andindeedour pace,wedecidedtonipashoreforour sandwichlunchinawonderfullywarm, solitaryStrandkorp. Castingoff,ourpost-lunchlullwasnot sharedbytheweather,asagain,bythe endofthenextlongpatchofwaterwithout abendweweresurfingatconsiderable

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Speedy upriver sailing with just the jib – a highlight of the trip

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INLAND CRUISING BELOW Peaceful, low-lying countryside with few other people about

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Looking for deeper water

Orsowethought.Infact,afterafew hundredmetrestheriverbentrighttothe westandwewerebuffetedbytheever increasingwesterly,justliketheday before,butwewerenowagainstit.XC WeatherApptoldusthis,ofcourse,but wethoughttherivercurrentwouldbe enough.Itwasn’t,andevenferocious rowinggotusnowhere. Terrificshowerstormsscuddedthrough, totheextentwehadtohideunderthesail. Afteranhourandhalf’smiserablerowing, apauseintherainallowedustotakean early,soggylunch.

Withanotherdayofdecentwindfrom thewestitwasnowobviousthatwehad tostartattheNorthSeaendandworkour wayupriver.Thisstillseemedcounterintuitive,butthefactthatwesailedbackto Hollingstedtunderjibalonein25minutes confirmedthatthiswasameadowriver withonlythetiniestofcurrents. Andso,theback-breakingworkofboat retrievalbeganasweusedatowingrope tobringPigoutfromwherewehadonly recentlylaunchedher,tiedeverything downandheadedoffforFriedrichstadt, furtherinlandthanTonningasatthis stagewerekeentostillsailourlongroute toFohrandwererunningoutoftime. Afterdrivingaroundthestunning, cobbledstreetsofthis‘miniAmsterdam’ wemanagedtofindatinysailingclubwith justtheslipweneeded.However,there wastheubiquitousboltedbarrier.Justas wewereabouttogiveup,asluckwould

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Longboat at Haithabu’s Viking Museum

Cooling off after a long run to Hollingstedt

haveitafatheranddaughterwerejust lockingupfortheday;totallybemusedby oureccentricjourney,theywerequickto takeourr10andwatchedusheadoff underjibalone(themainandboomhaving beenleftwiththecamperandtrailer).

Now6pm,thedayhadbeenrescuedas wefelteveryinchlikeVikings.Westeamed upriverwithourtansailaloftandthenext threeandahalfhourswerethehighlight ofthetrip.Wehadseamlesssailingand rowinganddroppedthemast(withthejib stillon)underacoupleoflowbridges.

Asdarknessfell,wepulledinrounda bendandsetupthetentsbehindadyke, andhadourusualsupper–aPotNoodle, anappleandacupoftea–inthedark. Havingunexpectedlycomesofarthat evening,Tuesdaymorninginthefading windwassomewhatofananticlimax. Indeed,wereachedHollingstedtby midday.

However,thisdidgivemethechanceto continuemymarathontrainingasIran 24kmbackalongsomedelightfulcycle pathstocollectthecamperandtrailer. DadtooktheopportunitytotidyupPig andIwasbackthreehourslater.

Sopractisedatrecoverywerewe,Pig wasoutinminutes,andwefollowedwith aswiminthefreshwateroftheTreene.

Viking museum

The slip at Hollingstedt

Nextwehadaquicktourroundthetiny Vikingmuseum.Itwasamazingtosee howutterlydependentthesegrand traderswereonrivers,evenasmallone likethis.

However,historiansarenowalmost certainthattheVikingsdidnotportage theirboatsbetweentheSchleiandTreene (astheydidelsewhere,especiallyon Russianrivers),rathertheyusedcarts alongtracks.

Somewhatexhausted,itwascertainly timeforasugarybunandacoffeeata caféandachancetocatchourbreathand planthefinalfewdays. Theforecastpromisedadayofno

43

CRUISING

windfollowedbyquiteastrongsoutheasterly.Itjustdidn’tseempossibleto makethejourneyroundtheheadlandof StPeter-Ordingintime,andbesideswe hadachievedourmainaimoftraversing thepeninsular,‘Vikingstyle’.

Theislandswereallywantedtovisiton ourwaytoFohrwerePellwormand Hoogeandsoitseemedsensibletostay closetotheferrybaseofDagebulland launchfromSchluttsiel–sooffwedrove. Ournightinthecamperintheharbour hadbeenlouderthanexpectedduetothe

Pastoral scene on the island of Hooge

44

activefishingfleet,butahotsungreeted usaswetooktheebbingtideoutwest. Whatlittlewindtherewasquicklydiedand amirror-likesurfaceensuredtheislands blurredintoone. PullingintoGrode,wewereableto haveaquickscamperaroundinorderto climbadyketoseeourdestinationof Pellworm.Wesetoffforalongoldrow, onlytofindthatwewerequicklyinknee deepwater! Thechartshowedthislongpatchof shallows,butthere’snothinglike

experiencingtherealityofit:howmuch moreoftheebbwastheretorun?Does thisstretchonlygetcoveredforacouple ofhoursadaybeforeyouhavetostart pullingtheboat?

Retreat to deeper water

Itsoonbecameclearthatweneededto retreatbackintothedeeperchannelthat ranallthewaytothesafetyofHoogeto avoidbeingcookedaliveonthesands! Theblisteringheatandchallengeof identifyingthenumberedbuoysensured

Drying out in the harbour at Hooge means getting muddy

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

INLAND CRUISING About the Morbic 12 TheMorbic12isa‘sailandoar’

dinghy(amovementtheFrench call‘voileaviron’)designedby prolificnavalarchitectFrançois Viviertobebuiltbyhomebuilders andprofessionals.It’sdesignedto takefromonetothreecrewand hasabalancedlugandrowing thwarts.Withageneroustransom, theMorbic12isalsoaforgiving seaboatbasedonancientfishing vessels.Findoutmoreat vivierboats.com/en Hull length/waterline Sail area Beam/waterline Outboard motor Draught Design category/crew Light weight/without rig Build time with kit

ABOVE The author on Pig’s tiller LEFT The sun sets over the Schlei RIGHT Pig hauled up onto the beach

thatittookatleastanhouroffranticand nerve-wrackingrowingovertheshallowest sandbanksbeforewefoundourselves backintodeepwater. Hoogeitselfisa‘WattInsel’,meaning thatitdoesnothaveanybeachassuch –highwatercomesrightuptothedyke thatsurroundsit.Thisposedusa problem;wecouldeitherenterthe harbouraswouldayacht,butthenwe wouldhavetodryoutinverysquelchy mud,orwecouldpullinjusttotheleftof theentranceandseehowfarwecould A Dutch Plattboot owned by a friend on Fohr – real Riddle of the Sands stuff!

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

getPiguptheboulders. Fornowthough,afterfourhoursof rowingintheheat,we’dhadenoughand knowingthetidehadanotherhourorso toebb,wejustpulledin,leftherandwent forourusualrunashore,relievedthat (car-free)Hoogeisasignificantlysmaller islandtorunaroundthanPellworm! Searchingforabathingspotafterwards wassomewhathazardous;aseaofmud andsharpshellshamperedoureffortsto getclean,andyet,stillfuelledwith endorphins–thatwonderfulfreedrug–

3.67m/3.35m 7.6m² 1.55m/1.30m 4hp 0.17m-0.78m C2/D3 112kg/80kg 240hours

wewereswiftlyintoourdry,ifrather smellyclothes. Aquaintlittlethatchedrestaurantserved usyetmorefishoutsideintheevening sun,thistimesurroundedbyasceneof utmostbeauty:cottages,cowsandafew touristsonbicycles.

AslowwalkbacktoPigsawthatindeed shedidneedpullingupyetfurther,but withtheheavymastandallthekitoutshe provedmanoeuvrablewhenrolledover ourdrybags.Wepitchedourtentsone lasttime,keentowakeearlyandheadoff beforethewindgottoostrongandthe waterdisappearedagain. Ourfinallegwasanotheradventurous sailwithonereefinaswelookedtotakea shortcutatnearhighwaterpast Langeness.Alas,eventhenitwas extremelyshallow,andwebumpedalong withthewindbehindusfor20minutes.It wasn’tpretty,butitwasfasterandused theMorbic12’sadvantagestotheirmax. Poweringupthehome-straightto UtersumonFohr,ourlocalbeach,was anotherofthosewarmfeelingsthatmake thetiringnatureandever-changingplans thatcomewithdinghycruisingallworthit intheend.What’smore,weweregreeted onarrivalwithsomewhatmoreaffection thanI’msuretheVikingsusedtoget!

45

New generation?

GEAR

Can electric inboard engines fully replace marine diesels for cruising boats? It’s complicated, as Jake Kavanagh reports

J

ust a few years ago there were perhaps half a dozen manufacturers making electric outboards. Now there are nearly 40. We covered that market in detail last month; here we look at the latest tech for inboard electric solutions – and the remaining unsolved issues – for a hybrid or ‘electric-only’ conversion. There is also the possibility of installing a DIY electric inboard, relatively inexpensively, from equipment used in other sectors. The fork-lift industry, for example, often has a surplus of new and used DC motors that can be easily converted to marine applications.

Apartfromtheobviousadvantagesof silentmotoring,renewablefuel,minimal servicingandprecisioncontrol,electric propulsionallowsforotherpossibilities. Veryoftentheboatcanbeconfigured aroundahigh-capacitybatterybank thatnotonlyprovidestheenergyforthe motor,butforeverythingelseaswell.Plus theextrausablespacereclaimedinthe engineroom,asdemonstratedbyMark Johnsononpage48,meansaPogo30 canholdthesamecrewandgearasa Pogo36–asavingof£50,000upfront!

Severalbuildersnowoffernewmodels designedaroundarenewableenergy system.ExampleswouldbetheHanse Emotionwithitsingeniousrudderembeddedpoddrive,theSunreefEco catamarans,theSwedish-builtArcona 435Z(Zforzeroemissions)andthe eye-catchingwood/epoxySpirit44E. Forthemotorboatsector,theuseof foilshasallowedrelativelysmallelectric inboardstogreatlyincreasebothspeed andrange.German-basedTorqeedo,for example,hasco-operatedwithSwedish designerCandelatoproduceastylish motorboatthathasatopspeedof30

The Pogo 30 Zephyr is a successful all electric family cruiser – see page 48 for more detail

knotsandacruisingrangeof50nautical milesonasinglecharge.Meanwhile, smallerelectric‘toys’suchaspersonal watercraft,surfboardsandevenpedalassistedwaterbikescanalsoekeoutan impressiverangebyfoilingtominimise thepowerrequired.

The two obstacles

However,twobigobstaclestomarine electricpropulsionremain,especiallyfor fastmotorboats.Thefirstiscost.Thekitis expensive,sometimesdoublethepriceof

anequivalentnewdieselinstallation. However,oncetheinitialoutlayis covered,thereisverylittleelsetofund andsopaybackbegins.Electricmotors andbatteries–ifwelllookedafter–should needalmostnoservicingorongoing maintenanceforyears.Modernlithium-ion chemistriescandeep-cyclewithout damageupto(andevenbeyond)2,000 cycles,andbrushlessDCmotorsare prettymuchsealedforlife.

Thesecondobstacleisrange.Wedon’t yethavethebatterychemistrytomatch theenergydensityofagallonofdiesel, whichiswhymanyyachtsmenstillchoose thehybridroute.Mostbatterybanksofa manageable/stowablesizecanonly provideaboutfourhoursofelectric cruisingspeedinsmoothconditions. However,withsomanyrecentadvances inenergystorage,thatisalsochanging. Lithium-sulphur,forexample, isnowacheaperandlonger-lived

LEFT Grace or pace? The Candela has a top speed of 30 knots thanks to its Torqeedo motor and retractable foils. RIGHT The Spirit 44E is entirely electric. Note the solar panels blended with the lazarette hatch. CENTRE Sunreef 80 Eco, bedecked with 34kW (peak) solar panels

46

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

ELECTRIC INBOARDS Which hybrid?

Hybrid drives, where a combustion engine is part of the drivetrain, fall into two main types: serial and parallel.

Serial hybrids use a quiet-running diesel generator located in another part of the boat which feeds the motor via thick electric cables. This gives much greater flexibility with the accommodation, as the generator can be located almost anywhere. The generator can also be optimised with the correct loading to make it as quiet and fuel-efficient as possible.

The graphic shows a typical Oceanvolt serial hybrid set-up.

Parallel hybrids connect the electric motor directly to the engine, either by an attachment to the prop shaft or by being mounted on – or between – the gearbox. This also allows it to be driven by the diesel engine as a generator and spun up by the prop shaft during a brisk sail.

The photo (right) is an example of a

1. DC generator 2. Propulsion battery pack 3. Battery connection box 4. Bus bar 5. Charger/Inverter 6. Shore power input 7. Main switch 8. Motor controller 9. Electric saildrive motor 10. Dual control lever 11. Oceanvolt displays 12. System control & monitoring 13. Solar panels 14. Solar charger 15. DC/DC converter 16. House battery

ABOVE Oceanvolt serial hybrid

hybrid from Netherlands-based Combi.

You can see the (green) electric motor bolted to the side of the engine block and connected by a belt.

Motor considerations One of the main advantages of an electric drive is that it doesn’t need a gearbox, so virtually any type of electric motor can be coupled directly to a propeller shaft.

However, to gain the full advantage of e-propulsion, there are certain factors to consider: Voltage The usual voltage for a sailing yacht installation is 48V DC, giving plenty of torque but unlikely to prove lethal if you get a shock from an open circuit. It’s easy to step this voltage up or down via inverters or DC converters for 240V mains and 12V appliances on board.

Regeneration Some DIY-sourced motors, such as from scrapped fork-lift trucks, work

RIGHT An Oceanvolt electric saildrive installed in one hull of an ITA catamaran.

Note the cleanliness and accessibility of the installation

fine for propulsion but can’t be used for generation. For full regen, you need a motor type that can also operate as a generator, especially if you wish to harness a freewheeling propeller.

Cooling Electric motors can run hot, which reduces their efficiency. Many have a simple cooling system already installed that will need hooking up to a suitable skin fitting. The saildrive units tend to have all this already built into the leg.

ABOVE Torqeedo and ZF have come together to form an all-electric ‘Deep Blue’ saildrive; an advanced version rotates 360° for full joystick docking control

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Electric prop With the torque available usually less than from a diesel, the role of the propeller becomes more critical.

Companies such as Darglow, Gori and Bruntons all have feathering propellers that lend themselves ideally to a

RIGHT Brunton’s Ecostar propeller

combination of electric drive, motor-sailing or regen.

Bruntons’ Ecostar has been designed specifically for electric boats.

The blades pivot outwards with a variable pitch, automatically adjusting for the forces in play. The Oceanvolt Servoprop does much the same thing, adjusting the pitch in response to the power input and the water speed to give the optimum blade angle. When in regen mode, the blades open in the opposite direction to harvest as much energy as possible, but only when there is sufficient speed to negate the drag.

47

GEAR LEFT Italian H2 Boat is trialling a hydrogen fuel cell in a 24ft yacht using a B&G control interface RIGHT A highefficiency Lynch electric motor is connected by a belt to the gearbox and will double as a 10kW generator

alternativetothestaplelithium-ion,with higherenergydensitiesperkilogram evolvingeveryyear.Meanwhile,the inventorofthelithium-ioncell,John Goodenough,hasrecentlyannounced thelithium-glassbattery,whichhesayswill ‘finallymakeelectriccarsmoreaffordable’. Therangeissaidtobethreetimesgreater thanexistingchemistries,withtheabilityto fast-chargeinminutes. Meanwhile,thehydrogenfuelcellis seeingrapiddevelopmentandisalready beingtrialledforleisuremarine. Forthosenotyetreadytoinvest thousandsinthelatestbatteries, dependablelead-acid(98%recyclable) technologystillprovidesasimpleand

relativelyinexpensivesolutionthatismainly beingusedontheinlandwaterways.On flat-bottomednarrowboats,forexample, theweightisalsousefulasballast.

Hybrid or electric-only

Forcoastalsailors,whodon’texpectto spendmorethantwoorthreehoursunder power,anelectricsolutionisalready proven.Theboatcanoftenputsomeof thechargebackwhilesailing,with renewablepowerharvestedfromwind turbines,solarpanelsandbyafreewheeling‘hydro-regen’propeller. However,forpassage-makingtoa timetable,suchasduringtheannual summerholidayoralongweekend,a

hybridisoftenabettersolution.Thisallows forelectricmanoeuvringinport,whileona long,windlesspassagethedieseltakes over,withtheelectricmotorbecoming generatortorechargethebatteries.

However,thehybriddoesstillpresent theownerwiththeneedtobuyand storefuelandhavetheengineregularly serviced,withongoingoutlayforlabour andconsumables.Ontheplusside,there isnorealissuewithrange(justcarry morefuel)andthereisnoneedfora separategenerator.

Case histories

We spoke to four owners of production boats who now have electric-only installations. These are still mostly found on fast, lightweight modern designs suited to hydro-regeneration, but improved electric saildrives are encouraging quick conversions

CASE 1: POGO 30 ZEPHYR

Asleaderofmarineinnovationfor Raymarine,MarkJohnsonwaswell placedtoconverthis30ftyachttoafull electricset-up.Powercomesfromapair ofTorqeedo48-5000(48VDC-10kWh) lithiumbatteriesrechargedby1kWof Solbianflexiblesolarpanels.Themotor isa4kW(5.3hp)Torqeedo4pod,which canalsoharvestpowerwhensailing. The‘sweetspot’forpropulsionis1.5kW whichprovides4.5knots.Whensailing fast(sevenknots)forthreehours,thepod regeneratesaround600Wh.Thesolar arrayontheboomcanbeplaced horizontallytocatchmoreraysandalso actasasunshade.Energyisalso capturedbyreflectionfromthewater.

ABOVE LEFT The Raymarine Axiom multi-function display (MFD) has been configured as an energy flow meter RIGHT Transom-mounted solar panels catch reflected sunlight

Mark’sRaymarineAxiomMFD(MultiFunctionDisplay)hasbeenconfiguredto accuratelyrepresenttheebbandflowof power.HehasusedZephyr extensivelyfor familyholidays,includingseveralChannel crossings,withthedisplayallowinghimto plan‘energystrategies’dependingonthe

Installation costs: retail prices incl VAT Diesel (t) 10kWh Torqeedo 4FP (t) Motor, propeller, controls and chargers Batteries (3 x 200Ah AGM) vs (2 x 48-5000 Li-Ion) Solar (2 x boom panel, 1 x transom panel, 3 x Genasun 200) Digital switching TOTAL

48

10,000 1,000 0

6,000 10,000 7,000

0 11,000

2,000 25,000

weather.Whenaskedifheishappywith hiselectricpropulsion,Markreplied: “There’snonoiseorsmell;novibration;it weighsmuchlessthanadiesel;and powerisinstantlyavailable.ButIthinkthe singlebiggestbenefitisthespacesaving becausewithoutthatyou’dreallyneeda 36ftboatforfamilycruising.” Theuseofelectricpropulsionhas allowedMarktousetheenginespacefor theliferaft,withthedieseltankareanowa hanginglocker.Byremovingthediesel engine,Marksavedjustover200kg (440lb)inweightand£750aseasonin fuelandservicingcosts.

Price comparison

Theset-upaboardZephyrismorethan doublethepriceofadiesel,butservicing andrunningcostsareover90%cheaper.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

ELECTRIC INBOARDS CASE 2: 10M SUSTAINABLE YACHT YA

Conceivedin2010anddesignedbynaval architectDickKoopmans,theDutch-built Yacompletedaglobalcircumnavigation between2016-2018.Themissionwasto provethatanentirelyelectricyachtwas bothpracticalandenjoyableforblue watercruising.Thesailplanisforayawl, whileelectricpropulsioncomesfroma pairofe-Tech7.5kW(10hp)shaftdrive inboards.TwosmallBruntonEcostar propellersoptimisethethrust.Poweris generatedfromanarrayofsolarpanels andamasthead-mountedwindturbine.

Theboatusesnofossilfuelsatall,even forcooking,andhasadraughtofjust 70cm(2.5ft)allowingaccesstoalmost anywhere,includingshallowinland waterways.Sheisalsodesigned tosailfast,with130m2ofsail areawhenthegennakeris flown.Sheonlyhasthree berths,adeliberatemove tokeeptheinterioras spaciousandcomfortable aspossible.Thefull-lengthwindows areadesignfeaturetomakeherfeelmore spaciousstill.Thecarefulgenerationand managementofrenewablepowerallows Yatohaveaninductioncooker,

CASE 4: SALTRAM 24 E-VOYAGER

ABOVE Ya all-electric blue-water voyager INSET Twin e-Tech inboard motors power Brunton Ecostar self-pitching propellers

microwave,oven,freezer,fridgeand twowatermakersystems.Thereisalso inverterpowerof230Vand‘USBoutlets everywhere.’Yaisdescribedbyher enthusiasticownersas‘an energy-neutraldemoyacht foreverybodywhowants tosailsustainably’.You cantryherforyourself andbookapaying berthonherviathe youthsailingwebsite: windseeker.orgorvia theyacht’sown(mostlyDutch language)siteatduurzaamjacht.nl

CASE 3: SALONA 46

GrahamBalchofGreen Yachtscommissioned theCroatian-builtSalona 46withtwinelectric motorsanddescribes theresultas‘amazing’. Thelithiumbatterybank packs30kWandpowers twin10kW(13.4hp) OceanvoltServoprop electricsaildriveunits. Theyachtsailsfast, recording10knotsonabeamreachin 15-20knotsofbreeze.Thisallowsforvery effectivehydro-regenerationfromthetwin servo-props,whosebladeshavebeen optimisedforthispurpose.“Manoeuvring inamarinawaseasy,withnoneedtouse

thewheel,”Grahamsaid.“Whensailing, wecanhydro-regeneratetwiceasfast. TheSalona46issuchaquickboat,even inquitelightwinds,soit’sidealforelectric motors.”Theboatcanmakeitsmaximum of8.5knotsunderpowerforthreehours.

ThreePlymouth-basedcompanies,two localuniversitiesandahostofOEMs havecometogethertoconvertanold workboatintoanall-electric‘testbed’ passengerferry.VoyagerMarinetook thehullofthe1980’s-builtSaltram24 Mermaidandstrippeditout,replacingthe elderly50hpForddieselwithamodern (andmassivelyoverpowered)140kW (187hp)Avidelectricmotorprovidedby EVPartsUK.Theoverpoweringwas deliberateinordertogetMCAtype approvalfortheengineandcontrols, whichwouldthenbeusedin commercialvesselsofupto24m. Thebatteryisastripped-downand re-purposed400VDCautomotiveversion fromtwowritten-off low-mileage NissanLeafs,withthe lithium-ioncells pareddownto 22kWh.The e-Voyagerwill becometheUK’sfirst seagoingall-electric passengervesselon The motor unit herrouteacross is deliberately PlymouthSound, overpowered withrecharging availablefromthree 22kWhchargersinstalledatkeylocations alongtheroute.Afullchargecanbe achievedinthreehours(usuallydone overnight)withshorter‘topups’taken betweenregularpassengerruns. Largerprojectsarealreadyunderway basedonthee-Voyagertestdata.

The e-Voyager project is a test bed

More information:

Watertight aft bulkhead

Tofindoutmoreaboutelectricpropulsion, thereisanexcellentwebsiteat www.plugboats.com

Vacuum-infused hull and deck 3D vacuum-infused rigging reinforcement

Contacts Carbon fibre bowsprit

Oceanvolt kneel electric motor Steelframes

ABOVE The Croatian-built Salona 46 is well suited to electric propulsion

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Retractable bow thruster Lead bulb

Watertight bow bulkhead

Aquawatt - aquawatt.at Combi - combi-outboards.com Elco - electromotoryachts.com e-Tech - starboats.eu Fischer Panda - fischerpanda.com Greenstar - greenstarmarine.se Torqeedo - torqeedo.com Ocean Volt - oceanvolt.com

49

New Gear

Rupert Holmes gets to grips with clutch systems Rope holding issues solved Wehaveallencounteredclutches

Double-decker clutches

Ifadditionalclutchesareneeded, butdeckspaceisinshortsupply, thenLoop’sBoaBasemaybeexactly what’sneeded.Thisisabrilliantidea thatenablestwolayersofclutchesto bestackedverticallybyadding housingscompatiblewithCousin TrestecConstrictortextileclutches underneathstandardunits,thereby potentiallydoublingthenumber ofclutchesthatcanbefittedin agivenspace.

50

semloHtrepuR

thatwon’tholdaropeproperly,but figuringoutthebestsolutionisnot alwaysobvious. Thefirststepistoexaminetheexisting cams.Aretheythecorrectsizeforeach line?Andhowbadlyaretheyworn?Wear canhaveamassiveeffectontheamount ofloadaclutchcanholdwithouttherope slipping.Andoncethelinedoesstartto sliptherateofwearacceleratesrapidly.

Fortunatelyreplacementcamsare availableforallthemajorbrandsof clutches,generallyatasmallfractionof theirreplacementcost.Unlessaboatgets verylittleuse,ifclutchesaremorethan1015yearsoldthere’severychancethe camscoulddowithreplacement.

Onraceboatsandverylargecruising yachtsit’salsoworthcheckingthatthe camsarematchedtothetypeofrope used.Needlesstosay,thehighertheload themoreimportantyourclutch’sholding abilitybecomes.Clutchmanufacturers havedonemuchworktodevelopnew materialssuchasceramiccoatingsthat holdveryhightechlinesmorefirmly. Sometimesreplacinglinescancause problems:youroldhalyardmighthave hadanoutercoverthathadbeenabraded intoaroughsurfacethroughyearsofuse. New,modernropeislikelytobeshiny andmoreslipperyandlesseasyforthe clutchtogrip.

However,theproblemcanalsomanifest asaresultofupgradingtoDyneemalines –thelackofstretchincreasespeakloads onthehalyard.Thesolutionistosplicean additionallengthofoutercovertubeover therope,extendingforacoupleoffeet

ABOVE Purchase systems that can be assembled quickly and cheaply using low-friction rings mean many tasks that once required a clutch can now be handled by a decent cam cleat

eachsideoftheclutch.Thisaddsextra diameterthatgivesmorematerialforthe clutchtobiteon.Itcanalsobemadeofa materialsuchasTechnora,whichhasa roughsurfacethataddsmorefriction.

Adding extra clutches

Therearemanyreasonsforaddingextra clutches,includingsettingupmainsail reefingthatcanbehandledfromthe cockpit,oreasilyriggedboompreventers. Beforestartingwork,however,it’sworth reassessingtheexistingsystems–you

mayfindre-riggingotherlineswillfreeup spareclutcheswhilemakingthose systemsoperatemoresmoothly.

Inadecklayoutfrom30yearsagoa kickingstrap,forinstance,wouldmost likelyhavehada4:1purchasebefore beingledbacktoaclutch.Today,it’sfar morecommontoseethatpurchasebeing increasedto16:1or24:1usingacascade arrangementwithtwolow-frictionrings, whichmeansawinchisnotneededfor tensioningandadecentcamcleatwill happilyholdtheload. Equally,itusedtobecommonforclew outhaulstobetakentoaclutch,but addinga4:1cascadeshouldenableitto betakentoacamcleatonanyboatunder 40ft.Spinnakerpoledownhaulscanalso generallybetakendirectlytoacamcleat.

TheBoaBaseusesthesame fixingsasSpinlock’sdouble,triple andquadrupleformatXASand XTS/XCSseriesclutches,which simplifiesinstallation.Theyalso workveryneatlywithstacked ‘double-decker’deckorganisers. Price:r124.

■ upffront.com RIGHT The Boa Base fits neatly into the footprint of Spinlock’s clutches, enabling a set of textile clutches to fit beneath a set of standard ones

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

NEW GEAR

Hand-held VHF with AIS

Thisisareallyneatidea–anAIS receiverbuiltintoahand-heldVHF radiowithClassHDSCfunctionality. It’sidealforsmallerRIBs,racing keelboatsandopendayboatsthat don’thavebuilt-inelectronics,but whereyouwouldroutinelycarrya handheldVHF. Obviouslyinanidealworldyou wouldaimtoavoidbeinginanarea ofhightrafficinpoorvisibilityinsuch aboat.However,inatypicalseason there’salwaysariskofunexpected poorvisibility.Itdoesn’tneedtobe full-onfogtocreateaproblem;rain thatreducesvisibilitytolessthana milewon’tenableyoutocrossthe Solent’sshippingchannelsinsafety.

Ofcourse,notallvesselsare requiredtotransmitAISsignals,so noreceiverwillbeabletoseeallthe boatsinthemurk.However,itwill showallcommercialtrafficabove300

Portable wind sensor

Wirelesswindsensorshavebeen aroundformanyyears,butnoneare asneatlypackagedasthisimpressively compactultrasonicunitwhichhasno movingparts. Powerisviaasolarpanel,backedup withaninternalbattery,whiledata communicationtotheboat’sinstrument system,smartphone,orGarminwatchis viaBluetoothwitha50mrange.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Secondarysensors includeathermometer, gyroscopeand accelerometer.

Theinternalbatteryis ratedtoprovidepowerforup to30days’usewithoutinput fromthesolarpanel.

Theunitweighsonly135g,is waterprooftoadepthoften

tonnesandallfishingvesselsover15m, aswellasanypleasurecraftwithAISB transponders.AnAIStargetcallfunction enablesaDSCcalltobeeasilyinitiated withatargetvessel.ThemainDSC distressalertisraisedviaadistress buttonontherearoftheunit.

ICOM’sIC-M94DEalsohassixwattsof transmitpower,aclass-leading1,500mW ofaudiooutputwithenhancedsound qualityandnoisecancellingtechnology.

Withanormaldutycyclebatterylife is10hours–plentyformostdayson thewater. TheunitalsohasaGPSreceiverand navigationfeaturesincludingupto50 user-definedwaypoints.It’ssubmersible toadepthofonemetrefor30minutes. Wheninthewaterthescreen,backlitkeys anddistressbuttonflashtoaidthe locationoftheunitatnight.

Price:£350.

■ icomuk.co.uk

metres,andmountsona16mm femalethread.

Itcanbeusedasahand-heldunit, ormountedatthemastheadofa yacht,oronthearchofanRIB. Price:fromr499;mastmountr25; 1mpolemountr65;NMEA gatewaysr275.

■ calypsoinstruments.com

51

PRACTICAL

Engine health check

Fixing diesels is not so different to treating patients, says Gilbert Park

W

hen ordering an oil analysis for Merlot, my lockdown project boat, an idea struck me. Routine health checks are part of medicine so why not for my engine?

MerlotusedtobethePooleHarbour workboatandisprobably30-40yearsold. Thepreviousownertoldmeshewas re-enginedin2008withaninboardYanmar 3GM30dieselengine.Theservicehistory

52

wasalittlescantsoIdecidedtodoanoil analysis.Thisshowedalotofiron(perhaps crankshaftwear)andsilicon(dirt).

Beinginquisitiveandrememberingmy earlierdaysasadoctorIthoughtI’dlisten tothecrankshaftandboughta mechanic’sstethoscopeforafiveroff ebay.Ilistenedanditwasfine.TheOil Lab,whichdidthetest,recommendedan oilchangeandretestinginsixmonths; justlikeweusedtodowithbloodtests

whenIwasadoctor. Theimportantpartofanyhealthcheckis torecordvaluesandfindingssothatif somethinggoeswrongyouknowwhat thenormalvaluewaswhenallwaswell. It’susuallytrendsthatareimportantin Gilbert listens to the engine using a mechanic’s stethoscope. Notice the bulb just below his right hand which acts as an amplifying box for the probe

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

MAINTAINING ENGINES BELOW The service history that came with Merlot is brief. Some essential items had not been changed for six or more years

ABOVE The old air filter (left) next to the new filter (right). This may explain the silicon in the oil analysis, as the filter appears not to have been changed for many years

detectingproblems,notabsolutevalues.

Remember,also,thatasengineswear thingschangeandsomeofthechanges areexpected,soarangemaybegivenfor values.Thehealthcheckcanbedoneat thesametimeasanengineservice(it’s notintendedtoreplaceit)oronamore regularbasis.

Theotherthingyoudoasamedicisto thinkofsystems.SoasIservicedmy engineIrememberedwhatI’dbeen taughtanddoneovertheyears.Thethree commonthingsthatwillstopadiesel enginefromrunningarelackofcooling, poorfuelandnoair.

history 1 Present Thefirstpartofanyhealthcheckis

toaskifthereareanycurrentproblems– the‘presenthistory’.InMerlot’scaseit wastheoilanalysisandwasthe crankshaftindanger?Ispoketothevery helpfulYanmaragentinEmsworth,and hetoldmenottoworry,justchangethe oil.Listeningtotheenginerevealedno lowerendknockssoallseemedwell.As forthesilicon,Ichangedtheaircleaner filternotingthatthedifferencebetweenthe oldandnewwasstriking.

history 2 Past Nextwastoinvestigatethepast

history–whichwassparse!Theoilwasa

supermarketownbrandandtheoilfilter anaftermarketvariant.Thegearboxoil andenginefuelfilterweresixyearsold.I triedtogetthehistoryofthereconditioned engine(fittedin2008)butsadlythe reconditioningcompanydidn’thave recordsgoingthatfarback.

It’sworthlookingbackthroughyour logbooktoseehowmuchoilandwater you’vehadtoputinoverthelastyear.Isit increasingorstatic?Ifit’sincreasingis thereareason,suchashastheengine havingbeenrunformorehoursthan previousyears?Ifnotthenlookingfora causebecomesimportantduringtherest ofthechecks.

3 Family history

Thefinalpartoftakingamedicalis familyhistory.Arethereanyknownfaults youshouldlookoutforinthefamilyof yourengines?Forthisyoucansearchthe internet,or,inmycaseasktheagent.He toldmethattheexhaustelbowonmy engineisregardedbyYanmarasa serviceitem.Theyrecommenditshould bechangedeverytwoyearsatacostof over£200!Heshowedmeone,butthe oneonmyboatwasdifferentand appearedtoaddresssomeofthe commoncorrosionproblemscausedby theinjectionofsaltwaternearaweldon theoriginalelbows.

LEFT Gilbert records engine oil and temperature in his logbook

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Diesel smoke An engine running properly should produce no smoke.

White smoke This may indicate there’s unburnt diesel in the exhaust. Often this is from a fault with the injectors, but there are other causes as well.

Black smoke The result of incomplete burning of fuel, perhaps from a clogged air cleaner or other causes.

Blue smoke This is the rarest colour of smoke and is caused by oil being burnt.

Overfilling with oil is one reason but, as with the other smoke colours, there are manypossiblecauses.

4 Examination

Ontotheexamination.Look,listen andfeelwasalwaystheorderofthe examination.

Look Firststartbylookingattheenginewithout startingit.Useaverybrightinspection torch.Notonlydoesthishelpyousee leaks,etcinthedepths,itwillhelpyouto concentratewhereyouarelookingsoyou arelesslikelytomissthings.

Arethereanystainscausedbyleaking water,oilorexhaust?

Aretheredanglingwiresthatneed reattachment,crackedhoses,missing hoseclampsandthelike?

Istherewaterinthefuelfilterhousing?

Then,aftertheroutineprestarttests, starttheengine.Ifyou’dseenstains beforeisthereanyactiveleakinggoingon Takeacloselookattheexhaust.Isthere watercomingout,whatcolour(ifany)is theexhaustsmoke(seepanel,above)?

53

PRACTICAL BELOW Gilbert took several pictures of the engine, such as this one, and noted the temperature measurement points. Another option is to print off the photo and mark the measurement points with a pen. Each time he measures these, it’s a simple matter to record a new column of temperatures, along with date, engine hours and other comments

B

KEY

J

C K

I H

A D

G

E

F

Listen Beforestartingtheenginemakesureyou aresafe(seepanel,below).Whenthe engineisrunninglistentoit–arethere anyunusualnoises?Ifso,increasethe rpmandseeifthenoisechanges.Some maydisappear,somemaygetworse.This iswherethemechanic’sstethoscope comesinuseful.Youcanputthepointon

whereyouthinkthenoiseiscomingfrom topinpointthebearingorwhatever.

It’sgoodpracticetolistentotherestof theenginesoyouknowwhatnormalis.

However,beforeusingthestethoscope onamovingenginepleasereadthesafety panelandbecarefulifyoubecome engrossedinwhatyouarehearing.

Feel Feelingcomesdowntomostlychecking thehoses–trygentlysqueezingthemto seeiftheyarestillflexibleandsupple.If theyarehardandinflexiblethentheymay LEFT Newer engines and displays enable a screenshot to be taken of the various engine parameters and are an easy way to store a lot of data. The file name usually has a date on it as well

Note you may need several photographs to show, for example, the alternator bearings, etc. Each recording takes a matter of seconds – point and shoot with the thermometer.

A. Exhaust hose – after water injection B. Exhaust elbow C. Raw water out of heat exchanger D. Fuel pump E. Fuel filter F. Oil sump G. Injector pump H. Fresh water return to engine I. Raw water into heat exchanger J. Fresh water into heat exchanger K. Heat exchanger

crackwiththeenginevibrationsatsome pointinthefuturesoyoumaywantto considerchangingthemasapreventative measure.Thesamewithbelts.Arethey crackedorloose?

5 Tests Sothat’sthehistoryand

examinationdone.Nowontothetests. Withalltestsit’simportanttorecordthe conditionsunderwhichthey’redoneas wellastheresultsthemselves.Werethe recordingsmadeattickoveroratwide openthrottle(WOT)?Wastheenginehot orcold?

OnanyboatItakeoutunderpower, oncetheenginehaswarmedupandI’m clearoftheharbourIalwaysdoaWOT test.Iftheengineisgoingtobreakthen neartheharbouristheplaceforitto

Safety when examining engines n If you have an old engine some of the moving parts such as belts and crankshafts may be exposed. Take great care that you don’t have loose clothing, hair, jewellery and the like that can get caught and injure you. n If you have a large engine or are working in a confined space protect your hearing with ear defenders. n If there is a risk of ‘bits’ coming off the engine such as loose particles of paint or rust use eye protection. n Remember to wear gloves. There are a variety of nasty compounds around your engine. It also means it’s much

54

easier to clean your hands at the end of the day. Even doctors wear gloves when examining patients! n Make sure you’re in a well-ventilated area, especially if there is any risk of inhaling exhaust fumes. There is also a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.

Diesel engine exhaust is a cause of lung and bladder cancer. Although the studies reporting this looked at traffic exhaust they recommended that everyone should reduce their exposure to this carcinogen (find out more at the American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org)

ABOVE Noise and fumes are a health risk if you are in an engine compartment while the engine is running. Always ensure good ventilation

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

MAINTAINING ENGINES LEFT This simple, inexpensive device will tell you the temperature that the coolant will freeze and boil at by counting how many of the five coloured balls are floating. In this case it is three which translates to -23ºC and 105ºC. Should be enough!

ENGINE OIL TEST RESULTS

This is the oil analysis for the Yanmar engine in Merlot that started off the whole train of thought about annual health checks for engines

happen,notfarouttosea.Thesameis truefortheannualhealthcheck. Iftheboathasanenginethatis interfacedtoyourmultifunctiondisplay youcantakeascreenshot,printitoutand comparelaterresultswithit.Ifyoudofind somethingdifferentascreenshotwillbe invaluable,easyandstraightforwardto compare.Modernengineshavemany variablesyoucanrecord.Normalvalues canusuallybeobtainedfromthe handbook,orthemanufacturer’swebsite ortheagent.

Whatif,likewithMerlot,youdon’thave thatlevelofsophistication? Temperature Temperatureisagoodplacetostart.It maybethatyourenginehasa temperaturegauge,likemine,withits sensorononeofthehosesthatyoucan recordavaluefor.Alternatively,itmay haveanoverheat/lackofwatersensor builtintoitscontrolpanel.Aninfra-red remotethermometer(about£10-£15)with abuiltinlaserspotwherethe measurementisbeingtakenisinvaluable. Foranannualhealthcheckyoumightlike totakeseveralreadingsfromknownspots soyoucancompareresults.

Fresh water coolant Theotherthingtocheckisthefreshwater coolant.Notonlydoyouneedtomake surethereisenough,butalsoifthe amountofantifreezeissufficientforthe winter.Aninexpensivesolutioncanbe foundonvariouswebsitesthathave differentcoloured,floatingballsandthe onesthatfloattellyouthetemperature protectionyouhave.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Oil pressure Nextisoilpressure.Merlotdoesn’thave anoilpressuregauge.SoinsteadIrecord thetimeittakesfortheoilpressurealarm togooffwhentheengineiscoldand warm.Ifitstartstotakelongerthenitmay besomethingisgoingwrongandfurther investigationisneeded.Rememberthat oilpressurewillbedependenton temperatureandthegradeofoilyouhave.

Battery voltage Alowbatteryvoltagewiththeengine runningwilltellyouifyouhaveaproblem withthechargingsystem.Againthismay beobtainedfromagaugeorNMEAdata, butifyoudon’thavethesebutdohavea

ABOUT MERLOT

Merlot (previously Rumpas) is a Romany 21 made in Poole in the 1970/80s. Gilbert was told she used to belong to the Poole harbourmaster, and has a towing post fitted just behind the engine box. In about 2008 she was reengined with a Yanmar 3GM engine and gearbox. Gilbert bought her as a lockdown project and has enjoyed all the challenges she has posed.

simplechartplotterordepthfinderyou mayfindconcealedinasub-menu ‘voltage’,usefulforthehealthcheck.If youhavenoneofthesethenit’sacaseof connectingamultimetertothebatteries whentheengineisrunningtocheckthe voltage,orwaituntilthesystemfailsand theredlightonthepanelcomeson!

Oil analysis Thefinaltestistheexpensiveone–oil analysis.Likeabloodtest,anoilanalysis willtellyouwhatyoucan’tsee.Notonly doesitlookatwearofvariouspartsofthe engine,itwillalsotellyouthestateofthe oilandifwaterorfuelisleakingintothe engine.Youcanalsoseeiftheoilneeds changingornot,savingmoneyandthe environmentifitdoesn’t.Likeallcomplex tests,however,justbecausesomethingis abnormaldoesn’tmeanthere’sa problem.Usuallythetestcomesbackwith aninterpretation,butwithoutdetailed knowledgeitcanbemisleading.Speakto theoillaboranagentifyoudon’t understandsomething.

a record 6 Keep Onceyouhavealltheresultsofthe

history,examinationandtests,remember tokeepacopyonboard.Thiscouldbea paperrecordoronatabletor smartphone.Ifsomethingdoesgowrong atleastyou’llhavethenormalresultswith you.Youcanalsousethisrecordforthe nexthealthchecktoseewhat,ifanything, haschanged. Merlot’sYanmarhashadherhealth checkandservice.Nowit’stimetorelax whenIamoutinChichesterHarbour knowingI’vedonemybesttomaintainher.

55

Steam-bending a new toe rail PRACTICAL

Greg Manning shows you how to laminate and steam a plank so that it can be to be bent across its width

W

hen my colleague Roy and I bought a Fairey Atalanta A142, it was cosmetically in very good condition, but under the shine were some serious defects.

Perhapsthemostobviouswerethe toerails.Theseweremadeof2inx¾in hardwoodstripsmountedon¾in bobbins,orbearers,wheretherail wasfixedtothedeck.

Therailshadsufferedfromimpact damageandrot,especiallywherethe pulpitandpushpithadbeenaddedon topofthem.

Wewishedtokeeptheboatasoriginal aspossiblesowantedtoreplacethetoe railswithnewwoodenones.

Thechallengewashowtobendthe rails,asthebendneededtobeacross thewidthofthewoodratherthanits

‘To keep the boat as original as possible we wanted to replace the toerails with new wooden ones’ thickness.Aswellasthat,theyalsohad totwisttofollowthecontoursoftheboat. Thetechniqueweusedcouldbeused formanyprojects:makingacoamingtop orgunwalecapping,forexample.

Westartedbysearchingtheinternetto findoutifair-orkiln-driedwoodwouldbe best.Theanswerwasinconclusivesowe boughtalargeplankofair-driedlocaloak fromasawmillandstartedbysawingand dressingittosize.

Eventhoughwe’dneversteameda pieceofwoodbefore,wecouldsee thatusingthemethodsavailabletous, bendingitacrossitswidthwasprobably goingtobeimpossible.Itwassomething thatcouldbedoneinapressurisedsteam chest–butnotinourshed.

Althoughwe’dchosenaknot-freeplank, aswerippeditintosuitablestrips,it sprungintoallkindsofshapes!Wedid

56

The Fairy Atalanta’s steam-bent toe rail looks as good as new 12 years after it was made

getenoughstraightpiecesforourneeds, though,andsomeofthebendsturnedout tobeintherightplaneforthecurvedrail!

Andthelessonslearned? Firstly,we’dhavebeenbetterwitha lengthofmetalducting,notplasticdrain pipe,foroursteamer. Secondly,we’dnotallowedforthekerf ofthetwosawcutswhenwedressedthe wood–weshouldhavemadeitoversize toallowforthis.Thescrew-typeG-clamps

workedbest–theratchettypecouldnot applyenoughforcetoreallybeeffective.

Finally,weshouldhavemadethesolid, unsawnendsectionoutsidethework piece,soitcouldbecutoffasscrap.

Thisisajobwellwithinthecapabilityofa practicalboatowner.Whenlookingfor ourAtalantawesawsomethathad non-originaltoerails;presumablytheir ownersthoughtthejobofreplacingthem asoriginalwasbeyondthem…notso!

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

STEAM BENDING

Bending a toe rail step-by-step 1

We made new bobbins for the new rail and screwed and bonded them in place first. Galvanised metal rightangle brackets were then screwed on top so we’d have something substantial to clamp the rail against while bending it.

2

Using a fine band saw, two cuts were made along the length, stopping short at different distances a few inches from the aft end (inset).

Though still joined aft, this effectively split the rail into three equal pieces.

The latter were tied together and placed in the steamer.

3

We made a steamer from a 4in plastic drain pipe wrapped in blanketing and secured to a fence rail. Inside, a platform of wire garden trellis held the wood away from the walls of the tube. Our steam generator was an old wallpaper stripper. An hour of steaming is required for every inch thickness of wood, so we needed about 45 minutes.

Step by step 4

Once out of the steamer, the solid rear end was first screwed down and then the three pieces were bent and clamped round the angle brackets. Plenty of clamps were needed to hold the strips together and follow the correct contours.

Speed is of the essence as the wood cools quickly and loses its flexibility.

5

The next day, the cooled wood was unclamped and copious amounts of PVA glue spread between the three pieces before they were clamped back into position. Once the glue had set, the rails were again removed and cleaned with a belt sander, shaped using a router, and finished

6

Screw holes were filled with wooden plugs and we applied several coats of varnish. To varnish the underside of the rails, we cut up a paint pad and mounted it on a small piece of scrap aluminium to allow us to varnish upside down.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

57

PRACTICAL

Restoring Andromeda

Clive Robertson swaps a London media career for four years in a boatyard and restores a wooden gaffer from scratch

I

t was October 2015, I was 30 years old, and dreaming of sailing the world some day, perhaps even owning a gaffer of my own. I had £300 of savings, which certainly was a start towards a £25,000 smack but, realistically, I was still a long way off.

OnthisparticulareveningIsatona packedtraintravellingoutofLondon. Aroundmepeoplereadnewspapers, balancingtheirworkbagontheirlap, eatingfastfoodorjuststaringoutofthe window.ItfeltlikethethousandthtimeI’d madethismonotonouscommute.

Byweekday,Iwasamediaproducer,by weekend,asailor.ForyearsIbalanced thiscompromise,theprospectof ‘climbingtheladder’versusbeingonthe riverinEastAnglia,somethingIwasn’t willingtoletgoof.

Atthetime,Iowneda22ftfinkeelcabin cruiser,keptinHolbrookCreekonthe RiverStour,butwithverylittlefunds availableafterthe£750monthlycommute

58

andnomaintenancefacilitiesinHolbrook Creek,Spindriftwasgettingworseforwear.

Asthesoundofthetrainclatteringalong thetracksbroughtmebacktothepresent day,Irealisedthat,althoughIabsolutely lovedwhatIdidforajob,thishadtobe timeforachange.Thetwo-hourdaily commutebycar,bikeandtrainwasnot sustainableand,10yearsintoworkinglife, Iwasmakingnoprogresstowardsa buyingasmack. WhileIweighedupthelimitedoptions available,itoccurredtomethatschools havethewholesummerofftogosailing aswellashavingalaying-upholidayin October,maintenanceholidaysin DecemberandFebruaryandafittingout holidayinEasterbeforetheshakedown cruiseholidayinMay. Ilikedthesoundofthis.Having graduatedwithmyMBAaweekearlier followingeveningclassestwodaysa weekforthreeyears,Isearchedfor teachingvacancies.Thefirstresulton

On initial inspection, Andromeda looks to be in good condition

Googlewasforafulltimebusiness teacheratalocalcollege,withtraining provided.Ifilledinsomeformsand clickedapply,notthinkingmuchofit.Two weekslaterI’dattendedaninterview, taughtasmallgroupfor20minutesand beenofferedthejob.Asithappened,I wastheonlyapplicant.

ThereIwas,abouttogiveupeverything Iknewandalltheyearsofprogression thathadledtoawellrespectedjobinthe radioindustry,becauseIwantedtosave foragaff-riggedboatandfindsometime touseit.Iknewnothingaboutteaching.

However,Isaidyesandbeganmy three-monthnoticeperiod.Ihadthree monthstolearnquicklyhowtoteach 16-19yearoldsinacollegethat‘requires improvement’.Talkaboutabaptismoffire.

Goodbye London

On4January2016Iwalkedoutofthe officeinLeicesterSquareforthelasttime. AttheendofJanuaryI’dreceivemy Londonsalaryforthelasttimebutwithout havingtopayformycommute!Ithought thiscouldbethestartofthegafferfund but,asitlaterturnedout,thisWASthe gafferfund.

Twoweeksintomynewjob,Ihad reservationsaboutmydecisionand realisedI’dmassivelyunderestimatedthe

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

RESTORING A CLASSIC BELOW The state of Andromeda’s rudder pintles and gudgeons on day one

ABOVE Floating on tallow after my 100ft maiden voyage LEFT Hose water pouring into Andromeda and straight back out again

role.Thiscoincidedwithasailingfriend gettingintouchtosaytherewasaclinker boatinanEssexyardthathadn’tmoved forafewyears.Apparentlythisboat wasn’tforsalebuttherewasachancethe ownermightbeopentoaconversation aboutit.Ilookedupsomephotosofthe boatand,whileitwasn’tasmack,it lookedperfect.

Icontactedtheowner.Weagreedona figurethatIknewIdidn’thaveandwe agreedIcouldpaysomenowandsome inayear’stime.Ihandedover£1,000and wasnowtheownerofa27ft,5.5tongaff riggedcruiser...andsointhespaceof fourmonthseverythinghadchanged.The projectofrestoringAndromedabegan.

AsaproducerI’veworkedin photography,radioproduction,video production,distributionandallareasof themediabusinessmodel.I’dspentalot oftimeinmychildhoodsailingwooden boatswithmyparentsandfamilyfriends andhadspentmytimeonthetrain readingaboutboatbuildingorwritinga

blogaboutmysailingtrips.

Never,though,hadIpickedupsome woodworktoolsandtakenthemtoahull.I hadtolearnveryquickly.

Initial inspection

Andromedawasinremarkablygood conditionatfirstsight.However,herentire hullofafewthousandcoppernailswould needre-fastening.Whilethisisn’ta complicatedjobinitself,accessingthe copperfasteningsinmanyplaces certainlyis.Togiveyouasenseofthe problem,IputahoseinAndromeda’s bilgeandscatteredsomesaltaround.On fullmainspressurethehullwouldhold aroundaninchofwaterinthebilge.It becameapparentI’dboughtamahogany colander,ofthebiggestsort.

AtthisstageItookadvicefromall directionsandthiswasoftenconflicting butIpushedonand spentJanuarytoApril fittingoutAndromeda andcarryingoutrepairs

Taking up When a wooden boat has been out of the water for a long time, the wood dries and moisture lost from within the cells of the wood causes shrinkage.

This water loss and shrinkage will continue until the moisture content of the wood is in balance with the humidity of the environment.

When put back in the water, a boat that’s been dry for a long time will leak.

‘Taking up’ is the process of getting the hull wet to allow moisture back into the wood to stop these leaks.

If the boat’s on a trailer you could chuck some salt in the bilge and just

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

RIGHT The day the yard put her afloat before I’d had a chance to antifoul give her a hose down (though be careful not to add too much weight and overload the trailer or the boat).

Another option is to sink the boat for a while or just launch her and stand-by with a pump. You might also decide to pack any gaps in the hull with tallow or ask your boat yard to allow her to remain in slings for a while on launch day. Softwood planking will take up faster than hardwood.

hereandtheretogetherafloat.ButI didn’ttouchanyofthefastenings. Thehourdriveeveryeveningafterwork andeveryweekendtoworkon Andromedawasbecomingcostlyanda bitmonotonousattimes.MostdaysI’d workonheruntil10pmbeforeheading homewithmywelltrainedLondon commuteradrenalinekeepingmegoing.I reallyhadtogetAndromedaafloatjustto tryandgetherclosertohome!

ImentionedtotheyardthatIwas interestedinseeingifAndromedacould takeupandallowherplankstoswellupa bit(seepanel).TheWednesdaybeforethe EasterBankHolidayweekend,Iarrivedat theyardtofindAndromedagone. ShockedandconfusedIjoggedtowards tothesteepslipwaytofindherinatrailer withthetidecomingin. Theyardworkershadtranslatedthis into,‘canyouputher afloatplease’.Ispent thateveningantifouling theboatandthennext daytheyardputherin thewater.Waterpoured ineverywhereandI rememberfeelinguneasy whiletellingmyself,she’s takingup,isn’tthisthe wholeidea?

A very stressful weekend

Mybrotherarrivedwithabigpetrolpoweredpumpthatcanmove20litresof waterpersecondonfullthrottleandwe tiedthisdowninthecockpitasthetide rose.Afloat,Andromedawasprojectinga 2indiametercolumnofwater20ftoutof herstarboardside.Thepumpwasonfull throttleandjustaboutkeepingup.The yardmovedhertoaquaysidetofreeup theirslipwayandthenwentonleavefor thebankholidayweekend.SothereI

59

PRACTICAL

Dad painting Andromeda’s waterline, topsides and sheer strake, all from the rubber dinghy

My first night on board in the Walton Channel, dinner for one

satwithmydadforfourdaysstraight,on topofeverytide,morningandnight.The pumpgotlowonfuel,weracedtoapetrol station,theexhaustfelloffit,wefixedit whileitwasrunning,thepull-cord snapped,wetookthewholeassemblyoff andwrappedasailtiearoundtheflywheel tostartit.Ifanyoftheseideashadfailed, Andromedawouldhavesunkuptoher crosstrees!Thiswasaverystressful weekendandtheworkdaywaslooming soIsadlyhadtoasktheyardtolayherup oncemore.Downbeat,highanddry,this feltlikeahugesetback.

Howcouldwegethertofloatwithout dismantlingtheentireboat?Afriend suggestedtallowandatthatpointany suggestionwasanoption,soIwenttomy nearestchandleryandclearedouttheir stockoftallow.

Togetherwithmymumanddad,Ipulled lumpsoftallowoffblocksandshoveditin thelandsonAndromeda,allthewayalong theseams,downthesternpost,downthe stemandalongthekeel.Bythispointin theyearthesunwaswarmingupand threateningtomeltmytallowcaulking. Whatabalancingactthisgaffrigged setupappearedtobe! Theyard,forasecondtime,put Andromedainthewaterandwiththe petrolpumpprimedandnowlabelled ‘Andromeda’sBilgePump’notasingle dropofwatercreptintohercabin.Iwas astounded.HereIfoundmyselfstanding inmyowngaffer,feelingherafloatand hearingwaterlappingatherplanks.

Wemanoeuvredhertothetown quaysideinWaltonontheNaze,100ft awayandIactuallysteeredherthrough

60

Andromeda starting to come together but still floating on tallow

thewaterwithatiller,itfeltamazing.

OverthenextweekIpaintedthe coachroof,varnishedthewoodworkand chaseduptheyardyetagain,together mastoutoftheirshedwhichIhadn’teven seenatthispoint.Eventuallyitappeared intheyardandIdidsomeprettyserious maintenanceontheriggingand crosstreesbeforeaskingforittobe stepped.Iturneduponeweekendseeing Andromeda’swhitemastheadpokingup overashed,excitedthatInowhad somethingresemblingasailingboat,and trottedaroundthecornertostartplaying withropes.AsIjumpedonboard,Islid backthemainhatchandsawthecabin soleplanksawashwith6inofwater.I lookedfurtherafttoseetheenginesitting inthisdeepbilgewaterwiththestarter motormillimetresaboveit.Myheartsank.

Whathadgonewrong?Ilookedtothe switchpaneltoseethebilgepumpwas turnedoffandasIflickediton,ithummed intolifeandstartedpumpingwater overboard.Acloserlookattherigging

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Clive Robertson grew up sailing gaff rigged boats on the East Coast from a young age and is determined to prove that boat ownership can be an affordable hobby for any family. Clive and Hannah document their adventures with Andromeda on YouTube.

revealedtheyardhadsteppedthemast, screwedupthestandingriggingverytight andseeminglyturnedoffthebilgepump, intentionallyornot!Thechainplates, havingpulledtheplanks,hadletthewater inbeforeshehadtakenupatall.

Thisideaofowningagaff-riggedboat wascertainlydemonstratingsomehighs andlowsbutIstillfelt,onaggregate,that lifewasbetterthanthepreviousyear.

A night on board

Ieasedofftheriggingscrews,sponged outthelastofthebilgewater,riggedup herbowspritandsomehalyardsand decideditwastimetosetsail.Ipickeda weekendwithadecenteveningtideand motoredoutofthiscreekintotheWalton ChannelintheWaltonBackwaterstopick upamooringforthenight.

BythistimeAndromedahadaworking cooker,somenicecomfybunks,a workingheadsandadecentengine.That eveningIdinedinrelativeluxuryfora gafferanditwassonicetospendthe nightonboard.

InthemorningIwoketothesoundof birdsongallaround.AsIlayinmybunk withthehatcheswideopen,themorning sunlightpouredintothecabinand waveletslappedatAndromeda’splanking.

OnthemooringIsetamainsail,thena topsail–whichveryusefullytravelsupa jackstaytothemastheadonpistonhanks, theeasiesttopsailI’veeverset!Icastus adriftandwithalightrattle,theWykeham Martinfurlerwithalonglinefromthe cockpitlaunchedthejibintoaction.

Withtherivertomyselfatthisearlyhour Iwalkeduptothemasttosetthestaysail

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

RESTORING A CLASSIC My friend Nick and I playing around with Andromeda’s rigging options

Hannah and I spending the day working on Andromeda

Making the support for the bottom pintle on the new rudder

andsailedheroutoftheWalton BackwatersandhometoPinMillonthe RiverOrwellinalightbreezefromthe south.

Havingarrangedtoborrowamooring fromagafferfriend,asIapproachedPin MillIspottedthebuoyandhoveto. Andromedadrifteduptheriversideways onthetideasIcannedthetopsailand staysailandfetchedawarpanda boathook.Ihadplentyofsearoom,soI crackedoffthemainsailsheetandhurried forwardstograbthebuoy.Andromeda handledlikeadream.

Four years of restoration

ThatsummerIsailedAndromedagingerly upanddowntherivers,usuallysinglehanded,andspentafewnightsonboard.

However,acloseeyeonherbilgepump activityrevealedshewasstillleaking,and thiswasincreasing.Shewaspumpingfor 30secondseveryhourbyNovemberand soIdecidedtoliftheroutatPinMillfora closerlook.Thatcloserlookturnedinto fouryearsofrestoration...

DuringthistimeImovedfromteaching businessstudiestomedia,becamea qualifiedteacher,metmygirlfriend, Hannah,andrevivedmyabilityasa producerbycreatingawebsite,blog, podcastandYouTubechanneltotrackthe progressthatImadewithAndromeda. I’vetakenAndromeda’sengineout, servicedandpaintedit,dismantledher interiortoaccesseverysingleplank fastening,replacedfloortimbersand learnthowtolaminateframesalongthe way.I’verecentlymadeabrandnew rudderfromscratchbylaminatingand

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

‘It became apparent I had bought a mahogany colander of the biggest sort’

through-boltingirokohardwoodplanks andre-caulkedhergarboardseams. In2020Iflickedtheswitchonmyratchet from‘undo’to‘doup’andthatforme signifiespassingthehalfwaypoint. IfeellikeI’vejusttackedaroundthe windwardmarkafteralongbeatto weather,we’renowflirtingwiththe prospectofagybebutheadingtothe finishlineflatout.Insteadoftaking Andromedaapart,I’mnowputtingher backtogether.InthistimeAndromedahas driedoutbutallofherfasteningshave beentightenedorreplacedandIhope thatshetakesuptighttobeasolid,strong boat.

I’veachievedthesestepsby understandingthatwhileIdon’tknowhow todosomethingtoday,ifIlookintheright places,Icouldlearnhowtodoitby tomorrow.YouTubehasbeenahugepool ofknowledgewithchannelssuchas SampsonBoatCoandTipsfroma Sailing Andromeda on the River Stour in a light breeze

Shipwrightgivingmetheconfidencetoface challengessuchasmakingnewframes.

Ontopofthis,GusCurtisatHarryKings boatyardinSuffolkhasbeenthemost valuablesoundingboardandadvisedme everystepoftheway. WillAndromedafloatwhenshegoes backinthewater?I’mnotreallysure.Will sherunintoanymoreproblems?I suspectsheprobablywill.IfImaintainthis ideathatIcanbreakdowneveryobstacle though,dealwithitonestepatatimeand findmyselfmoreknowledgeablebythe endofit,theneveryobstacleisactually somethingpositive.

InOctober2015theideaofowninga seaworthydecentsizedgafferseemed impossible,apipedream,yethereIam makingprogresstowardsmygoal. Myadvice,ifyou’redreamingabout owningaboat,istowanderdowntoyour localboatyard,findaprojectandmakeit happen.Ifyou’renotinvestinglarge amountsofmoney,what’stheworstthat canhappen?Thoughifshe’splanked overframes,Iwouldcertainlystockupon tallowfirst... nYoucanfollowClive’sadventureson YouTube.SearchforSVAndromeda

Find out more at pbo.co.uk

nLearnhowtobeattherestorationblues at bit.ly/39WGdwk nToptipsonchoosingaprojectboatat bit.ly/3e3DWRl

61

PRACTICAL

1

Andromeda as first seen in the boatyard looks in good condition.

2

Clive and his dad hastily apply antifouling to get her in the water.

3

A four-day bank holiday weekend is spent pumping out water.

4

Andromeda is painted above the waterline.

5

Paint is stripped off prior to refastening the whole hull.

6

Andromeda’s engine is lifted out for a full service and paint job.

7

A sister frame was laminated to shape to support a cracked rib.

8

The new frame is offered up to check fit before installation.

interior port side of the hull 10 The looks neat after a coat of paint.

62

the new rudder made 11 Preparing from 14 strips of laminated iroko.

9

The starboard bilge stringer is refitted with step scarf joins after replacing the fastenings underneath.

plenty of work to do, but at last 12 Still Clive has a boat he can sail.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

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PRACTICAL

Fitting a new water tank gauge

Measuring your boat’s water capacity is essential for any cruiser, yet is surprisingly hard to get right, discovers Roger Hughes

B

oats are likely to have many instruments aboard, and one of the most useful is that which indicates the exact amount of fresh water in the tanks, especially if the boat doesn’t have a watermaker. But accurate water gauge reading has been a problem on every yacht I have owned.

My45ftschoonerBritanniahastwo stainlesssteelfreshwatertanksamidships, oneoneachside.Likemostyachtsthe outershapefollowsthecurveofthehull andthetanksarethereforebroadly triangularshapedincross-section, taperingtoapointatthebottom. Thisshapemakesaccuratecalibration ofwatercapacitydifficultformost electronicmeasuringdevices:whenthe deviceinthetankmeasuresthewater

halfwaydowntheverticalsideofthetank, theactualcapacityismuchlessthanhalf –onlyaboutathirdinBritannia’scase.

Theremedywouldhavebeenquite simple,ifsomewhatcrude,hadmy systemactuallyworked.Itwouldhavejust beenaquestionoffirstdeterminingthe exactvolumeofwaterinthetanksby drainingandrefilling,usingaflowmeter. Thendividethetotalbyfourtogive one-quarter,half,three-quartersandfull. Thenrefillonequarteratatime,marking thegaugeaccordingly. Theoriginalsystemwas–notethepast

The old pneumatic gauge was always going wrong

RIGHT The original equipment used a plastic tube in the tank connected by a thin pipe to a gauge. The air pressure differential in the tube varied as the water level changed, registering on the gauge Filling water tanks is easy – it’s telling how much water you have left in them that’s the difficult part

ymalA/reruehcSnimajneB

64

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

WATER TANK GAUGE RIGHT The standard SAE five-screw fitting only fits one way – the holes are not as symmetrical as they seem INSET RIGHT This neat little flow meter device accurately measures the water passing through a hose BELOW The new gauge reads both port and starboard tanks, by switching from one side to the other and is illuminated when operated

tensehere–pneumatic(air)operated, whichworksonthepressuredifferential asthewaterlevelinthetanksvaries.Itisa simpleconcepthavingonlytwo components,andnoelectricsotherthan illuminationofthegauge.Justthejobfora cruisingyachtyoumightthink.

Arigidplasticpipemountsvertically insidethetanksfromtoptobottomandis connectedtoagaugebyathinflexible nylontube.Asthewaterlevelvariesina tank,theairpressurechangesinthe tubesandisrecordedonthegauge.

Thepressuredifferencesaremicroscopic, RIGHT Because the tanks were triangular in shape following the curve of the hull, when the water was halfway up the tank sender, it was much less than half full of water.

The illustration also shows the measurements required by the manufacturers of the new equipment to be able to calibrate the quarter, half and full signals to the gauge

butenoughtomovethedelicate watch-likemechanisminthegauge.

However,mysystemneverworked properlyfromthedayIboughttheboat. Thegaugefrequentlydroppedtozero, sometimesimmediatelyafteratankwas filledtothetop,orsometimesslowlyover afewdays.Thewholethingwaserratic andunreliable.

Sincetherearenoelectronicsinvolved, therehadtobeanairleaksomewherein theconnectionsoreveninthegauge itself.Iinstallednewtubingandeven sealedtheconnectionswithepoxy,but

Cross section of water tank

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Tank sender

Sighting tube

5in 3/4 full

5in

1/2 full

6in

1/4 full Float

13in

thethingstilldidn’t workcorrectly.Ieven dismantledthegauges andexaminedthe delicatemechanismin minutedetail,even tighteningthetinydiaphragm screws,alltonoavail.Iremovedthe completeassemblyandimmersed everythinginabathtub,expectingtosee airbubblestoidentifyaleak.Finally,I evensubmergedthegaugeitself,butstill noairleakswerevisible.Theoriginal manufacturershadlong-sincegoneoutof businessandIcouldfindnoinformation anywhereontheinternet. Ineverdiddiscoverwhythesystemkept failing,sofinallydecidedtolookforan alternativetoreplacethewholeuseless thing.

29in 31in

Thesimplestmethodofreadingtank contentsisatransparentsighting-tubeup theoutsideofthetankwithnoelectricsor gaugesthatcangowrong.

Iconsidereddoingthis,butbothtanks arefullyencapsulatedbybulkheadsat eitherendanditwouldbeamajor operationtodrillaholeinthetopand bottomoftheheavygaugesteeltanksto installplumbingfittingsandaclear sighting-tube.EvenifIhadmanagedtofit atubeontheoutsideofeachtank, readingthemwouldmeanliftingthe floorboardsinthesalooneverytimeI wantedtoreadthecapacity.

Theshapeofthetanksmeantthateven asimpleelectricalswing-arm/floatsender (availablefromanycar-partsstore)would notregisteraccurately,becausewhen

65

PRACTICAL thearmishalfwayalongitsarkandthe gaugeregistershalf,itwillstillnotshow thevolumeaccurately. Ifoundaproductwhichworksonthe samepneumaticprincipalasmyold equipment,butfromexperiencewithmy ownairsystemIwasconcernedabout leaksovertime.Iwouldalsoneedtwo gauges,oneforeachtankandthecostfor twotankswouldbeabout$570(£410).

Float system

Ithenfoundanelectricallyoperated system,madebyWema/KusUSAinFort Lauderdale,Florida–itsfuel/watertank sendersareavailablefromUKchandlers. Thisemploysasealedvertical,stainlesssteeltubeinsidethetanks,butinsteadof workingonairpressureithasafloat whichtravelsupanddownthetube.As thefloatrisesandlowersitactivates electricalimpulsesinthetubewhichare readbyagauge.Luckily,thetube’stop flangefittingtothetankalsomatchedthe standardSAE(SocietyofAmerican

‘Refilling the tanks with the flow meter it was gratifying to see the gauge registering correctly’ Engineers)five-holepatterninthetopof mytanks,soI’dnotneedtodrillanynew mountingholes–orsoIthought. AmajoradvantageoftheWema/Kus systemisthatthesignalsfromthetank floatcanbecustomcalibratedupthe heightofthetube.

Allthemanufacturerneededfromme wasasketchshowingwherethethree waterlevelsIwantedwereonthetube. Thiswouldensurethegaugewouldread thecorrectvolumeofwaterinthetank, throughoutthewholerange.

Kusalsohaveatwintankgaugeona fasciapanelwithaswitch.Whenthisis switchedtoonesidethegaugereads fromonetank,andwhenswitchedtothe otheritreadsfromtheothertank.Inthe middle,theswitchisoffandnoelectric currentisbeingused.

Forthisgaugetoregisteraccuratelyon twintanks,bothmustbethesameshape andcapacity,whichmytanksfortunately

Suppliers and costs Equipment for a twin tank layout Tank sender and gauge kus-usa.com $320/£231 Water flow meter amazon.com $15/£11 Water sanitizer fluid: Pool supply store $16/£12 TOTAL $351/£254

66

The Wema/Kus system can be calibrated to read the true water capacity at any given level, for any tank shape

are.Thegaugealsolightsupwhen readingatank,withachoicebetweenred andyellowillumination.

First test

ThefirsttestIthereforeneededtoconduct wastofindoutexactlyhowmuchwater thetanksactuallyheld.Idrainedbothby runningthemdrythroughtheboat’ssinks, thenrefilledthemoneatatimeusinga flowmeterfittedtothewaterhose($15 fromAmazon,partnumberP3-P0550). Theactualcapacityis160Imperialgallons eachside,atotalof320gal(1,455lt),eight morethantheboatbuilder’sspecification.

Tofindexactlyhowlongthenewtank sendertubesneededtobeIremovedthe portsidetubeandmeasuredthedepth withalengthof¼indiameterwooden dowel.Thismeasured31intothebottom ofthetank.Thetubewouldnotgotothe exactbottomofthetankduetothe curvature,soIsettledfor29in. ThiswaswhenIrealisedtheoriginal tubescouldneverhaveregistered accuratelyevenwhentheyworked properly,becausetheywereonly21in longand8intooshorttoregisterfromthe bottomofthetank.Icalculatedthis

producedanerrorofabout25gallonson eachside.

Havingdeterminedtheexacttank volume,Idrainedthetanksoncemore. Ithenran40galintothetank,being one-quarterofthetotalcapacity,then measuredthewaterlevelwithmywooden dipstick.Ipouredinanother40galand measuredwherehalffullactuallywas, thenanother40galtobringthecapacityto threequarters.Iaddedthesephysical measurementsonmysketch,whichI emailedtotheKusengineers.Ireceived mykitwithintwoweeks.

Installing the new system

Idrainedthetanksoncemore,then loweredtheportsidetanktubethrough theholeinthetopofthetank.Irotatedit tomatewiththeholesandscrewedfive machinescrewsinthetop,tightening themonthegasket.Sofarsogood.

I’dassumedthetwotanktubeswould bethesame,butasIinsertedthe starboardsidetubeanunforeseen problemarose.AsIlowereditintothe tanktheendofthetubebottomedagainst thetaperedsideofthetank,andwould notgofurther,whichmeantthetopplate

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

WATER TANK GAUGE

wouldnotsitflat.Itooksome measurementswithmydipstickand discoveredtheholeinthetopofthistank was8infurthertowardsthehullcausing thetubetobumpagainstthesideofthe tank.Therewasnothingtobedone excepttocutanewmountingholeinthe sameplaceastheportsidetank.

Thismeantfirstcuttingoutasquare pieceofthesaloonfloorboardingtogain accesstothetopofthetank.Thefloaton thetubeneededa1½indiameterhole, butahole-cutterwouldnotevenscratch thetopofthe1/16inthick(16SWG) stainlesstank.Iwasalsoconcernedthat fillingsfromthedrillingwouldfallintothe watertank. Ipositionedmyvacuumnozzlecloseto thedrillbit,andthiscapturedmostofthe

This shows the original sender position (top) and the section of floor Roger had to cut out to be able to position the new sender. The old hole in the tank was sealed using the old sender top plate and a blank gasket

swarf.Idrilledaseriesof1/8inholesvery closetoeachotherina1½incirclethen enlargedthemwitha1/4indrill,which joinedtheholestogether.Iwasthenable toliftthecentrepieceoutofthetopofthe tank.Theresultingholeisn’tpretty,butit iscoveredbythesendertopplate.

Success at last

Thistimethetubewentallthewaytothe bottomofthetankandIthendrilledand tappedthefivesecuringholes.Iusedthe originaltopplateandahome-madeblank gaskettosealtheoldholeinthetank.

Thegaugewaseasiertofit,butitdid

Back of gauge OR Gauge light wire

+— 12V

No 1

No 2

S1

This shows the wiring layout for a twin tank system

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

S2

needalargerthanthenormal2inround holetomountit.Apapertemplateis suppliedtostickinplacewithtape,then theroundedcornerscanbedrilled,and thespacesbetweenthemcutoutwitha keyholesaw.Iwiredthegaugesthrougha sparecontactbreakeronthemaster distributionpanel.

Itwasthenjustamatterofrefillingthe tankswiththeflow-meter,inone-quarter increments,andcheckingthegauge registeredcorrectlyinbothtanks.Itwas gratifyingtoseeitstopateach incrementallevel.

Ofcourse,it’simportantalwaystobe awarethatthereadingfromanytank system,includingevenasimplesighting tube,willbeslightlyincorrectwhena yachtisundersailandevenslightly heeled.Isupposetheonlyremedyforthat wouldbegimballedtanks...

Kusmakeasimilarsystemforfueltanks, becausethesameproblemexistsonany yachtwhendieseltanksarealsoformed totheshapeofthehull.Atleast,when runninganengine,theapproximate consumptioncanbeestimatedby knowingthehours/fuelratio–unlike freshwaterconsumption.

ItisnowareliefknowingBritanniahas reliablewatergauges,showingthe accuratecapacityforeachtank.This enablesmetomaximiseandenjoythe waterusagetowhateverlengthof passagebeingmade.

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CRUISING

Old gaffer to Ushant

PART

1

Max Liberson suffers concussion, ghostly apparitions and crew desertion on a tiring voyage to France

W

henaclientaskedmeto helpfinishhisboatin Portugal,Iagreed,buton oneconditionIwanted tobringmyownboat,Wendy May.My 84-year-oldgaffcutterwasinneedofa refit,andthiswayIcouldworkonheron mydaysoff.Soinsteadofflyingoutto theAlgarve,Idecidedtosailthereinstead. Ihadjusttwoweekstoprepare. Finallythedeparturedayarrived.On19 SeptemberIdrovedownfrom WolverhamptontoNewport,Wales,where IkeptWendy May.Ileftat4amwithalong listofjobstodo,havingnotsetfootonthe boatfornearlyamonth.WhenIarrived Wendy Maywasjuststartingtofloatonthe floodtide.Ibeganloadingmygearand noticedI’dleftmycamerabagathome, withmypassportandboatpapersin.

Nevertheless,IdidallIcould–filling thewatertank,checkingtheboatwas shipshape;IalsometTony,aprospective crewmember,aboutthesameageasme, who’dbeenintheyachtclubawhile.He hadhisownfibreglasssailingboatbuthad neversailedagaff-rigger.Itwasinthe middleoflockdown,andIexplainedhe’d havetoisolatefortwoweekswhenwe cameback.Heseemedhappywiththe boatandsaidhewouldmeetmethenext morning.Ithenclimbedbackintomyvan

68

ABOVE Ushant lighthouse LEFT Max onboard Wendy May

anddrovethe100milesbackhometo pickupmycamerabag.AtleastIcould saygoodbyeproperlytomywife,Eva,my mother-in-lawandourdogLuna,asthey wereallawakethistime. Onreturningtotheboat,Ididashopat thesupermarketandhaddinnerwithmy brother–thecommodoreofNewportand UskmouthSailingClub–andhiswife.By thetimeIleft,thetidewasupagain,soI stowedthefoodaboardandgotintomy comfortableportsidebunk,upforward.

Sundaydawnedgreyandcold,anda stiffwindfromtheNEhadmeputtingin thethirdreef.Hightidewas0930.I’djust finishedbreakfastwhenTonyshowedup. Itwastimetoleave.

Wehauledmysmalldinghyondeckand placeditonthestarboardsidebefore droppingtheforeandaftmooringlines. TonytookthehelmasIhoistedthe heavilyreefedredcanvassmain,then hauledthejiboutonthebowsprit, followedbythestaysail.Wesheetedin tight,asthewindhadgonemoreeasterly, makingourfirstlegdownriveradead beat.Wemadeitoutwithjustonetack, motor-sailing.Onceoutofthebends,I couldturnthemotoroff,andwesailed. Imadetea,thenpumpedthebilgesdry– ittook120strokesofthepump.Tony gavemeaquestioninglooksoIexplained toTonythatWendyleaksforthefirstfew daysofanytripbutshewouldtightenup.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

CRUISING A CLASSIC ‘Tony gave me a questioning look so I explained that Wendy leaks for the first few days of any trip’

ymalA/avonamhaSaniretakeJ ABOVE Wendy May (pictured here in Portugal, Max’s final destination) is an 84-year-old gaff rigger BELOW The pretty coastal town of Coombe Martin

ymalA/snavEnoR

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

tide.TonywantedtoknowwhereI intendedtostop.IsaidIdidn’t,asthe detourtofindananchoragewouldtake toolong.Hewasnothappy,andIshould haveexplainedthingsabitbetter!

Idippedthefueltankandfilleditwiththe fivegallonsIhadinthelocker.Ifiguredwe hadabout30hoursofdiesel;enoughto makethe100milestoUshant,andwe mightgetsomewind.ThatnightIdida doublewatchaswewerehardlymaking twoknotsagainstthetide.Itwasfun, nonetheless,asdolphinschasedfish onthesurface,andplayedatbeing torpedoes,zoomingoutoftheblack nighttoshootundertheboat.Once clearofLand’sEndIwentoffwatchfor

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ThetidewasabigSpring,andwefairly whoosheddowntheBristolChannel.Ihad setahardtargetofgettingtoIlfracombe beforeitturnedagainstus,hopingthatif thewindstayedfreshandfromtheNEwe wouldbeabletosailoverthetopofthe foultideoffIlfracombe,asitdoesn’trunso harddownthere.Sadlythewindfelloffas thedayworeon.Bythetimewemade CoombeMartinwewereonlymaking1.5 knotsagainstthetidesowedroppedthe hookandhaddinner.Itwasaprettyplace withrollinggreenhills,sheepandmostly fineoldhousestolookat. At2300Iranoutofexcusesforstaying inmybunkandrolledouttogreetthe night.Ifireduptheengineandraiseda sweathaulingthefishermananchorwith themanualwindlasshandle. Tonymotoredusouttosea.Therewas nowind,butwiththehard-runningtide,we stillmadenearlysevenknotsacrossthe groundatabouthalf-throttle.Weran watchesoftwohourson,twohoursoff.I wasinahurry;thespelloffineweatherwas goingtobreakwithasouth-westerlyblow forecastinafewdays.Myplanwastoget toUshantandwaitthereforittopass,then crackonacrossBiscay,hopefullyfinding theNEwindsoffFinistère.

ThenorthCornishcoastslippedby, mostlyoutofsight.Bytheafternoonwe’d passedPadstowandwereslowedbythe

69

CRUISING

ymalA/FRetitsyrC

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ABOVE The remote and rocky island of Ushant LEFT Max saw a ghostly fleet of black fishing boats like those depicted on this early 20th century postcard of Brittany

acoupleofhoursandTonytookover.We madegoodprogresswhileIslept.

Murky passage to Ushant

BythetimeIcamebackupat0140,the nightwasmurkyandthebarometerfalling slowly.Wemotoredonwithnowind,and at0745wehadfourgallonsleftinthefuel tank.Iestimatedwe’ddone18hours’ motoringonthepreviousfourgallonssoif wekepttherevsdownwewouldgetto Ushant.Plus,wemightbeabletosail soonasthewindwasforecasttoblow lightlyfromtheSW.Graduallythewind cameinfromtheSW–ifverylightly–and withourlightjibonwestartedtosailat threeknots.Itwassucharelieftonothave thediesel’sclatterinourearsthatwe didn’tmindgoingatasnail’space.

Thespeedgraduallycreptuptofour knots,butthenthewindbackedtothe southandheadedus.Wetookinthe headsailsandturnedontheengine.It ranforabitthenstartedtodiewithfuel starvation.Istoppedit,tookoutthefilter andfounditwasblocked.Openingthe draincockatthebottomofthetank broughtforthathickblackslime.Imessed aboutwithabitofwireuntilIhadclean dieselcomingout.Fromthefuelcockat thebottomofthedieseltank,thefuelwent toawaterseparator.Iliftedthesoleabove ittorevealaglassbowlthatshouldhave

70

containedcleandiesel,asithadthelast timeI’dlookedafewmonthsearlier.Now itwashalf-fullofblackgunk,dieselbug! Thiswasaproblembecausethelast timeI’dcleaneditI’dresolvedtobuya replacementbecausethetensionerand itsthreadweresuccumbingtorust.Iknew ifItookitoffIprobablywouldn’tbeableto refititandthatwouldmeanwe’dhaveno engine.Ileftthefuelseparatoralone, fittedanewfilterandbledthesystem.The enginestartedup,butIwonderedhow longitwouldrunfor.Ihadnomorediesel, butIdidhaveagallonofparaffin,sowith aslugoftwo-strokeoilforlubrication,Iput thatinthetank,andwecarriedon.

Concussion

WeapproachedUshantintheearlyhours of23September.IwantedtogotoPort duStiff.I’dbeentherebefore–itwason

ABOVE Max’s crewmate Tony sailed from Newport to Ushant with him

theeastsideoftheisland,andwasa well-shelteredlittlebaywhenthewind blewfromtheSW.Ihadthecharton mylaptopandfrequentlycheckedit byduckingmyheadthroughthe companionway.Wewerebothquitetired. Irememberedanastyunlitbeaconona rockwehadtogetaroundandkepta goodlookoutfor. Onceagain,Iduckedmyheadin, justasTonypulledtheheavyoakand mahoganyhatchclosedhard.Thump! Myheadwasfilledwithwhite,blueflashing stars.Ifoughttostayconscious,awareof notonlytheunlitrockbutthenearbyreefs thatthetidewouldwashusonto.I managedtostayonmyfeetdespitethe nauseaandpain.Notlongafterthatwe cameintotheharbourandpickedupa buoy.Tonysaidtherewasalargegrey sharkalongside,butitwasabigfriendly bottlenosedolphin.Itfrolickedaboutthe boatwhilewemadeeverythingsecure. Myheadwashurtingbadly,andIwas feelingnauseous.ReallyIshouldhave soughtmedicaladvicebutthelureofmy bunkwastoogreatandIturnedin.

Iwokeupwithabadheadache,nausea andwhatfeltlikeconcussion.Icouldsee Tonywaslessthanhappy.Hehadn’t enjoyedthevoyagesofarandannounced thathewantedtoreturntotheUK.Ididn’t wanttotryandguilthimintostayingifhe didn’twanttosoafterbreakfastwe launchedthedinghyandIrowedhimover totheferrydock,wherehewasableto buyaticketbacktoBrest,andfromthere couldcatchabustoRoscoffandferryto Plymouth.WereturnedtoWendyand movedhertoamoreshelteredbuoy.The dolphincamebackandfrolickedaround uswhilewewereinthedinghy.

IrowedTonyashoretocatchhisferry andtooktheemptydieselcanwithme. Weshookhandsandpartedfriends.I walkedofftofindfuel.Itturnedouttobea

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

CRUISING A CLASSIC N

ENGLAND

WALES

Newport Bristol Channel

Atlantic Ocean

LUNDY

Padstow

ymalA/aidnA

Land’s End

English Channel Baie du Stiff

USHANT

Brest

USHANT

ABOVE 84-year old gaff cutter Wendy May at anchor RIGHT Gale-blasted Ushant island was a near knockout

0

50

B R I T TA N Y

nautical miles

ABOVE When Max failed to fix the diesel bug problem, he rigged an emergency fuel tank

me.IstartedthelongwalkbacktoPortdu Stiff.Thesunwasout,andmydinghywas restingafloatonthecrystalclearwaterin theharbour,washingaroundwiththe swell,butstayingclearoftherocks.I climbedaboard,stowedthefood,then phonedEvaandtoldheraboutthedéjà vu.“Justhowharddidyouhityourhead?” sheenquired.Shehadagoodpoint. Itblewagoodgalethatnight,alarge swellgotupandIwaskeptawakebythe roaroftheseas.Itwouldprovetobea rollyold36hours. Despitethemotion,Itriedtocleanout thetank.Thewaterseparatorfelltobits andthedraincockwouldnotunscrew. Therewasnoinspectionhatchonthe tank,andwithoutasetoflong-reach

‘Really I should have sought medical advice but the lure of my bunk was too great and I turned in’ Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

LL

Lampaul

Vision of the past

Ushantisastrangeisland.Exposedto harshSWgales,thebuildingsarelargely madefromgraniteandareextremely solid.Itgetsmostofitsrevenuefrom touristsnowandthewintergalesmean thereareveryfewtrees. IwalkedtothevillageofLampauland stoppedinashoptobuygroceries.Itwas moreofadelicatessen,soIdidn’tbuy much.Thestreetheadedtowardsthe seafrontand,asmyfeetfollowedit,Ihad thestrangestsenseofdéjàvu.Ifounda littleharbour,almostemptyofboats,but asIlookedatitIcouldseeasmallfleet ofblackwoodenfishingboatsdriedout againstthewall,withthefishermen mendingnets,dryingsails,yarningand smoking.Thewomenwerebuyingfish andtalking.Itwasn’tthere,butIcouldsee itinmymind’seye.Myeyesprickled,and IhadsuchapowerfulsenseoflossI wantedtocry. Walkingaway,Icameacrossthesmall villageshop.Iwentinandboughtmore food.Theladyservinginsistedonlooking inmyshoppingbagthathadotherstuff fromthefirstshopbeforeshewouldserve

WA

Port du Stiff

ISLES OF SCILLY

ABOVE Max was treated warily by the shopkeeper in Lampaul on Ushant

3.5kmwalk.BythetimeI’dlugged20 litresofthepreciousliquidbacktothe boatIwascompletelyexhausted.The headachewouldnotgoawaysoIwent tobedearly,andjustslept.

At0400thenextmorning,thewind startedtoblowandtherewasalotofrain. Ihadnotstowedthejerrycanverywell andithadfallenover.Somehowtheair caphadcomeundoneandhalfofthefuel wasnowinthebilges! Bynow,myheadachehadalmost gone,andwhenthewindeasedandthe suncameout,Imadealonglistofjobs Ineededtodo,startingwithcleaning thebilges.

C

N OR

Coombe Martin Ilfracombe

socketsorboxspanners,Icouldn’t removeitanyway.Thesolutionwasto makeanemergencyfueltankoutofmy jerrycan,butIneededalongpieceoffuel hose.Iwentashoretothegaragein Lampaul,another3.5kmwalk.The garageproprietorsoldme3mof6mm pipe.Iwalkedbackandstartedwork.

ThenextdaywasSaturday.Ihadthe temporarytanksetup,butitwasonlyhalf fulloffuel.Irowedashore,walkedtothe garage,boughtanotherjerrycanandhad itfilledup.BythetimeIreachedtheboatI couldhavedonewithanap,butherewas awonderfulfairwind:NE3to4.Itwould havebeenacrimetowasteit! Iwantedtoleaveathighwater,when thetidewasslack,anditwasalmostthat time.So,shacklingthethroathalyardto theropeIhadtiedintotwoeyeboltson thedinghy,Ihauledthedinghyaboard andstowedit.ThenIhoistedthemain withthesecondreefinandplentyofslack inthesheet.Ihadthetwoheadsailsready forhoisting.Iletgotheropesattachingus tothemooringandsheetedinthemain thenpinnedthehelmonthefirstholeup. SweetWendy Mayslowlydrewahead, givingmetimetohoistandsheetinthe headsails.Shesailedbyherself,past allthewhiteplasticmotorboats,while Isortedthedecksout,andwaved goodbyetotheisland’sghosts.I couldn’tseethem,butI’msurethey appreciatedourclassydeparture.

Next monthMaxsailssingle-handedto Portugalandencountersstormyweather, orcawarningsandfierylocals

71

SEAMANSHIP Josh at the helm en route to the Medway

Fast track to Yachtmaster

When Covid scuppers Josh Lindley’s gap year, he takes on a demanding 5-month sailing course instead to qualify as a skipper

W

henIwas14Iattendedan opendayatasmallsailing clubinCookhamvillageon theriverThames.Iwas hookedtheminuteIgotonaboat,and soonbecameamemberofCookham ReachSailingClub(CRSC).

Iprogressedtoracing12ftdinghiesand broughthomemanytrophies,which encouragedmetogetmydinghy instructorqualificationwhenIturned16 andteachcadetsatCRSC. AftermyA-levelsIplannedtotravel aroundAsia.However,becauseofthe Covidpandemic,Icouldn’tgo.Instead, withfinancialhelpfrommygrandparents, Iembarkedonafive-monthfast-trackRYA YachtmastercoursewiththeBritish

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OffshoreSailingSchool(BOSS). IpassedmyRYAYachtmasterOffshore examinDecember2020andhadthe qualificationcommerciallyendorsed.So I’mnowqualifiedtoskipperacommercial sailingvesselofupto200grosstonnes upto150milesoffshore–that’snottosay thattheownerofa£3mluxurysuperyacht wouldtrusta20-year-oldladtodriveit... buttechnicallyIcan!

The course begins

Thecoursestartedon2Augustnear Southamptonwherewewerebasedin PointHamblemarina.ThereImetthe otherYachtmastertrainees:Joewhowas 17andhadneversetfootonaboat;and Peter,20,aschoolfriendofmineandavid

dinghysailor.BecauseoftheCovid situationallYachtmastertraineeshadto maintainabubbleforthedurationofthe courseaspartofthemeasuresputin placebytheschooltoensurecompliance withCovidrestrictions.Thismeantthatwe couldn’thavecontactwithanyoneelse, withtheexceptionofafewweekendvisits backhomeandanoccasionalchangeof instructor. AllofourtrainingwasdoneonSigma 38s,ownedbyBOSS.Thesewerebuilt around1980andeachonehadaslightly differentsetoffoibles,fromtoiletplumbing toenginemalfunctions.Thatsaid,they werefantasticboatstosail,beingperfectly balancedonthehelmwhenheeledover andseeminglyfasterthanothersimilar

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

RYA YACHTMASTER RIGHT The popular Hamble Point Marina on the River Hamble BELOW A trio of dinghies tethered to the banks of the River Thames at Cookham Reach Sailing Club where Josh Lindley learned to sail BELOW RIGHT Josh’s BOSS sail training boat, a Sigma 38, moored in Ipswich during his training

ymalA/yeskaOmaS

ymalA/doowgniRyaK RIGHT Aerial view of the Sandbanks Peninsula and Poole harbour beyond

ymalA/prahSeignA

sizedboatsintheSolent.Thiswasa bonuswhenmilebuilding,especially whenwehadtoaccumulateatleast2,500 nauticalmilesofseatimeinordertomeet theprerequisitesfortheexam!

Afterwebecamefamiliarwiththebasics, suchastacking,reefing,sailtrimandsail choice,wecouldaverage7knotsforthe durationofa60-milepassagequiteeasily.

Idyllic summer

UpuntilOctobertheweatherwasperfect, sometimeswiththreeorfourdaysof20° sunshine.Thewaterwasstillwarmand wetookeveryopportunitytogoswimming whenwewerestopped,withnoneedfor wetsuits InPooleharbour,wewereabletoswim toanearbybeachbutinLangstone harbourinHampshirewehadtoholdon toasafetylinetostopthestrongebbtide takingusawayfromtheanchorage.

Althoughitwasgreatfun,weaccepted we’dbegoingtobedsaltyastherewasn’t enoughwateronboardforashower.Hot showerswereoneofthehomecomfortsI missedwhilelivingontheboat24hoursa day.Ialsomissedsleepinginanormal bed,havingafridgeasopposedtoa smellycoolboxandhavingmyownspace aswewereverymuchlivingontopof eachother.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Seasickness and gales

Asthemonthswentonwesaidgoodbye tosunsetsanddolphinsandamiserable hellotoseasickness,galeforcewinds andfreezingtemperatures.

Forme,themostchallengingpartcame attheendofan18-daycruisearoundthe south-eastcoast,whenweencountereda stormgoinguptheMedway.Withthesails upandtheengineonfullwhack,wewere hardlymovingagainst55-knotwindsand thestrengthofthetide.Theraindroplets hitsohardtheyfeltlikegunpellets, makingitalmostimpossibletokeepour eyesopen.

Duringthistimewe’dbeentaking watchesdayandnightwhich,combined withthecold,wasexhausting.Inspiteof

this,weknewhowimportantitwastostay alertonwatch,havingbecomeentangled inalobsterpotafewdaysearlieroffDover. Theseconditions,combinedwitha heavydoseofseasickness,mademe questionwhyIwasthere;therealitywas farfrommydreamsofsailinginthe warmthoftheCaribbeanSea.However, theexperiencemadearrivingatthesafety ofamarinaevenmorerewarding.We couldenjoyamealandanight’srestfrom theelements,readytofacethenextday morerefreshed.

Theory

Althoughthecoursewasmainlypracticalbaseditwasalsoverydemandinginterms oftheory.Welearnteverythingfrom

73

SEAMANSHIP ‘Soon I was able to navigate blindly from below decks during a simulated fog exercise’

ABOVE Sailing towards the distinctive Red Sands sea forts in the Thames Estuary LEFT Sunset in port and a chance to rest after a day’s Yachtmaster training

domesticskills,suchasmealplanningand watermanagement(iedon’teatallthe foodonDayOne!),topassageplanning, collisionregulations,tidalcalculations, meteorologyandtraditionalnavigation, alongwithmoremodernforms.

Ifoundthisdifficultatfirstasitwasvery mathematical.Welearnedequationsand techniquestocalculatetidalheightsand coursestosteer.Aswegainedexperience wefoundthatbeingaccuratewiththese calculationswascriticalinourplanning. Forexample,ifwewereevenhalfametre outwiththetidalheight,wecouldrisk runningaground–especiallyinplaces thatwerealreadyshallowtoentersuchas theBeaulieuRiverandNewtownCreek. Asfortraditionalnavigation,ifyouwere followingacoursethatwasjust1°wrong youmightbeamileawayfromwhereyou

74

wantedtobeafteranhour,whichisnot whatyouwantifyou’reexpectingbad weather! SoonIwasabletonavigateblindlyfrom belowdecksduringasimulatedfog exercisewhereIkepttrackofourspeed, depth,courseandtimetorelateouractual positiontoapositiononthechart, althoughthiscouldbeverydisorientating attimes.

The final exam

TheRYAYachtmasterexamconsistedof twodayswherewesailedfrom9amuntil midnight,duringwhichIwasverynervous asitwastheculminationofthelastfour andahalfmonthstraining.Ourexaminer gaveustaskswhichwouldrangefrom randommanoverboarddrills(MOBs), presentingplannedpassagesorputting

usinfogscenarios.Iwasaskedtosailthe boatupBeaulieuRiverinthedark!This waschallengingasthewindwaslightand thechannelwasnarrow,containingunlit channelmarkswhichwereonlyvisible whentheybecameabittooclosefor comfort.DespitethisIputeverythingI’d learnedonthecourseintopracticeand wasdelightedtopass.

Mynextchallengeistofindajobinthe yachtingindustrywhereI’dlovetowork. Sofarthishasn’tproveneasybecauseof thetravelrestrictionsduetothe pandemic,butI’mhopefulthatthere’llbe manyopportunitiesinthefuture.

Find out more

Tofindoutmoreabout professionalcourses,examsand commercialendorsementsvisit rya.org.uk/training Formoreinformationabout RYAYachtmasterpickupacopy ofG70RYAYachtmaster HandbookfromtheRYA webshoprya.org.uk/shop

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

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Practical projects

Great ideas and tips from PBO readers

Emailyourprojectsandtipstopbo@futurenet.com orwritetousattheaddressatthetopofpage5.

Wepayatleast£30foreachonepublished

Wash up for the heads

Bob Connell’s bathroom makeover

Aftersome10yearsofuse theheadsinour46ftcentre cockpitcruisingcutterwere startingtolookalittletired.

Thechromeplatedbrass tapsandshowerhardware werestartingtoshowthe greenverdigrisofthecopper coatingbreakingthroughthe poresinthechromeand becomingharderandharder tokeepclean.Thebasins whichweremouldedin fibreglasswithinthemoulded cupboardswerestartingto scratchandweregetting moredifficulttoreturntoa nicecleanshine.

Aftersomeresearchand deliberationwedecidedto upgradethetwoheadsto bringthembacktoahigh standardandgivethema muchlongerusablelife.

Wedecidedonahigher qualitylookandfeelthanthe mouldedfibreglassand settledonastone/marbletop lookandfeelaswhatwe wereafter,buthowtodothis foraboatwithoutaddingtoo muchweight?

Intheendwedecidedona porcelaintopproducedfrom 6mmthickporcelainsheet

New porcelain vanity unit top, mixer tap and basin

usedfortilingbathroomwalls andlaminatedthistoa 12mmthickaluminium honeycombpaneltoprovide stiffnessandsupport.The combinationofthese materialsproducedatop whichislessweightthan equivalentthicknessof marineplyandlaminate, muchmoredurableand aestheticallypleasing.

Wemadetemplatesfrom 5mmMDFofthetopswhich wereanexactfitandenabled ustocheckwecouldactually getthenewtopsintoposition inthetightconfinesofthe heads.

Wechoseanaluminium honeycombpanelwith bondedlaminatesurfaceson eachfacetoensuregood adhesionoftheadhesives

andprovidesomecorrosion protectiontothepanel.A stonemasoncutthe complexshapesandthe requiredplumbingholesin boththeporcelainsheetand thehoneycombpanelsfrom thetemplatesusingawater jetcutterandlaminatedthem togetherutilisingneutralcure siliconeadhesive.

Aftercuttingtheoldbasins outofthecupboardtopsthe newlaminatedtopswere epoxygluedintoplace.

Aftersomequitecomplex joinery(rathermorethanI’d plannedfor)anepoxycoated curvedteakmouldingwas producedandepoxyglued tothefrontedgeofeachtop.

Theexposedtimber surfacewascoatedwith severalcoatsofPUclear finish.Narrowtilesalsocut fromtheporcelainsheet wereusedtocreateavertical splashbackonsidesand back.Alljointsweresealed withblacksiliconetoprovide awatertightfinish.

Wesourcedvery economicalblackceramic abovecounterbasinsand stainlesssteelmixertaps onlineandthesefinishedthe jobnicely.

Thefinishedresulthas exceedourexpectation,is lightweightandshould provideaverylonglife.

Bob Connell’s drawing of how the new tops fitted over the existing moulding

The original basin and taps were proving difficult to keep clean

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Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

DIY double glazing beats condensation

Simon James stops windows from dripping

Oneofthedisadvantagesof sleepingorcookingonboard inthecoldUKclimateisthat condensationformsonthe windowsorportholes. Inmycasethewindows, whichwerefixed,dripped condensationontothechart table,beddingandthemain cabinupholsterysosomething hadtobedonetofixit. Theclassicsolutionina domestichouseistothermally insulatethewindowswith doubleglazing.Thisaddsa layerofinsulationwhichstops heatescapingandraisesthe surfacetemperaturewhich,in turn,reducesandhopefully stopsthewaterdroplets

LEFT Finished window with wooden frame and perspex compressing neoprene seal BELOW The aluminium frame covered in neoprene. Note: the window appears foggy because of the camera flash

formingontheglassand windowframesurfaces. Sothechallengewasto designandmakesecondary glazingwhichblendedwiththe interiordécor. Theoriginalwindowshad aluminiumframes,whichI coveredwith3mmthickstrips ofsticky-backneoprenefoam, readilyavailablefrom chandleries.Whenattaching

A cut-away diagram showing the construction layers

thefoammakesurethe cornerjointsare completelybutteduptoforma goodseal. Thenextstepwastomake upthemahoganywooden frame.Theframewas constructedlikeapicture framewitharebateonthe insidetoaccommodatethe neoprenefoamslightly compressed(10-20%)toform agoodseal,plusa3mmsheet ofperspexandsilicone beddingcompound. Togivetheframeadegreeof rigidityIusedmitredtenon jointsandbevelledtheedges tomatchtherestofthewood triminthecabin. Theattachedsketch(left) showstheassembly. Thesequencewastomake thewoodenframe,assembleit andthendoallthevarnishing whichiseasiertodoatthis stage.Theperspexwasthen

‘glued’totheframeusinga silicone/adhesivesealant. Oncethesealantwassetthe framewasscrewedtothe windowsurroundingshaving firstmadesurethescrewsare positionedtoavoidhittingthe existingwindowscrews. Thewoodenframejoints weremadebyhand,buta routerwasusedtodothe rebateandtoformtheedge chamfers. Timingthefinalassemblyis importanttoavoiddampair beingtrappedbetweenthetwo panesofglass/perspex. Chooseacold,drydaywith lowhumidity,thiswillminimise thepotentialforinterpane condensationforming.

Ifittedmydoubleglazingthe winterof2019andithasmade abigdifference.Imustnow tackletheoverheadhatches...

Simpler raw water pump seal removal Peter Crouch gets creative with a bradawl

Inoticedatell-tale dribbleofwaterfrom thebackofthe engine’srawwater pumponmy recentlyacquired HunterHorizon, revealingthatthe watersealonthepump hadfailed. Thesepumpshavetwoseals aroundthedriveshaft,one facingoutwardsforwaterand onefacinginwardsforoil.

Water pump seal removal tool and the new seal

The recommendedway ofdealingwiththis istoremovethe wholepumpanddrive outthetwosealsand bearingswithadrift,then pressinnewones. However,thepumpfixing boltswereveryinaccessible

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

andIknowfrompast experiencethatthisisnotan easyjobwithoutpropertools, soIinvestigatedaneasier option.Note:thiswillonlywork foryouifitisonlythewater sealthathasfailed. Ifoundapieceonasailing forumthatrecommended usingapieceofbentwireto

prisethesealout.Thisdidn’t workforme,butgavemean ideathatdid. Ibentoverthetipofasmall bradawlintoarightangle,and wasabletoinsertthisintothe slotsatthebackofthepump. Bytwistingitagainsttheback ofthesealandworking around,Imanagedto graduallypushitoutfromthe back.Thisgotitabouthalfway out,afterwhichIwasableto pullitoutusingpliers. Thenewsealwastappedin usingasuitablysizedsocket asadrift. Jobdone,andmucheasier thanremovalandstripdownof thewaterpump!

77

Ask the experts

Got a question? Email pbo@futurenet.com

Here’sjustaselectionofthelatestquestionsfrom PBOreaders.Emailorwritetotheaddresson page5andourexpertswillansweryourqueries

GAS FITTING

Carbon monoxide detectors and alcohol stoves

Q

We fitted a CO detector when we had a gas stove on our GK24. The gas stove was replaced with an alcohol stove and the CO detector started going off immediately we lit up the alcohol.

It turns out that CO detectors are also directly sensitive to ethanol vapour.

They have a filter membrane on some designs to slow response but eventually they will go off just on ethanol.

Reading technical documentation on CO detectors shows this is a well known problem.

So at the moment CO

CO gas alarms and (inset left) the ECO-Sure sensor that ‘sniffs’ the air

detectors are useless on a boat with an alcohol stove while cooking.

What would be useful is one with a 1 hour cancel button so it continues to monitor for CO at other times from diesel heaters and engine exhausts.

Mike James by email

PETER SPREADBOROUGH REPLIES: AllelectrochemicalCO sensorshavesomecross sensitivitytootherchemicals thatincludeethanol, ISO-propanol,acetoneand hydrogen.Thequalityofthe sensorwilldeterminethe degreeofcrosssensitivity.

ECO-Suresensorsare regardedasoneofthebest sensorsinthemarket.These areusedonindustrialaswell asdomestic/leisurealarm

systems. TheHoneywellX70 alarmalsohasa‘Hush’ featurethatwillsilencethe alarmforafewminutes,but havingthisfeatureforanhour couldprovedeadly,sono alarmwouldhavethat included.

Itmaybeworthrelocating thealarmtosomewhereaway fromthestoveatamidpoint betweenthefloorandceiling andincreasingtheamountof ventilationinthegalley.

Peter Spreadborough hasmorethan20 yearsexperience inthegas industry

ELECTRICS

Managing lithium batteries

Q

Lithium (Li-ion) batteries may become ever more popular on boats as their price:performance ratio is dropping. However, I’m concerned about whether they are actually suited to the UK boating environment.

My Torqeedo electric outboard manual says to avoid allowing its lithium battery pack to be exposed to frost, presumably because it could damage or shorten the battery’s life. It’s little trouble to take my Torqeedo battery home for the winter but it would not be practical to take my boat batteries.

My other worries concern the lithium battery charging requirements. Sterling Power’s Alternator-to-

78

Battery charger allows the user to select the correct charge regime from any one of 10 different battery types, including lithium, but most boat battery charging devices – including 240V mains chargers, wind/water turbines and solar panels – do not.

So are lithium batteries suited to UK winters and would they require all new chargers and regulators?

Chris Mardon, by email

DUNCAN KENT REPLIES: Allbatteriesloseperformance andcapacityinlowambient temperatures.However,Li-ion batteriesperformbetterthan lead-acidinverycold conditions,continuingto

functionrightdownto-20°C. Li-ionbatterieshaveahigher cellvoltagethanlead-acidand muchstrictercharging tolerancesarerequiredto properlyprotectthem. AlthoughaLi-ionbattery chargerisavoltage-limiting devicesimilartothosefor lead-acidbatteries,itutilisesa differentregime.Thefirst, ‘bulk’stagecanbefasterasit cantakeahighercurrent,but oncearound70%fullthe second‘absorption’stagecan takelonger.Unlikelead-acid, Li-ionbatteriesdon’tneedto befullycharged,norindeed shouldtheybeasdoingso canoverstressthecellsand makethemunstable.Forthis reason,ratherthanhavea third,‘float’levelasyoudofor lead-acidcells,thecharge

parametersonamulti-stage Li-ionchargerareusually presettoswitchoffattheend oftheabsorptionstageand onlycutbackinwhenthe voltagehasdroppedtoa predeterminedlevel.

It’salsoimportant,whatever thechargingsource,toensure thecellsinaLi-ionbattery receiveabalancedchargeby regulatingthechargetoeach cell.This,then,requiresa lithiumBatteryManagement System(BMS)toensurethe procedureiscarriedout correctlyandsafely.

Duncan Kent testsyachtsand equipmentand writesforthe marinemedia

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

ENGINES

THE PBO EXPERTS

Oddly cloudy diesel Q The red diesel in the bowl of my primary filter looks cloudy and has a more orange colour than normal. There is no sign of water in the bowl. I have been treating the diesel with Fuel-Set. The filter element in the primary filter looks clean and unblocked, but the element in the fine filter (supplied as a genuine Perkins part) has picked up a very fine chalky-looking dust. The engine is running normally, but is it alright to continue using this cloudy diesel? The chalky dust does not seem to settle in the fuel tank and is present when taking a sample from either the top or bottom of the tank. I’m reluctant to pump out and dispose of the whole content of the tank.

Roger Brown Peel, Isle of Man

STU DAVIES RESPONDS: Itlooksasifyouhave somethinginthefuel. Normallythe‘bug’produces blackdepositsandyoursare white.Thiswouldexplainthe orangecolour,thewhite contaminantisrefractingthe lighttomakethenormalred appearorange.

Itcouldbewater,emulsified andheldinsuspensionby yourFuelSetadditive,orit couldbeasolidcontaminant. Canyou“feel”it?

Icansaythatmostfuel

To ask a question email pbo@futurenet.com and include your address.

BOATBUILDING Tony Davieshasbeen buildingandrepairing boatsformorethan40years

Roger Brown’s yacht, Nunki

CRUISING Stuart CarruthersistheRYA CruisingManagerandhas sailedextensively ELECTRICS Duncan Kent testsyachts andequipmentandwritesfor themarinemedia ELECTRONICS Andy Hainesisaretired directorofGreenham-Regis marineelectronicscompany

systemshavevaryingmicron sizefiltercomponentswith primaryfiltersnormallyhaving a10micronsizeandthe secondarynearerthepump5 micron.Itdoesvary,bythe way,butthisistheusual setup.

IfitwaswaterthenIwould expecttheprimaryfiltertobe collectingitsomythoughts areitisasolidandthatseems tobeconfirmedbyyourfilters.

I’mafraiditlookslikethat yourtankwillhavetobe drainedandthefuel “polished” Ifyouwanttotryandpolish ityourself,youcangetelectric fuelpumpsoffebay,you couldtemporarilyjuryrigyour fuellinestorecirculateyour tankthroughyourexisting filtersystemandleavethe pumprunning.

Makesureyouhaveafew

ENGINES Stu Davieshasabackground inengineeringinthecoaland oilindustries GAS FITTING Peter Spreadborough ofSoCalhas20years experienceinthegasindustry MASTS & RIGS Will Jacksonisfounderof RacetecRiggingspecialising inhighperformancerigs The fuel filters on Roger Brown’s yacht have been collecting a chalky white substance from the diesel

PAINT & ANTIFOULING Richard Jerramisformer UKtechnicalmanagerfor InternationalPaint

filtersandletitrunforadayto recirculatethefuelandcollect thecontaminant.

SAILS Wilf Chaplin ofthe internationalOneSailsloft groupisanexpertonsails

Stu Davies has a background in engineering in the coal and oil industries

ELECTRICS

New-ish batteries are flat Q We bought our first yacht, a Gib’Sea 312, on Windermere nearly 18 months ago (my seagoing mates call it Pete’s puddle).

Since then we’ve had trouble several times with the engine failing to start due to battery problems.

The battery we have at the moment is 15 months old.

The first problem was a loose connection on the battery. Then a month later

the battery was too low on charge again at 11V. Which engine jump starter would you recommend?

Peter Milburn West Cumbria

RUPERT HOLMES RESPONDS: I¹mveryimpressedbymy GeniusBoost40lithiumion jumpstartpack–itdeliversan impressivepunchfromasmall package.However,youneed

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

togettothebottomofyour batteryproblems.A15-montholddedicatedstartbattery shouldnotdischargetothat levelunlessthere’scurrent drawnfromitwhileyou¹re awayfromtheboat.

Rupert Holmes hassailedmore than70,000miles onawidevariety ofcruisingand racingyachts

SEA SAFETY Keith Colwell istheauthor oftheRYASeaSurvival Handbook SEALING AND BONDING Gareth RossisSikaUK’s marinemarketfieldspecialist SURVEY & CORROSION Colin Brownrunsamarine surveyandconsultancy company,CBMarineServices TOILETS & PLUMBING Karl SutcliffeofLee Sanitationknowsallabout plumbingonboats TRAILER-SAILING Colin Hainesisadesign engineerwhohas trailer-sailedfor25years YACHT DESIGN Andrew Blyth isanaval architectwithinterestin stabilityandbuoyancy

79

LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE

Up the creek without an engine

Willem Bijl explains how an engine fault, lack of wind and a falling tide led to an embarrassing call to the coastguard

T

hisadventurebeganona Wednesdayafternoonlast year,October2020.Aftera longperiodofrainarare sunnydaywithonlyafew cloudswasapleasantchange.Combined withafavourabletideintheafternoonI decidedtobreakthelongspellofnot havingsailedFlotaxeandgoforit.

Throughmypreviouslengthy observationsofthetidesincludingthe calibrationsandmarkingsonsomeofthe steelpoststhatholdthepontoonsinplace intheMaylandseamarina(theyshowthe heightofthetideaboveLAT)IknowIcan leavefrommyberthwhenthetidehas reached3.85mwhichisabout3hours beforehighwater.Similarly,Ineedtoget backinabout2½hoursafterhighwater (soaround1900ontoday’ssail).

WhilestillonthemooringIhankedthe highaspectjibontotheforestay,butin theprocess,thesailflickedmyrightear andoffwentmyhearingaid–straightinto

80

thewaterwhichwasnow4mdeep.No pointgoingafterit.

Ionlyneededasmallburstofmy Yanmar1GM10,whichstartedpromptly, togetoutandintoLawlingCreek.Iwas aloneanddecidedtohaveaquiet, relaxingsailwithonlythemainsailup.

Iftimeallows,mypreferenceistogo aroundOseaIsland,whichIknowwell after13yearssailinghere.WithaForce4 westerlywind,sailingdownthecreekwas easygoingwiththetide,autopiloton, passingthebuoystotheBlackwater. TurningwestwardwithmainsailonlyI hadtotackafewtimes.Itwasslowgoing, butIdidn’tmind.WiththeNorthDouble buoytoportandturningnorth,then north-east,Isooncrossedthecauseway. Withapleasantwindontheportquarter

andthenonthesternitwaseasygoing. FollowingthecurveoftheIsland,Igybed. Thetimewasaround1630,whichwasHW at5.1m.

ThewindhadeasedtoaForce3bythe timeIturnedsouthtowardsthe GoldhangerSpitbuoyandthenthe Marconibuoy.Movingtotheleeofthe island,Imettheebbtideflowingtowards theseaandtowardsme;Iwasmakingno wayforwardandwasskirtingthemoored yachts,soIstartedmyenginewithapush ofthestarter.Thatwouldtakemetothe Marconibuoy.

Alarm

Some10minuteslatertherewasa suddenalarmfromtheengine!Withina secondIspottedthe‘water’alarm.

‘Having renewed the impeller in 2017 I was surprised that it was the cause...’

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

UP THE CREEK

ABOVE Willem Bijl’s self-completed Waarschip 740 Ocean Flotaxe LEFT The cockpit is a nice size for single-handing but big enough for crew

Surprised,ofcourseIhadtostopthe engineimmediately.Againstthetideand movingslightlybackwardstherewasno speedtotackandIwasdriftingtowards themooredyachts.

Withnoenginepowerandthemainsail onitsownbeinginadequate,Ineeded speed.SothefirstthingIdidwasaflash hoistofthejib.

Thatprovided2knotsofspeedallowing atack,justintime,awayfromthemoored

yachtsandacrossthedeepfairway.

Idroppedtheanchorwith20mofrode andhoistedtheanchorballsoIcould begintosolvetheengineproblem,butby nowthedepthreadingwasdownto3.3m.

Therecouldbeonlytwocausesforan engineoverheat:therawwaterfilter obstructedorimpellerfailure.

Therewaslessthan10%ofthefilter areaobstructedsoIcleaneditquickly andreplacedthefilter.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Retired surgical consultant and electronics enthusiast Willem Bijl (76) started dinghy sailing aged 11 in Australia. Living in the Netherlands he then sailed 16m2 class open sailing dinghies before moving to the UK. He built his own 26ft Waarschip 740 Ocean Flotaxe with his wife and two

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

sons, completing it in 2007 after which he took his RYA Yachtmaster and Yachtmaster Ocean certificates.

He has sailed several times to the Netherlands, the Channel Islands and completed an Atlantic Rally for Cruisers. He now sails more locally on the Thames Estuary and Blackwater.

Havingrenewedtheimpellerin2017I wassurprisedthatitwasthecauseafter just230hoursrunning.Beingfamiliarwith howtoreplaceit,itdidn’ttakelongand indeedthewholeimpellerrubberwas detachedfromthehub.

Fromthetimeofthealarmtoraisingthe jib,tacking,anchoringandreplacingthe impellertookjust40minutesandthe enginestartedimmediatelywiththe coolingwaterrestored.

Bynowitwasafter1810andthesun wassetting.Iswitchedonthenavigation lightsand,goingfullspeed,Ipassedthe greenbuoystotheentranceofLawling Creek;IwonderedifIcouldmakeitin timetogoupLawlingCreekbackto BlackwaterMarina.

PasttheredlitbuoyNo2Iaimedtopass thenextredbuoyNo4.ButthenIfelta suddenpeculiarsensationfollowedbya divingdownofthebowandacomplete stop.Iwasgroundedinthemudofthe MaylandCreekspitwithafallingtide.

81

LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE Alleffortswiththeenginetoturnorgo backwardsfailed.BuoyNo4wasjust5m awaybutitwasonstarboard–itshould havebeenonport.Sothatwasmyerror, tryingtogettothemarinatooquickly.

Stuck

SoIturnedofftheengine.Flotaxeissetup sothatwhentheengineisstopped,the onboardlights,sternlightandthe steaminglightswitchoffandtheanchor light(orlastusedlight)goeson.

Ifelttrappedandwouldhavetowaitfor thenextrisingtideuntilFlotaxewas floatingagain.Iclearedthesailsand informedmywife.Icalculatedtobe floatingagainaftermidnight,around0100, andI’dbeuprightandfloatingfirstbefore startingtodrift,sonoanchorwasneeded. Thetiltwasabout50°sogoingforanap hadtobeinaV-shapedberth:notthe mostcomfortable.Atthesoundofmy alarmclockat0100itwaspitchdarkand verydifficulttotellifwewereafloat.

Wasthetiltdiminishing?Icouldn’tsee thefire-blankethanging,northeengine keyandfloattogetmybearingsasto whichwaywasup.Howdoyoudetermine whatisvertical?Thesolutionwastoput

‘Grudgingly I informed the coastguard that I was safe but in need of help’ mylowerarmupintotheair.Thatgivesa sensationofitfallingeitheronewayorthe other.Thatwaybyabout0110Icouldfeel theboatapproachinguprightagain.

Timetostarttheenginebeforedrifting away.NowIcouldwalkagainandturna lighton.Evenbeforeturningtheengine key,Inoticedthatthebatteryvoltagehad droppedto10V!Blametheanchorlight thathadbeenon.

Iknewtherewasnochancetostartthe engineunderbattery,evenusingthe decompression.

So,afterremovingtheenginebox,I grabbedthemanualhandleandstarted crankingwiththedecompressionlever open.ButcrankingitoverasfastasI could,Icouldn’tkeepitspinningenough bythetimeIletgoofthedecompression. Thecompressioninthecylindersimply knockedback.Idon’tknowhowmany timesItried…allinvain.

Starting to drift

AsIsawtheredflashesofbuoyNo4 moveawayIknewIwasnowdrifting.On theoppositesideIcouldseeananchored yachtwithananchorlightclosetobuoy No6drawingcloser.

I’dtakenthemobileTackTickdepth sounderwithmeinthecabin:3.3mto

82

N

Heybridge

ABOVE Flotaxe showing off her prow and the anchor that failed me for the first time ever RIGHT A momentary nav error on a falling tide means a long wait for more water

Causeway

Heybridge Basin

OSEA Goldhanger ISLAND Spit

NORTHEY ISLAND

Ipswich

River Blackwater ESSEX

North Sea

Lawling Creek Mayland Creek

Maylandsea Thames Estuary KENT

Dover

startwithatthedeepestpartofthecreek.

Butafterfruitlesscrankingoftheengine, Ieventuallywentforwardandloweredthe anchor.

Inoticedthatthewindhadbackedtothe south-westandthetimewas0235.

Iradioedthecoastguardtoinformthem ofmydifficultsituation,butthiswasno PanPanoremergencyandIwassafe. Depthwasnow1.9munderthekeel,then 1.6m,thendownto1.1m.

Icrankedtheengineagain–sailingwas notanoptionatthispoint.Depthwasnow

Goldhanger Creek

Blackwater Marina

River Blackwater

0 1 nautical mile

ESSEX

0.9mandIcouldvaguelyseetheriver banktowardswhichIwasblown.It seemedthattheanchorwasapparently draggingontheslopingbottomforthe firsttimein13years.PerhapsI’dlowered thechaintooquickly.Depthwasjust0.6m despitetherisingtide;IrealisedIwas goingtoneedhelp.

Calling for help

GrudginglyIinformedthecoastguardand explainedthesituationandthatIwassafe, butinneedofhelp:windwasasoutherly

LESSONS LEARNED

1 2 3

A succession of mishaps (negative events) can add up to failure. Be prepared for as many things to go wrong as possible.

My well maintained (but 14-yearold) battery proved inadequate, so now needs replacement.

Respect the colour of the buoys and pass them on the correct

side – especially when in a hurry.

I shall get or make a low voltage battery alarm – see right An impeller can fail at any time, even after a relatively low number of running hours.

In the dark my arm can tell what is vertical.

4 5 6

*Sendusyourboatingexperiencestoryandifit’spublishedyou’llreceivetheoriginalDickEverittsignedwatercolourwhichisprintedwiththearticle.You’llfindPBO’scontactdetailsonpage5.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

UP THE CREEK

DIY low voltage alarm Willem Bijl designs and builds a battery monitor Withregardtomymisadventuredetailed onthepreviouspages,inretrospectit shouldhavebeenpossibletoprevent thatoutcomebysimplyhavinganalarm thatwouldwarnmeofadyingbattery beforeitwasdeadandtoolatetostart theengine. Theminimumlevelofacceptable dischargeis11.5V.Thatwouldbethe limittostarttheengineandgetthe batteryrecharged.

Theeasiestsolutionwouldbetogeta secondbatterydedicatedtoengine

starting,butsadlythere’snospacefor thatinmyyachtFlotaxe.

SoIsetouttodesignalow-voltage alarmconnectedtotheonboard12V systemthatwouldwarnmethevery momentthatthevoltagedropped below11.6V,andthencutoutoncethe voltagehasincreasedagain.

Itmaylookdauntingtotheuninitiated, butthatshouldn’tstopanyonefrom copyingitandbuildingitasakit. It’sactuallyverysimplewithjustafew components–anditworks! omeDdradnatSdraziWtiucriC

OBP/gnidraHdivaD

Force4,towardstheriverbankand backing,myanchorwasdragging,battery failure,notenoughpowerforamanual start.Ionlyneededonestrongman aboardtohelpstarttheengine.

Theirimmediateresponsewastocallthe RNLI’sWestMersealifeboat.Itwasavery embarrassingfeeling.Depth0.3m.

Thecoastguardaskedforsomemore informationandjustafter0300informed methatthelifeboathadbeenlaunched.

Iansweredthelifeboat’spiercing searchlightwithmytorch.Theirarrivalat 0325withtheBClassInshoreLifeboat lookedjustlikethemanyphotosinthe RNLImagazine.Theypositioned themselvestotheleesideandoneman cameonboard.Iwelcomedhimandthe threeothercrewwhostayedinthe lifeboat.Wechattedthatthiswaseasier thaninastorminaroughsea. Thelifeboatmanstartedmyenginewith thefirstattempt.Depthwasnow1.6m,so theanchorhadheldatlastandthetide wasrising.WhileIsteeredtowardsdeeper water,myRNLIcrewmemberweighed theanchorandtheautomaticnavlights hadcomeonagain.Wewereescorted homebythelifeboatandat0403berthed inMaylandsea.ThankyouRNLI!

Sight and sound

ThenextafternoonIwenttolookformy hearingaidatlowwaterandsurprise, surprise,thereitlaynexttothebowonthe mud!Iwasheditunderthefreshwatertap andathomelaterfoundouthowtoopen it.Afterseveralwasheswithincreasing proportionsofmethylatedspiritsanda goodblowdry–thenextdayitwas workingagain.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

This digital rendering of the circuit on a Vero board shows the enhanced design of the alarm. Note: the optional reverse polarity guard is not included. The render differs from the diagrams over the page – the battery terminals are to the left here; to the right on the diagrams. And the buzzer is off the page to the right.

DESIGN BRIEF AND COMPONENTS Abriefdescriptionoftheminimal switchingvoltageofVsat11.5V. performancerequirements: OtherresistorvaluesofR2will createdifferentcriticalsupply ■ anon-stablepowersupply voltages.InsteadofR2achoiceof ■ simpledesign,norelays resistorscanbeconnectedfromR3 ■ analarmthatwouldswitchto‘on’ likea‘flip-flop’ratherthanturningon toVsthroughamulti-positionswitch slowly. fordifferentcriticalvoltagechoices.

■ Lowcurrentinthe‘off’position ■ R3-10kresistor ■ Commonavailableparts ■ R4-470Rresistor ■ D1-Zenerdiode(500mW,5.6V) Design requirements: ■ D2&D3 diodes(Schottky0.4V, 110V,750mA) ■ Vs (the+vesupplyvoltage)isboth thepowersupplyoftheunitandat ■ D4-LED3mm,red thesametimethevoltagebeing ■ C1-electrolyticcapacitor(35µF, sensed.

25V) ■ WithaVsof11.6Vorhigherthe ■ F1-fuse-S250mA(in+line) alarmmustbe‘off’.

■ IC1-op-amp741c(DIL8) ■ WhenVsdropsto11.5Vorlower, ■ VR1-10klinpresetpotentiometer thealarmmustbe‘on’.

■ Q1-transistor(PNP,2SB171or BC557orother*) ■ Calculationsaredoneusingan 11.5Vsupplyasthatisthecritical ■ BZ1-buzzer12V minimal+vevoltage.

Not displayed on diagram: ■ Aprototypewasmadefirst.

■ D5-Optional1Adioderectifierfor Components list: reversepolaritysafetybetweenthe batteryconnections+and–in ■ VeroBoard,Mountingbox reverseposition,ienon-conducting. ■ R1-4.7kresistor Themarkingringisconnectedto+ ■ R2-11kresistor.Thisvalue determinesthelevelofthecritical butnotinthepowersupplyline!

83

LEARNING FROM EXPERIENCE Basic version

Astablereferencevoltageiscreatedwith aZenerdiode(D1)ofanominalvalueof 5.6Vwitharesistor(R1)of4700Ω[4.7k Ohms]inseries. Theresultingcurrentisonly1.2mA whichcausestheZenervoltagetobe slightlylower,around5.5V. Thisstabilisedvoltagegoestothe invertinginput(pin2)oftheop-amp741 (IC1onthediagram).

SimultaneouslythevoltagedividerR2 andR3createsa‘comparison’voltage, whichismeasuredatthenon-inverting input(pin3)ofIC1.

Aslongasthesupplyvoltageisstill 11.6V(orhigher),thevoltagebetweenR2 andR3isabove5.52Vsothealarmis‘off’.

WhenthevoltageofR2/R3dropsto 5.48Vthisislowerthanthereference voltageof5.5VsoIC1flipsoverandthe alarmgoes‘on’(viapin6).Note:pins7& 4supplytheoperatingpowertoIC1.

Flawed design

Whenmyprototypewasfinishedithad thedisadvantageof‘jittering’or‘chirping’ aweaksoundofthebuzzerwhenthe criticalvoltagewasapproachedduetoits sensitivity–itrespondstovariationsof 0.01V.

■ D2&D3 diodes (Schottky 0.4V,110V, 750mA) ■ C1- electrolytic capacitor (35µF,25V)

R2

R1

D1

D2

3 2

D3

3 7 2 4

VR1

F1

Q1

6

IC1

12V

+

R4 +

R3

D4

BZ1

7

F1

VR1

Q1

6 4 IC1

12V

+

R4 D1

R3

C1

switchedon,supplyvoltagegoesthrough R2andD2andchargesC1positive.

Example:

Assumesupplyvoltage(Vs)is13.4V(full battery),thenodeR1/R2voltageis6.4V: [(10k/(10k+11k))x13.4V]. DuetotheforwardvoltagedropofD2 (0.4V),thecapacitorC1chargesonlyup to6.0V. Whenthesupplyvoltagedrops,C1 remainsatfirstat6V,asthecharge cannotdrainaway. OnlywhenthenodeR1/R2dropsbelow

Completed alarm showing its compact build. The LED will be placed separately in the electrical panel of the boat

84

R1 R2

Enhanced version

Enhanced version

Ialteredthedesignsothatoncea triggeringlowvoltageisreached,however brief,thealarmmuststay‘on’untilthe voltagehasincreasedbyatleast0.8V,an increasethatcouldbecausedbythe enginebeingswitchedon(recharging)or bymeswitchingsomethingoff(reducing currentdemand).

Iintroducedhysteresis(laziness)by insertingacapacitor(C1)andtwo Schottkydiodes(D2&D3). Thesediodes(D2&D3)haveavoltage dropofabout0.4Vwhenacurrentpasses. ThiscurrentchargescapacitorC1. The2diodesareparallelandin opposition. Whenthemainboatelectricityis

Basic version

Components list: ■ F1-fuse ■ R1-4.7kresistor ■ D1-Zenerdiode(500mW,5.6V) ■ R2-11kresistor. ■ R3-10kresistor ■ IC1-op-amp741c(DIL8) ■ VR1-10klinpresetpotentiometer ■ Q1-transistor(PNP,2SB171orBC557 orother*) ■ R4-470Rresistor ■ D4-LED3mm,red ■ BZ1-buzzer12V

+

+

D4

BZ1

5.6V,thenC1willovercometheforward voltageofD3(0.4V)andbeginto dischargeviaR3to0(–). AsmallriseinVsvoltagewillstopmore discharge,butthealarmwillstay‘on’.

Afurtherrise,likestartingtheengine,will passD2andrechargecapacitorC1and onlythenwillthealarmswitchto‘off’.

Alarm

Thealarmistriggeredfrompin6ofthe op-amp741(IC1),whichiseither saturated+,orsaturated–;thatisabout 10.5Vor1.5V. Intheprototype,this1.5Vwasenough toallowthebuzzertomakeaconstant weaksound.So,instead,theoutputofpin 6wasfedtoonesideofasetting potentiometerVR1. Thesettingslideradjuststhecurrent from+VstotheBaseofPNPTransistor (Q1)fromeitherafewµAtomorethan 200µA,whichcontrolsthecurrentthrough thetransistorQ1totheload,from0mA to25mA. That,inturn,soundsthebuzzer(BZ1) andlightsupthewarningLED(D4). Whenthemainpowerisswitchedon, theunitwillsoundfor¼secondduring thechargingofC1,whichprovesitis workingOK,butifthebatteryislowishit willsoundforsecondsasapre-warning!

Whentheonboardbatteryisswitched off,thefast-droppingVsvoltagetriggers thealarmfor¼second.

Practical Boat Owner •www.pbo.co.uk

Dick Everitt offers tips on giving a dinghy a simple tow Most people will give a tow for free – but if not, make sure you agree fees before you start. Stand off until both boats are ready and you are certain there is nothing in the water that could snag your prop. Then the safest course is usually to cross their bow and receive the towline to your quarter.

Watch out for chafe and mind your fingers!

A B

C A. Some boats’ stern cleats are not strong enough to tow from, so rig extra lines to other strong points.

B. A bridle with a quickly-tied ‘figure of eight’ eye (C) will keep the tow central across the stern. Some E people also add a fender to stop the bridle sinking into the prop.

D. Ideally you should be able to slip the tow line at either end, even when it’s under load. The dinghy could rig a bridle, or just take a turn around the mast or thwart if they are strong enough. A ‘round turn and two half hitches’ is handy as it can be released under load.

E. If the casualty is stuck on a lee shore, and you have F sufficient depth of water, throw them a line from your bow and simply back out.

F. With shallow water, anchor off and let the boat drift back as far as you can.

G. Ideally both boats should be in communication by radio, or that mobile phone or hand signals. Keep the tow as long as G failing possible so the line acts as a shock absorber, and go slowly. The dinghy crew should sit well aft, raise the centreboard and steer towards the stern of the tug.

H. Trailer boats have a U-bolt in the stem, which is ideal to tow from, but can be awkward to reach from the foredeck. Some people attach a short line there for connecting to an eye tied not too near the end of the tow line. The tail end of the tow line can be led back and used to haul the knot inboard.

H 90

I. When close to harbour bring the tow alongside. Rig a strong spring, to take the towing loads, and a couple of breast ropes to stop her swinging about. The boats should ‘toe-in’ slightly and the tug’s rudder, or outboard, should be astern of the vessel under tow. Both vessels’ rudders can be used together for really tight turns.

D

I