1st Boat

[happyfish]

I have just purchased my first boat, a Hurley silhouette 17.3 ft
and will be mooring it at Brighton marina.
I have only sailed on German tall ships(square riggers) and a couple of competent crew courses round the isle of white.
so you could say that I am new to sailing.
so I would be grateful for any tips and hints or things to watch out for on the coast of Brighton.

also this boat has a seagull outboard and roller reefing on the fore sail both of which I have no experience with so any info would be appreciated. thanks eddy.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[sailorman]

eddy
welcome, make yourself known to pauline she knows "the ropes" based in brighton.
my first "yacht" a Mk2 silhoutte in 1975 (i think).
just seek local advise on the entrance to the marina with an on-shore wind.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[AndrewB]

Hurleys are great little boats. However Brighton would not be my idea of the best place to keep it. The sea there is comparatively rough, the entrance can be tricky at times without a good engine, and there are not many places to visit. Its a venue better suited to larger yachts. If you live there, fine, but otherwise somewhere like the Solent, Poole, Medway, or Essex coast would offer better sailing for this sort of yacht, specially while you learn.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[AuntyRinum]

Suggest you join Brighton Marina Yacht Club and sign up as crew (always in demand) on one of the many boats involved in Sunday morning racing. This will help you understand the waters around Brighton and also get more sailing time. If you phone them, you'll find they have an excellent attitude to new sailors including evenings and day events designed to introduce you to the club sailing scene. It will also help you establish contact with local sailors to help you with your questions.
Seagull outboards I can't help with.
Roller reefing is really, really simple. Practice it on the mooring a couple of times and you've cracked it.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[ships_parrot]

Congratulations on the new boat, I can't tell you much about the boat or Brighton, but have some experience of seagul outboards. They are really quite unrefined, which makes them dirty, noisy and smelly - on the other hand their simplicity makes them almost bomb proof! They'll put up with stuff that'd kill anything else dead as a dodo. They like to run with a lot of oil in the fuel mix (I think mine says 10:1 fuelil, though it'll take a fair bit less), on the other hand they will at a push use old engine oil. I wouldn't do this as a matter of course, but if you're desperate it's useful.
Other than that they have a spring instead of a shearpin so you don't have too many worries about breaking pins (more relevant if you have one on a dinghy), many have no neutral or reverse, so you have to remember to go for the softly sotfly approach as you can't stop quickly (this isn't so different to my Achilles with a 5hp honda, which has a reverse gear that apparently doesn't actually DO anything!). They're usually 1.5 or 4-5 Hp depending on the size (I'd hope you had a 4 on yours), they weren't built for speed like modern outboards, but more push at lower speed - they'll generally push you up the side of a house....
I have a 1.5 for my tender, and wouldn't swap it for anything else..
The starting procedure appears to be: Turn on fuel & open tank vent. Prime the carburettor (little button pump on top of the carb), and engage the choke (tilting plate on the side of the air intake). Open throttle (check you're heading into free space - no neutral on mine!) wind the starter cord around the flywheel - make sure you do this with the winding the right way as it's 2 stroke and will no doubt start backwards quite happily! Give one big heave, and usually you're off. You can generally take the choke off as soon as you're going, but beware that you'll suddenly find yourself at full throttle and may need to reduce power fairly quickly especially if you're in a marina...

It's also a good idea not to run them at full throttle as they ban be a bit thirsty if you do..

Hope this helps..

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[sailbadthesinner]

brighton not ideal for a silhouette
the short length of the boat means the prop can come out the water in a swell
make sure you get the engine serviced so it starts when needed.
other than that they a great boats

<hr width=100% size=1>My wife wanted tender treatment, so i stowed her whilst at sea

 

[happyfish]

Thanks for the input all the info-tips are much appreciated

The reason im Going to brighton marina is I live in worthing and shoreham is to expensive for what you get, i dont want a mud birth at littlehampton, As for chichester I think I would have to learn a lot more chart reading and understanding of tides and currents lights bouys etc.but maybe next year to chichester
Most of my work is in brighton and I can spend weekends on the boat with my 15yr old son even if the weather isnt great it'll be a kind of camping trip tied to the mooring, which i will enjoy more than him.

eddy

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[sailbadthesinner]

okay but be aware that brighton entrance gets v sloppy in a south easterly
my advice if it is windy go to asda for breccy then the pub for lunch
i went there in a big benny and it was fun in relatively little slop
in a silhouette it would be erm interesting
if you have a wooden mast keep an eye on that they can split
well one of mine did
there is an owners association altho i am not a member and have not used it
it is <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.soia.org.uk/>here</A>
enjoy the boat
acshully is it in the inner harbour bit by all the flats?
oif so i think i spotted it when i was there

<hr width=100% size=1>My wife wanted tender treatment, so i stowed her whilst at sea