Check List

[Guest]

Could any experienced person on here please send me a check list for items I will require for my new and first boat arriving in 5 weeks. Could they please be definates, and if you have the money ones.

e.g.
Safety (including 14mth old daughter)
Electronics
Anchor (6.137mtr cuddy)
Insurance (decent company)
Clothing
Towing tips and maintenance of trailer (although I am mooring it at Chatham, I got a trailer to give more versatility)
First journey alone
Maps & Charts (best type)

And anything else, I am sure it will benefit others as well.

Cheers,

 

[Renegade_Master]

Go downstream from Chatham Marina upstream involves a) strict tide wtching b) another licence if the go further up. Downstream its about 9nm to the estuary, however whilst it is a buoyed channel, the green and reds do not always seem to be in the appropriate place, and the river varies in width & winds alot, so itys easy to go off course first couple of times. Best to get good charts of the Medway
Also get Jim tr7v8 to go with you on maiden run hes local. If I'm still in England in or around 22nd March be happen to come too.

Navigators & General have just come up with the cheapest quote for my school boat in the med, out of 6 insurers sent indentical info.


"Sun Coast Marine sea school in the sun"

 

[Guest]

Great, thanks for that. Have you a number for the Navigators & General, or I guess I can get it off the internet. My draft is .85mtr so although shallow, will take your advice and turn right the first few times. I have heard about an AA / RAC type boat assistance scheme, is that any good ?

 

[Renegade_Master]

Navigators & General 01273 863400 ask for Miss Elizabeth Shaw and mention my name Clive Neighbour of Sun Coast

"Sun Coast Marine sea school in the sun"

 

[Forbsie]

CLANG!!!!

Took me a while, but the penny has now duly dropped. /forums/images/icons/smile.gif

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/forbsie?&page=1>My Project</A>

 

[Renegade_Master]

Re: CLANG!!!!

Penny dropped about what Forbsie? That it works to mention my name ?

"Sun Coast Marine sea school in the sun"

 

[Forbsie]

Re: CLANG!!!!

Doh!!!

I was wondering where you got to, Clive.

I was also surprised that 2 people were going to open sailing schools down in the Med and that Sun_Coast seemed awfully familiar for a newbie.

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/forbsie?&page=1>My Project</A>

 

[Guest]

Oh, Hi Clive,

You confused me with the new name, thanks for all you help via the PM's anyway, I will give that number a ring,

Cheers,

 

[hlb]

It would be helpfull to know where, how far you intend to go as this will have a big bearing on the equipment you need. A pilot book and a large scale chart of the area you are covering is a must. As is a tide table. Weather forcast. Your not bothered about the sun. Mainly the wind. Where's it coming from and how strong. You want wind blowing off the land, not sea. Course if your up a river it might not matter as much. Study these things and get a picture in your head of what will be happening at different times..
An anchor with at least 3 metres of chain, then rope. All chain is better.
Life jackets, obvious.
Insurance. St Margrets.
Clothing. I think you can work out for your self.
Towing. 4X4
First journey. About 50 yds. Look at your suroundings and the chart, memourise it. Come back. Look at the mooring/ slipway. Look at wind and tide. Remember. The tide will certainly change. The wind might. Practice handling the boat in safe deap water. use a mooring buoy to practice going along side it, backing up to it and anything else you can think of. Watch again the tide/ wind, go up to the buoy against which ever is stronger. Spend the day doing this. Gradually extend your trips as knowledge improves. Look back where you've been. It looks much different on the way back. Make sure your confident before venturing far.
A depth sounder is handy, all though you should always know how much water is under you. Dont think, cos your a long way out, it's deap enough!!
Maybe a VHF radio. Mobile with coast guard number in it might be enough. Check the area for reception.
An oar or two, Spare outboard. Anything to get you back if engine conks.
Sandwiches and a flask/beer/pop.
Forum Burgee.........../forums/images/icons/smile.gif

<font color=blue> Haydn

 

[BarryH]

Re the towing bit. First thing you will need is umm, a tow vehicle big enough, bit obvious really, but you'll be surprised at the vehicles people use to tow with!

Keep the wieght of all the loose gear in the tow car and keep the boat/trailer as light as feasibly possible. Don't take the maufacturers wights as gospel. They'll normally quote dry wieghts devoid of and gear that you'll need.

Keep the tailer balanced, too much weight at the back or behind the axle/s and it'll snake all over the place. Most car makers specify the "Hitch" or nose wieght that the trailer sould excert on the tow ball. Normally this has an upper and a lower limit. Try to keep the wight towards the upper end, but not right on it! So balance plays quiet a bit in the handling stakes then!

Take spare wheel bearings with you for the trailer. If its a bouble axle job, take 2 sets. Spare wheel of course and a jack to lift it with. The car jack won't do it, unless its a classic range rover, they have bottle jobs as standard. Don't get a flimsey halfords job. Get someting that'll handle the wieght of the boat and a bit more. Don't forget a tub of grease for the bearings. I also use it on the brake linkages.

Straps! Get ones that seem to big for the job. They've got to hold the boat on at speed. The flimsey ones are crap and soon die.
So you've got the boat all hitched up and ready to go. Check everything twice, you got everything, good. Now take it somewhere where you can play silly buggers with it reversing it round in circles and getting the hang of it. Oh and check that your car insurance covers you for towing that beast behind your car!

The main things to remember when your towing, and a lot of people forget, is that you higher, wider longer slower, and it takes much longer to stop as well.
Oh and you can only do 60 on motorways and 50 on a roads. So don't follow me!

Bit of and idiots guide, well yeah it is. You'll soon meet all the idiots on the road, they pull in front of you without thinking about your limitations. They get the arse cos you cant do 0 to 60 in 17 seconds and they HATE sitting behind you on the motorway. Still have fun with it and you cruise more waters than you would if it was stuck on a mooring. The Italian lakes are nice and so is Lommond. West country is a 3 hour blast down the motorway and the east coast less that 2 hours from you.

 

[BarryH]

I would go for the VHF, even if its just a handheld. Coastgaurd can't get a bearing off a mobile.

 

[lanason]

Barry - what do you tow your boat with ?????

anyway back to Grumpys question :-
Having towed and reversed caravans for years, my advice would always assume everything takes twice as long with a big caravan/boat on the back. Allow twice the stopping distance, twice the time to pull out round slower moving vehciles (if there ever are any !!!) Dont be afraid to pull forward when reversing and have another go, and another go,..... stop, get out, look behind you - make sure you know whats there - even better get someone to watch you back...... Dont try and be a hero by showing how cleaver you are.

Good luck.....

Adrian
<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.arweb.co.uk/argallery/kelisha>More Pics of Kelisha</A> /forums/images/icons/smile.gif

 

[hlb]

Yep. Maybe but it's hard to advise when you dont know area or what peops intend to do. Hand held might not reach the coast guards and inland no vhf is much good. It's only line of sight. Best the locals answer this one. Trying to avoid over kill or would suggest. Davits, tender, 4hp outboard. Radar, GPS. Chartplotter, Flares. Miles of rope (Thats a must have, by the way) Also fenders. (must) Spare clothes for when others get wet. Glad we agree on messing about for first few visits.

<font color=blue> Haydn

 

[Renegade_Master]

You'll need a hand held VHF for calling the lock when coming or going

"Sun Coast Marine sea school in the sun"

 

[BarryH]

True, but going by what humpy says and mooring at Chatham and having a trailer. The boat at some stage is going to end up going tp the solent.....odds on.

One point I forgot about the towing thing. When you get to the slip, let the trailer bearings cool down. If you dunk'em straight into the cold water. They'll cool rapidly and suck water into the hubs and get knackered in no time at all.

 

[tr7v8]

And also to respond to Oldgit when he calls you!

Jim
-------

 

[DavidJ]

Some excellent towing tips from Barry. If you are travelling at night put your boat nav lights on. It helps overtaking vehicles realise your width.
In the past I have towed to various parts of the Med and the biggest problem for me has been punctures. Even though just inside the weight limits for the trailor I think they design wheel size on the limit so if you do have a choice of trailor choose the one with the largest wheels. If taking it abroad two spare wheels because when you have a puncture you write off a tyre and you can't always get your tyre over there (Can't get Avon Europa tyres in Europe!!)
If you are putting the boat in the water occasionally get it craned in otherwise you spend your life cleaning/replacing bearings, brake linings and brake cables. Obviously uneconomic if you are ploping it in every weekend.
hope this helps
David
and another thing.... if you're towing you should have two warning triangles

 

[BrendanS]

The other thing that people often overlook when choosing a car to tow with.

Chosen vehicle may be fine towing on open road, but is it capable of pulling the boat and trailer out of the water and up a steep, hole littered ramp, covered in slippery green slime, from a standing start.

 

[Renegade_Master]

4 x 4 with chunky off road tyres Bren?

"Sun Coast Marine sea school in the sun"

 

[BarryH]

Nav Lights on!!, but the plod will nick you for non compliance of the road traffic laws re lights, so its a nick under the construction and use laws. Red light to front and white light to the rear.

As far as the tyres go. Go for commercially rated ones. I use 165X13C on mine. All up weight of 2100kgs. The commercial ones are 8 ply rather than the norm for car tyres of 6 ply. A bit more cost wise, but I find they dont get as hot as the normal ones and seem less prone to side wall delamination. Thats the main cause of blowouts on am over loaded tyre.