Fancy Gadgets

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EME

EME

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Some time ago. You folks were kind enough to advise on a Med boat 35-40'. I did all my fun research and was quite taken by the Jeanneau 37.

Th eother part of the advice for my 'brief' was fill it with every mod con..etc , furling etc.

Precisely which mod cons would you suggest to a middle aged couple , sailing for the 1st time , who are lazy???



still waiting to get a boat
 
The most important piece of equipment is the crew; it adapts to unexpected problems, multi tasks and costs nothing. Give it the best chance by doing RYA Courses, sailing with others with experience and so on.
 
Electric anchor windlasses with remote controls.. and an all singing all dancing chef able to cook in challenging conditions! ;)
 
Re: Fancy Chef

....and if he/she can't cook in bad weather make sure that he/she knows how to make a good stock of proper pasties before leaving.
And I shall never know how I managed to sail for all these years without one of they BBQ things what you clamp on to the rail.
Seriously, though, the advice about getting some proper training along with experience with somebody who knows what's what is the best bit of gadgetry you can lay your hands on.
 
Bleedin 'eck Steve....were/are you Steve 101, or are you trying to get the tribe to revolt again! Thought you were after a big stinkie? /forums/images/icons/smile.gif
 
I'm allowed to ask General Interest questions aren't I?? I find this interesting an interesting challenge to work out what would make sailing boats 'more manageable'.

I'm not Mr 101 obviously !

Don't tell the other forum, but I'v actually done quite a lot of theoretical qualifications , but my practical knowledge is zero....

still waiting to get a boat
 
If we are talking the med, Roller furling main and Genny, electric anchor winch and big good anchor with lots of chain, (you'll need it!) Good bimini & cushions for the cockpit, BBQ, Cockpit table, Good/biggest compressor fridge, the bigger engine option and rope cutter on prop, big domestic battery bank, solar panels, smart regulator for alternator, camping gas bottles and system. Mossie screens for ports, hatches and plenty of ports, one of those natty windscoop things for your hatches, good little RIB, with decent sized outboard and a little crane and sling thingy for lifting the outboard aboard! Suntan lotion!!! Theres a bunch more, but this will give you something to chew on!
 
Ooh !!! That ' s a nice lot to be playing with and costing up isn't it?

My only question is to what a windscoop thingy might be...I'm a little confused by that one..think crane may be a little much for 37' ..will cost davits..

Thanks...

still waiting to get a boat
 
As a "lazy", retired couple in our 50's, buying our first sailing boat, we sound very much like you!! We chose a Bavaria 36, and after considerable thought and advice, this is the main list of options we have gone for - I'll let you decide which are essential, and which are fancy gadgets! :

- In mast furling mainsail (for easy sail deployment and reefing, without
leaving the cockpit.
- Gas rod kicker
- Larger, in-board autopilot (Raymarine 5000)
- Shore supply 240volts
- 2nd battery for domestics (2 x 140 amp/hr)
- Hot water from engine and 240 volt
- Bigger battery charger
- bigger engine (up from 19 to 29HP)
- Fridge (for the beer!)
- Jackstays and harness points (just in case we ever have to leave the safety of
the cockpit!)
- shower in heads and on transom (H & C)
- Opening side rails
- DSC Vhf
- cockpit additional VHF speaker
- ST60 wind systen
- ST60 Multi for nav station
- Raymarine Colour chartplotter/radar with radar overlay (binnacle mounted)
- Radio/CD (for wife's Val Doonican albums - only kidding, Black Sabbath really)
- TV aerial
- Sprayhood
- Sprayhood full canopy extension (for winter in-marina days)
- Radar reflector (to give the Wightlink skippers even less excuses
for nearly hitting us!)
- Eberspacher heating (probably not for you in the Med!)
- Rope cutter
- and of course safety eqpt. flares, liferaft etc

Hopefully we will be able to sail without too much running around!!

Good luck
 
Interesting. I looked at a Jen37 a month or so back ( poor condition and priced accordingly but I didn't need all the work - PM and I'll give you more details). The one thing I did learn was it had running backstays which, given your self confessed laziness, may not be for you. Nice looking boat with interesting layout and apparently very quick, more racer than cruiser I think which, again, may not suit lazy.
 
Windscoop thingy, fits over the hatch, when open, lifts up on spare halyard or whatever, catches wind directs into boat, natural air conditioning. NO NO NO, not a proper crane! one of those natty little davit things for hauling engine aboard, you might find davits a bit difficult with that boat.
 
If its a Sun Od 37 then its a masthead rig with single backstay. I would say its a perfect boat for cruising the med.
 
If you are REALLY LAZY should you be sailng? ??
Mod cons are all well and good but the more you have the more can go wrong.
I prefer to keep it simple and minimal, good furling, and auto helm are probably the two most useful, with RADAR a close third. But you need to know how and when to use them, no substitute for experience or training.
 
Oh yeah! They are brilliant devices, saves oodles of gas and you get to frighten the tourists on the pedalos, when showering on the fordeck, swingin' to the wind!
 
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