First passage in my new yacht

[phanakapan]

I've just had a bit of an adventure- went down to Southampton early Friday am to collect my new yacht "Katina" a 1971 Macwester 26. Got keys and ships papers etc from broker, then spent a couple of hours checking everything we could inc engine, oil, fuel, water, safety equip, rigging, sails, roller reefing etc- then decided to go for it-the journey to Brighton that is.The weather forecast was good for Fri and most of Sat. We motored until just before the Looe Channel as there was bog all wind- engine seemed fine, the sun shone, didnt crash into any ferries. Then suddenly the engine made a very horrid noise and so we stopped it. It started again, and seemed fine when out of gear, but made noises and stopped when we put it in gear.It was getting dark, there was no wind to speak of, and we didnt fancy trying to get into Chichester. After a while, we pulled out the sails, and 10 minutes later a nice NW2-3 meant we could sail on round the bottom- we didnt think the Looe in the dark with no engine in a boat we didnt know was a good idea. All was fine until the genoa came fluttering down- something at the head of the sail had failed- couldnt see quite what in the dark. Anyway, we found a spare halyard and got it up again, and sailed on to Brighton against the tide and with very little wind, so didnt arrive until 6am Sat. Tried the engine again outside Brighton, still sounded very sick, so attempted to sail into the marina-found that what they say about bilge keel Macwesters not being brill at pointing up near the wind was only too true, so risked doing God knows what damage to the engine, bunged it on and got in-just! I'm still exhausted- being seasick for a couple of hours while the disasters were happening didnt help- but I'm thrilled that Katina is in her new home- now the spending and jobs really begin!

 

[Plum]

Wow! Congratulations!

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Plum on 03/12/2002 08:39 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[rhinorhino]

Did you have a survey before you bought the yacht?
First time out, rig fails and engine fails, it can only get better really can't it?
Good luck

 

[steve_cronin]

Could it be that.....

...you picked up something around the prop? This might also explain the poor pointing.

considering where you were this is a distinct possibility - just a thought.

Steve Cronin

 

[phanakapan]

Re: Could it be that.....

Yes, we could have picked up something round the prop- there was a lot of weed around, and lobster pots- although I thought I'd managed to miss them. It's fitted with an Ambassador ropecutter, but the survey said the bearings were worn and the previous owners had supplied us with some new ones to fit- we thought it was a job for "later"! We did get a survey, and had the rigging electronically tested, but nobody actually went up the mast. In hindsight we should have been more patient and given her a full overhaul before sailing; but I did ask the surveyor which jobs he recomend we do before sailing (there was a wobbly spreader, some lights not working for instance) and they were seen to as part of the deal, so we thought we could get away with it. The engine itself only had 30 hours on it, and the sails werent new but had been very little used-anyway, in the end, with a bit of luck(the wind blowing up when it did) and sensible seamanship (not trying the Looe in the dark) we got her home.

 

[Guest]

Tell me more

About this electronic testing malarkey. How valid is it? How much? Do the testers give a guarantee? etc.

Thanks in advance

Geoff

 

[steve_cronin]

The reason I mentioned prop fouling....

...was that in 1972 (I started young!!) we made our maiden cruise on our first "seagoing" boat eastwards along the south coast from the Solent AND we got a pot line & float around our prop very near to where you were (around 50 38N O 41W ?) and I remember how many pots there were around that location. The slowing (almost stalling & hard running) in gear but OK in neutral. A good rev-up in reverse every ten or so miles doesn't go amiss and has always been my regular practice ever since - besides it seems to run better afterwards just for the freeing off! Can't be much wrong with your engine at those hours; it isn't properly run-in yet!

Steve Cronin

 

[david_e]

Good post

I like these type of postings, lots of learning for all.

 

[phanakapan]

Re: Tell me more

I wish I could tell you more!The main survey we had said" The vendor should be questioned as to the age of the rigging. If it is found to be in excess of 10 years old then consideration should be given to renewing it". So, following a series of posts on this forum, we tried to use that as a bit of a "bargaining" point with the vendor. In reply, they arranged the electronic test at their expense- we got a copy which had a list of meaningless to us figures, and the phrase"All terminals tested are witin tolerance for the type of terminal used and the size of wire. Visual inspection of mast and standing rigging found to be in good condition for its age and type". We dont know how much it cost, and there was no guarantee. However, after talking to our insurer who said"we dont have a stipulation on age, if it fails, we pay up" we decided to go ahead.And in fairness, it wasnt the standing rigging wires or the running rigging itself that failed, but a (forgive my ignorance) bit of tubular black plastic that the genoa was attached to seemed to have unscrewed it self from a matching bit at the top of the mast- part of the roller reefing gear I think. The more I think about it, the more I'm convinced we caught a lobster pot- and being novices we didnt dare give it some revs forward or reverse 'cos it sounded so grim.

 

[FlyingSpud]

Re: Tell me more

Hate to miserable, but if the vendor paid for the Survey, presumably you will have no comeback against the surveyor if it turns out to be a load of rubbish , unless it specifically allowed for assignment , if you did not, but others should make sure that the surveyor provides a side note to confirm their findings to the buyer that they pay a sum for.
As for your position, if it was a load of b*******s then you may have an action for misrepresentation against the buyer

 

[david_e]

Re: Tell me more

Well done so far. You obviously have guts and determination to do what you did and to be fair to you, are learning in the process. I shouldn't worry about the rigging in general, keep a weather out for loose strands etc until such time as you are ready to pay to replace it.

The problem with the roller reefing system sounds like a problem which occurs with Plastimo systems and a local repair should suffice.

With regard to the engine, you could ask someone with experience to have a quick look for you before engaging the professionals. If you don't have someone already, ask around for a recommendation, good luck.

 

[Guest]

Re: The reason I mentioned prop fouling....

Yes, I became aware that I had picked up a rope in the entrance to the Hamble - just as we were entering. Like Phanakapan I was a novice - quite frightening.

Anyway, we found that the solution to get us by - and on to a mooring - was to engage reverse (slowly). Then engage forward and accelerate very very slowly. If we didn't do this, the engine stalled.

That got us up to Bursledon.

What we did find was that a huge piece of rope was around the prop and p bracket. There was no substantial damage but the cutlass bearing had come loose and worked its way a little way out of the bracket - so you ought to check for that.

Thanks for the info on "electrical testing" - sounds a bit confusing to me. I wanted to gauge whether it was worth it as my standing rigging looks good but is 14 years old.

Thanks

Geoff

 

[phanakapan]

Re: The reason I mentioned prop fouling....

By the way, i must give credit to my partner who was skipper that day (we take it in turns). As mentioned before, I was pretty out of it through seasickness when the worst happened, despite wearing a scopoderm patch, and eating ginger biscuits.

 

[steve_cronin]

Ginger nuts? NO! Arrowroots were the trad remedy!!

nm..

 

[jamesjermain]

Ginger is also a trad remedy. nm

.

JJ

 

[jamesjermain]

I believe in it

I have had two boats electronically tested and haven't lost a rig - yet (touches nearest piece of wood).

The theory is that a small electrical current is passed through a wire and the resistance measured. Cracks in terminals, broken strands, even undue corrosion and poor swaging, show up as anomalies in the readings. The operator has a table of tolerances for different wire thicknesses and types, and for all the usual rig terminals.

The system was pioneered in yachting by Dennis Maidment of Maidsure Services, who trained in it as a tester of pylon-borne power cables, where it is widely used and relied on.

I don't know whether Dennis is still working, but his telephone number used to be 02380 472422. He is based in West End, Southampton.

JJ

 

[Karlvw]

Re: Ginger nuts? NO! Arrowroots were the trad remedy!!

Have you ever tried to dunk arrowroot in your tea?

 

[phanakapan]

Re: I believe in it

It was D Maidment who did our test.