Just bought my first boat! Macwester Rowan. Any Rowan owners out there to offer tips!

J

joyfull

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Also first time on your forum!

Moonstreak was once loved, but now sorley in need of attention and I am sorely lacking in skills. Macwester Rowan 23 I believe (I see that there are also Rowan 22's - so might be one of those).

Good bits: Floats !!! Solid old hull, like they use to build - even too old for osmosis I guess. Engine was rebuilt not many years ago (2 cylinder) and starts first time and runs happily. Mast still up and rigging looks realtively new.

Not so good: No main hatch, rotten washboards and no forehatch. So not at all weather proof. Sails not so hot. None of the electrics working so far. Interior not at all happy what is left of it.

First job: Make up new hatches or find suitable replacements. I have seen photos of fibreglass forehatches on the web, so maybe one could be sourced. Maybe be fit from another similar size. If not start learning some wood building skills PDQ.

Any tips and advice from Rowan owner's out there much appreciated.

P.S Single keel configuration (no bilge plates) with wood legs. Is she safe on a drying mooring on the legs (they look like the narrrow ends would stick in the mud.
 
joyfull said:
(snip)
P.S Single keel configuration (no bilge plates) with wood legs. Is she safe on a drying mooring on the legs (they look like the narrrow ends would stick in the mud.
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Have a look at what others have done on the surrounding moorings. PERSONALLY, I would not expect to use legs except on a hard bottom, there is a huge leverage if one leg sinks & the other doesn't.

What would happen if you just let the keel sink in? It isn't a deep keel & the hull will support the boat quite well if the mud is deep enough, but it is very much about local conditions & the forum can't help unless you tell us where it is and there are local forumites to offer ideas.
 
Plan is to keep it on a deep water mooring in Plymouth so can be accessed all states of the tide. I will just use the legs for careening and the occasional stop on firm ground, and of course ashore for maintenance.

Read somewhere that the Rowan does not tack too well. Will find out in a few weeks time when relaunched. At least the two cylinder Yanmar seems to be 'tight' as the engineer reported and starts and runs well.
 
Yes, perhaps it does not tack as good as a thin fin keel boats which are likely to tack much faster than any other keel configuration and will definitely tack better than my heavy short bilge Macwester Wight, but different boats designs require different techniques. Must be good having legs for your Rowan; the best of both worlds. Good luck
 
Oi Searush!! - 'Commiserations, you are doomed . . .' I'll speak to you in that 'other place', hahaha.

Jason, I just responded here in length, but pressed the wrong button and lost everything, LOL. I have pm's you with my telephone number, so just give me a ring and we'll have a chat. So long as your hull is sound, with little or no osmosis, then you'll be fine. I can get 6+ knots from my Rowan under sail. Everything inside is repairable or replaceable, including your Petter engine if that's what you have.

My boat is out of the water now, so ideal for you to have a look.

As for the beaching legs, I've just replaced mine after 38 years, and basically the legs are lengths of 6 x 3 timber shaped to fit the hull. She will sit on her long keel in the mud, and I know of another Rowan in Essex which does just that, although the owner is going to make new legs from the drawings I sent him. So long as the mud isn't too deep she should sit OK, probably just on the keel and one leg, but remember these boats are about 2 tonnes when fitted out, so heavy for their size. And Rowans are 22' 3" unless yours is one of the longer versions, like a Rowan Crown.

Looking forward to chatting later.

Geoff
 
joyfull said:
Plan is to keep it on a deep water mooring in Plymouth so can be accessed all states of the tide. I will just use the legs for careening and the occasional stop on firm ground, and of course ashore for maintenance.

Read somewhere that the Rowan does not tack too well. Will find out in a few weeks time when relaunched. At least the two cylinder Yanmar seems to be 'tight' as the engineer reported and starts and runs well.
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Ooops, didn't see this about your larger Yanmar. Plenty big enough, most have only the single cylinder 1 GM's. As for moorings, join our yacht club at Cargreen, and moor next to mine! I ground mine occasionally right by the CH.

Geoff
 
I guess the important thing is to get her weatherproof and get her/keep her dry inside.

Very quick/temporary and cheap weatherboards could be made.

Suggest considering cutting out a cardboard template and obtain some cheap ply of the right thickness and jig-saw it out.

Hatch may possibly be done in similar way but photos are required to get best advice from forum.

If you photo the whole boat you could get much of the entire advice required for the whole boat very quickly from here in fact.

Yanmars, in good condition, are probably as good an engine as any,

best of luck

S.
 
Scotty_Tradewind said:
I guess the important thing is to get her weatherproof and get her/keep her dry inside.

Very quick/temporary and cheap weatherboards could be made.

Suggest considering cutting out a cardboard template and obtain some cheap ply of the right thickness and jig-saw it out.

Hatch may possibly be done in similar way but photos are required to get best advice from forum.

If you photo the whole boat you could get much of the entire advice required for the whole boat very quickly from here in fact.

Yanmars, in good condition, are probably as good an engine as any,

best of luck

S.
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I do something similar from time to time. If I have no old boards for a template, I place a board of marine ply against the opening & draw out the outline on it & then cut out a single piece to fill the whole gap. Cut it slightly over size & then trim down to size. Then split into 2 or 3 boards as required for easy removal & cut at 45deg so rain water cannot run in in a gale. Then cut vents & add s/s grill outside & a sliding closeable plastic one on the inside. The difficult part is the 10 coats of varnish to make them last more than 2 years!

For a fore hatch, either make up something quick in wood - it doesn't need to be hinged & can be held shut with a simple hook & elastic or cord from underneath, or make up a mould for a GRP one using wood & plaster (to fill & round off the edges) - don't forget to allow for the thickness of the grp!.
 
Congratulations!

My Mac 26' had a fore hatch which was an unhinged tea tray type box in GRP, held in by a lanyard from below- not too hard to fab in GRP.

My main hatch was rotten. I copied the curve onto cardboard and made a jig at home and made a new top by laminating two pieces of 5mm ply together after routing a radius-ed edge and spraying it was really good (for me). This method meant the old one stayed in place until the new one was ready

If I did it again I'd increase the curve in the jig as the laminate sprung slightly when I removed it.



Nick
 
Not a bad season so far. Moonstreak has been good company and very reliable.
Took the mast out to install vhf / windex combined with a crane at friends boathouse on the Tamar. Checked rigging over and found spreaders cracked on inside. As they had already been redrilled and turned 180 degrees decided to make up new. Just the two one metre ally tubes cost £60 and I did all the drilling and fixing. Now good as new, probably better.
Engine yanmar has been brilliant, particularly because I have to use it to tack much of the time. Sadly she will not tack unless it is blowing at least 15 knots or more. Hardly sails to windward at all. So a quick burst of engine and around she goes. Can be disconcerting amongst the moorings or in a narrow channel. At least the engine always starts and I leave it in gear with 1/4 throttle so push the starter and around she goes.
Self steering is great. She tracks well and you can just leave the tiller unattended for a long time. She came with an autohelm tiller mate. The unit works but needs new wiring to the battery and I have not bothered this season. Probably will fix next year for Scilly Isles cruise.
Off the wind have added an assymetric spinnaker which works well.
 
Hi Jason,

Well, it's been almost 18 months since I heard from you, but I've seen your boat down at Saltash several times this year.

Appledore's the same with tacking, has to be quite well off the wind and then she will tack, but with the long and thick keel it's not easy.

Let me know when you plan to attempt Scilly. I plan to go every year but so far haven't made it. Mevagissey was the farthest this year.

Geoff.
 
joyfull said:
Sadly she will not tack unless it is blowing at least 15 knots or more. Hardly sails to windward at all. So a quick burst of engine and around she goes. Can be disconcerting among the moorings or in a narrow channel.
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& people sometimes wonder why the UK boat building industry collapsed !!!!

What on earth was the industry doing producing boats like this ?????

But we all love our first boat & it will be a great experience . i wish you luck with it.
 
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My Macwester does not tack easily either. However, I release the genoa sheet and I tack (not too fast or the rudder will be ineffective) using the main sail only; after the tack, I adjust the genoa. Good luck.
 
Daydream believer said:
& people sometimes wonder why the UK boat building industry collapsed !!!!

What on earth was the industry doing producing boats like this ?????

But we all love our first boat & it will be a great experience . i wish you luck with it.
Click to expand...

They were built because that is what people wanted to buy at the time. Lots of space, cheap, could be part home built. You need to set in the context of the times - and what else was available for a family to enjoy time on the water.
 
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