Small coastal cruiser

[jwilson]

Shallow draught bilge keel boats need a lot of helming, sail trimming and sometimes tactical skill to get the best out of them to windward. Anyone can get a deep fin to go to windward adequately, but a badly sailed shallow bilge-keeler can be infinitely worse than the same boat sailed well. Free off after every tack, build speed, then point, and just how much you point is critical, and varies with sea conditions.

Re Kingfishers, never sailed one, but admired their long term "maintainability". Wish other boats were built with similar engineering thought.

 

[WesterlyNomadRaccoon]

In dutch there is a word "knijpen" which means "squeeze" and in the context of "sailing" means "loose sail pressure because point to much to the wind". It's not what you should do with this boat, it falls dead and starts drifting.

Also, in sailing school, I learned to look back after tacking and if it was a "question mark" my instructor would be discontent, we had to pick a point and focus on that before and during tacking and keep pointing there until the boat picked up speed, so it would make a nice right angle. But I guess a twin keeler indeed should be tacked a bit in the question mark fashion, like the dutch traditional "flat bottom boats" that I also sailed, a lot. You first need to pick up speed and then slowly see how far you can reach, and be responsive to changes in wind speed at the (sheet-to-tiller driven) helm.

Contrary to what was said here, I find her pointing reasonably well and she can be trimmed to sail a straight course, if not with a little help from a bungee. She is roll-reefed so that is an option to "variably" set the amount of main sail and windward pressure it provides.

Her natural behaviour without sail or with all tension from her sheets is to turn half wind. "She heaves to very well", but with low speed in a marina it can be challenging to manouevre sideways Heaving-to is a very nice manouvre for going to the heads, making tea or fixing stuff/setting things straight. To my opinion, all she needs is loosen her sheets (no need to set the jibe to the wind as the manual suggests, though better in harder winds to prevent flappening sails and give pressure against waves)

All in all, I am really pleased with this ship, which seems to fit very well to my intended sailing area, which is mostly IJsselmeer and Waddenzee and maybe an odd passage to the UK/longer holiday to Northern France or GE/Danmark: it will be slow but safe and more comfortable than in most other 22ft shallow yachts, is my expectation.

 

[Wansworth]

There are various accounts of voyages in a westerly Nomad at one time there was a yahoo page.I nearly bought one but missed the boat but the new owner fitted a wind vane and was well pleased after all Gentlemen don’t go to windward?

 

[Stemar]

after all Gentlemen don’t go to windward?

In that case, my Snapdragon was definitely a Gentleman sailor. Going to windward is why I had a big lump of green metal taking up all that space.

 

[Supertramp]

In dutch there is a word "knijpen" which means "squeeze" and in the context of "sailing" means "loose sail pressure because point to much to the wind". It's not what you should do with this boat, it falls dead and starts drifting.

Also, in sailing school, I learned to look back after tacking and if it was a "question mark" my instructor would be discontent, we had to pick a point and focus on that before and during tacking and keep pointing there until the boat picked up speed, so it would make a nice right angle. But I guess a twin keeler indeed should be tacked a bit in the question mark fashion, like the dutch traditional "flat bottom boats" that I also sailed, a lot. You first need to pick up speed and then slowly see how far you can reach, and be responsive to changes in wind speed at the (sheet-to-tiller driven) helm.

Contrary to what was said here, I find her pointing reasonably well and she can be trimmed to sail a straight course, if not with a little help from a bungee. She is roll-reefed so that is an option to "variably" set the amount of main sail and windward pressure it provides.

Her natural behaviour without sail or with all tension from her sheets is to turn half wind. "She heaves to very well", but with low speed in a marina it can be challenging to manouevre sideways Heaving-to is a very nice manouvre for going to the heads, making tea or fixing stuff/setting things straight. To my opinion, all she needs is loosen her sheets (no need to set the jibe to the wind as the manual suggests, though better in harder winds to prevent flappening sails and give pressure against waves)

All in all, I am really pleased with this ship, which seems to fit very well to my intended sailing area, which is mostly IJsselmeer and Waddenzee and maybe an odd passage to the UK/longer holiday to Northern France or GE/Danmark: it will be slow but safe and more comfortable than in most other 22ft shallow yachts, is my expectation.

I grew up sailing on a Westerly 22 around Scotland. You can be critical of its performance but the keel configuration is key to its other attributes. When we sailed it there were few comparable boats and performance relative to 22ft long keel wooden cruising yachts was pretty similar. It's cabin space was greater than some wooden 30 footers! It was a very solid boat, and even when sailing with the lee cabin windows in the water it remained predictable. Biggest problems were the outboard cavitating in a head sea, and working on the cabin roof with no guard rails. Changing down hank on jibs was exciting. I think your Nomad will be great for Dutch waters and an inboard engine fixes the head sea problem. I hope you enjoy it.

Its good to look at what your boat does well rather than comparing with the good features of other boats. I have never sailed a boat and not found enjoyment in the experience.

 

[WoodyP]

My parents first yacht was a Kingfisher 30 bought new in 1965. It was functional in a basic sort of way once some problems were fixed liked the keels used as petrol fuel tanks had the vent inside a stanchion each side. Unfortunately they drilled the fixing straight through the stanchion and vent pipe allowing water into the tanks. It was badly balanced under sail with lots of weather helm. As to boat speed, it was so slow. One trip with a Nich 32 and a Twister, we could not keep up, even using the engine! Of all the yachts I have sailed, it was the worst desgned by a long way. The 22 would be OK as a creek crawler, but there are plenty of better yachts you could choose in my opinion.

This was a very early model. Later ones, as I have one built in 1972,, had the Sea Panther diesel, and the vents are through the transom. It had a modified skeg and rudder, slightly increased lead ballast and I have never found her to be slow, even when the sail plan is set to reduce the weather helm.

 

[LittleSister]

I'm not knocking boats that have modest performance, but for me there are much more appealing ones than the Nomad.

The Nomad has the same hull as the Westerly 22, and it does provide much more accommodation space, but at such a cost in looks, and I read that it makes deck work treacherous.

 

[Wansworth]

I'm not knocking boats that have modest performance, but for me there are much more appealing ones than the Nomad.

The Nomad has the same hull as the Westerly 22, and it does provide much more accommodation space, but at such a cost in looks, and I read that it makes deck work treacherous.

For those of a youthful disposition as we where in 1963

 

[LittleSister]

For those of a youthful disposition as we where in 1963

Are you meaning that, unlike me, you're no longer of a youthful disposition?

 

[Wansworth]

Are you meaning that, unlike me, you're no longer of a youthful disposition?

Leg wise?

 

[LittleSister]

Leg wise?

Get yourself a wooden peg-leg, plus matching parrot. Captain whats'isname managed fine (albeit not on a Nomad).

 

[Wansworth]

Get yourself a wooden peg-leg, plus matching parrot. Captain whats'isname managed fine (albeit not on a Nomad).

Funny you should mention that.I made a paper mache parrot and wired it to the spreader on one boat,Unfortunatly it came loose and ended up upside down?

 

[LittleSister]

Funny you should mention that.I made a paper mache parrot and wired it to the spreader on one boat,Unfortunatly it came loose and ended up upside down?

You must have modelled it on a South Seas parrot - naturally inclined to align with southern hemisphere magnetic field.

 

[Wansworth]

You must have modelled it on a South Seas parrot - naturally inclined to align with southern hemisphere magnetic field.

Don’t think you have to look further than the wire getting loose?

 

[LittleSister]

Don’t think you have to look further than the wire getting loose?

You could have sailed to the southern hemisphere to check my theory, saving yourself a trip up the mast!

 

[Wansworth]

You could have sailed to the southern hemisphere to check my theory, saving yourself a trip up the mast!

Being in an inverted pose it became a victim of Galician rain and became soggy?

 

[steve yates]

I'm not knocking boats that have modest performance, but for me there are much more appealing ones than the Nomad.

The Nomad has the same hull as the Westerly 22, and it does provide much more accommodation space, but at such a cost in looks, and I read that it makes deck work treacherous.

I really like the looks of the nomads and 22,s, very cute looking.

 

[DownWest]

My FIL had a Nomad on the Chesapeak. Loved it. Shallow water there, so suited. And it was 40 yrs ago...

 

[Wansworth]

My FIL had a Nomad on the Chesapeak. Loved it. Shallow water there, so suited. And it was 40 yrs ago...

Book I have recounts an American in North arolina buying a Nomad but selling it as it was difficult to ventilate when it was hot and stormy