Trawler yacht ID please

[Kawasaki]

Hi DTIM, yes, we did that a couple of times. A lovely spot to beach her (on purpose) and very sociable too. Most people thought we had ran aground but she takes the ground well. I agree, she is a bit of a "Marmite" boat as she doesn't quite fit into the usual products, Nordhaven being the closest production comparison. She is steel though and at around 40 tonnes is a wonderful sea boat.

Ahh! jtimm 10278 I remember you in Conwy and I spied you in Pwllheli
Whilst Instructing in Pwllheli I said to my 'Students' 'Which 3 boats would you pick if you had a choice in this Marina' I would have 'That'll Do' or that Searanger 446 or that Aquastar over there'!
Lovely Vessel Sir
Wondered where you had gone thanks for that!

 

[jtimm10278]

 

[BruceK]

Hi Bruce, we found the forum and comments on "That'll Do" and thought we would join. My Wife and I own her and have since 2012. I will skip through the comments and answer questions or reply to comments. We were originally in Conwy Marina with her on the end of "H" leg but mover to Pwllhelli to complete a refit and now we are in Gosport.

Welcome to the forum. You must be very proud of her. I still drool at the memory of pacing her length running my hand down her sides and dreaming of what adventures could all be had on her. It certainly stiffened my resolve to migrate to a trawler life.

 

[jtimm10278]

Thanks for the welcome
We are proud of her. In Pwllheli we repainted the hull to the first chine as the paint was becoming chalky and we accepted a "roller" finish over the original beautiful spray finish. This has become a necessity as we repaint more of her original paint but is certainly practical. Scratches are simply rubbed down and repainted..

 

[TwoHooter]

@jtimm10278
Hello, I hope it's not too late to ask a couple of questions (my wife and I have a Nordhavn40 and take an interest in displacement cruising boats).
I see she has no stabilisers. Do you find that she rolls a bit in swell?
What engine does she have? I saw that question but I don't see an answer.
Thanks.

 

[jtimm10278]

Hi TwoHooter, I'm glad to answer questions
She does roll in swells, it usually takes us a couple of days out of the marina to get our sea-legs before we are ok and not sea-sick.
I have thought of fitting "paravanes" similar to those found on some fishing vessels but the extra fuel burn dragging the wings through the water has put me off. Whilst as anchor we don't seem to roll any more than other craft and the roll from one side and back is about four seconds, apparently the worst timing for creating nausea. The roll is very smooth and sinusoidal though and I think that helps a lot with comfort.
We have a Cummins C 8.3 250HP for our main engine with a TwinDisk gearbox and a Cummins B4 series providing 240v generator/hydraulics/auxiliary engine. Running as an auxiliary engine the B4 Cummins will turn the propeller via a 50hp hydraulic motor in the eventuality of main engine/gearbox failure. She will cruise at 5 knots on auxiliary and 7.5 on the main burning about 3 .5 litres/mile at that speed. Both the Cummins engines are keel cooled with dry exhausts.
We also have a 24v Beta "harbour generator" that we use when cooking and boiling the kettle to extend the charge on the Victron Li ion domestic batteries.

What does your NH40 displace?

 

[TwoHooter]

Thanks for replying.
In the slings we have seen weights from 23 to 27 tonnes, affected partly by fuel and water load, but also by the inaccuracy of the scales on the lifts.
I wish our boat could take the ground intentionally like yours. It would probably be OK but I couldn't afford to risk the GRP stabiliser fins.
And we roll at anchor too if we don't put the flopper stopper out.

 

[[165042]]

Have you thought about a Seakeeper Gyro?

 

[jtimm10278]

I have thought about a Seakeeper Gyro, they look fantastic. It wouldn't suit us though as we would have to keep the generator running all the time to run it at anchor. The gyro would work well while underway though.
We have done about 10,000 miles in her so far and if we are uncomfortable tend to go somewhere more sheltered.
The roll at anchor can get uncomfortable but over the years we have found being used as a target for jet skis to race around while at anchor is much more annoying...

 

[[164147]]

A friend has a 52' trawler yacht with a gyro and runs it at anchor with the generator. I suppose it depends how quiet your genset it.

 

[MapisM]

The gyro would work well while underway though.

It does, but up to a point.
Gyros are only effective for as long as they must contrast short "bursts" of rolling, as typically happens at anchor, with occasional navigation wakes.
Or while cruising in fresh and short waves, which make the boat roll back and forth according to her rolling period - or even faster.
But for boats aimed at blue water cruising, there is a typical scenario where gyros are nowhere near as effective as fins, and it's with long swells that can make the boat list rather than roll, for quite a few seconds at a time on each side.
In these conditions, a gyro quickly hits the excursion limit of its precession mechanism, and as soon as it does, it can't generate a contrasting force anymore, till the boat starts rolling on the other side.
The resulting motion can be jerky, and even worse than with no stabilizers at all.
In sharp contrast with that, fins can create a righting force for as long as necessary, hence straightening the boat even when long ocean swells try to keep her listed either side for quite some time.
So, on a boat like yours, fins are really a no brainer in terms of functionality, also because they work almost as well as gyros also at anchor.
BTW, there are electrically actuated ones that you can run with battery power, also for several hours, depending on the battery bank available.
The only drawback I can think of is that, as TwoHooter said, fins sticking out of the hull make intentional grounding a bit more risky for the fins themselves.
If that is crucial for you, I've seen steel boats with fins enclosed inside steel bilge keels - taller than yours obviously, and specifically designed around the fins. A solution which not only allows grounding safely, but with the added bonus of keeping the boat almost straight also while grounded.