What did/didn't Work this season

[LONG_KEELER]

Just thought it might be helpful to list our experiences during the 2019
sailing season of what worked and what didn't . Particularly new stuff added or replaced, plus new areas cruised . Apologies to overseas peeps who are
currently sailing.


The biggest plus for me was a stack pack. I'd seen them on other boats
but thought losing a bit of sail area, and possibly a flapping cover, would be an issue. I would now put it just behind furling headsails as the best upgrade in sail handling for me.

I used that imitation Chinese decking in the cockpit and the saloon. Dead easy to fit and visually a big improvement. An unexpected bonus is you can
more or less do without cushions in the cockpit and lovely to kneel on down below.

No new areas cruised but the wind on the East Coast was generally fine
but a little too much if I was picky .

 

[Stemar]

For sailing, the biggest improvement was definitely the combination of a stack pack and running the lines to the cockpit. The ability to reef and lower the main without leaving the cockpit is a huge improvement in both convenience and safety.

Milady is more interested in the domestic comforts and, on that side, it's definitely the cockpit tent, which allows us to remain long after the sun has set and others in the anchorage have retired below. It's an extra room, which is invaluable on a small boat. They aren't this year's improvements, but overall since we've had the boat.

This year's improvement was simply to be back out on the water after being seriously ill a year before.

 

[johnalison]

This year I tried Hempel's SilicOne on the prop. Application went OK and it looked good but performance fell off during the season much like last year with only lanolin. It may be that we didn't sail enough as we only did day sails and the odd few days, but I didn't let a week pass without using the boat or giving the engine/prop a good run. I haven't come out yet for a chance to inspect it, and by the time I do it will have fouled more anyway. If it cleans off well in the spring I might goive it another go, otherwise I'll try Trilux after repriming.

 

[Poignard]

What worked for me?

1. Rigging a bow fender to make it easier to berth in a marina when single-handed. Nudge slowly up to the walkway, tiller towards the catway, engine slow ahead and the boat will stay there quite safely while you step ashore and secure the lines. The only problem is people who are determined to help by keeping the bow off the walkway and push you astern against the engine. But a few more revs usually overcomes their efforts!

2. Using Duncan Wells' simple technique for leaving a marina catway in astern using a long line.

What didn't work?

1. Keeping my boat upstream of Arzal lock! Too many lock outages, overcrowding and a booking system unfit for purpose.

 

[V1701]

Main thing that didn't work this year was the sodding weather, had to leave the boat in falmouth for 3 weeks half way back to Brighton from Aberdovey and lots of weekends have been too windy/rainy to do anything. But I did I refresh/paint the forepeak & head, made lazyjacks, removed & am now ready to refit the windvane steering & made some curtains for the saloon...

 

[Bobc]

Things that worked:-

1./ Re-powering the boat. I removed the tired old Volvo TAMD-22 (105hp), and replaced it with a Beta 50 (50hp). The result is less noise and lower fuel consumption with no noticeable loss of cruising speed.

2./ New prop. Whilst doing the re-power, I changed prop from a 19 x 17 3-blade fixed prop to a 20 x 16 3-blade Featherstream. Not only is it quiet now when sailing, but it adds a good 10% to the sailing speed (most noticeable difference is in light winds). It has also transformed the boat's manoeuvrability under engine. Most of the propwalk is gone and the bite in reverse is almost instant.

3./ New chartplotter. Fitted a Raymarine a9 and digital radar. Very impressed with it. Went for the Imray raster charts and like them a lot. Love the radar overlay with AIS on the plotter. Really impressed with the Raycontrol iPad app which lets me use the iPad as a slave plotter at the chart table.

Things that didn't work:-

1./ New solar panel. I had a 100w semi-flexible panel which got trashed in last winter's gales, so got a new replacement (Chinese one off Ebay, as was the last one). The new one only outputs about half the amps of the old one despite the specs being the same. As a result, I have done some research on the subject and now understand why all 100w panels are not equal.


Sort of works:-

1./ Winchrite electric winch handle. Comes in handy for things like furling the genoa and bringing the mainsheet in, but not enough grunt to do the genoa sheets.

 

[RupertW]

New things that worked:
400w Sunware flex panels that clip to the Bimini
12v watercooled fridge to back up the engine driven one which now I only engage to test it’s still working
Some great new ports exploring the Southern Spanish coast (and one with good marina in scary resort)
The port of Rabat in Morocco as a refuge when you can’t find what is pouring water into your bilges

Less good:
20 year old Raymarine linear drive became intermittent so swapped out easily but expensively for a new one bought at Shepherds in Gib.

Scary:
When fitting water cooled fridge the engineer helpfully replaced internal hidden seized valve which was supposed to drain the fridge before previous owner had drilled a hole in the fridge bottom to drain it to the bilge. This valve open created a fast siphon when heeled over and bouncing on the second day out of our 5 day day planned Gib to Madeira passage. This filled fridge which instantly filled bilges.

 

[UK-WOOZY]

what worked:

new 80W solar panel on the NOA 10639. the panel is quite big. but it has been fine in all gale force winds and sailing and tacking, gybing. sturdy. both batteries are fully charged by the morning when staying on the boat and using electrics into the early hours.

what didnt quite work.

the bainbridge neptune gimbal. with the flexible pipe attached it doesnt gimbal freely (with the hob/grille). having to use filled kettles to give it some weight to move.

my rudder is a bit loose on the bottom clamp onto the P-bracket after i replaced the washers and bolts for new about a year ago and put too many washers back in to space it. may make it more snug before the boat ges back in the new year or may leave it for another season.

 

[dom]

What worked for me?

1. Rigging a bow fender to make it easier to berth in a marina when single-handed. Nudge slowly up to the walkway, tiller towards the catway, engine slow ahead and the boat will stay there quite safely while you step ashore and secure the lines. The only problem is people who are determined to help by keeping the bow off the walkway and push you astern against the engine. But a few more revs usually overcomes their efforts!

In France? First, a bow fender is a bit wimpy as indeed are all fenders. But this 'slowly nudging' bit; just no.

The procedure is this:

1. Enter marina at a fair old lick.
2. If you rig fenders they should be trailing in the water.
3. Swing into a vaguely vacant space
4. Only brake at last minute as boat will naturally stop as bow rides up the pontoon.
5. Lob a few lines ashore and invite all for a super friendly aperitif on board.

 

[Jokani]

I used that imitation Chinese decking in the cockpit and the saloon. Dead easy to fit and visually a big improvement.

Sounds interesting, any chance of a link?

 

[JumbleDuck]

The biggest plus for me was a stack pack. I'd seen them on other boats
but thought losing a bit of sail area, and possibly a flapping cover, would be an issue. I would now put it just behind furling headsails as the best upgrade in sail handling for me.

The biggest plus for me recently has been getting rid of the damn stack pack. Instead I rig a "millipede" along the boom and keep the sail loosely bundled in that, only bothering with a harbour stow and sailcover when leaving her for a bit.

Quicker hoisting and lowering means I use the mainsail more, and with none of the swearing involved with the stackpack.

I'm sure stackpacks are excellent things on some boats, but on mine it was an unmitigated pain.

 

[matt1]

Big change for me, I changed the entire boat!

What worked

Transformative Singlehanded sailing. Thought my 31' was a delight to sail SH but the Hanse 418 is even easier still. Who knew?...…..apparently a bigger boat could be easier to sail?

Luxurious and stylish interior with loads of room and comfort

Unbelievably well mannered - how can you have a very light helm with 30+deg of heel in such a beamy boat. Defies physics and everything I have experienced to date.

What didn't work

They did work, but my prejudice against B&G seems justified. Feature overload, but please can I just simply see the highest speed or highest wind speed for my trip at the touch of a button? Or even at all?! Apparently it's not possible. This was easy on my 13 year old Raymarine ST60's. And whilst we are at it.....can the safe AIS targets be coloured green and the dangerous ones red? Like Garmin chartplotters do?

 

[Alacrity19]

I used that imitation Chinese decking in the cockpit and the saloon. Dead easy to fit and visually a big improvement. An unexpected bonus is you can
more or less do without cushions in the cockpit and lovely to kneel on down below.

Any pictures or do you have a link to the one you purchased?

 

[LONG_KEELER]

Sounds interesting, any chance of a link?

Put "eva foam decking" into ebay . Don't be put off by the cheap price. It's also sticky backed.
Had quite a bashing this season and it cleaned up well both inside and out. I did lean a 26kg outboard on it which has left a slight dent but hardly noticeable . It has stayed stuck as well.

 

[LONG_KEELER]

The biggest plus for me recently has been getting rid of the damn stack pack. Instead I rig a "millipede" along the boom and keep the sail loosely bundled in that, only bothering with a harbour stow and sailcover when leaving her for a bit.

Quicker hoisting and lowering means I use the mainsail more, and with none of the swearing involved with the stackpack.

I'm sure stackpacks are excellent things on some boats, but on mine it was an unmitigated pain.

Sorry to hear that. Did the stack pack itself have two battens ? They really are essential for me. I did find that hoisting and lowering does require more accuracy . The throat of the mast track /lazy jacks was rather narrow at first, kept getting the full length sail battens caught.

Also, I rigged the lazy jacks beneath the spreaders rather than higher up . Things were done in quite a hurry and I will change it some time in the future.

Don't chuck it out yet. We're here to help you know

 

[LONG_KEELER]

For sailing, the biggest improvement was definitely the combination of a stack pack and running the lines to the cockpit. The ability to reef and lower the main without leaving the cockpit is a huge improvement in both convenience and safety.

Milady is more interested in the domestic comforts and, on that side, it's definitely the cockpit tent, which allows us to remain long after the sun has set and others in the anchorage have retired below. It's an extra room, which is invaluable on a small boat. They aren't this year's improvements, but overall since we've had the boat.

This year's improvement was simply to be back out on the water after being seriously ill a year before.

Pleased that things are turning round for you.

Was the boom tent a bespoke affair or a DIY job ? I don't think my funds will allow something expensive at the moment. Thought about buying a nice rectangle of Sumbrella fabric that would match the sail cover. Rigged below the boom to stop the weather and drips when banged up aboard due to the wonderful UK wind and rain.

 

[Kukri]

The biggest plus for me recently has been getting rid of the damn stack pack. Instead I rig a "millipede" along the boom and keep the sail loosely bundled in that, only bothering with a harbour stow and sailcover when leaving her for a bit.

Quicker hoisting and lowering means I use the mainsail more, and with none of the swearing involved with the stackpack.

I'm sure stackpacks are excellent things on some boats, but on mine it was an unmitigated pain.

My boat came with a low friction track (“STRONG Track”) and a millipede. She’s going to be keeping them both. The STRONGTrack and slides are brilliant.

The new to me boat turns out to have lovely manners, but one understands something of what an elephant’s mahout might feel like. A kind and gentle creature but immensely strong and heavy.

The Order of the Black Spot goes to Navionics for selling me a chart card for the British Isles and Ireland on which anything between Eastbourne and Lowestoft was a blank white space.

 

[Ohlin Karcher]

That millipede is such a good idea, I'm surprised they aren't more common.
What didn't work, Navionics on an ipad, it kept crashing.
What did work: I bought a new Imray chart and it came with a free download code so I put that in, it includes chart plotter software and works incredibly well, simple raster charts and the tablet doesn't shut down.

What also worked is a product called Bilge Blitz, found on ebay; my old timber bilges were very oily and I was always worried the boat would disgrace herself, by pumping out oily bilgewater in harbour, but a gallon of that stuff just tipped in has emulsified all the oil and even made the cabin smell fresh. Now I can confidently leave the auto pump on when she is unattended, it's a great worry off my mind.

 

[Aja]

That millipede is such a good idea, I'm surprised they aren't more common.

Until it gets a bit bouncy and you fumble and nearly lose an eye. Dangerous things.
Donald

 

[prv]

What worked well:
Raymarine Quantum radar and Axiom plotter. Not actually fitted this year, but a trip back from Cherbourg in unexpected thick fog in August was the first time I’ve seriously used the radar. Impressed with both the picture itself and with the automatic plotting tools that helped us inexperienced operators keep effective tabs on the Channel traffic. Doubly necessary because of...

What didn’t work:
The AIS output on the Standard Horizon GX2100 VHF. I think it must have been dying for a while, I’d noticed an apparent range reduction and missing ships for some time, but it finally crapped out almost completely on that French trip. Once we got back I put a serial terminal on the NMEA line and found it was emitting a constant string of repeating nonsense, with only the most occasional lapse into intelligible AIS sentences. I’ve left the radio in place but recently replaced its AIS function with an Em-Trak transmitter and splitter.

Pete