<rmharrington2@juno.com>
To: wmwaller@webtv.net
Date: Thu, 18 Mar
2004 23:24:56 -0500
Subject: Re: Blue Mist
Bill,
First let me address your previous e-mail. I'm still waiting to hear
back from Hans Gottschling regarding obtaining a new boom tent., so I can't sell
my present one. Also, I wouldn't want to sell it until I've checked that
the new one fits okay, etc. I don't know what Hans is charging these days
for boom tents. I'm guessing that one similar to mine will be around $300
- $400 US. I'll let you know more when I get the information.
Now to the next question.
I assume you'll be sailing the coastal waters? Looking at my atlas,
Georgia's coast is extremely interesting. There are a gazillion barrier
islands (Cumberland Island National Seashore), many large bays and rivers, and
the Intercostal Waterway. Tides aren't large, but there are still many
places for strong currents to occur. With the shallow waters you have
waves will be choppy, sometimes dangerous (especially with wind against
current). St Andrews Sound and St.Catherines Sound (there's also a bunch
of others) are exposed directly to the open sea. Based upon this
information I could give you some recommendations as to what you might need for
cruising.
Getting a boat set up for cruising is a gradual stepwise thing. You
need to start with the basics, see how that goes, make adjustments that suit
your taste, then fine tune and add the little extra touches. It's not
something that you want to do in one fell swoop. The basics all have to do
with boat handling and safety, plus making the boat into a suitable camping
vehicle. For short easy trips you can get by doing just a few
things. Before I spend hours telling you stuff you already know you need
to tell me where you are at today. What kind of cruises have you done so
far? Do you have reefing? Do you have a roller reefing genoa?
Do you have an anchoring system? Do you have masthead floatation?
Motor? Oars? Etc., etc.
Self Bailers. Everyone should have them. The good large Elstrum
(sic) ones cost about $60 - $70 each. You can get by with just one.
It goes in the lowest part of the bilge (more or less beneath the center
thwart). Ninety percent of the time the self bailers are all you need in
order to expel shipped water. When cruising for several days at a time the
bilge will accumulate rain water and you will not always be able to expel it via
the bailers. That's when the pump is needed. I my pump up in a way
that I can pump out water while sailing. The English and Scandinavians
frequently have pumps permanently mounted in the cockpit with hoses going to the
bilge. They are able to pump while sailing. I attempted to do
something similar without making a permanent hookup. The idea is that,
should you get into some really rough water conditions where there is a lot of
green water coming into the cockpit, the crew member can operate the pump while
the boat is sailing. I've never ran into a situation where I've needed to
do this.
So the answer to your question is that I use both self bailers and a
pump. Cruising the coastal waters of Georgia I would think that you would
be wise to do the same. However, you should be able to get by with one of
those cheap tubular plastic pumps as opposed to the more expensive diaphragm
pump that I have.
Best wishes----DICK
On Thu, 18 Mar 2004 00:36:00 -0500 (EST)
wmwaller@webtv.net (william waller)
writes:
> Dick:
> Do you happen to have a web site or link where you
have explained
> the
> perfect cruising set up for a
Wayfarer? You are the authority on
> the
> subject.
While I understand that the idea of "perfect" is
> relative,
>
there is a lot that we can learn from you.
>
> One question
in particular that I have is your opinion on automatic
> self
>
bailers. One photo that I found of Blue Mist has a bilge pump. Do
> you
> prefer that over self bailers or do you use both?
> W wishes,
> Bill Waller
Tom,
Regarding your boom tent search, I could never to afford to take the
custom design/build approach that you are taking. I have a lot of
confidence in Hans Gottschling and he is very reasonable in price. You
really should give him a shot at it. He doesn't need your boat
dimensions--he's already got them. Just give him a sketch of how you
want the tent to look like. His workmanship is superb and he has the
experience to know what will work and what won't. The materials you
mention I'm unfamiliar with. I don't know how many different materials
Hans works with, but for the my tent he suggested what he terms an
acrylic (four colors available), or the cotton canvas which I have
presently. The acrylic has a nice hefty feel to it. Hans says that it
won't rot or shrink. However, after several years it will need re
waterproofing. Silicone waterproofing suggested. Hans' standard prices
are $475 (Canadian) for the canvas and $535 CA for the acrylic, plus $25
for shipping (maybe slightly more for Boston), plus an added $25 for the
extra zipper on the side, like I have now. Current exchange rate is $1
CA = $0.76 US.
Attached is my sketch of what we're doing regarding Blue Mist.
Have fun----DICK
