BLUEMOMENT

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I need the following before May next year:

4-man canister liferaft
Windvane self steering
40m 8mm chain spliced to 25m 14mm octoplait (windlass would be nice as well)
Decent plotter with all-Europe charts

- and that is just what I can think of at the moment. Other small items I can find, but these are expensive and any ideas are welcome.Keep yer ears open.

I heard of someone with a liferaft, but its 6 man, valise and out of inspection!! (but you knew that already)

If you get desperate enough to buy a new windvane, I can recommend Seafeather as excellent value.

mm5aho wrote:I heard of someone with a liferaft, but its 6 man, valise and out of inspection!! (but you knew that already)

If you get desperate enough to buy a new windvane, I can recommend Seafeather as excellent value.

I already approached Sea Feather, as they are badly in need of a new website, but they weren't interested and quoted me just under £2k for a unit for the MG30 . . . doesn't seem particularly cheap, MrVee is a lot cheaper.

There was a guy selling a 2nd hand Pacific Light on Yachts and Yachty Bits, but he wanted £1700, which is more than they cost new . . . I missed a Navik for £600 on there, which I should have gone for, just didn't have the money.

I see Nancy Blackets are closing - any closing down bargains there?

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Black Nancys has been stripped bare and the doors locked. Apparently everything went away on a lorry yesterday.

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Serendipitously, 40m of chain has appeared, so that is one item off the list.

There's the Hebridean of course. Depending on skills it doesn't take too long to fabricate. Works very well! Did a trip to Madeira and Azores a couple of years ago with one and he was excellent. Chum finished an Atlantic circuit this summer with one and awarded his a gold medal - worked faultlessly the whole way and now breakages or breakdowns

spuddy wrote:There's the Hebridean of course. Depending on skills it doesn't take too long to fabricate. Works very well! Did a trip to Madeira and Azores a couple of years ago with one and he was excellent. Chum finished an Atlantic circuit this summer with one and awarded his a gold medal - worked faultlessly the whole way and now breakages or breakdowns

I agree that building a vane might be the most cost effective method, leaving funds for other things.

On the plotter front, for low cost option, I would go down the laptop road.

Windlass wise, if costs don't stretch to new, consider buying a knackered one. They can all be rebuilt and motors rewound.it can be a remarkably low cost way of getting an expensive item. Just rebuilt mine, bearings £3, new tub of grease, helicoil, new bolts, paint job at a car sprayers, £150 all up, like new.

I'll keep my eye open for stuff. I have large cleats, maybe a large manual bilge pump and some circuit breakers, all in good condition if you needs stuff for other projects i.e. strong points for a bridle. Also 2 x CQRs if you wanted additional anchors (60lb and 40lb).

Tried to send you a PM but the software would not allow it. Anyway, over on YBW there is a wind vane for sale: -

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.ph ... f-Steering

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Thanks, I had a look. Not sure if it would be suitable - in theory it is for up to an 8m boat. I've only sailed the MG once, but it had a bit of weather helm and I would prefer something a bit tougher if possible, but have asked the guy if it has a mounting bracket and will look at some photos.

Just missed a Navik on Ebay for £445 because I was away at the weekend . . .

Missing a Navik may not have been a bad thing. Another Contessa 32 had one and the water vane attachment was not up to the job.

http://www.ybw.com/forums/showthread.ph ... f-Steering

just seen this...

marisca wrote:Missing a Navik may not have been a bad thing. Another Contessa 32 had one and the water vane attachment was not up to the job.

The Navik on Fairwids steered her several thousand miles back in 2006/2007 , though it has only done a N Sea crossing and a couple of Minch crossings since then.

I have a plotter (or two) on "Hirta" and an iPad running iSailor, Navionics, Admiralty and Antares.

The iPad is the more useful.

It probably uses a few more amps but I've never been short of them (200 watts of solar into a 200Amphr battery bank)

The readable in the sun issue has never been a problem: it lives under the hood

If I didn't have an iPad i would just get a cheap tablet.

And when you are not sailing you can watch movies on it.

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Is there any way of getting AIS data on an ipad?