Greeting from Sydney Australia

[Nico]

Anchor discussions can be fatal to a thread,but at some point try searching the well regarded Aussie anchor mfr SARCA, based in Melbourne, with a view to updating the ancient CQR/plough.The owner, Rex Francis, may look kindly on a direct purchase by a TF member.

Thanks Bruce - will do. As a side note, is the general approach to get an anchor a few sizes larger than recommended on the sizing chart? You know, “just in case”?

 

[Nico]

She is shallow draft without a keel. You might benefit from a bow thruster.

Hi Pierre, does the shallow draft reduce her “seaworthiness” and her ability to comfortably cross an ocean or handle heavy seas?

 

[Serene]

How does one typically calculate the weight of a boat? Can they weight the boat when they lift it out of the water at the maintenance yard?

[SNIP]

There are actually different ways a boat's "weight" can be measured. Unless you are a ship carrying cargo you don't need to get into the details, but for background so as not to get confused when you see different "weights" for the same vessel, there are the following;

Gross Tonnage (GT); A measure of the internal volume of the vessel, which is in fact not a measure of weight, but actually volume in Tonnes.

Net Tonnage; This is the GT less any volume of the ship used for crew accommodations, machinery, tanks, etc. and again measured in Tonnes.

Deadweight Tonnage; This is a measure of how much load a vessel can carry.

Displacement (the one you want); This is directly related to Archimedes Principle and is the weight of the water displaced by the area of the vessel underwater. In simple terms, Archimedes Principle states that if the vessel is floating without rising or falling then the weight of the water displaced is equal to the weight of the vessel it supports. Measured in metric tons (1,000kg) or if you are in the US then in pounds, with approximately 2,200 pounds per ton.

TL;DR

Yes some/most travel lifts can measure the weight of the vessel when it is lifted out of the water and this weight will be known as the displacement, in metric tons (1,000kg).

All of the above is so you won't be confused when you see measures of Gross Tonnage etc. but no need to read if you don't want the detail.

 

[Serene]

[SNIP]

When i saw her at the dock, she looked disheveled, low in the water and a bit of a mess. i guess im in the “honeymoon” phase full of enthusiastic ideas.

All boats are a work in progress. The to-do list will never be finished. Just make sure she is seaworthy, reliable and carries all the necessary safety gear, then get out and use her.

Focus on the reliability of the engine, including electrical and fuel systems, running gear (shaft, stern tube, propellor and rudder systems), anchoring system and bilge pumping & fire fighting systems.

The Gardner is a relatively simple engine. Clean fuel, fresh air and a way to crank her and she will run forever. BTW you can crank her by hand after opening the decompression levers, so can be started without power to the starter motor and she will not need power to run.

This may be interesting;

https://gardnermarine.com/engines/gardner-diesel-engine-6lxct/

You will learn her systems and how she behaves and have a much better idea over time as to what you feel is important to upgrade/fix.

They always say the best two days in a boat owner's life is the day you buy the boat and the day you sell it! Enjoy the honeymoon. We all have a soft spot for our own boats.

 

[RT Firefly]

Greetings,
Mr. N. Please re-read post #2 again and take it seriously. Did I mention re-reading post #2?



We've ALL been exactly where you are now. There is a massive knowledge base here on TF. Do NOT hesitate to ask questions and re-read post #2. Patience, young man.



Don't worry about "seaworthiness" (a vague term, at best) or abilities to cross oceans. That knowledge will come. Be patient.


You mention she is a mess. Well, start that "to do" list in order of priority. One item may be addressing rust. Don't paint the whole boat. Get some sandpaper, matching paint (or close to it) a brush and spot-fix those areas that need immediate attention.


Have the anodes (zincs) been changed? Is everything that needs be, bonded to said anodes?



Get up close and personal with your Gardner. Get some de-greaser and clean her up. Also get some matching paint to touch up any rust spots you find under the grease and grime. Replace any bad hose clamps/belts/rubber hosing. Change the coolant, perhaps?


Baby steps. As has been mentioned, the "to do" list is never ending and always expanding. Take on ONE project at a time and finish it. The last thing you want to do is have the boat in pieces to the point where she is unusable. Clean and dry is the ultimate initial aim.



Make a "like to do list". Flybridge? Galley makeover? Relocate dinghy storage? Leave THAT one for later BUT do make note of your desires.


Patience...

Final word: Leave the cold beer until the END of the day after you've cleaned up and stowed stuff away. Trust me on this.

 

[PierreR]

Hi Pierre, does the shallow draft reduce her “seaworthiness” and her ability to comfortably cross an ocean or handle heavy seas?

It may not alter her ability to cross and ocean but it will alter her ability to comfortably cross and ocean. She would require stabilization.
As far as actually crossing and ocean, it's not what I think but what the designer intended and the yard built into her. I would start my research there. My gut guess is your boat will not be adequate the cross the Pacific or the Indian Ocean route. There is plenty of cruising where you have her.

 

[PierreR]

Final word: Leave the cold beer until the END of the day after you've cleaned up and stowed stuff away. Trust me on this.

I would love to sit and talk to you some time. I suspect you can really weave a story.

 

[Southern Boater]

Hi Nico

Congrats on the new acquisition, she has great lines and the original builder has put quite a bit of effort into getting the bilges rounded for a steel boat.
For some basic ideas on how to deal with rust, check out local Hawkesbury River resident Dangar Stu’s YouTube channel, Dangar Marine. He lives on Dangar Island and has done an extensive refit on an old steel trawler. It’s always an entertaining watch.

There are some very clever and helpful folks on this forum, I strongly advise listening to them

BTW, are you currently based at Marmong Cove marina?

 

[Nico]

Hi Nico

Congrats on the new acquisition, she has great lines and the original builder has put quite a bit of effort into getting the bilges rounded for a steel boat.
For some basic ideas on how to deal with rust, check out local Hawkesbury River resident Dangar Stu’s YouTube channel, Dangar Marine. He lives on Dangar Island and has done an extensive refit on an old steel trawler. It’s always an entertaining watch.

There are some very clever and helpful folks on this forum, I strongly advise listening to them

BTW, are you currently based at Marmong Cove marina?

Hi Southern Boater - thanks for the reply. Yes, Marmong Cove is her home - say gday next time you are around. I’m listening to the clever folks here and i’m very appreciative of the advice - lots of wisdom being offered and hopefully being absorbed. I’m going to take it nice and slowly. I watch danger stu - great youtube channel. His channel gave me some confidence in making the commitment to a buying a steel hull boat. I have also been watching the sailing Brupeg channel - also great. Over the end of year break, i will give the steel repairs a go. See how it goes ?

 

[fgarriso]

Welcome Aboard !
Nice pics

 

[PNK]

Welcome, that is a very handsome boat! In fact, when I saw the first picture, I was reminded of the old Huckins cruisers, a design I used to admire a lot. Now that I have gone through all your pix, it is not really all that similar, but the lines still make me think of Huckins.
Enjoy your new boat!

Peter

 

[Kit_L]

Welcome aboard from a fellow Aussie.

Looking at the hull form, I think your fine vessel (keel cooled, dry exhaust AND a legendary Gardner; I am jealous) will benefit from stabilisation, especially with no keel, and rounded bilges. While not so popular in NSW, the batwing stabilisers that @Serene showed you on p.1 could be perfect. There are several companies in Queensland that make these to suit:

https://rlmarine.com.au/stabilisers/

And I see that's where @Serene got that image! These people have done many of these. The latest models lower the wings via winches, so much safer to use than the paravanes I built for one of our boats.

And @RT's advice (post #2) is gold; please re-read. Your new vessel will take 12 months just to get her cleaned up, probably. And in the process you will be using her, as is, and in time you'll have a much deeper understanding of what to change. Make no changes now!

 

[Pcpete]

I’m going to add my Welcome to everyone else’s. In case RT Firefly wasn’t clear enough, read post number two and follow the instructions. Your life or someone else’s life depends on it.
You might look around for a group like Power Squadron who teach all sorts of classes involving everything boating. Each lesson had an entire course under it and each lesson in that course has a complete course under it, and repeat, repeat, repeat. While I encourage you to learn and utilize your electronics, check every leg of your route to make sure you aren’t going to run aground or into something. We’ve had a bunch of folks in the Salish Sea (think Seattle and Vancouver) who bought a very expensive boat with all of the newest electronics and learned just enough to get the boat pointed towards a destination then engaged the autopilot and left the helm with nobody on watch. Many of them found well marked reefs and islands.
You have a very handsome boat there and adding a command bridge can be done well and enhance the lines or, if it’s not done right, look like a badly executed back yard project.

 

[Nico]

Greetings,
Welcome aboard. VERY nice vessel and NOT ugly at all IMO. I fully appreciate your excitement BUT I would strongly suggest you wait until you have lived with her for a while (6-12 months, perhaps) BEFORE you make any major additions and/or alterations. You visions of a "good idea" may readily change over time. Remorse can be expensive. Just make sure she is clean and dry (inside) and enjoy.

Thanks for the comment RT Firefly - yes i will do that. I will leave the major changes for much further down the track. I will channel the enthusiasm towards learning the basics - how to maintain and look after a Gardner, steel maintenance, cleaning and keeping dry. Cheers

 

[Nico]

Welcome aboard! There are a few Aussies that regularly post on here. I think I have seen that boat before, but can't remember where exactly.

She has been living at Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, for the past few years.

 

[Nico]

Like this?

Hi Serene, I found some old footage of the boat from a few years ago. Much of the roof mounted equipment can be seen, including what i think may be stabilisers. I have highlighted the steel members in green highlighter. It seems that the arms would fold out and swing down to the water level and the section with the plate would be laying horizontally in the water maybe a meter or so under the water line.

 

[Serene]

Hi Serene, I found some old footage of the boat from a few years ago. Much of the roof mounted equipment can be seen, including what i think may be stabilisers. I have highlighted the steel members in green highlighter. It seems that the arms would fold out and swing down to the water level and the section with the plate would be laying horizontally in the water maybe a meter or so under the water line.

Do a search for 'flopper stoppers' and you will find heaps of information relating to at-anchor stabilisation.

 

[Nico]

Do a search for 'flopper stoppers' and you will find heaps of information relating to at-anchor stabilisation.

Thanks Serene - will do, thanks for the terminology. I must admit, a few of the initial search results made me blush

 

[BruceK]

Thanks Bruce - will do. As a side note, is the general approach to get an anchor a few sizes larger than recommended on the sizing chart? You know, “just in case”?

"A few sizes larger" can add up to a big anchor. I tend to think the mfr will be conservative in specifying an adequate size, and of course wants to sell you as much anchor as they can. Then the retailer might suggest upsizing for safety too. I wouldn`t go up more than one size unless there was something unusual.

If considering a Sarca I suggest call Rex Francis at Sarca and discuss with him direct. He designs, builds, and markets anchors, I think he`s an expert worth consulting even if he wants to sell you one, might even give you a discount.
Was Marmong recently taken over by Empire Marinas? We`re at their Bobbin Head Marina, not cheap but they run a good marina.

 

[Irish Rambler]

Congratulations on your new boat and we wish you many years of safe cruising.
I think she's a lovely boat with fine lines.
I can only concur with RTF and others and suggest you make haste slowly.
Many folk buy a boat and dash right in with no prior knowledge and make many costly mistakes which they regret over time.
The Gardner engine will outlast you but the secret of any engine is correct servicing not forgetting the gearbox which requires the same TLC.
Just the unique sound of the starter on that beautiful engine brings back many memories for me.
There are many folk on here who will help you, you would be foolish not to take advantage of the wealth of experience the people here can give you.
Remember, make haste slowly and above all enjoy her.

 

[Tidahapah]

Nico,
Know the boat very well. Used to cruise with previous owners when we used Laguna Quays (north of Mackay) as a base. I would be putting the stabilisers back on if you are going to do any off shore cruising.
Great boat with some great history.
Cheers
Benn

 

[Peter B]

Hi Benn, good to see you're still looking in...