New BayCruiser 23

[David Hall]

Two BC23s were being built at the same time - this should make the build more efficient! There's book of photos and work instructions showing the guys how to put them together - so (hopefully) the same mistake is not made on both boats


I guess one of them is my new BC23! How was it looking? We will be visiting next week to check on progress! We sold our Coaster Appuskidu a few weeks ago and will be probably keeping the new boat at Rutland Water and sailing there, the Orwell and the south coast. No name for her as yet!
Jonathan & Sabrina

Hi Jonathan
The other BC23 may well be mine!!
Take a couple of photos if you get a chance. I have chosen dark blue hull with copper coat.
David

[JGBaynton]

Hi David,
Will do, my camera is charged ready to go! Where are you based and when do you anticipate yours will be ready for collection?
I was originally aiming for March when I retire but now it looks like it will be ready a lot sooner! See what Matt has to say on Thursday.
All the Best ,
Jonathan

[Andy Dingle]

After Rod's visit to my boat today I was minded to put up pictures of how I've installed my 'instrument panel'.
As I think I said before it consists of little more than a flat screen multi-way tv bracket bolted with wing nuts to a bracket screwed inside the bulkhead, next to the distribution panel so the 'panel' can swing around into the cockpit - it was a little unstable, so I fixed little legs onto it that supports it's weight and stabilises it.
The tv bracket (£6 off ebay) has fairly substantial bolts that are quite solid.

Hope this is maybe of use ..

Regards


Andy and Equinox

[David Hall]

Hi David,
Will do, my camera is charged ready to go! Where are you based and when do you anticipate yours will be ready for collection?
I was originally aiming for March when I retire but now it looks like it will be ready a lot sooner! See what Matt has to say on Thursday.
All the Best ,
Jonathan

Thanks Jonathan,
Like you, I was originally aiming for March 2018, but agreed for the work to be done now and for the yacht to be stored until the Spring thus keeping the yard busy through the winter months.

I am based in Newcastle upon Tyne (if you scroll back through this thread, you will see some North v South "banter") and unfortunately, due to work commitments I am not able to travel down to see any part of the build. Very frustrating.....

So any and every picture would be treasured, thank you.

(I would only put a small selection on the forum, and you could email me any others direct. I think if you click my name you should see my email address)

Best wishes

David

[Andy Dingle]

Another thing that occurred to me yesterday when 'ambling' about in hardly any wind but a beautiful crisp autumn day, was that I hadn't thought to mention another small, but useful mod I have fitted on my BC23 - a cunningham on the main.

There is a small cringle in the main luff just a few inches above the gooseneck, which is not easily seen if you have a sail bag fitted, where I fitted a small block in the same way as the main reefing blocks are fitted.
I put a line secured from the kicker block fitting (on the tabernacle) up through this block and back down through another block on the tabernacle and back through the coach roof tidies back to a coachroof cleat to lock it off.

It gives a really useful and easy sail adjustment by really tensioning up the main and being able to adjust the draft/flatten off according to windstrength.

Luff tension can't really be adjusted by using the main halyard as the head is tight up against the masthead block and a cunningham gives far better control anyway.

Hope this is useful to the new BC23 owners.


Andy and Equinox

[markbatey]

Talking of bits of string, I think I'm going to tweak the reefing arrangements on Juno (now renamed after party/ceremony which involved lots of appeasing the gods of sea and wind with copious libations).

Matt had her set up with the first reef as double line and the second single line, mainly to demonstrate the difference to potential customers. Now there's a sprayhood it's not so easy to reach forward to pull the luff down, so I'm going to try single line reefing on both. It'll involve eye-splicing 12-strand polyester which could be fun, or I might cop out and get my local shop to do it.

Then there's bringing all the lines back to the cockpit - the organisers seem to be full already, but I guess I could swap around spinnaker halyard and the second reef - can't really think of circumstances when I would need both at the same time...

Plus I have a question about tiller pilots, but maybe this thread is getting a bit long?

Mark

[Andy Dingle]

Mark. I'd really urge you against single line reefing..  I had it at first and it just didn't work for me, the lines are too long with too many blocks and too much friction. Was a total nightmare!

Do you recall how I have mine?
It's a very simple and very efficient system. The luff line goes up from the boom gooseneck where it's tied off, through the block in the luff and back down via a block on the tabernacle, back through the 'organisers' and into the cockpit via a clutch or cleat.
The leach line is fixed at one end on the boom, up to the leach cringle, back down through a metal ring (which forms part of the boom fitting and is actually part of the original set up - I expect yours is the same) then locks off on a jammer cleat on the side of the boom.

Each reef - first and second, is exactly the same principle with the luff lines either side of the cockpit so even I don't get confused - even if I do use the same coloured line! The leach lines lay one above the other along the boom with the clew outhall.

To reef, I take up the topping lift, furl in the jib - which minimises the bow blowing off, I find that the fully battened main still has power despite being scandalised by dropping the main halyard, she still wants to keep sailing, so is essential to keep head up into the wind. (Purists don't read this bit), don't be shy to use the engine in a sea or strong wind to hold her head on, makes life so much easier!
Lower the main halyard, pull down the luff block to the boom and lock it off on a clutch or cleat, pull down the leach and lock it off on the boom, hoist and tension the main. Unfurl the jib and off you go.
No need to go forward and is a very simple and easy operation.

The deck organisers can be stacked one on top of t'other, I have two on each side to give more capacity.

If you want more info, please email me or give me a ring ..  or maybe we need to chat about all this over a newky broon..!

I'll do a post on how my tiller pilot is set up - It's truly brilliant even if I do say myself!
I'll get some pics this week as I'm out sailing..  (my design is copyrighted and the cost to use it is an all expenses paid trip to Whitley Bay!).

Regards

Andy and Equinox

[markbatey]

Andy - I'd forgotten the details of yours, that sounds like a sensible solution. I'll try converting the existing double line first reef and bring the luff line back to the cockpit and see how I get on.

I didn't know double decker organisers existed, that could be a good plan. Then I'll be looking for things to fill them up with. Flag halyard perhaps? Semi-automatic day shapes raiser? Endless possibilities.

M

[Andy Dingle]

Mark.

My organisers are just two individual ones bolted/screwed to the coach roof one on top of the other.
I was already full up from the start with two halyards, two reefs, topping lift, centreboard up haul, lazy jacks, cunningham, kicker, a spare 'just in case' halyard for the asymmetric I never fitted, a hoist to lift a fake sun over the yard arm.. the list goes on.. you'll easy fill 'em and it's one of the things I forgot to mention to those asking about 'things to have' on their new boats.

I'm also toying with an idea I've had for pulling the mainsail head down into the sail bag when lowering the main so you don't have to go forward to handle it at all, the second reefing block works really well to do this but only so far.
I noticed that in the persistent strong winds I always end up in, even when lowered the head of the main lifts and blows out of the top of the bag. I thought of perhaps a thin line from the mainsail head down to the tabernacle and back through the organisers (another hole filled!) to the cockpit would pull it down tight then lock it off until you get back to the safety of your pontoon or wherever, when you can zip it all up...  something like that, but I'll have to think it through so it doesn't snaffle anything else up..

I'll get a pic next time I'm up..

Cheers

Andy

[Rob Johnstone]

Re Tiller Pilots and Single line reefing.

Vagabond was fitted with both.

The tiller pilot was a Davis Tiller Tamer ;
https://marinestore.co.uk/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=cu83205&Category_Code=tiller_locks&Store_Code=mrst&gclid=Cj0KCQiAgNrQBRC0ARIsAE-m-1yHd_Av57-zNVa7uUivN1D4KkiGnmbvBkU4vb5Bs12-03vDYp6hMwMaAuCbEALw_wcB

A line with a 6 inch double loop of quarter inch bungy was fixed to a D ring on one side of the cockpit (about level with the outboard) across to the middle of the boat, threaded through the tiller tamer and across to a mirror image D ring on the other side of the boat where it was fastened with another double loop of bungy. I used karibiners (I had two lying around) to give me the ability to release the thing quickly if needed. The friction through the tiller tamer could be controlled by means of the know on top of it. I usually had it such that it would hold still undernormal circumstances but a good yank would jerk it across a bit. The bungees gave you some ability to steer in harbour and took some of the knocks out when in a following sea. Under calmish conditions it would hold course for several minutes - enough to have a pee and even (in one calm day) put the kettle on!

The single line reefing I found fine. OK it had yards of string that fell down around you and quite a bit of friction - but, provided you anticipated the friction and pulled the string loose, it was very effective.  The routine was _ work out which bit of string to use (like Andy mine were both the same colour and not labelled - topping lift on - head to wind (I never found I had to fiddle with the jib), main halliard down, pull in the strings. Then halliard and topping lift. My reefing lines ran outside the boom bag, so could be assisted by grabbing them and pulling them too.
Interesting that Andy has a Cunningham fitted. I overcame that problem by getting Matt to make the mast longer - he tells me they all are now, but I'm not convinced.

[markbatey]

Update on string...

I've gone for a temporary halfway house, leaving the second reef as single line, but putting a longer luff pennant on the first reef so that it can be led back to the cockpit.

I can't find a supplier for that nice buff coloured 12 strand 6mm prestretched polyester that the yard use - it could be Marlow but they don't seem to do buff colour.

M

[Graham W]

I can't find a supplier for that nice buff coloured 12 strand 6mm prestretched polyester that the yard use - it could be Marlow but they don't seem to do buff colour.

Try this lot https://shop.classicmarine.co.uk/rope/synthetic-rope.html

[Andy Dingle]

'Double decker'  BC23 coach roof organiser ...

[Andy Dingle]

Nothing really about BC23's at all! Really just to share this pic with you all...

An atmospheric picture of the Grimsby dock hydraulic tower taken yesterday from out in the Humber Estuary. I can't even say I was sailing my BC23, as the wind was touching sixes (yet again! Is this the windiest year on record?) we took out my friends Nicholson 31!
Felt so good to have 7 tons of lead under my rather ample backside..

Not only an excellent landmark/navigation aid to both ships and air, this tower is hugely interesting if anyone is interested in industrial architecture ..

http://www.engineering-timelines.com/scripts/engineeringItem.asp?id=79



 

[David Hall]

Amazing transformation
from this