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Batteries l Sealine SC35 l Helsinki Boat Show
MARCH 2014
Essential guide to TIDES PRACTICAL
BOAT TEST
Viking 24
OwnerA�ordable practical boating
Motorboat Sealine SC35
October 2013
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Motorboat OwnerDigital Marine Media LtdDragon Enterprise CentreStephenson RoadLeigh on Sea,Essex SS9 5LY
General Enquiries
01268 922991
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Editor, Neale Byart01268 922992 [email protected]
Associate Editor, Claire Frew01268 [email protected]
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Welcome to the March issue. I have to say that I have been a little self-indulgent this month with our My Boat feature. We have a few great stories lined up for upcoming issues, but it dawned on me that I had a bit of a story to tell myself. I owned my first boat for over a decade, and in that time it was propelled by petrol, LPG, and finally diesel. It was only 25 feet long but I took it from our Essex base all the
way to the Channel Islands, not once, but twice. I upgraded, reupholstered, added and replaced on a continuous basis throughout my ownership. Yes I spent far more on it than I should have done, but even so it was still relatively cheap boating and a great example of how you don’t need a big, new or expensive boat to go cruising. With the right weather and a bit of planning almost anything is possible. If you fancy taking
your boat on an adventurous trip this year, how does Normandy sound? This June marks the 70th year since the D-Day landings on this coastline by allied troops, and Motorboat Owner are planning a cruise in company to mark the occasion. We’ll visit Cherbourg, Dives sur Mer, Caen, Carentan and St Vaast all key ports during June 1944 and you can join us. More information and a booking form can be found on page 68. Elsewhere in the mag we look at the Sealine SC35. This boat is about as close as you can get to a modern classic in my opinion. It’s style may be a bit Marmite, but it sold in huge numbers and I’m sure will continue to do so under new ownership and with the S380 moniker. Finally I’d like to welcome Sika on board as sponsors to our practical pages. When it comes to practical jobs, there aren’t many that don’t require something sealed, bedded or bonded, and Sika is a name, like Hoover, that has become synonymous withtheir speciality.From the Editor
Bordeux Harbour, Guernsey. Tides are an important part of cruising in the British Isles.See our essential guide on page 12
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 3 2 March 2014
CONTENTS
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 5
REGULARSNEWS page 6INBOX page 10CUTTING EDGE page 22
Q&A page 34TESTED page 62
MARCH 2014
page 24 My BoatBayliner 2450
page 50Helsinki Boat Show
page 72Cruise in Company
21
CHATHAM Destination Guide
p52
PRACTICAL Everything you need to know about Tides
Batteries
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd
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Using the nearest tidal reference, Holliwell Point,
we calculate the time and height of high water, plus
the height of low water on our chosen day. Holliwell
Point is a secondary port
Using the standard port’s tidal graph, in this case
Walton on the Naze, we add the height of low and high
water at Holliwell Point to the graph, and join them
with a straight line
On the graph there is a red and blue line. The red line is
used for spring tides and the blue for neaps. Make
sure you use the right one or go in between if you are
midway on the tide cycle
We know we need 4.3m amount of tide to cross
safely, so find that point on your diagonal tide line
We then add the time of high water at Holliwell Point
in the HW box along the bottom of the graph, and
also fill in the hours either side
Then take a line horizontally across from that point on
the tide line to your red or blue tide curve line
Where your line meets the curve, take another line
vertically down to the time band along the bottom
This provides the earliest time that we can cross Buxey
Sand on the day, 11:37. 11:17 is the middle of the box and
the small increments above are 10 minutes
To complete the time window, continue across to the other side of the tidal
graph and down to the time bar to see that the latest time
we can cross will be 14:47
4
12 March 2014
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ESSENTIAL GUIDE
Tides e all know that tides come in
and go out, known as the flood
and ebb tide, but understanding
why and how tides work is
important to help us navigate
safely, and ensure that we arrive
in tide constrained ports at a time
when there is enough water for
us to enter. To the layman tides
can seem unpredictable, but
they are in fact very reliable, and
the time and height of each high
and low water can be determined
with a good degree of accuracy
decades, or even hundreds of
years in advance.
What are tides?It is commonly known that the moon
causes tides, but it is not so well
understood why. It all comes down to
gravitational pull. The moon and, to
a lesser extent, the sun both exert a
gravitational pull on the earth’s surface.
This pull causes the water to literally bulge
as it tries to move towards the source of
the pull. When the sun and the moon are
in alignment, or on opposite sides of the
earth, this is a new or full moon scenario,
the gravitational pull is the greatest and
this creates an even bigger bulge, known
as spring tides. This is when the high
water is at its highest and the low water
is at its lowest. When the moon and sun The tidal cycle between springs and neaps and
back again takes 28 days as the moon orbits the
earth
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DAY 1
DAY 7
DAY 14
DAY 21
NEAPTIDE
SPRINGTIDE
NEAPTIDE
SPRINGTIDE
SUN
SUN
SUN
SUN
NEW MOON
FULL MOON
HALF MOON
HALF MOON
PRACTICAL
p64
CLASSIC CRUISER GUIDESealine SC35
p38
p12
BOAT TEST74 Viking 24
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08452 177574 [email protected]
If you have news from your region, email us [email protected]
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 7 6 March 2014
Jobs boostat Fairline
Rib 4 MacmillanA group of boating enthusiasts and volunteers have set about restoring a RIB in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support. The RIB was kindly donated to the project and it’s fair to say it was in a bit of sorry state. It is a 2005 military Avon Searider SR5.4 with a MK2 fisheries console and a low A frame. The project is being headed up by Alex Hutchings, he told to us “we are doing this project on 100% donations. We hope to raise enough money to pay for a Macmillan nurse for a year.” The boat was stripped down with work carried out on all areas, including repairs to the hull and steering console. The boat did not have an engine but through donations it has now been fitted with an overhauled Yamaha 90hp 2 stroke outboard. Henshaw Inflatables donated and fitted a set of black tubes, which have transformed the boat. Many other companies have come forward to support the project, including Icom who provided an IC-M323 fixed VHF set and Spinlock donated a set of lifejackets. When
we spoke with Alex on the 9th of February the console had been refitted and he and the team were working on the wiring. He said “It’s very close to completion”. This is one of many projects that Alex has co-ordinated, raising money for Macmillan, a charity which is very close to his heart. Last year 36 RIBs circumnavigated the Isle of Wight raising £8,500. The restored RIB will be unveiled to the public at a launch party on the 9th of March at Camber Quay in Portsmouth. Members of the public are invited to come along and see the boat and enjoy a free hog roast. To make a donation visit the website:www.justgiving.com/rib4macmillan.You can also follow the progress via Facebook page :www.facebook.com/pages/Rib-4-Macmillan/592579350800614
According to the Environment Agency, England has faced the wettest start to the year since 1766, “the ground is already saturated, further rainfall is increasing flood risk across the country, especially in the south”. River levels have risen along the River Thames, the Severn, Great Ouse, the Cam and the Dorset Stour as well as across most of the south west, central southern and south east England. It has caused headache and heartache for those living close by. The Environment Agency say its “teams will continue to be out in force across England, deploying demountable defences, repairing damaged coastal defences, deploying sandbags along riverbanks, clearing river blockages, monitoring water levels and sending out flood warnings”. The photos above show the extent of the flooding at Dorchester-on-Thames, as pictured from the Whittenham Clumps. *Be safe when you are checking your boat over the next few weeks and wear a lifejacket.
Flooding chaos
Fairline
Spot the difference? Recent flooding in Dorchester-on-Thames
DIARY DATES
West Midlands Boat Jumble16th February
Essex Boat Jumble23rd February
Cardiff Boat Jumble2nd March
Kent Boat Jumble9th March
Northern Boat Jumble16th March
East Coast Boat Weekend26th & 27th April
Beaulieu Boat Jumble 27th April
Horning Boat Show3rd May
Beale Park Boat & Outdoor Show
6th, 7th & 8th June
Things are looking up for UK boat manufacturer Fairline. After successful sales at the London Boat Show, the company is looking to take on up to 38 new boat building staff across their factories to cope with the high demand. The good news comes after a number of years of job cuts at the Oundle based builder, and the company is now looking to approach previous employees. Fairline’s new 48ft range, including the Targa 48GT launched at London, are spearheading the recovery.
Ready for renovation, this military Avon Searider SR5.4 was donated to the team for the project. The current plan is to auction the boat when its finished.
Henshaw Inflatables replaced the tubes free of charge. Below, Alex and the team
K Y
oung
If you have news from your region, email us [email protected]
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 9 8 March 2014
Site scale back for Navitus BayAs a result of public consultation, changes have been made to the plans of the controversial wind farm site, Navitus Bay. The proposed site, located to the south west of the Needles, will now measure 155 km², compared to the proposed 175 km, with the number of turbines falling from 218 to 194. It will also be 3.8km further away from the coastline. If the development gets consent it’s claimed that the wind farm will provide power for approximately 710,000 homes in the region.
Incident in Portsmouth harbour damages boatsIn the recent high winds there is understood to have been an incident in Portsmouth Harbour involving the MV Mont St Michel, a Brittany Ferry. As a result of this incident we have been told that some pontoons at HMS Excellent (on Whale Island) were damaged. We have also heard a report that one boat on these moorings sank due to damage sustained. Despite attempts to secure the pontoons in the severe conditions, some broke loose and drifted north into Fountain Lake where they caused further damage to at least one moored boat. The owner of the boat told us that the pontoons had scraped along the hull and stern causing damage to the fibreglass.
Sealine unveiled its new and much awaited F380 at the January Boot Dusseldorf Boat Show. The 38ft flybridge offers two separate cabins and toilet compartments with a convertible double in the saloon. Sealine’s trademark 360 degree windows and roof skylights are just a few of the features of this boat. The model uses the proven SC35/S380 hull and will be powered by sterndrive diesels, Volvo Penta D4 260hp’s or D4 300hp plus a D6 option producing 33 knots. All three engine configurations are offered with or without joy stick control. The boat is expected to be priced in the region of £250,000 inc VAT. The F380 should arrive in the UK soon.
Sealine F380 launched
New marina in BelfastMDL Marinas is working with the Belfast Harbour Commisioners on a potential new marina project in Belfast’s newly developed Titanic Quarter. The Port of Belfast has undergone a major re-development, including the regeneration of parts of the historic Harland and Wolff shipyard. The marina will be in one of the central basins and surrounded by residential and hotel developments. A similar project was completed by MDL Marinas at Chatham Maritime (see our Chatham destination guide on page 52). Discussions are ongoing but various layouts have been put forward with plans including a dry stack facility.
Navitus Bay will now be 3.8km from the coast
@INBOX email: [email protected]
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 1110 March 2014
STAR LETTER
Fairline Phantom 43ACI’ve just looked at the article on the Turbo 36 (November issue) and my Fairline Phantom 43AC Phantasy features in the ‘Family’ section. They were manufactured in 1997 and 1998. There were 16 produced, Phantasy is number 14, the last of the blue hulls and was the first
one of three made in 1998. Of the two white hulls, one is in Germany and one sank. The first one was the training boat for Peters at Chichester and did 3000 hours before being re-engined and sold. It is now called Zylpha and is in Haslar Marina and is up for sale. The others currently up for sale are Dolphin in Dartmouth, The Governor in Brixham and one in Scotland. Graham DubberClaire replies: Thank you for writing in, and for some great research. The 43AC is an incredibly spacious boat, and I feel it deserves to be the subject of a future Classic Cruisers feature.
In response to the January Q&A ‘Toilet trouble’, I was having the same problem with my Jabsco toilets. The only fix that works is to undo the 6 screws that hold the pump assembly, lift the plunger out (make sure you have pumped all the water out first), then lubricate the bore and plunger with silicone grease, reassemble making sure you don’t cross thread the screws. The way to do this is to turn each screw anti-clockwise until you feel the start of the thread then screw down, be careful to screw down evenly. It works a treat and lasts all season.Ian ShipmanThe Editor replies: Thank you for the tip Ian. We have a squeaky toilet on our Sealine at the moment so I’ll give this a try. If anyone else has any useful tips to pass on, please feel free to drop us an email.
Toilet troubleWe replaced our much loved Sealine 410 in October last year with a much newer S42. We spent an age looking over the boat, it had all pristine upholstery, loads of cockpit seating, nice teak decking etc, etc. The only thing we hadn’t noticed during our viewing were the nasty, plastic tables. We decided to replace them with the Marine Teak tables, as featured in your February issue. We ordered two Nautic Star Slides and what a transformation. We are delighted with them. Thanks to Luke Smith (Marine Teak) for his help, advice and excellent service. This is one of the best marine products I have seen in years.Steve DarbyshireThe Editor replies: The tables look stunning and your boat looks immaculate.
Marine Teak tables
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 1312 March 2014
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ESSENTIAL GUIDE
Tides e all know that tides come in and go out, known as the flood and ebb tide, but understanding why and how tides work is important to help us navigate safely, and ensure that we arrive in tide constrained ports at a time when there is enough water for us to enter. To the layman tides can seem unpredictable, butthey are in fact very reliable, and the time and height of each high and low water can be determined with a good degree of accuracy decades, or even hundreds of years in advance.
What are tides?It is commonly known that the moon causes tides, but it is not so well understood why. It all comes down to gravitational pull. The moon and, to a lesser extent, the sun both exert a gravitational pull on the earth’s surface. This pull causes the water to literally bulge as it tries to move towards the source of the pull. When the sun and the moon are in alignment, or on opposite sides of the earth, this is a new or full moon scenario, the gravitational pull is the greatest and this creates an even bigger bulge, known as spring tides. This is when the high water is at its highest and the low water is at its lowest. When the moon and sun
The tidal cycle between springs and neaps and back again takes 28 days as the moon orbits the earth
are 90° apart, the bulge is at its smallest creating neap tides, those that are not as high or low as spring tides. This is because the effects of the sun and moon’s pull are working against each other thus reducing the strength of the moon’s gravitational pull. As the moon moves between these positions, the tides become bigger or smaller depending on whether it is moving towards a spring or neap tide position. A full cycle of the moon around the earth takes roughly 28 days, with two spring tides and two neap tides during this period. The time between each spring tide is roughly 14 days and the same between each neap tide. The time between a spring tide and a neap tide, or vice versa is 7 days. Because the moon’s distance from the earth is not constant, the height of the tides change, which is why heights vary even between spring tides or between neap tides. Twice a year, when the sun and the moon are in closest alignment, we experience the biggest tides. This happens around the equinox and the tides are referred to as equinoctial tides. The actual height of a particular tide will vary on the earth’s surface depending on the area’s geography and bathymetry. As water moves into an area, it can heap up higher in areas where it is funnelled and restricted, than areas where it can flow freely. This is why we get areas, like the bay of Saint Malo where tides can be as large as 14 metres, when just a short distance away on the Cornish coast the same tide may only reach five or six
metres. The Bay of Fundy in Canada has the world’s largest tides of up to 16 metres. The difference in depth between high and low water is called the tidal range and, because the high and low water during spring tides are more extreme, the range is greater than during neap tide periods. While tidal predications are reasonably accurate, there are other influences on them that mean we should treat tidal predication with caution. The weather and barometric pressure is a common cause of tidal differences between prediction andactual. For every 1mb above or below the standard pressure of 1013mb, the tide will be 1cm higher or lower than predicted. High pressure results in lower tides, and low pressure in higher. For this reason whenever you are working out tides always remember that it is not an exact science and err on the side of caution when calculating times and depths.
Spring tides have the greatest range with higher high water and lower low water. Chart datum is usually below mean high water springs
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DAY 1
DAY 7
DAY 14
DAY 21
NEAPTIDE
SPRINGTIDE
NEAPTIDE
SPRINGTIDE
SUN
SUN
SUN
SUN
NEW MOON
FULL MOON
HALF MOON
HALF MOON
CHART DATUM
LOW WATER SPRINGS
LOW WATERNEAPS
HIGH WATERNEAPS
HIGH WATER SPRINGS
SPRI
NG
S RA
NG
E
NEA
PS R
AN
GE
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 1514 March 2014
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Once you have planned your route, you will know which diamonds are relevant to your passage
The chart will also have printed on it, a table of tidal diamond information
The first numbers represent stream direction in degrees true. The other numbers arethe speed of the stream in knots, with the smaller one representing neaps, and the larger number, springs
The numbers relate to tide times at a particular port, which will be stated. The middle row represents high water and the lines either side the hours before and after
Find your particular diamond and you will see the direction and strength of the tide for each hour
You can then work out at what time the tide becomes favourable or unfavourable, in our case we are looking for a north going tide
1
Tidal StreamsFor tides to move up and down it needs to flow in and out. This flow is happening almost constantly in every area that is affected by tides apart from two short periods each day when the tide becomes slack. When embarking on a passage, knowing what direction the tide is flowing, and working with it, can save time and money. If you take a typical tidal flow at say 1.5 knots and work your passage so that you have a favourable tide, ie one that is going in the same direction as you, you will actually cover three extra nautical miles over the ground every hour rather than if you were punching into it. In a fast motorboat the time saving might be negligible, but if you were in a six-knot displacement boat you could literally shave hours off a journey. Even in a fastboat, the fuel savings are worth thinkingabout. A 20 knot motorboat, achievingone nautical mile per gallon, setting off
on an 80nm passage along the English Channel would save around £80 in fuel costs at today’s rates if they were to carry a two knot tide, rather than punch it. Modern electronics will often provide you with tidal flow information, but for those without this function, or if you just want to keep your hand in with traditional navigational methods, there are two ways of working out tidal direction and speed.
The tidal diamondIf you look on a paper chart you will see small tidal diamonds.
Tidal stream atlas
The tide flows up to 4 knots in Poole entrance
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Tidal diamonds are ok for spot tides, but if you want a bigger overall picture you need to look at a tidal stream atlas
This will show the direction and strength of the tide in relation to a standard port, often, but not always, Dover
Using a pencil, add the time of high water into the HW box, or page, of the tidal stream atlas
Then add the hours either side for an instant overview of what the tide will be doing for a 12-hour period in the sea area we are going to be cruising
Look up the tide of the standard port for the day in question, in this case a spring tide just after midday
The strength figures next to the directional arrows represent speed in knots with the lower number relating to neap tides and the higher one springs
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Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 1716 March 2014
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Tidal heights are always referred to as a height above chart datum, which is the lowest that tides are predicted to be under normal meteorological conditions. Depths printed on charts are the depth at chart datum. Low water is often higher than chart datum, which means that even if the chart indicates a depth of 0m, you may find water there even at low water. Occasionally low water may be indicated as a minus figure. This means that there will actually be less water found than indicated on the chart at low water. The high water figure is added to whatever figure is printed on the chart to give you total depth at that spot at high water. If the area in question dries and the figure on the chart is underlined, simply deduct this from the high water figure for an actual depth at that spot at high water. This is a simple way to work out if you
Height of tide
can cross a shallow or drying area, but obviously only works exactly at high water. If you want to calculate a safe window, during which a passage across a drying or shallow area is possible, you need to carry out a tidal height calculation. Tidal height calculations are also useful for working out maximum and minimum depths when anchoring and for arrival and departure from drying harbours or anchorages.
The seals are basking now, but later we can cross here in complete safety. We just need to work out when
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Using the nearest tidal reference, Holliwell Point, we calculate the time and height of high water, plus the height of low water on our chosen day. Holliwell Point is a secondary port
Using the standard port’s tidal graph, in this case Walton on the Naze, we add the height of low and high water at Holliwell Point to the graph, and join them with a straight line
On the graph there is a red and blue line. The red line isused for spring tides and the blue for neaps. Make sure you use the right one or go in between if you are midway on the tide cycle
We know we need 4.3m amount of tide to cross safely, so find that point on your diagonal tide line
We then add the time of high water at Holliwell Point in the HW box along the bottom of the graph, and also fill in the hours either side
Then take a line horizontally across from that point on the tide line to your red or blue tide curve line
Where your line meets the curve, take another line vertically down to the time band along the bottom
This provides the earliest time that we can cross Buxey Sand on the day, 11:37. 11:17 is the middle of the box and the small increments above are 10 minutes
To complete the time window, continue across to the other side of the tidal graph and down to the time bar to see that the latest time we can cross will be 14:47
321
We are looking to cross this sandbank as a shortcut between the River crouch and the Blackwater estuary
We can see that the shallowest part of the sandbank where we are planning to cross actually dries to 2.3 metres
That means we need a height of tide of 2.3m just to cover the sand bank. Add to this the one metre that our boat draws, plus another metre as a safety margin
4
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 1918 March 2014
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ONE TWELFTH
ONE TWELFTH
THREE TWELFTHS
THREE TWELFTHS
TWO TWELFTHS
TWO TWELFTHS
FALLINGTIDE
1
2
3
4
5
6
LOWWATER
HIGHWATER
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1H
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RSbe
fore
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HW
& L
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RISINGTIDE
Rule of TwelfthsThere is another way of calculating a rough height of tide, called the rule of twelfths. It is not as accurate as the previous method but is very useful and perfectly adequate for most occasions, although it should not be used in areas where the tide does not produce a simple, straightforward and smooth oscillation on the tidal graph.The rule of twelfths goes like this: Take the range of the tide between high and low water and divide this figure by twelve. In the first hour before or after high or low water the tide will rise or fall by one twelfth. In the second hour before or after high or low water the tide will rise or fall by two twelfths. Three hours before high or low water, the tide will rise or fall by three twelfths. So, if high tide is 4m at midday and low tide is 1m, we can see that the tide has a three metre range. Each twelfth therefore will be 0.25m. This means that at 11:00 or 13:00 the height of tide will be 3.75m, at 10:00 or 14:00 the tide will be 3.25m, at 09:00 or 15:00 the tide will be 2.5m, at 08:00 or 16:00 the tide will be 1.75m, at 07:00 and 17:00the tide will be1.25m and finallyat low water, around 06:00 and 18:00, the tide will be 1.0m.
The standard port forthe Beaulieu River is Portsmouth
Bea
ulieu Rive
r pre
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ge
Finding tidal information for many of the larger ports around our coastline is usually just a case of looking them up in an almanac, or other source of tidal information. But what if, like in our example previously, we need to find the exact time and height of the tide somewhere that doesn’t have its own tide table. The answer is to carry out a secondary port calculation. An almanac lists secondary ports under one of the larger harbours nearby. In our example we want to cross a sandbank near to Burnham on Crouch and listed under Burnham’s secondary ports is Holliwell Point, which is perfect as our sandbank is literally within a couple of miles of this point.
Secondary ports 9
As the tide on the day is above 4.2 we’ll use the +1.1m figure but if Walton’s HW on the day had been 3.8m, we would have added 1.0m as it would be exactly between 3.4m and 4.2m
So we can see that on the 21st of March, HW at the secondary port of Holliwell Point, and at our sand bank nearby, will be at 13:17, and the height will be 5.6m
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Find your secondary port in the almanac and then look to see which standard port you need to use. In this case it is Walton-on-the-Naze
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Find the time and height of high and low water at the standard port on the day in question, in this case the 21st March
With this information noted we can go back to the page where our secondary port information for Holliwell Point is, and note the differences
The almanac tells us that high water at Holliwell Point will be between 34 and 37 minutes after HW at Walton and the depth will be 0.9m and 1.1m more
2
Which of the previous figures to use depends on the time and height of HW at Walton. There is little difference in this example, but it can be significant
If HW falls at 12:00 or 00:00 or LW falls at 16:00 or 18:00 use the figures directly below to adjust the time. The same applies to the height of high or low water
On the 21st of March HW Walton is at 12:43. As the difference is so small, and we are only shortly after midday we can safely assume a HW at Holliwell Point of Walton +34 min
20 March 2014
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Although the tide can provide us with a useful helping hand when passage making, there are some other considerations to take into account. If the wind and tide are going in the same direction this helps to flatten the sea and make for a more comfortable cruise. If the wind and tide are in opposite directions, known as wind against tide, this can cause the sea to heap up and create larger waves than the wind strength alone would suggest. The stronger the tide and wind, the greater the effect, so if planning a trip through somewhere like the Alderney Race, you should aim for slack water, or even choose to punch the tide, rather than face wind against tide conditions, which can be quite intense. On the other hand go through there with wind and tide together, even on spring tides, and you could experience flat seas and an additional nine knots over the ground. The other effect the tide can have on sea conditions is known as overfalls. This is where the tide hits an obstruction, usually an underwater ridge or shallow area, and the restriction forces the water upwards where it creates confused conditions on the surface. Many harbours have bars at the entrance that produce a similar effect. Overfalls are usually well known, are very predictable and are even shown on charts. Local knowledge will usually provide the best information in how to avoid them or alternately just give these areas a wide berth.
Although most of the coast of Britain gets two high waters and two low waters per day, or more like every 25 hours due to the Earth and moon’s orbits, there are some places such as Poole, Portland and Southampton with quite specific tidal anomalies. These can take the form of a double high water where, after the first high water the tide drops briefly before coming back up again, or double low waters where the opposite happens. This is down to the complicated geography and bathymetry of these parts of our coastline. You can see this for yourself if you look at the tide graphs for these areas. Because of the double high water, tidal heights for Poole and other ports in the area are calculated using a graph based on low water. The Solent also experiences a young flood stand whereby a couple of hours after low water the flood tide slackens off for a couple of hours before rising again up to high tide. This means that the flood tide takes up more than its fair share of the 12 hour cycle, which has the effect that the ebb tide only flows for about four hours and therefore flows at a far greater rate than the flood tide.
Tidal anomalies
The tide’s effect on sea conditions
Wind and tide in the same direction will give flatter seas than when they oppose each other
The HX300E - the fi rst Marine VHF Handheld to offer the ability to
charge via a USB port
Due to the widespread popularity of the USB charging system, fi nding the correct charger for your handheld has never been easier.
Not only that, the HX300E is packed with masses of features, is lightweight, compact and waterproof with a three year warranty. If accidentally dropped overboard, it will fl oat face up and a red fl ashing light will activate on contact with the water, even If the unit is switched off.
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Email us at [email protected] or call us on +44 (0)1962 866667
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CUTTING the latest boating gear and technology
Motorboat Owner 23 22 March 2014
Suzuki OutboardsSuzuki has launched three new outboards over the last few weeks. First up is a long shaft version of their lightweight 2.5hp that even with the extra shaft length still weighs in at just 14kg. Next are two more lightweight contenders, the new DF25A and DF30A. Weighing in at 62kg, the new three cylinder, 490cc engines offer the best power to weight ratio in their class. They also promise good fuel efficiency,easy manual starting and batteryless fuel injection.Prices: TBAwww.suzuki-marine.co.uk
Oceanair CompanionwayIf you have a curved glass or Perspex companionway door, you might be glad to hear that there is finally a blackout blind/fly screen designed specifically for this application. Oceanair’s new companionway is custom made for each door and has been specifically designed for easy retrofitting. The companionway is installed flush to the floor to eliminate any trip hazard and is available in a range of colour options.Price from: £300 www.oceanair.co.uk
Humminbird ION & ONIXHumminbird, a name usually more associated with fish finders, has entered the large screen multi function display market with a range of 8.4, 10.4 and 12.1 inch instruments. There are six models across the range with two ION and four ONIX variations. All models have both touchscreen and button control, and all support Navionics and C-Map cartography, as well as Humminbird’s own charts. Price: from £1739.99 www.humminbird.com
Eberspacher EasystartBoat owners with Eberspacher heaters will now be able to control the heating via their smartphone. The Easystart Call is a small interface tat sites behind the scenes. This combines with a free app that allows the owner to operate the heater from literally anywhere in the world. If you don’t have a smartphone, the Easystart Call can also work with standard mobiles and landlines.Price: £363.10 www.eberspacher.com
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MarincoInvertersMarinco, a company you may be familiar with due to their range of quality shore power fittings, has launched a range of true sine wave invertors with the option of a wired remote control panel. Ten versions are available from 700W up to 1400w, for both 12 and 24 volt systems and the pure sine wave makes them perfect for running sensitive equipment.Price: from £356www.marinco.com
Simrad NSSNavico, the company behind the Simrad brand, has revamped and relaunched the NSS series of multifunction displays. The NSS EVO2 offers a mix of touchscreen and button control and can link to all Navico modules including their 3G and 4G radar. NSS EVO2 is available in 7, 9, 12 and 16 inch versions. Price: from £1285www.navico.com
SeaSmart If your toilet stinks when you flush it after a period of inactivity, SeaSmart is a product that should help. Each time the toilet is flushed, SeaSmart inject a small amount of eco friendly disinfectant into the flushing water right where it is needed, at the seacock. It is clever enough
to even adjust the dosage depending upon usage.Price: £128 www.seasmartmarine.co.uk
BoostTurbine 2000With so many rechargeable USB powered gadgets around it is not uncommon to get caught short of power occasioally. The Eton BoostTurbine 2000 is a backup battery that will charge a smartphone, tablet or any other portable device. It also has a hand crank to allow you to top it up again once depleted.Price: £49.95 www.amazon.co.uk
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Motorboat Owner 25 24 March 2014
I have had a love of boats since I was around seven years old when my family bought an Avon RIB and stuck
a Seagull outboard on the back. I can still remember us getting stuck on a sandy beach while trying to recover it using an MG Midget. We then progressed to what seemed at the time like an enormous boat but was in fact a Mayland 14. The MG was replaced by an old Land Rover, an altogether more practical tow car, and the boat was towed all over the place for a
year or so before boats disappeared from my life. The love of them never left me though, and even as a teenager I would buy boating magazines and drool over the latest lump of fibreglass. Boating on any level is not particularly cheap, so it wasn’t until I was in my early 30’s that I found myself financially in a position to even think about fulfilling my dream. What I wanted was a boat big enough to spend time aboard. It needed to sleep four, as I was married with two kids, it
needed a separate toilet compartment and a galley. I also hankered after towing it places, perhaps to recapture those trips in the Mayland, so it needed to be within legal towing limits. The final, and most important criteria, was that it had to be within my budget of just £10k. I started looking at Fairline Holiday and Weekend boats, gazed lovingly at some small Sealine models that were out of budget, discovered the likes of Picton Fiesta and Mardis Gras models and briefly
considered some cuddy cabin boats such as Sunbird and Invader. The turning point for me was seeing an ad for a Bayliner 2155 and thinking what a great, modern looking boat it was. It was actually slightly under budget too. While investigating further I realised that the 2155 had a bigger brother, the 2455, which actually fulfilled my criteria almost perfectly, albeit typically around 20% over budget. Then one day I saw an ad for a 1987 2450, exactly the same boat as the 2455,
“The boat was tired, the upholstery was shotand the V8 OMC petrol engine was showing signs of corrosion”
Neale Byart’s Bayliner Ciera 2450
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Motorboat Owner 27 26 March 2014
for just over my £10k budget. I was on the phone and down to the Hamble faster than I thought possible, especially when the broker told me the seller had reduced the price further that very morning, bringing it well under my budget. I’ll admit I was a little blind during my initial inspection. The boat was tired, the upholstery both inside and out was shot, the hood was in very poor condition and the V8 OMC petrol engine was showing signs of corrosion. I had enough wits about me to make an offer below even the new reduced price, to take into account some of the work that needed doing, and I was even sensible enough to make the offer subject to survey, which actually
threw up very little that I hadn’t already spotted. The sea trial was interesting when, coming into berth, the broker gave the boat a handful of reverse only to find the boat being propelled ever faster forward. This turned out to be the well known OMC shift cable adjustment issue, and one that would come back to bite me once or twice more before finally getting it fixed. It was 1999, I was £7.5K out of pocket but I was now the very proud owner of my own motorboat, Lady D. All those years of waiting hadn’t been completely wasted, as I had completed both the Day Skipper and Yachtmaster theory courses, and had undertaken a Day Skipper practical
course. This meant that I felt pretty confident in taking my newly purchased boat from the Hamble, back to its new home berth in Leigh on Sea, Essex. Consideration of potential mechanical problems on a 24ft single engine boat
that was about to embark on a 150nm sea passage after some time of sitting on the hard, barely entered my head. I did stick an Evinrude 4hp on the bathing platform outboard mount as emergency propulsion should it be needed, and I had purchased some up-to-date charts, a set of coastal flares and borrowed the very latest, state of the art at that time, Magellan 3000XL handheld GPS. I had even press-ganged a friend as crew for the delivery trip. Someone must have been looking down on me during those three days as, despite having little access to weather information, we had perfect flat calm seas and zero mechanical problems. I can still remember how the trip was everything that I thought boating should be, wind in the hair, sunny warm weather, and a boat doing 25 knots all the way. Two minor incidents failed to spoil my enthusiasm. The first was when entering Brighton for our first overnight stop. As I carefully approached the berth I nudged the boat into reverse and, due to the same problem encountered on the sea trial, shot
forward and mounted the pontoon right underneath the marina office. I was met in the office with the comment “having a spot of bother are we sir”, much to my embarrassment. The next issue was a very early lesson in that you can’t always believe what you read in a pilot book or Almanac. Having entered Ramsgate on vapour for our second overnight stop, we moored on the fuel berth only to be told that, despite what the 1999 Almanac said, petrol was not available. Luckily a group of young lads came to the rescue lending us jerry cans and running us in their van more than once to the local filling station. Ten jerry cans later we were full and ready for the last part of the passage home and the next chapter in what turned out to be a 13-year relationship. The first few jobs I carried out were simply to turn around previous neglect. The engine was cleaned up and painted, the manifolds and risers were replaced, the bottom stripped right back to gelcoat using Dilunett, a horrible messy job that I vowed never to do again, and the
A seven year old future editor on board the family Mayland 14
The upholstery was shot, with tears, mould and evidence of water leaks
It was 1999 and I was the proud owner of a Bayliner......and a green Sierra.
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Motorboat Owner 29 28 March 2014
new bases were taken to a car trimmerand, using the old foam to save money, recovered in a much more modern white with blue piping vinyl. At this time I also added an electric anchor winch and had new camper covers made. I completelyredesigned the canopy framework to allow standing headroom at the helm. The results were very practical, although I will admit, looked a little shed-like. Other jobs undertaken at this stage were an upgrade to the boats domestic water supply, from a simple cold only manually pumped system, to a hot and cold pressurised system using a calorifier mounted in the engine bay. The rail mountings were made from a material called Zamak, which did not fare well in the salty environment. The whole stern rail was starting to fall off so I replaced the fittings both top and bottom with some identical ones made from 316 stainless steel. In early 2001, due largely to the running cost of the old carburettor V8, I decided that I would convert Lady D to dual fuel. Calor Gas was investing heavily in the marine market and from my base in Essex I could cruise locally, and all the way to the Channel Islands, on gas. Unfortunately the conversion turned out
to be an expensive experience as just 30 hours after conversion the engine expired just outside St Peter Port after an epic journey from Tollesbury. Next followed quite an extensive period of non-use. The boat was shipped back to England from Guernsey as deck cargo and taken back to the workshop where it was originally converted. They fitted a replacement used engine at my cost, before returning the boat, running poorly and now with a leaking petrol tank too. It looked like someone has stood on the vent takeoff and fractured the weld. This coincided with Calor pulling out of the market and the marine converter shutting up shop. Things
The floor in the mid cabin was cut out to remove and repair the fuel tank.
were not looking good. The tank was removed for welding, which meant cutting a large section out of the floor in the mid berth. When this was finally replaced Lady D was still running poorly and I was faced with more repair bills and the uncertainly of an unknown engine running on gas, which may or may not go the same way as the last one. All in all the gas conversion and subsequent repairs had cost me about £4.5k and I started to realise that throwing more money at it was probably not the best thing to do. It was at this point I decided to really bite the bullet and buy a brand new diesel package. I was using the boat
outdrive was removed, taken home and stripped right back to bare metal for a proper repaint using etch primer. The camper canvas had had it, so with budgets tight I replaced it with a simple tonneau cover. The bathing platforms on these 80’s Bayliners were modular and used across a whole range of models. On the 2450 there are three sections and both of the end sections had been badly damaged so replacements were sourced in the United States on eBay, shipped over and fitted. The next phase of work was to improve usability and looks and included replacing the cockpit upholstery. As I started to remove it, I realised that the plywood bases were completely rotten. Saving whatI could as a pattern, I carefully made allnew bases from marine ply coated with at least three coats of wood protection. The
Stantion rail fittings were replaced with stainless steel
The original multi-coloured cockpit vinyl was replaced with modern white, but not before the seat bases were rebuilt.
Bayliner fitted ‘star wars’ guages, but with the Volvo came a set of modern black replacements
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Motorboat Owner 31 30 March 2014
trim tabs with the Volvo Penta Boat Trim System. These use short blades that poke straight down into the water and turned out to be very efficient at trimming what could be a quite sensitive boat. The engine was commissioned and sea trialled in early 2006 and proved to be everything I hoped it would. She would just about hit 30 knots and would cruise effortlessly in the mid 20’s. Fuel consumption almost halved from the V8 petrol and was of course available everywhere. With a new engine comes new instrumentation. The 1980’s ‘Star Wars’ style gauges were replaced with Volvo gauges and supplemented with a few modern Faria instruments of a similar style. It is often said that, financially it is
never cost effective to re-engine a boat and, after spending circa £15K I have to agree. I was never going to recoup my costs but boy did it transform the boat. The confidence in the reliability of the engine, together with a range that almost doubled, the ability to refuel anywhere, and the fact that this was pre the loss of derogation so red diesel was still very cheap, meant that I had no qualms about going anywhere the weather would allow. The unfinished business of taking Lady D to Guernsey beckoned and not long
after re-launch we undertook a two week, 500nm round trip that went without a hitch. Spurred on by renewed enthusiasm I then had a bow thruster fitted. Single outdrive boats with a light bow are easily blown around and, while it may seem overthe top to fit one to a boat of this size, it again transformed the boat. Mooring became almost boring after years of struggling to control the bow in any kind of wind. Further cosmetic work included the interior upholstery, changed from a dark
for some serious cruising and with gas being pulled from marinas, and even petrol being hard to find, the only real answer was diesel, and this time I was going to do it properly. It was now 2005 and Volvo Penta had just launched the 160hp D3. I was offered a lightly used demo D3 engine for a good price or, for the same money, an unused, and one of the very last, KAD32’s. I had to borrow to fund this conversion and I couldn’t afford to make a mistake, so I opted for the new, tried and tested KAD32 complete with duo prop drive. The conversion was carried out by Volspec in Tollesbury, who did a great job, and while the boat was out I took the opportunity of replacing the
The original, and very worn, dark blue upholstery was replaced with a light leatherette
A Bow thruster transformed the boat and was Lady D’s second best mod after the diesel engine.
The new Volvo transom fitting required a larger cutout and the engine, new bearers
Goodbye petrol. A fork lift removes the old engine and in its place sits a brand new KAD32.
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Motorboat Owner 33 32 March 2014
blue to a light beige to help brighten up the interior, and the galley, which was completely remodelled. Originally there was an alcohol hob, a cool box below it, which looked like a fridge but wasn’t, and a sink placed awkwardly towards the back of the galley unit. It was also resplendent in a pink Formica finish. The top was replaced with ply covered in a blue laminate. The sink was relocated further forward, and the coolbox was replaced with an electric fridge. This was a mains powered unit that I was originally going to run through an inverter. Once installed though I found it kept cold while off
shore power so in fact never got around to doing this. The toilet compartment was freshened up with a new toilet and the original carpet pulled out and replaced with vinyl flooring. The bathing platform was covered in synthetic teak, which looked fantastic, and finally the electrics were overhauled. The AC shore power was fitted with a proper breaker panel and the DC side was partially rewired, including a nice waterproof switch and fuse panel by the helm to replace the bird’s nest of a fuse board that was exposed to the elements under the dashboard. I guess like all good projects the list of
The river Thames to Oxford and St Peter Port in Guernsey were just two desinations Lady D took us to, proving you don’t need a big boat to go cruising.
Before, during and after. One galley made more usable and less pink.
The sales pontoon at Penton Hook
The bathing platform with its teak and an upgraded heads
jobs to do was never completed. A final polish to bring the shine back into the dull fibreglass was the last thing ticked off before Lady D found new owners. I never did get to trail her to exotic locations, a trip around the M25 was about as far as her road experience went, but after 13 years my list of requirements for a boat was no longer being met. Two engines, a proper shower and a separate cabin were now on the list, and no amount of work was going to give Lady D all of these features. For both of us the next chapter beckons. Lady D was last seen on the River Thames and I am now working through a list of things to improve her replacement, a Sealine S28, of which you will no doubt hear more about in upcoming issues.
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A As you have already worked out, the answer greatly depends on how you are running the boat. Usually though, when people are asking about range, it is because they have a long passage planned. In this case range is relatively easy to work out, based on a comfortable cruising speed. For the V39 with KAD42 engines this speed will be in the mid 20’s with the engines pulling around 3000rpm. At this speed you should be achieving around 2nmpg, providing a total range from your 158 gallon capacity of 316nm. Obviously you need to keep a little in reserve, and usually this would be around 25% of your capacity, leaving you around 125 usable gallons and a safe crusing range of 250nm.
Q&A Your Questions Answered
If you have a question, email us at
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 3534 March 2013
Volvo Penta outboard?
Q My Princess V39 has twin KAD42 engines. The fuel tanks are 720 litres in total and I am trying to find the boat’s range. I have tried working out an MPG based on each fill but the figures are all over the place, possibly because no two trips are the same with some more fast speed than others. So, what’s the answer?
Princess V39 MPG?
A My research tells me that Penta made outboards even before Volvo bought them, but yes it is true that Volvo Penta branded outboards were still being sold as late as the 1980’s. I have it on good authority that the later engines were in fact rebranded Honda outboards, so while parts for early Volvo Penta outboards are quite hard to come by, these later models should be easier to keep running.
Q Is it true that Volvo Penta used to make outboard engines?
Sterndrive oil?
A The AQ 290 does indeed use the same oil as the engine. The confusion comes from later versions such as the SP-E, which do require special 75W-90 synthetic gear oil.
Q I am about to service my sterndrive for the first time but I’m unsure what oil I should use. One place I was getting some parts from said I had to use special synthetic gear oil, while another person said that I should use the same oil I use in the engines. The drive is a single prop AQ290.
Q Whilst wandering around Blankenberg marina I spotted this little hardtop boat. I couldn’t quite make out the make but it looks like Thompson.I really liked the look of it and thought the hardtop would be great for UK waters. I don’t seem to be able to nail down what exactly it is. Any ideas?
Thompson boats?
A I had not heard of Thompson boats before, but it turns out the US brand has a heritage going back some 100 years. After an eventful period it seems that the company finally dissapeared around the turn of the century. I think the boat you saw is one of theirs, in fact I think it looks very much like a Fisherman 240 from the late 80’s or early 90’s. I have never seen another one, and don’t recall seeing any other Thompson branded boats in the UK, although I understand that Cruisers Incwas once part of the same company. If you like the style, perhaps try searching for a Bayliner Trophy of a similar size and age, something like the 2459 might appeal.
Do you know what oil your drive needs?
Q&A Your Questions Answered
If you have a question, email us at
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 3736 March 2013
Q I am currently in the market for my first boat and am looking at sportscruisers around 25 feet. During my search I have come across a Sea Ray fitted with a dual fuel petrol and LPG system. I know this is popular in cars but have never seen one in a boat before. I have been told it will significantly lower the running cost of the boat. Is this true and it is a good thing to have on a boat?
Dual fuel dilemma
A Just over 10 years ago, Calor Gas made an attempt to infiltrate the marine market and they set up a network of around 30 filling points in marinas, mainly on the south and lower east coast. They also backed an official marine installer who produced a systemthat was actually more sophisticated than automotive systems of the day, to take into account the greater risks of leaking gas on board a boat. Unfortunately it never really took off, and after a couple of years Calor pulled out, which was soon followed by many of the filling points being removed. There is still a small hardcore of LPG users, based around the two remaining filling points at Torquay and Hayling Island. The marine LPG guru is Dr Walter Scott, who has been running his Hunton on gas for years. For advice, drop him an email at [email protected]. Whether you should pursue this particular boat really depends on where you are planning to base it. Near to one of the filling points and it may be worth considering, as it will reduce your running costs by a decent amount. Just remember though that you will not be able to fill up anywhere else, so you’ll need to budget for running on petrol some of the time. You may also face a problem when you come to sell, as the boat may only appeal to those close to an LPG filling point.
Q I am in the process of kitting out my boat with some electronics and was thinking about radar and AIS. Radar is quite expensive whereas I can add an AIS receiver for around £100.Is AIS a good alternative to radar?
AIS or Radar?
A AIS and Radar actually do different jobs, although there is obviously some overlap. I do not consider either to be a replacement for the other. AIS will only alert you to vessels transmitting AIS data, whereas Radar, if used properly, will alert you to any potential hazard large enough to show up as a return on the screen. I have navigated narrow channels in fog, passing through lateral buoys that I could clearly see on radar but couldn’t be seen by eye. AIS wouldn’t help here. AIS on the other hand will provide useful information on large shipping that radar cannot, such as vessel name, MMSI number and information about the vessels movements that are usually more accurate than that obtained through the MARPA system on a radar. So to sum up, don’t see AIS as an alternative to radar; see it as another useful tool.
Q The tender garage on my boat does not have a great deal of height, which means I have to remove the outboard every time I put it away. I am sure I saw some tenders at the Southampton Boat Show that had fold flat transoms, which I think could be the answer to my problem. Unfortunately I can’t remember their name and Ihaven’t had any luck searching for them. Can you help?
Tender trouble
Q When I stay on board during the winter I am plagued by condensation on the windows, window frames and bare fibreglass inside the boat. Sometimes it is so bad it drips on me in the night. What can I do to prevent this?
Condensation cure
A Warm moist breath, boiled kettles and hot water from showers and washing up all add
moisture into the air, which in the winter particularly, will condense on the cold surfaces of windows and bulkheads. There are really only two answers to this. The first is to ventilate by leaving windows open and thus equalizing the temperature and humidity between inside and outside the boat. The problem with this is that you might find it a bit chilly when you get up in the morning. What I do is to use a dehumidifier, which is only any good if you are on shorepower, but it leaves the boat bone dry in the morning even on the coldest of nights. The desiccant type also usually offers a useful heat output too, which leaves the boat acceptably warm in the morning. The only downside is the noise, which may disturb a light sleeper.
A I know exactly the boats you are referring to, the AER Cabrio range. They are supplied in the UK by BHG marine www.bhg-marine.co.uk
Petrol engines can also run on LPG
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 3938 March 2014
The Sealine SC35 may still be a relatively new boat, it is even still in production today as the S380,
but we think it is a classic in the making, a modern classic if you will. The SC35 was Sealine doing what they did best, producing great value, innovative and affordable entry level boats, and it sold in huge numbers. Sealine have always packed a real punch when it comes to looks and use of interior space. Often with a more affordable price tag to its rivals too. In 2007 the ever popular S34 disappeared
been banished. Simply slide back the largecanvas roof and the boat was transformed. The SC35, or S380 as it is now called, is still in production under new Sealine owners, Hanse Yachts, but with second hand SC35 prices coming down the gap is widening between new and used boats. Great news for buyers on the used market. Price aside, the obvious benefit of buying used is that any snags or niggles should have been ironed out under warranty, leaving you to enjoy the boat. It is, however, always worth checking what work was carried out and that all engine
Built 2007-2013Prices then £179,775-£250,000Prices now £124,950-£236,450Length 36ft 1in / 11mBeam 12ft 2in / 3.74mDraught 3ft 1in / 0.93m Air Draught 13ft 3in / 4.04mFuel 750 litres / 165 gallonsWater 200 litres / 44 gallonsDisplacement 7 tons
Sealine SC35from the line-up and the SC35, designed by Ocke Mannerfelt, arrived. It’s arguably one of their most popular entry level sportscruisers but why? The exterior styling has been described as ballsy, evenslab sided. Love it or hate it this boats production line figures speak volumes. There were 324 built over six years. The difference between it and the S34 is massive. The porpoise curves had disappeared to reveal a very upright form, the angular hardtop and superstructure giving incredible volume in the cockpit and down below. The acres of canvas had
CLASSIC CRUISERSa complete guide to the best boats on the used market
servicing is up to date if there is anywarranty left on them. This is particularly relevant now that Sealine has changed hands and the original dealer and records may be hard to find.
On DeckThe sidedecks are generous and safe with deep toerails. They are also on one level and topped with a raised flat coachroof with forward escape hatch. Teak side decks were an option when new, or may have been retro fitted. Sometimes water can get underneath, causing it to lift
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Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 41
away, have a walk around the decks and check for any oozing under foot. It’s alsoworth checking along the side decks and around the coachroof for stress cracking. Moving along the deck is easy but with the aft canopy sections off, stepping down to the bathing platform can feel a little exposed where the stanchions peter down to mid-calf height and the roof grab rails finish just short of the radar arch. While there is a grabrail aft, it’s recessed under the radar arch and awkward to reach. Some owners have added a spliced eye or monkey’s fists to the grab rail on each corner to aid their descent down to the bathing platform. During production there were two types of bathing platform available, the standard platform, and what is known as the ‘med spec’ bathing platform. The latter brings the boat up to 38ft and was built to accommodate a passerelle and a tender on chocks. During their last year of production Sealine re-branded the SC35 and it became known as the S380. The only change was that the extended bathing
platform became standard fit, something that Sealine’s new owner, Hanse Yachts is continuing with. The standard bathing platform comprises a single step up to the side decks either side (not storage lockers sadly), a large shallow rope locker in the centre, a bathing ladder and a deep locker on the port side. When the boat was first launched the deep locker was designed to store an outboard, but unfortunately this had a tendency to fill up with water and was soon replaced with a shallower locker that was no use for an outboard but still a useful place to store cleaning apparel. One solution for outboard storage on later boats was to fit an outboard bracket to thetransom and a corresponding chock forthe skeg. Two optional tender chocks fold out from the rope locker but housing a tender on them will restrict your access. You will find that some owners have fitted snap davits to stow their tenders and stand off arms to allow access on and off. The original standard platform is perfectly adequate for use in the UK, however, if
The extended bathing platform was standard in later models. You may find it difficult to fender
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 4342 March 2014
paying for the extra feet for berthing isn’t an issue it’s surprising how much extra the ‘med spec’ platform gives to the boat. You lose the shallow rope locker but still get chock points for a tender should you wish, and the larger platform is much better suited to it.
InteriorDown below the interior is modern, private and spacious, comfortable enough for a few weeks away for a family or couple. It comprises of two cabins with a living area in the centre of the boat. When you are down below, have a good look at all of the portholes, check that they are firmly bonded to the hull and check for any evidence of leaks, for which they are
The saloon is a place for lounging. Its table folds out but is a bit cosy to eat around with more than two
The master cabin is ensuite and has a set of double doors that open up into saloon
Galley: High gloss walnut was an £9,000 option in 2013. We are told only two SC35’s have it fitted.
comfortable for living and lounging for two people. It gets a bit friendlier with more people but you do always have the cockpit for dining and socialising. Sadly this area does not convert to a double but is fine as a single, taking the sleeping capacity up to six. The interior volume is incredible on this boat, the headroom in the living area is over 6ft and a huge rectangular skylight with blind gives plenty of light in addition to the portholes. The interior is most commonly fitted out with walnut panelling, which is set off with darker walnut edging. The toilet compartment has a good size separate shower stall, perfect for those extended stays aboard. Have a good check of the wood finishes, mirror and metal blind if fitted for water damage in this compartment. The galley comprises of a large sink with a clever drainer behind, a hob and oven that is either gas or electric powered. The
prone. There are four on each side. The forward cabin has an island double and is accessed via a set of double doors. These doors give privacy when you have guests staying aboard or open plan access to the galley when you are alone. Three rocker light switches are at the foot of the berth underneath and are difficult to find at first. These operate the main cabin light, the LED strip lights and the additional reading light above the berth itself. The L-shaped settee in the saloon is
The mid cabin converts into a double
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 45
2012 £194,950Twin Volvo D4 260hpClipper Marine01489 550583www.clippermarine.co.uk
2009 £149,950Twin Volvo D4 260hpClipper Marine01489 550583www.clippermarine.co.uk
2011 £159,950Twin Volvo D4 260hpAncasta Port Hamble02380 450000www.ancasta.com
2009 £159,950Twin Volvo D4 260hpPenton Hook Marine Sales01932 570055www.thamesboatsales.co.uk
mid cabin has three single berths, with two of them converting to a double if necessary. This cabin is ample for guests, or it’s ideal for younger crew members and their friends. A stunning high gloss walnut interior was introduced as a £9,000 option in the very last Kidderminster built Sealine SC35’s. We understand that only two models with this option were built.
Cockpit and HelmIt’s the massive hardtop covered cockpit that is the biggest selling point on this boat. It is an extremely social area, and works very well while underway or static, transformed by opening or closing the roof. It is often fitted with a teak sole and comprises of a helm on the starboard side, cockpit galley behind, with adjacent L shaped seating and large fold-out teak table. The helm has a bolstered double stand up sit down seat. Be aware that the cushions ofthe bolsters tend to suffer if it has been sat on for extended periods as over time the foam inside becomes misshapen. The double helm seat is very suitable for two people and, other than the seat at the rear of the cockpit, is the only forward facing seating. With the roof open, underway you are able to have a normal level conversation and the huge windscreen offers excellent protection. However don’t expect to be
A cockpit barbecue was an option when new
NEXT GENERATION GPS
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display and the panel hinges to give access to the back of the instruments.The VHF hand set was mounted as standard under a clear perspex panel in front of the navigator. As you can imagine this is not so easy to use here, so you may find many owners have moved it closer to the helm or to the speaker on the bulkhead next to helm, or removed the perspex lid top entirely. There is a liferaft locker beneath the helm seat. This is a massive space and will swallow a four or six man valise raft, with room to spare.
Hull and HandlingIt’s true to say that the SC35 handles like a bigger boat. Its deep V hull offers a smooth ride and excellent performance in all manner of conditions. It can be quite wet in a head sea but the roof and wipers keep things in order. The boat is not badly affected by wind at speed, as it is relatively heavy and does not flop about like some smaller sterndrive sportcruisers. However low speed handling on sterndrives can be tricky if it’s windy, so a bowthruster would certainly be a useful addition. The hull is solid GRP and is strengthened with foam filled stringers, which are laminated and flow coated. Hull surveys sometimes throw up some small voids, in the layup with occasional areas of delamination being found. As always, a good survey is a must. Some boats have a dark brown roof structure. This dark gelcoat can suffer from blisters, so careful examination is recommended.
EnginesRight through production there were two sterndrive diesel options, twin Volvo D4 260hp or twin Volvo D4 300hp. Fitted with the 300’s the boat achieved well over
spray may get sucked in through the back, leaving salt on the rear cockpit seats. This effect is lessened by having a dinghy on snap davits but with the Silvertex fabric the salt is easily hosed off. The sliding roof can sometimes be a little sticky. It is on runners and the canvas fabric concertinas back to the radar mast. The trick with the roof is to keep the runners spotlessly clean and apply a regular dose of silicone spray. Sometimes dirt can build up on the runners and cause the ball bearings to come adrift, so it is worth having a look along the gutters to check that all is in order. The roof fabric is double skinned with a waterproof canvas outer and a mesh lining to avoid a build up of condensation on the inside. Inspect the interior mesh for mildew and check the outer fabric is clean and looks in good waterproof order. At the helm, two rubber catches are released on the lower edge of the helm
Paired dials are a great feature of the helm. Later models were offered with a joystick
30 knots while the 260’s achieved only a few knots less. Most buyers opted for the 260hps giving a cruising speed of 22-25 knots. At these speeds you should expect fuel figures to be in the region of 1.7MPG and with a fuel burn of around 14 gph. Much later in production Sealine offered the option of the Volvo Joystick with the 300hp powered boats. An alternative to a bow thruster? Possibly, in most conditions, but as the hulls were moulded for a bow thruster, retrofitting should be reasonably straightforward if required. Engine access via a lifting hatch in the cockpit is good, and space around the engines excellent. If you have the factory fit generator option, this does use up much of the useful space in the engine room. Have a look at the cockpit upholstery
able to stick your head out of the hardtop to feel the wind in your hair as it is too high. If you are travelling at slow speed in sunshine it can get quite hot behind the huge glass windscreen, even with the roof open. Like many hardtop boats the windows are prone to misting but the boat comes with demisters. The standard fit uses warm air from the engines, which obviously requires the engines to be running and warm, but there was a diesel powered Eberspacher upgrade available, which is a slightly more useful setup. A heating outlet in the cockpit makes for a worthy addition and will extend your social evening soirées, even in the depths of winter. Canopy covers were initially only available in navy but then a taupe colour was added and proved very popular. The boat also features Sealine’s excellent trademark clamshell canopy storage. With the roof open and the rear canopies off sea
The cockpit table drops and converts into a sunpad
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 4948 March 2014
Prices £67,500–£110,000Length 34ft 6in Beam 11ftThe popular predecessor to the SC35, it’s affordable and a fantastic family buy.Buy one (pictured) 1999£67,500www.burtonwaters.co.uk
Prices £153,500-£179,950Length 39ft 4in Beam 12ft 3inThe bigger sister offers a convertible saloon doubleand cockpit sunpad.Buy one (pictured) 2009£159,950www.solentmotoryachts.com
Prices £99,950-124,950Length 42ft 3in Beam 12ft 4inLarger with canvas and t-top, offering two en suites and a master mid cabin.Buy one (pictured) 2000£119,000www.shepherdswindermere.co.uk
Family Sealine S41 1999-2003Sealine S34 1998-2007 Sealine SC38 2008-2011
CONTEMPORARY CHOICE Sealine S380Hanse Yachts will be producing the S380 model in Germany.The first S380’s are due to arrive in the UK this year.Price from £221,304including UK delivery
Built 2014 onwardsLength 37ft 7in/11.46m Beam 12ft 4in/3.78mAir draught 11ft 11in/3.68mDisplacement 8000kgEngines 2 x 260-300hp D4www.sealine.com
around the engine hatch as, when the hatch is lifted it can rub and damage it. Fuel tank access is also very good. In 2012 Volvo issued a recall of some of its D4 engines due to corrosion of the exhaust risers. This will have affected many SC35s. Using the engine’s serial numbers ensure, via your Volvo Penta dealer, that this warranty work has been carried out on any potential purchase. There have also been recalls on the sterndrive steering rams which on the DPH drive are prone to leaking. Check for evidence of leaks from the rams and again check with Volvo that the warranty work is all up to date.
Design NotesThe Sealine SC35 had few exterior changes during its production. The most obvious is the movement of the exterior air vents from running parallel with the transom to a horizontal position just below the gunwhale. Early vents let water and spray in while under way. This leaked into the engine bay and was found to
be affecting the gear shift actuators. As a result modifications were made to the vents in early models to stop the water ingress and the actuators were moved. Some owners favour the appearance of the white hardtop over the chocolate brown. The coloured hardtop makes more of a bolder statement while it’s said that the white is a bit more design forgiving. In 2012 Sealine celebrated 40 years and launched a Limited Edition of the SC35. What made this version different was the brown pillar sides of the hardtop and a stone coloured hull. Twenty of these boats were produced. At the time of writing, Sealine’s boat show SC35 display model is currently for sale at £27,000 through Coastal Rides. This is a basically a shell that is being sold as a project. It will need an interior, engines, drives, some strengthening and a ambitious buyer before it can take to the water.
Inland & Boat Safety SchemeBeing the comfortable chameleon that
Engine access is easy and via a hatch in the cockpit floor. There is a useful ladder to get down and plenty of space, except with a generator fitted
ConclusionYou really can’t fault the SC35. Practical, stylish, comfortable, spacious and the best bit is, they are getting more affordable. But do make sure all the niggles have been ironed out and everything is in order. Sealine as a company may have been sold but there is a great support network out there, including the Sealine Forum, and companies like Seabridge Marine, BritBoat and Penton Hook Marine Sales.
Before buying any used boat, always employ the services of a YDSA or IIMS accredited surveyor and, if you have any doubt about the engines, a separate engine survey by a suitably qualified person is recommended.
it is, the SC35 has been very well received inland. The mast hoop can be made to hinge, leaving the radar dome and television aerial the next highest points. With the ensign staff removed, the air draft can be reduced to approximately 3.6 metres, making many inland rivers accessible. If a boat is over four years old it will require a Boat Safety Certificate for inland use. Things that might come under scrutiny are diesel heating system fuel lines, battery ventilation and basics such as fire extinguishers. Also if the boat has gas onboard this will have to be examined.
HELSINKI BOAT SHOW SPECIAL
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Bella 9000Another very nice small aft cabin boat from the same stable as the Flipper was the Bella 9000. Being slightly larger than the Flipper it offers a more luxurious aft cabin and is powered by a single diesel sterndrive up to 260hp. www.bellaboats.fiUK dealer: T L Harvey Ltdwww.tlharveymarine.com
Grandezza 40 FlyThis boat was unveiled for the first time at the show. The flagship model from a builder that makes some spectacular smaller boats, the 40, with its full width master cabin and sterndrive propulsion, is definitely one to be considered if you are in this market.www.grandezze.fiUK dealer: Bosuns Lockerwww.bosuns.co.uk
Albatross 35 AvesUnusual name, interesting boat, the Albatross 35 is a typically Scandinavian creation. Semi displacement hull, single stern drive and lots of nice dark wood. You don’t get separate cabins in this open plan boat but you can accommodate six in three double berths.www.albatross.fi
Flipper 880STQuite possibly my favourite boat of the show, the hard top Flipper 880ST is only 28ft long, yet manages to pack in two separate cabins, including an aft cabin. It does this by using outboards, freeing up the space usually reserved for the engines for that second cabin.www.flipperboats.fiUK dealer: T L Harvey Ltdwww.tlharveymarine.com
The Scandinavians have a habit of building really usable boats, often at the smaller
end of the market. The Finns in particular excel at the practical sub 10 metre boat. When we were invited to the Helsinki boat show it seemed like a great opportunity to not only see this fabulous country in the middle of winter, but catch up with the likes of Aquador, Bella, Flipper, Botnia, Yamarin, Finnmaster and many more, to see their 2014 offerings. There are in fact over 100 boat
Above: Winterising your boat is mandatory in Finland. Above right: Yes I was invited, yes I did think about it, No I didn’t.
builders in Finland with a population of five and a half million who own approximately 800,000 boats. That means that roughly one in every seven Finns owns a boat. If you have ever seen this country in the summer you would understand why. Beautiful sheltered waters with archipelagos of thousands of islands; it is indeed a great place to go boating. We, on the other hand, were here in February. The boats are still good, but the boating will have to wait.
HELSINKIHIGHLIGHTS
Destination CHATHAM
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GuernseyHome to Sir Francis Drake and Charles Dickens, Chatham was historically one of the biggest naval dockyards in England and has offered visiting yachtsman shelter for centuries.
Nestled in the North Downs, 10 miles upstream on the River Medway lies the town of
Chatham. Once a small village on the riverbank dating back to the Roman and Norman times, its maritime history runs deep. For centuries England’s Royal Navy ships were built, repaired, manned and set sail from its dockyard. From the 16th century, when Elizabethan England prepared for the Spanish Armada, to the Falklands in 1982, it employed
and iron arrived from upstream and were unloaded at Sun Pier, while barges carried local farm produce upstream as far as Tonbridge. Charles Dickens moved to Chatham as a child with his father working in the Royal Navy pay office at the dockyard. It is said that three of his novels were based on the area. These were Great Expectations, Pickwick papers and the Mystery of Edwin Drood. There is now a theme park in his honour at Chatham Maritime.
Since Tudor times Chatham’s convenient and sheltered location on the River Medway was a popular anchorage with
thousands of town workers and covered around 400 acres. Now, much of the original site is has been transformed into a major visitor attraction, The Historic Dockyard Chatham. Dockyard ‘Basin 1’ has been transformed into a waterfront development and home to MDL’s 370-berth Chatham Maritime Marina. As well as shipbuilding, for centuries the town of Chatham imported and exported goods using the River Medway. Materials for shipbuilding such as timber, stone
by Claire Frew
Dockyard History
the Royal Navy’s fleet. With this came the need for supplies and repairs. The Royal Dockyard was established by Queen Elizabeth I in 1568 and its popularity overtook other dockyards on the Thames. The famous 16th century seafarer Sir Francis Drake had moved to Chatham at an early age. It is said that he and his family lived for a time on an old, laid-up ship which was berthed in Gillingham Reach. It was from Chatham that he first went to sea as an apprentice and was surely where his sea adventures began. In the wake of England’s victory over the Spanish Armada, Drake founded the Chatham Chest, a national fund supporting injured and disabled sailors from contributions taken from the wages of all English seamen. The chest is on display in the Museum at The Historic Dockyard. During Britain’s trade wars with the Dutch, sea battles were common and were fought in the Thames Estuary and North Sea. Fortresses were built to defend the Medway and its prize dockyard but its success had obviously become too much of a threat. In 1667 the River Medway and the dockyard came under attack from the Dutch fleet lead by Admiral de Ruyter. The
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Destination CHATHAM
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assault known as the ‘Battle of Chatham’ or ‘Medway Raid’, destroyed much of the navy fleet anchored in the Medway, and captured the ‘Royal Charles’, the flagship of the English fleet. Arguably the most famous ship to be built at Chatham was Nelson’s HMS Victory. At the time it was dubbed ‘the largest and finest ship ever built’ and its launch in 1765 was a very proud moment for the town. The peninsula to the north of Chatham was originally a marshy island, separated from the mainland by St Marys Creek. During the 18th and 19th centuries, decommissioned naval vessels housing prisoners were moored off Chatham. These convicts were used in the 1800’s to dig out the creek, creating St. Mary’s Island and Basins 1, 2 and 3 to accommodate the latest modern warships
of the Royal Navy. By 1908 the dockyard was building submarines for the Royal Navy. Over 57 were built, many of which saw service through the two world wars. In 1966 the very last submarine left the dockyard, destined for the Royal Canadian Navy. The dockyard was closed in 1984.
If you are looking to stay overnight and see the sites, the most convenient place to berth is Chatham Maritime Marina. The marina is accessible at all states of the tide via a 24 hour lock. It’s a 10 minute walk to the Historic Dockyard from here, and this modern marina has a lot to offer. There are restaurants, a cinema complex, a theme park and an outlet shopping centre. Chatham town centre is approximately a 30 minute walk or 17 minute bus ride away. The current overnight rate at Chatham Maritime Marina is £2.80 per metre, so it should cost in the region of £28 for a 10 metre boat.
Much like the Thames Estuary, the River Medway needs to be navigated with care. The entrance channel runs in a south westerly direction with the Medway
can be busy with large vessels docking on the Isle of Grain and Sheerness. As you enter the river you will see the commercial jetties at Sheerness on your port side, and the colourful, imposing cranes awaiting their next cargo ship arrival on the starboard side. It is advised that you monitor VHF channel 74 ‘Medway VTS’ for ship movements. They may also be able to assist you in times of restricted visibility. Much like the Thames Estuary, the entrance and lower reaches of the Medway are very exposed in strong north easterly winds but shelter can be found in the muddy Stangate and Half Acre creeks, both with visible entrances on the port side. These anchorages are also delightful when the weather is fine and with a mud/clay bottom offer excellent holding. Before the river sweeps around to the west you will see the entrance to the River Swale on the port side directly ahead, this is marked by the east cardinal Queenborough Spit. Beyond on the left is the town of Queenborough. This wider
safe water mark lying just under a mile south of Sea Reach 1 buoy. The start of the approach channel is marked with starboard mark No 1, with adjacent port hand marker north cardinal (No 2). The river entrance appears very industrial at first glance with a distinctive tall tower to the west of the entrance. The 244 metre (801 ft) tower, with its huge buildings below, is the Grain Power Station and is the most prominent landmark in the Thames Estuary. The wreck of the Richard Montgomery is marked by an exclusion zone of yellow buoys just to the north of the approach channel. The American cargo ship, fully laden with explosives, ran aground during a storm and broke in half when the tide fell. Only the tips of the masts are visible. Garrison Point at Sheerness is to the east of the entrance and is lit day and night by a powerful red flashing light. The river is well marked up to Rochester from this point. Always keep a good look out for commercial traffic, as the river entrance
Where to moor
Approaches
Chatham Maritime Marina layout
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Chatham Maritime Marina at night and the restaurants, bars and a cinema are just a stroll away
River Medway to Chatham
Destination CHATHAM
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Where to fill upChatham Maritime Marina has a fuel berth serving petrol and diesel. It is located just inside the lock on the starboard side, adjacent to A pontoon and in front of the marina office. We would suggest speaking with the lock operator whilst locking in to see if the fuel berth is vacant, or to book yourself in the queue.
Weather informationMet Office Shipping Forecast Thames Estuary. Met Office Inshore Waters forecast Gibraltar Point to North Foreland. Weather actuals at Sandettie Lightship
Charts & Pilot BooksImray 2100.2 River Thames Sea ReachImray 2100.3 River MedwayImray 2100.1 Thames Estuary SouthImray 2100 Kent and Sussex Coasts Chart PackAdmiralty 5606 Thames Estuary, Ramsgate to Tower Bridge Chart PackMap of The River Medway - Gillingham to Tonbridge by Derek BowskillImray East Coast Pilot (Lowestoft to Ramsgate)Wiley Nautical East Coast Rivers Cruising Companion by Janet Harber
EventsThe Medway River Festival takes place in July. There is also the popular Maidstone River Festival. The Historic Dockyard Chatham usually has various events happening throughout the year, including the Medway Festival of Steam & Transport (20th & 21st Apr) and Salute to the 40’s (20th & 21st Sept)
Enter the narrow lock with your fenders high on the gunnel. Please note it can be a little tricky entering on the half tide due to the cross current. Inside the lock there are floating pontoons with pick up lines and plenty of cleats to tie up to. Be aware of water turbulence while the lock is in operation, an additional centre spring line might be useful. Once through the lock there is plenty of room for manoeuvring, and time for organising ropes and fenders.
There is a good choice of commercial waterfront restaurants at the marina, most are open until late and are located close to the Dockside Shopping Centre. Zippers is a favourite evening haunt for berthholders. Located on the south side of the marina on Jetty 5 this Italian grill restaurant is spread over two floors, offering lovely day and nighttime views over the marina. It serves Italian pasta and meatball dishes, plus juicy burgers, steaks and cajan chicken. If you are in the mood for Mexican or Chinese food, Chimichanga, Nandos or the Real China restaurant in the Dockside Shopping Centre, may suit. If it’s pub grub you’re after then the nautically themed ‘Ship & Trades’ in the south east corner of the marina should
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2 Historic Dockyard
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4 Dickens World
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6 Ship & Trades7 Royal Engineers Museum8 Fort Amherst
9 War Memorial10 Upnor Castle
11 The Brook12 The Central13 Pentagon Centre14 Gurkhas Brother
15 Chatham Train Station
16 Rochester Train Station
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section of the river is called Saltpan Reach. The next predominant landmark to starboard is the tall chimney and buildings of the Kingsworth Power Station. Three more jetties reach out into the river at Kethole and Long Reach. Mudflats slope gently into the water at the perimeters of the channel. Past the power station the channel meanders to the south west and narrows at Pinup Reach. On the port side at Darnett Ness lies Darnett Island with its curvaceous 19th century gun fort. Trots of yacht moorings fringe the channel.Just beyond starboard mark Darnett no.23 is Middle Creek, one of the two entrance channels to the tidal Hoo Marina and Port Werburgh. These are respectively visitor and residential marinas with access approximately HW +/- 1.5 hours. The withie-marked Orinoco Channel
approaches the marinas from the west. A speed limit of 6 knots is enforced from port hand marker no 24 at Folly Point. Gillingham Marina lies just beyond no.28 port hand marker. This visitor marina has a lock with access HW +/- 4.5 hours. Approximately half a mile beyond Gillingham Marina lies the old entrances to the Chatham Naval Dockyard basins, now a waterside residential development and commercial dock. As the river sweeps around to the south west, yacht moorings line this pretty stretch and the forbidding Upnor Castle, built to guard the river from the Dutch, greets you on the west bank. If you haven’t done so already, now is an appropriate time to prepare for the lock at Chatham Maritime Marina. Contact the lock on VHF channel 80 with the call sign ‘Chatham Marina’. There is a small waiting pontoon outside.
If you like shopping and history Chatham Maritime Marina is a great stopping point for the family
Italian grill Zippers is on Jetty 5 at the marina
Where to eat & drink
Destination CHATHAM
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Marine SuppliesThe nearest chandlery is Pirates Cave. This is 1.7 miles from the Marina and is located on the Medway City Estate, in Rochester.
Food SuppliesThere is a Co-operative supermarket on Maritime Way, near the Ships & Trade pub. The Range in the Dockside Shopping Centre is also a useful shop, where you can get anything from kitchen items to DIY. In Chatham town centre there is a Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Iceland
TransportArriva number 100 is a useful bus route which runs between St Mary’s Island and Chatham main bus station, via the Dockside Outlet shopping centre. For full bus details visit www.medway.gov.uk/busesor www.arrivabus.co.ukSouth Eastern Trains operate from Chatham Station, offering services to London and towns in Kent such as Dover and Ramsgate. Services to London take 39-54 minutes.www.southeasternrailway.co.uk
TidesChatham Lock ApproachesAdmiralty EasyTideThe standard port is SheernessHW Chatham is approximately 10-15 mins later. At HW Sheerness the tide starts to run out of the Thames Estuary, up the Essex coast and along the North Kent coast. Strength 1-1.8 knots.
be the ticket. Once an engineering shop for the dockyard, it serves modern dishes and traditional pub classics, such as ham, egg & chips, fish & chips, steaks, burgers and the usual compliment of custard accompanied desserts we all love. If you find yourself in Chatham town after a hard day sightseeing, Gurkhas Brother curry house is located on Whiffens Avenue, close to The Brook theatre. There is Cosmo in the High Street which is part of a popular chain of all-you-can-eat buffet restaurants, offering Chinese, Indian and carvery; perfect if the family is starving. Finally if you are looking for a riverside pub there is Command House at Gun Wharf on the waterfront.
The main attraction is, of course the Historic Dockyard Chatham. The dockyard houses the historic warships
HMS Gannet, a Victorian naval sloop, HMS Cavalier, a Second World War destroyer and HM Ocelot, a cold war submarine built at the dockyard. Among the displays is the RNLI’s Historic Lifeboat Collection. This collection of significant lifeboats shows how their design has evolved over the years. If you want to see how rope is made, a visit to the dockyards ¼ mile ropewalk is a must. Incidentally if you are in the market for some traditional rope, Chatham Hemp 3-strand is still made on the Ropewalk and can be bought from Master Ropemakers Chatham. 14mm is £1.93 per metre or a 220m coil is £183.43. The dockyard is closed for the winter months and re-opens February to November. Entry to the dockyard is £18.50 for adults and £11.50 for children. You could easily spend a day there but remember to hang on to your ticket as it’s valid for a year. Berth holders and visitors to Chatham Maritime Marina get
a discount of £1.50 per person for up to 4 people. Ask at the marina reception for details. Built to defend the naval dockyard, the Napoleonic fortress Fort Amherst, makes for an interesting visit. It sits high above the town in acres of parkland and has a network of underground passageways, buildings and gun emplacements. Tunnel Tours cost £5.00 for adults and £2.50 for children. There are also re-enactments, ghost and evening lantern tours available. It’s a bit of a walk from the marina but you can hop on the 100 bus from outside the Dockside Outlet Shopping Centre. This bus will also take you into the town centre. The Royal Engineers Museum is just a short distance from Fort Amherst and showcases the modern life and history of a sapper (a military engineer) whose tasks may include building bridges to clearing landmines. Ticket prices are £8.20 for adults with children under 5 entering for free. The museum is closed on Mondays. The quiet cobbled street town of Upnor, with its Elizabethan artillery fort, lies directly opposite Chatham Maritime Marina and is well worth a visit. Upnor Castle was built to defend moored naval
Upnor Castle was built to defend the dockyard and is opposite Chatham Maritime Marina
The Historic Dockyard Chatham has three warships to explore. HMS Gannet 1878 below
Places to visit
Destination CHATHAM
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Staying longer?The cost of berthing a 10-metre boat for a month at Chatham Maritime Marina is £385.00. An annual berth for a 10 metre boat is £3,025.92.The advantage of keeping your boat at Chatham is that when bad weather makes the Estuary and North Sea uncomfortable, you still have the shelter of the River Medway to explore, with plenty to do locally. Lock access will not suit everyone but there is the assurance that your boat is safely confined in a locked basin, out of the current. From here you are within striking distance of Burnham-on-Crouch, St Katharine Docks, Ipswich, the non-tidal Thames, France and the Norfolk Broads. A berth holder told us that “the marina facilities are very good. They are always clean and well maintained” and added “the freedom berthing package means we can stay at other MDL Marinas free of charge”.
DistancesApproximate distances in nautical milesfrom Chatham Maritime Marina:Calais 70 milesRamsgate 42 milesDover 56 milesEastbourne 102 milesBurnham on Crouch 35 milesDunkerque 78 milesSt Katharine Docks 48 milesWoodbridge 63 milesAldeburgh 69 milesFor more information visit:www.chathammaritimemarina.co.ukwww.medwayports.comwww.visitmedway.orgwww.enjoymedway.co.uk
Neighbouring town of Rochester is worth a visit
warships from seaborne attacks. It is now run by English Heritage and entry costs £5.80 for adults and £3.70 for children. Sadly as pedestrians are not permitted to use the Medway tunnel, the town and castle are a bit of a hike using Rochester Bridge. It may be preferable to catch bus number 197 from Chatham Bus Station or hop in a taxi. Dickens World is another popular indoor attraction that explores Victorian life and the works of one of Britain’s best loved authors, Charles Dickens. You can experience a Victorian classroom and watch a 4D show of the life of Dickens. If you are in need of some retail therapy the Dockside Outlet Centre on the marina quayside is home to over 40 discount retailers including M&S, Cadburys and Clarks. It was built within the frame of the Grade II listed dockyard boiler house. In Chatham there is the Pentagon Shopping Centre and pedestrianised High Street featuring many household brands. Also in the town centre are The Brook and The Central theatres. Both offer live comedy, musicals, concerts and movie classics. You can find out what’s on via the
website www.enjoymedway.co.uk If you are in the market for buying a used boat, Clarke & Carter have a base at the marina on Leviathan Way, close to the marina office and lock. Chatham Naval Memorial is a large Grade II listed obelisk situated in The Great Line Heritage Park. As Chatham was a significant manning port of the Royal Navy during the First and Second World Wars, the obelisk was dedicated to sailors lost during these conflicts. Made from Portland stone, bronze plaques list 10,098 names of those who perished in WWII. It is an impressive but very moving landmark. River trips, jet boat tours and trips on the Edith May Barge operate from Sun Pier. Visit the Tourist Information office in Rochester or the website www.visitmedway.org for details.
The River Medway is a good stepping stone if you are travelling in and out of the Thames Estuary. If you are looking to stay on the river there are many secluded anchorages in the lower reaches of the
River Medway, such as Stangate Creek. The neighbouring town of Rochester is a lovely traditional place with a Norman castle, stunning cathedral and a cobbled high street with plenty of shops, cafes and restaurants. Members of yacht and boat clubs can moor (by arrangement, 01634 841350 [email protected]) on the Rochester Cruising Club pontoon. There is a club house serving hot food during bar opening hours and fuel is available for visitors who take an overnight mooring. The long outer pontoon has 24 hour access but you will need to be wary of the tide here when arriving and departing. If your boat draws less than two metres you can carry the flood tide upstream to Allington Lock. From here you can lock through and continue upstream on the non-tidal Medway but you will need to buy a river licence available from the lock keeper (example £36.70 per week and £73.50 a month for a 10m boat). You can tie up at Allington Marina, which is just above the lock, or outside the Malta Inn opposite. Further upstream both Maidstone and Tonbridge have town moorings available.
Further afield
There is lots to discover upstream on the River Medway
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Motorboat Owner 63 62 March 2014
All tests in Motorboat Owner are carried out by real boaters in real life situations
There is no doubt that having a bicycle or two on board is a useful thing when visiting new ports. They allow you to go off and independently explore further afield than you could on foot. Unfortunately, even the best fold up bikes are quite bulky, so storage is an issue on smaller boats. Could the Spymaster M1 be the answer? Well it is definitely compact, it only weighs 18kg but, and it’s a big but, it will set you back over £3000. Jumping on board for the first time, it takes a little while to get the hang of it. Once you do, it is actually quite simple to move forward, backwards, turn and even spin on the spot, all by leaning. The 1600w motor is lithium-ion powered and is said to offer a range of up to 12 miles with a four hour recharge time. It has two speed settings, the first limiting it to around 4mph and, with a flick of a switch, you have a top speed of 9mph. I would want to have a bit more practice on it before being unleashed on the fast setting. The handlebar is telescopic making it suitable for people of
all heights, and can be removed for transportation and storage. It can tackle slopes of up to 15° and when going downhill it uses the momentum to add charge to the battery. It handled some cobbles and small uneven steps in the paving with ease.To sum up, the M1 is different, it’s fun and it serves the purpose. It would not suit the self conscious, as literally everyone stops and stares and even comes to talk to you when you are on it, but for the extrovert with some spare cash, it could make the perfect gadget.
Spymaster M1 Chatham Sloop ProI tend to wear deck shoes pretty much every day, so they see more action than they deserve. My latest pair are Chatham’s Sloop Pro in navy/red. I took a bit of a gamble when these were new and wore them on day one to visit a trade show in the Netherlands. This involved walking miles over two days, and I can honestly say that they felt like a well worn-in pair of shoes from the moment I put them on. No blisters, no fuss. Like most modern deck shoes the Sloop Pro have mesh panels in the side. These are designed to let water out but on many deck shoes they tend to let water in. On the Sloop Pro these panels are high enough off the ground to keep water out when walking in the rain but step in a puddle and you are still going to have wet feet. The sole offers good levels of grip, I have pounded the frozen streets of Helsinki in winter, and even walked across a frozen harbour, and remained upright throughout. £100 is a lot for a pair of boating shoes, but wear them everyday like I do and the price makes a bit more sense.
Spymaster www.spymaster.co.uk
Reading about maritime disasters is probably not for every boater. Personally I am fascinated by such things, finding out how the smallest of errors can sometimes lead to such catastrophic results. Final Voyage is a book about some of the world’s worst maritime disasters. Most of us would expect the Titanic to be in there, but it isn’t. The reason being that in terms of loss of life, it actually doesn’t make the top 50 worst accidents, something that surprised me. Instead the book features disasters that have in some cases happened far more recently than the Titanic, and involved far more casualties. The Lancastria for example, on which between 3000 and 6000 perished just seventy years ago, and the Wilhelm Gustloff in which 10,000 people died in 1945. There are many others, equally tragic, that deserve to be remembered and their stories are told in a way that made the book hard to put down.
Final Voyage - The World’s worst maritime disasters
Motorboat Owner
Value 3/5Usability 5/5Performance 5/5
“Quite possibly the most comfy deck
shoes ever”
Chatham www.chatham-marine.co.uk
PRICE
£110PRICE
£3300
Lean forward to go forward and back to go back. Simple
Motorboat Owner
Value 2/5Usability 4/5Performance 4/5
“A fun, but expensive,
way to get around”
Adlard Coles Nautical www.bloomsbury.com
PRICE
£8.99
Motorboat Owner
“A gripping and sobering read”
5/5
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HOW TO
Batteries
A
The boat builder usually dictates the size of your battery bank
Battery Types - AGM, Gel, Lithium-ion
Lead acid batteries, like this AGM version, are made up of plates. These act as the cathode and anode, and are immersed in an electrolyte
Without access to shorepower, your batteries are your power lifeline
s boats become ever more complex, electrically, the demands on their batteries become ever greater. Battery technology has changed little over the years and most of us will still have a plastic case full of lead and sulphuric acid between an enjoyable time on board, or the frustration of non starting engines, dim lights and warm beer. Unlike the battery in your car, a boat’s domestic batteries are asked to work much harder. Starting an engine is easy, large power for short bursts, which is easily replaced by the alternator once the engine is running. A boat’s engine is only running for a small percentage of the time that you are aboard and yet you are probably drawing power from the batteries the whole time. This is fine if you are on shorepower and have a decent electrical system backed up with a good
The most common type of battery is still the old fashioned lead acid cell. The plastic case has six cells inside, fixed in series and each producing 2.1 volt, providing us with our nominal 12 volt battery. Each cell is made up of lead plates immersed in an electrolyte, which is sulphuric acid, and a galvanic reaction within the cell produces the voltage. Lead acid batteries are not sealed and this means
that we can access the individual cells to check the level of the electrolyte, top it up if required and test its strength.
AGM (absorbed glass mat) and gel batteries both work on the same principle as lead acid batteries, but the electrolyte is captured in a glass mat in AGM batteries and mixed into a gel in gel batteries. These types are useful where spills and gas escape are to be avoided and they can often be mounted in almost any orientation. Lithium-ion is the latest breakthrough in battery technology and has dragged batteries into the 21st century. They are light, can be more heavily discharged, can be charged quicker and take up less space. Unfortunately they are still very expensive and their introduction has not been completely without problems. Lithium-ion batteries have been known to catch fire, hence the grounding of the Boeing 787 fleet last year, and lithium battery fires can be difficult to extinguish. These cases arevery rare and are usually down to a faulty
best way of providing a better electrical system. It doesn’t just stop at adding a battery though; you also need to ensure that the charging systems on board, that is the alternators and battery chargers, are capable of dealing with the extra capacity. In basic terms the larger the battery capacity, the more powerful the charging source should be if you want to get charge back into the batteries in a useful amount
of time. If your battery bank is large, and your demands on it heavy, you can upgrade your alternator and increase the size of your battery charger for better results. As a very rough rule of thumb, a battery charger should have a rating of between 10% and 20% of your battery capacity, but it very much depends on how how you use your batteries.
mains powered charger, but if you are at anchor, on a buoy, against a river bank or on a pontoon with no power, you need to ensure you battery system is well specified and in top notch condition, The boat builder usually dictates the battery size and capacity you have on board. Once they have built the battery box, it is often difficult to increase capacity, although doing so is possibly the
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When batteries are charged they produce oxygen and hydrogen gas and overcharging can result in loss of electrolyte as the water part of the electrolyte vapourises hence the hydrogen and oxygen gases. Higher temperatures as typically found in a boats engine room can also increase gassing in batteries. Hydrogen gas is odourless and colourless but highly flammable. There is hydrogen in the air we breathe but at very low levels. If hydrogen is allowed to build up it
can reach explosive levels at concentrations as low as 4%. Good battery box ventilation can help but running engine room fans before starting the engines is a good safeguard against a potential hydrogen explosion. Although hydrogen is odourless, a battery producing an excess of gas will often give of a sulphur type smell. If you detect this in or around your batteries, turn off all charging sources, vent the area and investigate.
You will find numerous codes and numbers on a battery, but the useful ones are the CCA, or cold cranking amps, which is a measure of the batteries ability to supply power for short bursts such as engine starting, and Ah, which is a measure of its ability to provide long term power, usually measured over a period of 20 hours. Ah is the figure to look for when specifying domestic duty batteries. A battery marked 100Ah, indicates that it has a nominal ability to supply 100A. That could be 1A for 100 hours or 100A for 1 hour. The reality is that with greater loads, the capacity decreases, so in our theoretical case of a 100A load, the battery would probably run out of power after only 35 to 40 minutes. Lead acid batteries do not like to be run down to far or too often, as it will shorten their life. For this reason a bigger battery bank will actually increase the life of the batteries, as you will not drain them quite so far each time. It is often said that a lead acid battery designed for engine start duty will have a life as low as 100 cycles if used for domestic duty and completely depleted, whereas the same battery used for engine starting could have a lifespan of well over 1000 duty cycles. A battery designed for deep
cycle duty will have thicker lead plates, up to 5mm compared to 1mm for a starting battery, and will cope better with being discharged fully. Flattening any kind of lead acid battery is bad for its longevity and should be avoided if at all possible. When thinking about the capacity you require, it is a good plan to halve a battery’s stated Ah and build a system with effectively twice the capacity, or even more if possible, than you think you need. Even with the best care in the world, a battery will not last forever. Five years for a lead acid battery is considered the norm and anything over that, a bonus. As well as the number and depths of discharge affecting a battery’s life, there are environmental considerations too. An ambient temperature of around 25°C will provide the best conditions for a battery. It is reported that every 8°C above 25°C cuts a batteries life in half. A warm environment does at least offer increased capacity. The Ah of a battery is measured at 25°C but at 50°C you gain an extra 10% capacity. People often assume that cold kills batteries, when actually the opposite is true. Cold weather increases the life of your battery but it reduces its capacity.
Battery facts, figures, lifespan and longevity
This battery exploded after a build up of hydrogen gas. The resultant sulphuric acid spill is another hazzard
Cold does not kill a battery , but it will reduce its capacity
or poor charging regime. Lithium-ion is the battery that finally makes electric propulsion a possibility. It is used by car manufacturers for their electric and hybrid vehicles and in the boating world, Torqeedo use them for their electric inboards and outboards, and Mastervolt supply lithium- ion batteries for marine propulsion and domestic applications. Different battery types usually require different charging characteristics. You should never mix battery types on the same battery bank, and ideally all batteries on a bank should be the same size and the same age. If one battery in a bank fails and you replace just that one, the remaining older ones will bring the new one down to their level with the result that it will fail sooner that it otherwise would.
Lithium-ion batteries are the latest development. They are light and powerful, but expensive
Charging gases
Batteries are marked with figures that provide information about their capabilities
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HOW TO IN 6 STEPS
The first is a simple voltage check across the terminals. A fully charged battery should read 12.6 volts after a period of inactivity. A flat battery will read 11.8 volt.
The specific gravity (SG)of the electrolyte is a better way to determine battery health, right down to each individual cell.
Use a hydrometer to check the SG. Most, like this one, have simple red amber and green to determine health, but 1.265 is a good reading and 1.120 is flat.
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Keep the case of the battery clean and dry. Accumulated dirt, especially if it gets damp, can allow currents to track across the terminals resulting in a flat battery
If it is dark, use a torch to see inside the cells, a mirror might help. Never use a naked flame.If you find low levels, top up with distilled or de-ionised water
When electrolyte is lostthrough gassing it is onlythe water that evaporates, leaving a concentrated acidbehind. Topping up dilutes it back to usual levels
Once clean, give the terminal and connector a liberal coating of petroleum jelly. This will help keep the terminal corrosion free
You should periodically check the electrolyte levels in each cell. Start by removing the cell caps
With the caps removed, check the levels inside cover the tops of the lead plates. Some batteries have level markers inside each cell
HOW TO IN 9 STEPS
A periodic charge with a good quality charger is a good idea, alternatively leave them permanently connected to a quality trickle charger.
Don’t allow corrosion to build up on the terminals. This will increase resistance and result in a poor flow of current
Clean them with a small wire brush, or you can try the trick of mixing baking soda with a little water to form a paste and use an old toothbrush
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Apart from a healthy charge and discharge cycle, and providing the best environment for them, there are a few things you can do to maintain your batteries. Firstly, never leave them long enough self-discharge. Even if you leave them fully charged, a few months of idleness will see their levels drop.
Test your batteriesIf you suspect your battery is dead or dying there are a number of checks you can do. The capacity test of a domestic battery effectively uses up one of its cycles, and is not recommended to be carried out regularly. After load or capacity testing ensure you fully charge the battery.
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You can load test a startingbattery by measuring thebattery voltage while cranking the engine for 15 seconds. The voltage should not drop below 9.5V, and should recover to at least 12.4V
On a deep cycle battery you could replicate the 20-hour test by applying the correct load to the battery for 20 hours. In the case of this 80ah battery, a 50W/4A lamp. Always ensure the load is fused
With the load connected, it should take 20 hours for the voltage to drop to 10.5V. If it only takes 10 hours, the battery only has 50% capacity. Recharge batteries fully after any load test
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Prolonging the time you can spend away from shorepowerIf you have the biggest battery capacity you can fit, using the best quality batteries you can afford, there are still one or two things you can do to prolong the time you spend away from mains electric. One of the biggest users of power on board is surprisingly the boats interior lights. A 30ft boat can easily have as many as 15 light units, which are often fitted with 10-Watt halogen or filament lamps. If you have all of them on at the same time you will be drawing 13A from a domestic battery bank, which probably has a usable capacity of around 120Ah. You will flatten your batteries in not much more than nine hours, even if you are running nothing else. So turning off lights is good practice, but even better is replacing those halogen and filament
Swapping halogen or filament lamps to LEDs in light units can reduce your power demand by as much as five fold, and is a great way of extending battery life
lamps with LEDs. Like for like, these are typically between one and three Watts and even with all 15 lights lit you may only be drawing the same as with three of the 10-Watt lamps. Don’t forget the anchor light when swapping lamps, at up to 25 Watts for 10 hours, a filament lamp will consume over 20 Amps compared to an LED equivalent of 4 Watt, which will consume just over 3 Amps. Fridges are another item that can consume a lot of your battery reserve. Many boats now have two, so just using one is an easy way to half their power requirement. Another useful tip is to turn them up full when motoring or when on shorepower, maybe chuck in some ice packs into the freezer compartment at the top, and once moored up with engines off, turn them down to a lower setting. Keep them as full as possible, even if that means with bottles of water, as a full fridge stays cool longer and will use less power. Lastly open the door as few times as you can and for as short a period as possible.
A fully stocked fridge is more efficient than an empty one. Open it less and turn it down when off shorepower to conserve battery power.
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Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 7372 March 2014
Cruising in company is a fantastic way to broaden your experience and expand your cruising
horizons. It also offers great security for those venturing offshore for the first time. Our Cruise in Company team will be there before, during and after each passage, offering a helping hand, advice and assistance whenever it is needed. We also make all of the arrangements for your cruise, leaving you free to just turn up and enjoy your holiday.
WhereWe are starting in the Solent and will head off across the Channel to visit the Normandy coast of France. We will take in the ports of Cherbourg, St-Vaast, Dives-sur-Mer, Carentan and Caen.
What paperwork will I need?Compulsory paperwork:• Passports for all crew• The boat’s original Part I or SSR
registration document• Certificate of boat insurance
(at least £2m third-party cover)• Ship’s radio licence• VHF operator’s certificateRecommended:• Proof of the boat’s VAT status• EHIC health cover card• Travel Insurance• Manuals for all on-board systems• Coastguard CG66 registration
Do I need formal qualifications?Officially no formal RYA qualifications are needed for this cruise. If you have any, such as ICC, CEVNI etc, it s a good idea to bring them with you.
Do I have to carry certain equipment?As a minimum we ask that your boat is equipped to the levels laid out in the RYA publication C8/98 Cruising Yacht Safety. A full list will be sent out with your booking form but any vessel regularly going to sea should already be equipped to a suitable level.
How can I apply?Register your interest at [email protected] We’ll reply with a booking form which just needs filling out and returning to us by post.
How much does it cost?Entrance fees are £250 inc VAT per boat regardless of size. There is no limit to the number of people onboard and no hidden costs.
When2014 marks the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings. We will be departing on the 23rd of June and arriving back home on the 5th of July.
Can I come?All subscribers to Motorboat Owner are eligible to sign up. Spaces are limited and will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.
Can I bring any boat?We can accept any boat that is capable of making a cross Channel passage, has a safe range of at least 100NM and a cruising speed of at least 16 knots.
What does the entrance fee include?The fee includes all of the planning, admin work and any assistance you require during the trip. By being part of the group we may also be able to negotiate some discounts on berthing and possibly fuel, although this is at the discretion of the harbours visited.
What is the cancellation policy?Once your booking is confirmed, and payment made, a refund will be issued as long as the space can be filled. There will be an admin fee of £25, but other than that you will receive a refund right up until the day of the cruise as long as we can re book your place. How can I find out more?If you have a specific question not answered here, please feel free to email us at [email protected] or call Claire Frew on 01268 922993
What happens next?There are limited spaces available so please register your interest [email protected] soon as possible. We’ll reserve a space for you pending the return of your completed form and payment. Once this is received your place will be confirmed.
Expand your horizonsNormandy Cruise 22nd June -5th July
Motorboat
Owner
Cruise in Company
St-Vaast-la-Hougue
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 7574 March 2014
Viking 24 Length (LOA) 7.2m / 23ft 7inBeam 2.4m / 7ft 11inDisplacement 1700kgsFuel Capacity 25 litresWater Capacity 90 litresRCD category DEngine as tested:Mariner 30HP 526cc three cylinderOther Engine Options:Mariner 20HP 351cc two cylinderPrice from £35,800
BOAT TEST
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 7776 March 2014
A brand new 25ft four berth boat for under £35,000. That sounds almost too good to be true, but it isn’t. We
took a drive up to Cambridgeshire to see for ourselves what this very modest sum of money can get you on the new boat market. The Viking 24 is by no means a ‘new’ model. It was launched in 1996 and has remained pretty much the same ever since. We decided to test it not because it is new, ground breaking or hot out of the mould,
offers just about everything you could need. Getting onboard can be a little tricky from a low bank or pontoon. There is no bathing platform so access is over the cockpit sides. Carrying a small portable step would probably be beneficial for anyone of a certain age. Again stepping down into the cockpit means standing on the vinyl seats, our test boat had a small wooden stool on the inside that could be moved between sides and made getting on much easier. I understand this was something left over from a boat show but perhaps Viking could consider supplying one with each boat. Once inside the cockpit there is good standing headroom beneath the canopy, ranging from six foot aft to six foot six inches by the companionway. The deep cockpit sides that make boarding a little tricky offer great safety and a protection to the cockpit’s occupants. In the aft section of the cockpit is a U shaped seating area suitable for a family of four. This converts to a sunpad or you can use either of the on board tables, one round and the other a semi circle. Beneath these seats on the starboard
side is the gas locker, containing a single 4.5kg propane cylinder with room for a second if needed, and a gas water heater. The port side seating lifts to reveal the battery compartment, fitted with a pair of batteries with room for a third, and a portable fuel tank compartment fitted with a 25 litre tank and again, room for another if required. The middle section, and backrest, of the cockpit seating removes to provide really good access to the front of the engine and all the connections for basic servicing or checks, or to use the pull cord start in case of battery
but simply because on the new boat market it offers a great deal of boat for a small amount of money. Yes you could buy a small fast cuddy, and if speed and water sports are your thing, that’s exactly what you should do. But if you want sedate comfortable inland cruising with the family, the Viking 24
A stool aids boarding, the aft seating converts to a sunpad and the helm seat has an optional moveable backrest
The aft cockpit offers comfy seating around a table
The cabin feels very spacious with good headroom throughout
Motorboat Owner 79 78 March 2014
problems. A step up is required to get to the double helm seat. Beneath the seat is a storage locker and our test boat had the hinged backrest, which allows the helm seat to face aft and be part of the cockpit social scene, albeit a bit higher than everyone else and too high to use the table. Because the helm is high, anyone seated aft does not have a view forward when motoring but with the canopies down they would have an unobstructed view aft and to the sides. Entrance to the cabin is through the companionway on the starboard side. Down below the boat feels much larger than its 24 feet, due mainly to the helm being quite far aft. Headroom is great at six foot two inches by the companionway, six foot next to the galley and still 5 foot 10 inches by the dinette. The dinette is large, offering seating for five or six, although the table is only really suitable for up to four. This table drops to turn the dinette into a generous
double with over six foot in length and width dropping to just a foot wide at the point of the vee. The cabin is very light due to the nice wide windows on each side and the one facing forward, and the use of light oak woodwork. The hatch is positioned in the foredeck rather than on the coach roof making it easier to use in an emergency but not offering much in the way of additional light. Apart from the hatch, the only opening window is a small sliding one above the galley. Underneath the dinette seating is some cavernous storage, albeit unlined. In the bow section you will find the flexible 22 gallon water tank The galley offers a decent amount of storage with four drawers, two large cupboards and some open storage behind. The worktop space is increased by using a three-burner gas hob and sink, both with a closable lid, although with both in use your work surface would be limited. Below there is a gas oven, and opposite on the port
side, a 12-volt fridge and another useful cupboard. The separate toilet compartment offers five foot eight inches headroom and is equipped with a shower, fold down sink and porta potti toilet. The latter is far removed from those of old with a proper flush function and a cassette that is removed and installed through a hatch from the saloon. The heads are best described as simple, basic and functional. Aft of the toilet compartment and fitting in under the helm is the mid berth. This is a bit of a crawl in affair, gaining access through a hatch less than three foot square, but when through you have a double berth
“For inland, the Viking offers everything you could need”
RPM
Knots LPH GPH MPG Range (nm)
Low throttle 2.0 1.14 0.25 8.0 44Mid throttle 5.7 3.64 0.80 7.1 39Full throttle 7.0 12.3 2.70 2.6 14
performance As tested 100% fuel, 2 crew, Force 1
measuring seven foot long by four foot wide. Unlike many midships berths in boats of this size, this cabin has lots of natural light and ventilation due to the large aft facing opening window out into the cockpit. In the aft bulkhead of this cabin is a large hatch. Open this and you might be surprised to find what can only be described as a lazarette, a huge storage area. The hatch looks big enough to be able to use this space to store deckchairs, BBQs, gazebos or any other riverbank paraphernalia. I have never seen such a useful storage space on such a diminutive boat. Our test boat was not fitted with shore power, it is a £600 option, but with
The galley provides great facilities and plenty of storage. The mid cabin is light and airy and offers access to a huge lazarette
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 8180 March 2014
ENQUIRIES: Viking Mouldings Tel: 01371 875214 www.vikingcruisers.com
Sheerline 740
> neXT monTH Jeanneau Merry Fisher 855
You maY aLSo LIKe
LOA 6.4m Beam 2.5mDisplacement 1200kgsEnquiries: Shetland Boats 01359 235255 www.shetlandboats.co.ukPRICE from £26,000
LOA 7.4m Beam 2.9mDisplacement 1950kgsEnquiries: Sheerline Motor Cruisers01603 701100 www.sheerlinemotorcruisers.comPRICE from £85,198
Similar length to the Viking but with a wider beam, the 740 is a 2+2 berth boat powered by an inboard diesel engine and shaft.
Shetland 4+2 A smaller, and therefore slightly cheaper, alternative from another of Britain’s long standing names in small affordable inland boats.
of power and reaches hull speed long before running out of puff. To be fair, the 20hp would probably be a perfectly adequate choice and would save £1200 to boot. Noise levels are minimal, except under full throttle, and at around three knots the boat glides along almost silently. The boat suffers a little bit of torque steer and although the helm is light when going straight or making small corrections, to go from lock to lock under power takes a bit of effort. Prop walk sees the stern kick to port reliably, something you could make use of when mooring up.
ConclusionThe Viking 24 is a cracking little boat for a family looking for some inland
The toilet compartment has a porta Potti, a fold down sink and a shower
Shadow 24
LOA 7.32m Beam 2.59mDisplacement 2250kgEnquiries: Shadow Boats01603 712362 www.shadowboats.co.ukPRICE from £42,000
Shadow Boats has a three-model range. The 24 is the smallest, and provides a classic sportscruiser look with a small engine for inland use.
LED touch control lights fitted almost throughout, and a couple of 12 volt charging sockets, the batteries should supply all of your electrical needs, as long as the engine is run regularly. On deck the side decks are a very good size and, although there are no guardrails, there are grab rails all the way forward to the foredeck where a pulpit offers security for the crew. The anchor locker is large enough to store your fenders if you decide to take them in while underway and although there is no anchor handling kit you could also store a small anchor and
chain/rope in here for those rare occasions where it might be needed inland.
UnderwayHelming with the canopies up doesn’t impact on the great visibility the helm offers. The wraparound windscreen can be removed to lower air draft, leaving the steering wheel as the boat’s tallest point. The dash is basic with no engine instrumentation, although this could be added at a cost. For this reason our performance figures are based on GPS speed against known engine consumption at different speeds and are very much approximate. With the canopy up, standing helming is not possible due to lack of headroom. With all canopies stowed you can stand but to be honest it is not very comfortable as the seat and steering wheel are too close together, but useful nevertheless when coming in to moor. The windscreen comes with a wiper to provide some visibility in the rain but it only clears a small section of the screen. There is plenty of bare fibreglass on the helm to mount any number of instruments or electronics, which is not something you can say about many boats on the market today. The 30hp outboard provides plenty
adventures. The space on board is akin to many a 27 footer, and it offers all the creature comforts a family could need for weekends or longer aboard. The little four stroke, whether it be the 20 or 30hp will sip fuel, making the running costs very affordable, and it’s got to be one of the best value new boats on the market. The base price is attractive but Viking offer a Hi Line package that includes a number of useful extras at less than the sum of their parts, £3000 to be precise. This includes an oven and grill, hot and cold water, shower, cassette flush toilet and antifouling. You’ll probably want to add one or two other items from the options list, but you should be able to drive away a nicely spec’d 24 for under £40,000.
Motorboat Owner © Digital Marine Media Ltd 8382 March 2014
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