Table of contents for July - August 2015 in PassageMaker

The freshly announced steel-built Bering 77 is the big sister to the Bering 65, adding 161,000 lb. of displacement alone, and has already been commissioned by two existing Bering owners. Among its specification changes, the new design adds 2,500 gallons of fuel and nearly triples the freshwater supply to 1,160 gallons. Like all trawlers in Bering’s expedition series, the 77’s proud bow and freeboard scream long-range cruising with extreme comfort, as the hull shares her predecessors’ bulbous bow design, twin-engine configuration, hard chines, and prop-protecting gondolas. When all that height is added up, the superstructure stands a whopping 35 feet, 8 inches off the water. The 77 is scheduled for CE Ocean A sea-state certification irrespective of her delivery destination. Standard power gets an increase to twin Cummins QSM-11s, with…

Wave-making resistance is the greatest enemy of speed and fuel economy. It develops as a displacement hull accelerates from rest, and it peaks at the yacht’s theoretical maximum speed of about 1.34 times the square root of her waterline length. At this top speed, the distance between the bow and stern waves equals the yacht’s waterline length, trapping her in the trough between them. It’s an ugly sight. Using this theory, we may generally assume that short displacement hulls have a lower top speed than do long ones, but both remain confined to the theory’s speed/length ratio. Naval architects can defeat this theory by drawing a planing hull—an extreme solution—or by manipulating a displacement hull’s shape below the datum waterline (DWL). A hull with a high fineness ratio—long and narrow—…

It’s been a long-standing joke among boat owners that, once a person buys their first boat, they immediately get a case of biggerboatitis. That’s the strange (and repetitive) disease that makes skippers want a boat bigger than the one they own. Landlubbers often view this affliction as a desire for more luxury: more cabins, bigger galleys, and more status. The reality for seasoned skippers, however, is that bigger boats can just plain do more. Bigger boats are more comfortable on long passages, they can handle rough weather better and— here’s the biggest attraction—they can go farther. For many of the yachts on these pages, transoceanic passages are no more difficult than hitting the start buttons and casting off. Want to make the 3,800 nm passage from Miami to Gibraltar? For…

The IRIS Nightspotter Handheld Thermal-Imaging Scope ($2,795; www.boat-cameras.com) can help mariners to see through darkness—and in some cases fog—to spot close-range obstacles, unlit navaids, and objects in the water, including a man overboard. Thermal images can be viewed in either white-hot, black-hot, or redhot color palettes based on user preference. A built-in LED flashlight helps identify targets in close, and a composite video-out port in the IP67 waterproof case allows the thermal image to be viewed on compatible displays. For more onboard optics, see Paraphernautica on page 90.…

WEEMS & PLATH BINOCULARS Why do so many cruisers carry two binoculars? Part of the answer is redundancy, but another reason is that many captains consider binoculars a very personal piece of gear. They don’t want to have to readjust all their personal settings after some intruder changes everything to check out that bald eagle. Weems & Plath gets that. The fine instrument maker, based in Annapolis, Maryland, has launched a new line of 7x50 waterproof binoculars for those persnickety skippers. There are four models, ranging in price from $190 to $550, including the Explorer model pictured here. The Explorer features an illuminated compass and range finder reticle for users taking readings on the water. All models are infused with argon gas for improved light transmission and fog prevention. Visit:…

ANCHORS A-WEIGH Regarding the comments from Mr. John Wicks, who wrote, “weight is a crucial element in ground tackle,” (Letters, April 2015). I would like to mention that we manufacture eight anchor sizes all the way up to a 70 lb. model, so my advice for him is to simply purchase a heavier Fortress model if anchor weight is a concern. In his letter to the editor, Mr. Wicks also made it clear that he wasn’t overly fond of the concept of aluminum anchors. However, after hundreds of thousands of anchor sales, and nearly as many saved backs and marriages, Fortress has proven time and time again that the design, and the anchor’s ability to immediately engage and bury deeply into common sea bottoms, is a more critical performance factor…

Corrosion and oxidation are the enemies of good electrical connections. Moisture will lead to corrosion, while airflow will lead to oxidation. If we can keep out the moisture and the air, we have a good chance of achieving a long-lived, reliable electrical connection. Fortunately, the marketplace offers a dazzling array of products that promise to solve this problem. Unfortunately, the marketplace also offers such a dazzling array of products that promise to solve this problem, leaving the cruiser to wonder which product to use, and when. One product proclaims to “literally ‘copperplate’ mating surfaces to improve conductivity.” One of our technicians ran a bead of this product across a plastic surface and then connected one lead of a test meter to one end of the bead and the second lead…

I GOTTA SAY- Coastal Craft president Jeff Rhodes and naval architect Gregory C. Marshall put some serious thought into the design of the lower helm station of the Coastal Craft 65 Concord. As Rhodes and I sped across the flat-calm waters of Howe Sound, not far from Coastal Craft’s home port of Gibsons, British Columbia, I felt like I was drivin’ a big, broad-shouldered, bluewater-capable, allaluminum motoryacht while kicked back in the cushy comfort of a Herman Miller Eames Chair, ottoman included. Ergonomics were partially responsible. The sweetly contoured, topstitched leather Stidd helmseat I was sitting in had been precisely installed and perfectly adjusted height-wise to produce superb sightlines over the bow throughout the rpm register. And then there was all that wraparound safety glass—the sightlines I was enjoying were…

Offshore cruisers spend many hours, much money, and considerable effort preparing for the worst that nature and chance can throw at us, and then use all the resources at our disposal to ensure that the effort and expense are not needed. In practice, with today’s weather forecasting options, unless you plan to venture into higher latitudes or cruise the tropics during hurricane season, there is little likelihood of being caught by surprise in extreme weather. Over the course of three decades and tens of thousands of open-ocean miles beneath the keel, including multiple crossings of the Gulf of Mexico, the North Sea, and the Atlantic, I have never seen more than 40 knots of sustained wind, and nothing over 50 knots in short-term squalls. Nevertheless, the effort to plan and…

DIFFICULTY HOW HEALTHY TOTAL TIME: 3.5 hours MAKES: 1.5 cups It’s early morning on the boat, just barely light in that predawn time I love. Not even a ripple on the water. Suddenly I hear a breath and turn my head just in time to see the fin of a dolphin disappear beneath the surface. A dozen more follow seconds later. Dave then points to an osprey searching for his breakfast. We watch, transfixed, enjoying the magic. But we also know that in just a couple of weeks, our winter cruise will be ending and the boat will return to storage for the summer hurricane season. A bit later, over breakfast, Dave put into words what we’d both been thinking: “I don’t want to go back.” And so the discussion…

When Seconds Count I have been an avid sport fisherman for about 20 years, and operate a charter businesss that takes small groups fishing in the Pacific Northwest. With countless hours on the ocean and a U.S. Coast Guard Master’s Captain License, I am no stranger to the sea and am always aware of how fast things can change on the water. This day began like any other. I had a charter crew of four men; three from Montana and one from Southern Oregon who were eager to go offshore for an albacore tuna adventure. The prediction was for seas of 6 to 8 feet, with the potential for high winds in the afternoon. I explained to the guys that the weather was not ideal, but should be fishable. With…

ATL EXTENDED-RANGE FUEL BLADDERS Need a little extra juice to reach that far-off dream destination? Aero Tec Laboratories (ATL) has just the thing. Their all-new FueLocker range extension tanks are made from super-strong, military-grade rubberized material that resists puncture and wear while allowing the bladders to be fully collapsible for easy stowage. The FueLocker is higher standing than others, allowing them to consume a reported half of the normal deck space eaten by bladders of equal volume. ATL offers bladders in a wide range of sizes and prices to fit almost any cruising boat, starting with the smaller 50-gallon ($844) to the top-end 500-gallon ($2,717) version. All bladders can be filled from a standard pump and can hold nearly every type of fuel. Visit: www.atlinc.com THE DITCH KIT’S SURVIVAL CASE…

I was strolling through the 2014 Annapolis Powerboat Show, heading toward the trawlers, passing rows of look-alike center-console fishing boats and more rows of expensive go-fast overnighters with amorphous shapes. Then, I came upon something completely different. Within that sea of fiberglass, a long, narrow vessel with sharp lines, traditional sheer, and twin outboards stood out: the Eco Trawler 33. The big reel winch on the foredeck holding the anchor rode and the twin outboards were eyebrow raisers, and the surprises kept on coming as I stepped aboard for a closer look. This was a semi-displacement hull made of welded aluminum. It had hard chines and a workboat air about it, but was finished out as a nice, comfortable cruiser for two. To my mind—as a sailor for more than…

The anchor platform on this Wesmac provides an elegant solution to a common problem: Silt and mud runoff from the anchor chain. On most boats, the grimy water runs onto the foredeck and then down both side decks. Here, both a perimeter dam and a slope have been designed and molded in so that the runoff is contained and directed toward a drain at the after end. The recessed washdown connection keeps the area clear. A sacrificial piece of synthetic material fastened in place under the chain would protect the paint from chafing. With many stories about failure, I have mixed opinions regarding the chain swivel between the end of the chain and the anchor. Best practice says to secure the anchor under way by means of a chain lock,…