Pining for warmer weather...

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The one area that I forgot to mention was the placement of everything at the helm. A good pilothouse has an elevated seat at a control station (sort of a wrap around desk). Most lower helms have you sitting at an elevated counter that is generally more functional if you stand at it versus being seated. There is also much less of the wrap around effect. At a good helm station, all gauges and displays are angled as much as practical to be perpendicular in both the horizontal and vertical plane to your line of sight when seated. If you find yourself moving as opposed to rotating eyes or head to see a display or gauge better, it was poorly placed. Finally, are engine controls well placed relative to the helm wheel. Can you operate both at the same time or does the positioning make it awkward. Next time you go on an unfamiliar boat, sit at the helm and decide how well everything faces you and how natural operating the wheel and engine controls feel.

Ted

I agree totally on positioning and on having a full helm, not a seat in the corner. Also have been shocked at some good builders with really bad seats, some then poorly positioned or the wrong height too. Although typically Pilothouse's are well laid out, I've also been in some that were poorly laid out and you'd sit in the helm chair and nothing seemed right. Then you looked around and saw the angles of some of the screens you needed, like something you couldn't really read unless you leaned over or stood.
 
It was a little cold this morning, here in Punta Gorda, but so far the winter has not been too cold.
60 Degrees with no wind.
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I have MUCH less experience with power boats than almost everyone here. Even so, I find that I agree completely with Ted's views on a proper PH. I have a decent PH, not perfect, but very good. The only way to improve my PH would be to make it larger, but that would entail other trade-offs. Maybe I just need to buy a North Pacific 49. It has what I would consider an ideal PH. All it takes is an extra 6' of boat and a lot more $$$.

Since I have never operated a boat from a lower helm station that is part of the saloon I can't know for sure, but I don't think I would like it as much.

I have a flybridge and even though I don't use it a lot, I think it is well designed and fits well with the boat. It is definitely setup as a secondary as opposed to primary helm position.
 
Someone mentioned earlier the role location and cruising grounds plays in Pilothouse vs. Flybridge vs. Lower Helm. We left Miami Beach yesterday morning around 7 AM and started at the lower helm. However, we quickly moved to the flybridge and have been running the boat from there since then. Both day and night we've had temperatures in the range of 73 to 76 degrees. It's comfortable plus you experience the beauty of the night sky more, and the breeze is nice to keep you alert. 32 hours down, 20 or so to go.
 
A pleasant winter day in central San Francisco Bay:

 
It's gorgeous down here in Elizabeth Harbor! In the upper 70s today but a bit breezy. IMG_20170122_172441.jpg
 
Wifey B: Well, on the south coast of PR it's currently 81 degrees and seas are 1' at 4 seconds. Winds are 7 knots. There is no snow in the forecast. :D
 
It should be a good week to dry the washing and paint the shed :D

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It should be a good week to dry the washing and paint the shed :D

Tue.
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41°​



Wed.
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43°​



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Fri.
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43°​



Sat.
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42°​



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Hey Gaston - you might point out that our temps are centigrade, therefore 41 degrees is actually 105 Farenheight - in any language, that's bloody HOT!!!
 
I`m thinking they are western Sydney temperatures,where the sea breeze can`t penetrate. The whir of aircon and spinning electricity meters must be deafening. We hit 37C yesterday.
This morning in Sydney it`s 21C, after a cool change yesterday, a mere 27C max predicted. I`m refinishing Doriana`s name and port boards at home, the Cetol is drying nicely.
 
They predicted 43c it ended up 47c at 3pm In a little town calld "Come By Chance" in New South Wales. 800000 acres is a hobby farm :)

Come By Chance is a locality in the Pilliga district of northern New South Wales, Australia. It is located about 100 kilometres north of Coonabarabran in the Walgett Shire. At the 2006 census, Come By Chance had a population of 187
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I made several trips years ago to the refinery in Come By Chance, but it was in Newfoundland, CA. It is currently -4C there. I don't think I want to be in either place.
 
You can sit under a tree with a beer to cool off at 47c you cant sit under a tree with a beer at -47 to warm up ;)
Theoretically, the beer to ambient temperature deviation is higher at -47 than 47, so the mass heat transfer is higher in the colder clime. [emoji12]
 
As my small animal surgeon wife would say,
"Anything over 28C is puppy and kitten drowning weather"
 
I was born on the Canadian border in January during a Clipper. Been heading south ever since.
In 77 I was on the 38th parallel in Korea and have not lived north of 29.50 since.
 
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