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Old 07-17-2018, 05:30 PM   #81
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Brian,

I will check the sizing and let you know.

The actual floppers (witches hat, weights, springs) came from Ocean Torque and are either size 3 or 4. The booms are custom stainless, sourced separately from a stainless guy in Brisbane. The ropes are very thin (but tremendously strong) Dyneema sheathed in a black cotton like substance to protect from the sun.

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Old 07-17-2018, 08:42 PM   #82
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Advice given to me for boom length was longer the better.
3 metres is my minimum as that's half a length of 100x3 ally tube and gets to the rail on the top deck.
A full length will be about 2m above roof line and probably getting a bit out there, though it would put off close anchorers.

I will be doing the arms like this, no fore and aft attachment ropes required
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Old 07-17-2018, 10:07 PM   #83
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Bogranjac1 made his own flopper stoppers for his Finn 8,and he was headed to Qld when he left NSW,several months ago. He likes warm, it`s been cold down south, perhaps he is still up north. Maybe he`ll come in on this,or a PM might be worthwhile.
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Old 07-18-2018, 04:44 AM   #84
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would be useful to know how much roll is mitigated by a single pole. if 70% as I was told would you bother with the second ? BrisHamish....can you post a pic of the actual in water component ?
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Old 07-18-2018, 04:53 AM   #85
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They are not double acting, they only provide damping when being raised. So I would think you need two in order for them to effectively counter roll.

The website Simi posted a link to has a pic of the underside. The top side would be a series of 'pie-shaped' flaps that lift up when the unit is falling/lowered.
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Old 07-18-2018, 04:45 PM   #86
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I'll be going this style reusing some old amplimesh security screens.
Don't look as flashy, but they'll stow flat against the arms and the price will be hard to beat

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Old 07-19-2018, 12:06 AM   #87
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Hi Guys,

I am in Melbourne today and tomorrow (its bloody freezing in The Bleak City!) but back in Brisbane on the weekend so will take some pics and post them then. The witches hat/spring/weight design of my system is shown on the Ocean Torque website which Simi has posted a link to.

I think you probably do need a pole on each side of the vessel if you really want to tame the roll.

Simi, the way you are constructing your poles is a good idea. I went with my design because, at the time, I had this notion that I would stow the poles away when not in use. In fact, I leave them in situ so if I had my time again, I would do it your way and thereby remove the need for the forward and aft ropes.

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Old 07-21-2018, 01:46 AM   #88
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We went out to Square Reef on Thursday. It truly is a great place. It was a bumpy ride into a 15kn easterly with swell that increased to about 1.5m before we got there. So some spray onto the flybridge. A southerly up to 20 kn was forecast for Saturday morning, so just one night there. There was not going to be another weather window while my brother is on board. Lots of whales, about 8 quite close. At one point I stopped to let 2 go across our bow. One then turned around and came back to within about a boat length of us!

A fishing trawler was anchored at the reef, but they got moving about 30 minutes before sunset. It was likely them anchored about 5nm NW of us near a little reef.

There were plenty of fish in the embayment/ semi-lagoon on the west side of the reef, but they proved elusive to catch. Fortunately we landed one Sweetlip for dinner! We left about midday to return to Nara Inlet, and the seas continued to flatten during the afternoon. We averaged 9kn on the way back to arrive before sunset. But I noted that I used 50% more fuel than on the way out, when we averaged 7.5kn. We were pushing current for some of that trip as well. The price of extra time in the lagoon!

Presently back at Shaw Island, and losing plenty of bait but not landing any fish. We'll try a few more islands tp the SE over the next few days. With 15-20kn SE forecast I'll pick good anchorages away from swell to enable a restful night's sleep.
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Old 07-21-2018, 02:58 AM   #89
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Mate I hope you and your brother had a great time at Square Reef. I thought it was an awesome place, sort of genuinely ‘wild’ - so few of those places left!

My eldest son Angus found the fish more forgiving, so we had a plentiful dinner!

Safe travels Brian.

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Old 07-22-2018, 08:37 AM   #90
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Guys for my flipper stoppers I have gone for the flat Magma stainless steel hinged units. So far pretty impressed with them at anchor. I have decided to shorten my arms by 1 my as with the rig I never use my fish stabilisers anymore.. They stow alongside inside my arms when raised..
Simon I would probably look at putting a fed dynema stay on your rig, it helps to keep everything nice and taunt.
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Old 07-22-2018, 03:55 PM   #91
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Why would you shorten the arms?
1) it'll cost and surely you could use an attachment point 1m in if needed.
2) if you do need to use the fish at a latter date the arms are now 1m short.

And Simon? Is that a typo for me?
Fed dyneema stay? I'm guessing that's rope from cabin top to arm end for support?
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Old 07-24-2018, 06:56 AM   #92
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Simi, shortened the arms mainly for accessibility. I required a small step ladder to reach the shackles at the top. I know I have reduced the leaver but am happier with being able to reach the shackles to change out my rope shocks etc. In reality will not make that much difference and be easier to handle.
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Old 08-02-2018, 05:35 PM   #93
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Update on my cruise. Following our return from Square Reef we went south as far as Goldsmith Island and then back up to Stonehaven Bay over a period of days. Although it was not a fishing trip per se we did dangle lines wherever we anchored. Without much luck I have to say. One surprise was stopping off for a bit at South Molle Island. The resort there looks to have have no work, not even a clean-up, post Cyclone Debbie. First pic gives some idea of this. Then, second pic is looking over to Daydream Island from the same spot where there is scaffolding and building activity. It sure does take time to recover form these disasters.
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Old 08-02-2018, 06:18 PM   #94
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From South Molle we went back to Airlie Beach and my brother went out to the friends farm where he had left his ute. He then headed south towards home, and within a couple of days reported that he had to pack away the shorts and resort to long pants again. Meanwhile, I decided to go north reasonably quickly along the coast and then return south along the reef once the SE tradewinds had dropped off.

This time in Airlie Beach we tried the Port of Airlie Marina. Like Abell Point Marina it is a relatively new facility and in good repair, perhaps mainly as a result of rebuilding post-Debbie. The marina is a much shorter walk to the shops, and still has room for additional fingers which will be added once berth sales support it. My only issue was that they had 15m, 16m and 20m berths. Although my boat is officially 15.24m it ends up as about 16.6 LOA. So I was put in a 20m berth and got charged that rate! At Abell Point I was in an 18m berth, which was a much better rate. Neither marina is really conducive to extended stays from a cost perspective even though there weekly and monthly rates offer discounts. I suspect a lot of people feel the same. There were plenty of empty berths, and outside the marina's there was a huge field of moored & anchored boats, somewhere between 100 and 200 at a guess.

Heading north I stopped overnight at Cape Gloucester, Cape Upstart, Magnetic Island and then Orpheus Island before entering the Hinchinbrook Channel for a couple of nights. Daily runs were anything from 20 to 70 nm. Then it was Mourilyan Harbour, a little port for sugar export ships. It has a fair bit of room to anchor in the Moresby River. The harbour entrance is between some steep forested rocky hills, and inside is delightful and quite calm. There isn't much ashore, but apparently transport to the nearby town is available.

I bypassed Johnstone River/Innisfail despite Lucas' Guide glowing review of the latter. Glady's Inlet is very shallow and needs a good tide for entry. Perhaps I will call in on my way south. I had lingered at Mourilyan Harbour in the morning before leaving, so stopped in Mission Bay, under Cape Grafton, rather than going into Cairns.

Indeed, instead of Cairns I'm now making for Half Moon Bay Marina at Yorkeys Knob, only a short distance to the north. They have fuel, and an excellent berth rate. I have covered 1292 nm and used 3000 litres of fuel since leaving Brisbane. I'll add some fuel, and replenish perishable supplies before the last foray to the north.

At this point I'm not sure how far I will go past Lizard Island. According to Lucas, Lizard is the usual turning point for sailors as the favourable northerly winds later in the year don't really appear beyond there. And during the winter and early Spring the SE trades are stronger further to the north, which I can do without. On the plus side, this far north the reef is semi-continuous and swell essentially non-existent.
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Old 08-02-2018, 08:30 PM   #95
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Lizard Is is another great spot Brian, you will enjoy that. Try and spend a couple of days there if you can (and weather permits).

You got a lot of distance covered for not a lot of fuel, IMHO.

I enjoy reading this thread, takes my mind off work a bit. The other thing I have been doing to distract myself is installing new bits of kit on Beluga - including 1 year old but unused helm chairs - see photo.

H.
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Old 08-02-2018, 09:32 PM   #96
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I usually run at 1600 rpm, and use a bit under 20 lph total. Depending on current this is typically just over 8kn (trip average less), and is the cruising sweet spot for me in this boat. As I noted earlier, I can average 9kn on a trip and use 50% more fuel, which generally isn't worth doing.

I'll certainly spend a few days at Lizard, but I am contemplating going as far as Princess Charlotte Bay, weather permitting.

Twin helm chairs are a great idea, and they look really good.

I will probably add some flopper stoppers when I get back to Brisbane. I often find that even if there is only a little swell the wind waves can cause enough low amplitude fast motion to overwhelm the KVH M5 sat dish tracking, spoiling my TV reception!
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Old 08-04-2018, 12:01 AM   #97
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This little boat caught my eye at the marina. Initially I though it was a Sealegs copy, but with tracks rather than wheels. But is actually a Sealegs drive system (placques inside the transom). It has a 4 cylinder diesel that has a fan/radiator, so it does not need a water intake. But its all a lot of weight and the Mercruiser stern drive leg is fully submerged.

It is used as a tender for pilot boats in Far North Queensland where there are no jetties.
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Old 08-04-2018, 12:19 AM   #98
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I anchored at Low Isles, NE of Port Douglas. Then a couple of sailboats left and I picked up one of the National Parks mooring buoys they had vacated. There are 3 here, rated 25m mono (20m multi) to 34kn wind. There is a four hour limit, but as that takes me well beyond 5pm I can stay overnight.

Being close to Port Douglas there is a procession of tourist boats of various sizes. Four operators have pontoon boats on their own buoys, and ferry snorkellers and others to shore. The lighthouse remains, and the lightkeepers cottages are now used now National Parks staff.

I'm aiming for an early start. Next stop is Hope Island and then likely Cape Bedford before reaching Lizard Island. I may get internet connectivity for one more day (off Cooktown) but then I'll likely be off-air for 3 weeks. After Lizard for a few days I am considering Princess Charlotte Bay for a couple of days. Its an easy run there, but likely bashing into short 1.5 to 2m waves coming back. The SE winds usually only start to weaken in Sep, with increasing frequency of calm-ish (E or NE) winds through October
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Old 08-08-2018, 09:46 PM   #99
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After Low Isles my next stop north was East Hope Island. It's a really nice little sand cay with dense vegetation. National Parks have hacked out 3 seperate campsites there, and a long drop nearby, but you could not go a metre beyond what they have cleared without a machete (which would be against the rules anyway). Quite dense undergrowth and trees. Each campsite has 4 treated pine posts to hoist a shade tarp.

There were 2 buoys for use there, both rated to 20m mono. I picked one up, and the other was occupied by an old bay cruiser with junk cluttering just about every square inch of deck that was running power tools quite a lot, as well as loud music. Fortunately he was a fair way away. In between were a couple of sailing cats who were spending some days there, as it was a great place to kite board at better than half tide.

I left Hope at dawn, planning on overnighting at Cape Bedford. But after anchoring there for a bit I decided that the swell was on the beam often enough to be annoying. The bay was somewhat uninspiring, and the water slightly cloudy. Croc country, so no swimming. I had plenty of daylight to go further, so went north on the east edge of the shipping lane.

The winds were forecast to drop below 10 kn for a day so I overnighted at Rocky Islets, about 10nm south of Lizard Island. The semi-lagoon was a good anchorage, but high sun angle is advised for entry as there are isolated coral bommies even well offshore. It was another densely vegetated island, and this time with no entry signs, protected for bird nesting etc. There were crocodile warning signs as well, although I saw no slides and I suspect that it might be a ploy to deter people from going ashore.

Surprisingly I have a phone connection at Lizard Island. The Cel-Fi GO is picking up one bar, perhaps tagging into the Resort or the Research Station - not sure. The Resort's website says they don't have mobile phone access, just limited WiFi in a couple of common areas. On m way north I had lost reception off Cape Flattery, and was not expecting to regain it. The Resort's old Marlin Bar is open 3 days a week for the public (boaties) to visit if they wish. Burgers on Monday, Tapas on Wednesday (which was delicious lat night) and pizza on Friday.

Hickers posted a couple of years ago that he spent a windy 3 weeks here, and was the only powerboat. When I arrived there was a tired 40+ ft powerboat and 4 sailboats. Since then a Palm Beach 55 arrived, and anchored on top of me the first night, but they moved this morning even without any action from me, which I appreciated. They took the spot the a sailing cat was using until they left this morning. A couple more sailboats have arrived, as well as a fishing trawler. Winds are forecast to get into the 30kn range for the rest of the week but then ease back to 15+ for the weekend. So that's when I'll go across to Princess Charlotte Bay, just for a couple of days. A number of the sailors are en route to Darwin, and ports further afield. Some are waiting to go south, and the better weather for that starts in about a month.

With the high winds there have been light rain showers. Daytime temps in mid twenties, and probably high teens at night would be as cold as it gets. Water temps are likely around 24. This is based on feeling cold in the water after about an hour. I'll have to check actual temp when I'm next in the RIB as the boat's tri-ducer has been giving 84°C for a couple of years, which it most definitely is not! Airmar seem to have issues with their temp sensors, as other members have noted on TF previously.

The Resort runs has a couple of boats around 50'. These are used for trips to the Outer Reef, including the Codhole, as well as their 'sunset cruises' around the bay. IIRC the resort prices start at about $3000/night/room. It has 40 suites/villas, some with private plunge pools. It had to be extensively rebuilt after a cyclone in 2014. I'll only see it from a distance!

Pic shows part of the resort and their boats, with low tide making the reef patches easy to see.
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Old 08-12-2018, 05:35 AM   #100
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Hi Brian,

looks like you are doing well ?, a well managed stress free Cruise. Lizard is such a great place !! Enjoy.

cheers Chris D
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