The long way home

[klee wyck]

To answer Dhays question from the chain bitter end thread rather than hijack that one.

Prep is going well I think, though nothing happens quickly in the marine trades it seems.

Systems that I think are ready, though not thoroughly time tested: Electrical, mechanical/drivetrain, and HVAC. The electrical was a bit of a project as you would imagine and we went further than originally planned. The electrical system with its 5 voltages (yes 5, 2 DC and three AC) was very complicated and included numerous relays for automatic switching based on sensing power sources. We eliminated much of the automatic switching and went to manual selector switches instead. Thanks to Victron I should now be able to plug into virtually any shore power in the world and still run the boat as she is with 12 and 24 volt DC , 220 volt single phase AC and 220 and 400 volt three phase AC. I would say that 90% of this boat is DC so there are few appliances that I would need to worry about replacing at European voltage and frequency. So far I have only found the laundry, coffee pot and microwave. There are of course some motors involved in this in the tankage systems and windlass but I am not going to fear sourcing those should they need replacment. The mechanical and drive train issues from survey were relatively minor to solve once we had clean fuel. The diesel fired furnace to a multitude of radiators throughout the vessel have made a very harsh NW Winter quite pleasant on the boat. I am going to leave the household sized and plumbed toilets as is for now based on advice from contractors. It was odd not having marine type toilets at first but I am warming up to the idea, tanks and all.
Projects left are comnav equipment and rode lengthening. The comnav is virtually a start over which is OK with me. The Robertson AP might be salvageable but is currently not seeing a fluxgate. I am considering a GpS compass considering the steel hull. It has one helluva AP pump in the engine room that I think also runs the joystick steering.
For those who might be so kind as to comment on my comnav choices here is the plan. The reason this is last is that these decisions have not been easy for me du to lack of experience and knowledge.
For charting I plan to go CE on PC and have Navionics on a PAD in Lifeproof box as backup. Radar will be Furuno 6KW 1945, Vesper AIS, and still fussing about sonar for depth/bottom contour/fish. I want stand alone display for that and have planned to abandon the EchoPilot forward looking sonar to use the same hole for the new transducer. I will need at least one more radio which I hope will also serve as hailer/fog. I agree that the new Standard Horizon due out in March looks extremely handy in that regard.

I want most of this out of my hair by mid March.

 

[dhays]

That standard horizon would be nice as it would give you the Class B AIS.

I hope to see her on the water some time.

 

[Nomad Willy]

If it were me, I would sell that boat to me so you don't have worry about the anchor problem. [emoji41]

Dude,
Sounds like you're reading a Larry McMurtry book ... as
I am now.

 

[North Baltic sea]

I am going to try this again because:
A. I figured out how to get the pictures right side up and
B. I got exactly zero input on my question and I really would appreciate helpful advice on this.
How many of you use a two anchor system? Do they foul each other on tide or wind changes? How far apart do you drop them?
I am having hard time warming up to two but also not sure how to make a good switch to one. This boat is not easy to fit on an anchor chart because of the length to weight disparity. At 52 feet and 114000# there are three anchor sizes between one recommended for this weight and one recommended for this length. Go with the largest and that is one very big anchor and brings the two anchor idea back into play.
I am also not sure what this windlass is going to do with one very large anchor. It looks like the current set up pulled one anchor at a time. It is an external electric motor driving a gear that is coupled to the windlass gears by two V belts.
What would you do?

Twins anchor rules for vessel


When using two anchors grip increases only in the event that the anchors are close to each other, (not more than 30 degrees to each other), and the chain is sufficient outdoors.
While the vessel is moored with two anchors should be controlled in turn depend on the ship's anchors in such a way as to avoid confusion with anchor chains.


ANCHORING stern Mortgages
2.Two anchors for approaching moorings parallel to the dock or the shoreline far enough away from it. When the first anchor is calculated, continue forward or backward, until agreement is reached on this about four times the depth of the corresponding distance when calculating a second anchor. After this, the stern of the vessel turned towards the moorings and act as has been said in the previous paragraph.



Removal is carried out in such a way that the chain is removed first, and the ship is using the machines in such a position that the lifting anchors is safe and can be free to deal with the beginning of the anchors detached from the bottom. Often it is necessary to keep upwind stern rope stick and give it to loosen, until the origin is clearly outside the space for mounting.

 

[klee wyck]

A little update for the journey to US cruise ready.

We have decided to keep both anchors and just lengthen the chain on one.

We should be headed for a short trip to the yard soon as the last step to cruise ready. We need a shipwright to replace a cabinet we removed for the fuel and tank cleaning episode. We need the bottom and zincs refreshed, and we need that chain added/replaced.

The comnav installation is just about done. We have the wire to pull to the rudder for rudder angle indicator for the pilot, one camera wire to pull, and when we are in the yard we will remove the forward looking transducer from the Echopilot and replace with the Simrad transducer for down view.

One of these photos is the radar mount that was built for us by Seaview. I am quite impressed with it. All of the wires from the radar, GPS, VHF antennae, and yes, that is a compass up there, are run through this mount that is directly above the pilothouse dash. Very short clean runs.

I am excited, we are getting close.

 

[Wxx3]

I'm late to this post, but I love the ComNav and they are in your neck of the woods.
See you up there next year.

Richard

 

[CPseudonym]

You have outstanding taste for boats Bill. Best of luck at the yard.

 

[klee wyck]

Craig,
Some of TFs more interesting boats seem to end up spending some time in Blaine it seems. I saw Delfin up close here late last year and today got a look at Skookum Maru which was also a treat. That is a very cool and unique boat. I missed Paul (QB) but one of his helpers on their project was there and let me have a look at it. Based on what I saw, when the project is done and she emerges from the boathouse she will be one fine looking ride.

 

[CPseudonym]

One of these days I'm going to make a trip to Blaine and I'm jealous you saw Delfin, she's a real looker. I like her owner a lot too. I haven't seen the SM but take your word for it haven't noticed a post from QB in a while. Our next trip north I'm hopeful to hit Port Townsend for the Wood Boat Festival. TF boat Ebbtide is supposed to be on display there and it's a must see for me as hands down the best looking Grand Banks to my eye.

 

[FlyWright]

One of these days I'm going to make a trip to Blaine and I'm jealous you saw Delfin, she's a real looker. I like her owner a lot too. I haven't seen the SM but take your word for it haven't noticed a post from QB in a while. Our next trip north I'm hopeful to hit Port Townsend for the Wood Boat Festival. TF boat Ebbtide is supposed to be on display there and it's a must see for me as hands down the best looking Grand Banks to my eye.

Craig, we should put together a Californian Contingent to check out the next TrawlerFest. I saw Darren's (Moonfish) video of Bremerton and it looked exceptional. Recognized a couple boats in the quick walk-thru.

I'd also need to look up Delfin in those waters. I miss his wisdom here.

 

[klee wyck]

Well SM will belong in that show when she is done. Stem to stern, top to bottom she is all wood and classic wood at that. Defies her age.

 

[CPseudonym]

I look forward to seeing her Bill, thanks for the scouting report.

Al I'll take a rain check on Trawler Fest this year. I chose to gut and remodel our house inside and out this summer and am already committed to a month out of state between now and September. At this rate I should finish putting my house back together by fall of 2018. I know I know, Jennifer is already threatening to strangle me but she likes the idea of brand new everything.

 

[klee wyck]

Do any of you PNW folks know who besides Seaview can haul 60 tons within a few hours of Blaine? Looks like we will wrap up the 'at the dock' stuff this week. I can do Seaview but if someone has had good experience at another yard near here I would like to check it out.

 

[twistedtree]

Delta, but it's probably further than you want to go. They have 400 ton travel lift.

 

[Ted]

You could try Philbrooks

Philbrooks Boatyard > Home

Ted

 

[klee wyck]

Thanks Ted and TT,
I would love to try Philbrooks, Sydney is real close and they have a great reputation. I am guessing they are jammed up but worth a try to call.

 

[klee wyck]

It has been two years since we surveyed, trialed, and closed on this ship and about a year and half since we got her home from Holland.
I thought I would make a closing entry on this thread as the commissioning phase winds down (for now). We were out for a joy ride yesterday after several sea trials for various projects over the last year and a half. I think we are there in terms of cruise ready and planning a four day trip to Rosario on Orcas Is. for an athletic event that some of my family is participating in. We expect to sleep and feed nine for that weekend!
She exceeds my expectations would be a reasonable summary.
This seems to be a very stable platform.
At heavy as she is, you are not going to push her speed at all. The power plant is very comfortable at 1500 rpms and we gain virtually nothing past that. The industrial Mercedes is designed continuous duty and I have found no way possible to build engine, exhaust, or tranny temps.
I think I am going to love dry stacked and keel cooled.
Driving this boat has been an exceptionally pleasant surprise. It is big and heavy and you intuitively expect that to be difficult but she wants to stay where you put her. With the thruster and flanged rudder you can drive her exactly sideways when in close quarters. This is good since her weight precludes being able to do much at all with her lines in terms of moving her to where she needs to be at a dock. With less visibility to dock from this helm than Klee Wyck, we have taken to headsets so that I can put her exactly at station for Laurie to tie off. That has been working awesome.
The fuel management system project turned out really nice and very comforting. I will try to post some pics of the new very large dual Racor set up and new lines if I remember.
Electrical system conversion is a tribute to C-tech, the designer and installer and I can recommend them without reservation for a Euro conversion as well as for electrical protection on a steel hull.
The combination of the NFU jog steering and the AP70 is a real treat. That autopilot is really something in terms of what it will do and the conditions it can manage. Commissioning was not without some pain.
This radar is a crispness that I have never previously encountered.
I was hopeful about the two camera additions but do not really get much out of them. I would not repeat that choice.
This Euro boat stores both black and grey water for pump out only and I can tell you that doing chores on a 250 gallon holding tank is something you plan for in advance and block out some time.
Household size toilets are nice to use for sure but see above. They use a lot of water and create a large volume of waste water!
Diesel fired hot water heat thru radiators is an uncommon comfort in a PNW Winter. Klee Wyck has a Hurricane diesel furnace with forced air over coils which is quite nice, but I may like these radiators better. I am sure we spent 60 days on her since November and comfortable every minute. Never turned the furnace off during that time until yesterday. Now....walking out to her on G West 82 in Bellingham....not so much. Seven hundred steps each way in cold driving rain makes the comfort of her bosom even more rewarding when you finally get there!

I am sure there will be hiccups on the way, after all it is a boat, but this has turned out to be a very rewarding choice from my current perspective of pronouncing her cruise ready. There were points along the way where that was not completely clear, for sure.

Hope to see some of you out there and will be glad to provide tours of this unique beast. Beverage included of course, and perhaps even a piece of very fine cheese.

 

[cardude01]

Excited for you! Love the ship!

 

[Lou_tribal]

It has been two years since we surveyed, trialed, and closed on this ship and about a year and half since we got her home from Holland.
I thought I would make a closing entry on this thread as the commissioning phase winds down (for now). We were out for a joy ride yesterday after several sea trials for various projects over the last year and a half. I think we are there in terms of cruise ready and planning a four day trip to Rosario on Orcas Is. for an athletic event that some of my family is participating in. We expect to sleep and feed nine for that weekend!
She exceeds my expectations would be a reasonable summary.
This seems to be a very stable platform.
At heavy as she is, you are not going to push her speed at all. The power plant is very comfortable at 1500 rpms and we gain virtually nothing past that. The industrial Mercedes is designed continuous duty and I have found no way possible to build engine, exhaust, or tranny temps.
I think I am going to love dry stacked and keel cooled.
Driving this boat has been an exceptionally pleasant surprise. It is big and heavy and you intuitively expect that to be difficult but she wants to stay where you put her. With the thruster and flanged rudder you can drive her exactly sideways when in close quarters. This is good since her weight precludes being able to do much at all with her lines in terms of moving her to where she needs to be at a dock. With less visibility to dock from this helm than Klee Wyck, we have taken to headsets so that I can put her exactly at station for Laurie to tie off. That has been working awesome.
The fuel management system project turned out really nice and very comforting. I will try to post some pics of the new very large dual Racor set up and new lines if I remember.
Electrical system conversion is a tribute to C-tech, the designer and installer and I can recommend them without reservation for a Euro conversion as well as for electrical protection on a steel hull.
The combination of the NFU jog steering and the AP70 is a real treat. That autopilot is really something in terms of what it will do and the conditions it can manage. Commissioning was not without some pain.
This radar is a crispness that I have never previously encountered.
I was hopeful about the two camera additions but do not really get much out of them. I would not repeat that choice.
This Euro boat stores both black and grey water for pump out only and I can tell you that doing chores on a 250 gallon holding tank is something you plan for in advance and block out some time.
Household size toilets are nice to use for sure but see above. They use a lot of water and create a large volume of waste water!
Diesel fired hot water heat thru radiators is an uncommon comfort in a PNW Winter. Klee Wyck has a Hurricane diesel furnace with forced air over coils which is quite nice, but I may like these radiators better. I am sure we spent 60 days on her since November and comfortable every minute. Never turned the furnace off during that time until yesterday. Now....walking out to her on G West 82 in Bellingham....not so much. Seven hundred steps each way in cold driving rain makes the comfort of her bosom even more rewarding when you finally get there!

I am sure there will be hiccups on the way, after all it is a boat, but this has turned out to be a very rewarding choice from my current perspective of pronouncing her cruise ready. There were points along the way where that was not completely clear, for sure.

Hope to see some of you out there and will be glad to provide tours of this unique beast. Beverage included of course, and perhaps even a piece of very fine cheese.

If by any chance you come up here one day, I will be glad to take your invitation to tour her, but beverage will be mine! Enjoy!

L

 

[dhays]

Thanks for the update and summary. I will keep an eye out for Libra whenever venture North.

 

[MurrayM]

Dang that's a mighty fine looking vessel

Hope to 'bump' into you on BC's north coast.

 

[siestakey]

Glad for the update and looking forward to seeing and reading about the next phase in your Trawler life.

I had a question on this "I was hopeful about the two camera additions but do not really get much out of them. I would not repeat that choice". What would you do instead if you had the choice?

 

[klee wyck]

Glad for the update and looking forward to seeing and reading about the next phase in your Trawler life.

I had a question on this "I was hopeful about the two camera additions but do not really get much out of them. I would not repeat that choice". What would you do instead if you had the choice?

Alan,
No big deal, just an off the cuff comment on that issue I guess.
The two views I created were engine room with one camera and rear view with a pair, one for each stern quarter.
Usual reasons for the engine room camera but I am finding that it does not reduce my frequency of trips downstairs to have a look around as the camera has a limited view and I want to see the whole room so down I go. I am sure I considered the chance to see a fire before it was out of control but with two monitors and lots of choices of what to display, what are the chances that I have the camera displayed when that happens? I like to watch radar, chart, and seabed much more so rarely display the engine room camera. At least that one was easy and cheap since the wire chase was existing and convenient.
Rear view pair: I overestimated the degree to which rear view was restricted compared to Klee Wyck. Turns out that is pretty easy without the cameras and unlike the engine room camera, this one was a pain to make the runs from rear to helm. Overall, useful, but probably not worth the few days of work to do it as I never feel great about taking great interior joinery apart and putting back together. I suspect these cameras will get very little use as time goes by so just a waste in general.

 

[FlyWright]

Very nice, Bill! She sits proud in the water!

How heavy is heavy? I bet it takes a while to warm up the entire vessel after being cold-soaked. I'd keep the heater on, too!

Any chance for a video tour of your fine vessel? Many of us will probably never get another chance to see one just like her.

I'll certainly look you up when I come to the area next. I'll bring the red wine and IPAs to compliment your cheese!

Cheers!

 

[klee wyck]

Thanks Al,

Last time in the slings at half load she was 126,000#.
No video tour yet but I like the thread you started and will hope to provide a post there at some point. I need my young drone operator!

I will look forward to your visit!

 

[OldDan1943]

Fine looking boat. I wish you many fantastic and wonderful hours at sea.
From the outside, looks like it will survive no matter if you remember to close the doors and windows.

 

[dirtdoc1]

Libra,

I've been admiring your boat. I saw it on another older post about a Nova Scotia 47 that's still for sale I believe. I would love to see a side view of her and any other pics that you may have. I've been looking for her sister ship but have not had any luck. There are some other Lowlands but different.

Beautiful trawler!

 

[klee wyck]

Libra,

I've been admiring your boat. I saw it on another older post about a Nova Scotia 47 that's still for sale I believe. I would love to see a side view of her and any other pics that you may have. I've been looking for her sister ship but have not had any luck. There are some other Lowlands but different.

Beautiful trawler!

Thanks Dirtdoc,

I am not sure which boat you are looking at for sure in terms of a sister ship.
I have attached a couple of side view pictures of the Lowland (Klee Wyck) which has a blue hull, and also a couple side view of the Nordzee Kotter which has an off white hull.

Neither are production boats but Klee Wyck was drawn by the recently deceased NA Peter Beeldsnijder and built in the Lowland (Nethship) yard. It would appear that at least 3-4 of these were built but all slightly different. There was a sister ship for sale in CA a while back but last I heard whe was in a Mexico yard getting a fairly major makeover and no longer for sale.

The Nordzee Kotter (which is Libra and I think the one you are looking at) is a true one off built in a small yard in the Netherlands owned by a family. I have spoken to one of the sons that does/did the incline test when I was inquiring about the ballast. The boat was commissioned by a North Sea tugboat captain for his own use. I am not sure of the NA who drew it. I am pretty sure you will not find a sister ship to this one. In my (biased) view, this is one helluva go anywhere boat.
If you save a search in Yachworld that is restricted to steel hulls and lying Netherlands, eventually something like this shows up. The last one I fell in love with was something called a Conrad 58. Beautiful CE-A rated boat with 2000 mile range on twin Yanmars. Yes, twins. Both of mine are single screw as is more typical of the type.
FWIW, the reason I own two of these was related to a need to spend time near a start up I was doing near the Canadian border. I love boats and hate hotels so four years ago bought Libra to keep near that project. My involvement in the project is winding down as my oldest son hits his stride there and it is getting harder to justify the argument that we need two of these. One may end up going away soon and I am not sure I care which. I really like both of them.

 

[Mikala]

Looks like the Lowland refit is complete. Nice looking boat!
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/19...e=standard listing&refSource=standard listing

 

[OldDan1943]

Looks like the Lowland refit is complete. Nice looking boat!
https://www.yachtworld.com/boats/19...e=standard listing&refSource=standard listing

I am always envious of folks having an ER large enough to have a workbench and vise. SIGH