- Joined
- Mar 17, 2012
- Messages
- 4,643
- Location
- Australia
- Vessel Name
- Insequent
- Vessel Make
- Ocean Alexander 50 Mk I
I wnet along to the Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show (SCIBS) yesterday.
sanctuarycoveboatshow.com.au
The main reason was to catch up with some of the tech guys from equipment vendors, its always better to talk face-to-face than trying to phone or email them. But it was also a chance to hop aboard a boat or two. Not that simple these days as most want you to register with them and discourage "looky-lou's" as they are wanting to focus on buyers and sell boats. Understandably. Still, fairly easy to get aboard if you really want to.
First up I was the Iliad 53F. I'd seen one a few times at my old marina and was curious. ILIAD 53F - Multihull Solutions
They look pretty bulky and not really my style, but they would be great for taking a bunch of people out for a day trip. Huge areas in salon, aft deck and flybridge. "Owners version" design so one hull is master cabin with desk etc. Then two nice double in the other hull, the aft one with an additional single bunk fitted in. Still, if I was spending circa A$4m I might prefer something else. Yanmar 440's get it to 21 kn, optional Cummins QSC's to 24 kn. But apparently buyers typically run then at 16-17 kn. That is, when not running at 9 kn to get good fuel economy.
Then I went on a Fleming 55, brand new a couple of months ago and Hull #272. Basically identical hull/ & layout since first built back in 1985 or 86. It still works quite well.
www.flemingyachts.com.au
This buyer was on a "no expense spared" mission, so lots of fancy electronics and the full monty Twin DIsc thruster/joystick/ troll valve etc setup for manoeuvring. Both those choices ended up taking the sticker price to A$5.5m. Yikes! Chatting to the dealer revealed that the infamous "Burrwood" has now been scrapped. It just doesn't cut it in these parts, goes greenish. A number of local owners here have been driven nuts with it. So the new 55 I was on had real teak rails that looked gorgeous with Awlwood (yellow primer). Another option available is a vinyl wrap, matt finish, that replicates the look of teak. Might be OK, but real teak is hard to be IMO. Although a "55" the LOA for marina purposes is 60'9", or 18.5m. This would be a bit of a PITA. Its not too difficult to find transient 18m slips along our coast, but larger ones can be few and far between and in high demand.
The local Furuno tech had mixed news for me regarding my NavPilot. I installed the 700 & 700C back in 2012. They were superseded a year of so later by the 711 series, and support for the 700's stopped around 2018 or 19. Now the main control unit in the pilothouse still looks great and works flawlessly. I've never done anything to it other than turn it on and use it. But the secondary control on the flybridge has a screen issue. It still works fine in terms of using the buttons, so if I need dodge something and then resume a course I can. But the screen cannot be repaired.
To fit a 711C on the FB the 700 in the pilothouse would need a software upgrade. That usually goes OK but can fail, and brick the unit. It involves opening the unit up, plugging in a Windows XP laptop (have not had one of those for a VERY long time) and hoping it goes well. About 3 hours work he said. So I'll just "carry on" for now. Fortunately the new 711 system still uses the 7002 processor box and 6112 rudder reference units that I have. So eventually it will "just" be a case of 2 new control units, commissioning and sea trial to get them configured. Locally they are around 2 boat bucks each. I installed the 700 so can do the sea trial work etc, but still, I'll live with my existing units for a while yet....
About The Show | Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show
The Sanctuary Cove International Boat Show is Australia's largest boating showcase: 330 exhibitors, 740 boats and over 2500+ marine products.
The main reason was to catch up with some of the tech guys from equipment vendors, its always better to talk face-to-face than trying to phone or email them. But it was also a chance to hop aboard a boat or two. Not that simple these days as most want you to register with them and discourage "looky-lou's" as they are wanting to focus on buyers and sell boats. Understandably. Still, fairly easy to get aboard if you really want to.
First up I was the Iliad 53F. I'd seen one a few times at my old marina and was curious. ILIAD 53F - Multihull Solutions
They look pretty bulky and not really my style, but they would be great for taking a bunch of people out for a day trip. Huge areas in salon, aft deck and flybridge. "Owners version" design so one hull is master cabin with desk etc. Then two nice double in the other hull, the aft one with an additional single bunk fitted in. Still, if I was spending circa A$4m I might prefer something else. Yanmar 440's get it to 21 kn, optional Cummins QSC's to 24 kn. But apparently buyers typically run then at 16-17 kn. That is, when not running at 9 kn to get good fuel economy.
Then I went on a Fleming 55, brand new a couple of months ago and Hull #272. Basically identical hull/ & layout since first built back in 1985 or 86. It still works quite well.
Fleming Yachts 55 - The Ultimate Cruising Yacht
The Fleming 55 is an incredibly well-designed raised pilothouse cruising yacht. The 55 has a semi-displacement hull which results in excellent performance.
The local Furuno tech had mixed news for me regarding my NavPilot. I installed the 700 & 700C back in 2012. They were superseded a year of so later by the 711 series, and support for the 700's stopped around 2018 or 19. Now the main control unit in the pilothouse still looks great and works flawlessly. I've never done anything to it other than turn it on and use it. But the secondary control on the flybridge has a screen issue. It still works fine in terms of using the buttons, so if I need dodge something and then resume a course I can. But the screen cannot be repaired.
To fit a 711C on the FB the 700 in the pilothouse would need a software upgrade. That usually goes OK but can fail, and brick the unit. It involves opening the unit up, plugging in a Windows XP laptop (have not had one of those for a VERY long time) and hoping it goes well. About 3 hours work he said. So I'll just "carry on" for now. Fortunately the new 711 system still uses the 7002 processor box and 6112 rudder reference units that I have. So eventually it will "just" be a case of 2 new control units, commissioning and sea trial to get them configured. Locally they are around 2 boat bucks each. I installed the 700 so can do the sea trial work etc, but still, I'll live with my existing units for a while yet....
