Beefing Up for Offshore Cruising

Vesper alone works for me, but in fog I'd want radar.
Windvane not autopilot, because I hate big battery banks/solar panels. Tillermaster or wheel pilot for motoring or light air.
Watermaker never on a small boat. Talk about complication.
Cockpit drains, 4 of 3/4-inch for boats over 28 feet (or race rule standards). I think the cockpit draining issue is overblown.
No bimini or dodger. Windage and blindness and complication.
Nothing of above matters anyhow.
Gales all that matter. In a gale every single system will be overstressed and anything worn out will break. Therefore all systems must be made 100 percent reliable.
Storm gear of liferaft, drogues, sea anchor, hull breach fixers, bolts, plywood, tool kit, bolt-cutters and so on.
To prepare small boats for the Singlehanded Transpac, a mere few weeks on a usually predictable downwind ocean, the average costs is $20,000.

But the question was really about beefing up. In my limited experience the TFG Ericsons don't seem to need much. Stock rudder and keel good, standing rigging should be recent.

I read somewhere of one man who owned a 25-2 and he added stringers between the bulkheads under the v-birth after watching the flat part of the hull flex while beating to weather. I have started the same process by carefully cutting out the pan/storage area out from under the v-birth. It will give me added storage space as well as give me access to add the additional stringers and tabbing. I also did the same with the anchor locker and the port settee storage and picked up about 70% more space as well as being able to add three small bulkheads and some additional liner tabbing that would have otherwise been inaccessible.

I have long been failing to figure out a good way to fill the space between the liner and the hull with a foam core (think Boston whaler) leaving just enough for the bilge. Maybe a two part pour in expanding foam, or an injected epoxy mixed with micro glass bubbles and cabosil, something that would give ultimate rigidity and even offer flotation if there was enough of it. But a two part pour in foam can absorb a lot of moisture over time and could really ruin the whole project, and the micro bubble idea would be really difficult to apply and too expensive as well. Both would add a sizeable amount of weight, so I'm back to bonding every possible square inch of liner to hull that is possible and tabbing every last inch of every bulkhead.

I think it’s the constant flexing that will eventually wear on a hull over time, and for a one time impact the more places the hull is tabbed into the liner the more spread out an area will be able to absorb the impact.

I cracked the liner at the corner of the settee storage bin while trailering the boat the first year I had the boat, and that is what really got me started down this road. The corner of the settee storage was only about 1/2" away from the hull and it was paper thin. I cut it out and added several layers of roving to the surrounding liner areas that were not thick enough and I ended up really liking the results.

I have seen some pictures of Ericson's with stress cracks at the bow cleats but who knows what king of treatment caused that. I plan to add some more roving to that area any how just because its there.

Preparedness and Expectations

There is a prior thread around here somewhere with a wonderful article from Guy.

Perhaps one of you can link to it. It concerned the old topic of what kind of boat and preparation is "best" for going across oceans.

Here is a link to a another long thread (containing other links, some of which may still work) about Ericsons and "blue water sailing".

http://www.ericsonyachts.org/infoex...?5251-Why-is-Ericson-not-a-Blue-Water-Cruiser

I have been looking around for the old (!) link to the Cal 20 trip from California to Hawaii. IIRC they built a plywood dodger for it and strengthened the chainplates. Couple of young guys, and they commented that the most common problem was bruises from constant movement. That link may be gone -- google has not had luck in unearthing it so far...

It may not be just a matter of compiling/finding "menu list" of upgrades to do and then resting, although it would be nice to have such a thing in a perfect world.

Best,
Loren

Let's not forget about Webb Chiles and his circumnavigation in an 18-ft open boat...

Loren Beach said:

I have been looking around for the old (!) link to the Cal 20 trip from California to Hawaii. IIRC they built a plywood dodger for it and strengthened the chainplates. Couple of young guys, and they commented that the most common problem was bruises from constant movement. That link may be gone -- google has not had luck in unearthing it so far...

Click to expand...

Loren, I did a search for a Cal 20 trip from California to Hawaii and I found out about Robert Crawford and his Cal 20 Black Feathers.

"in case you are inclined to undertake a similar experience, he offers a manual outlining the equipment and procedures used to transform his 20-foot daysailer into an offshore TransPac-ready pocket racer."

http://www.amazon.com/Black-Feathers-Pocket-Singlehanded-TransPac/dp/1440191964

http://yachtpals.com/singlehanded-transpac-2064

blackfeathers

Yes I read the Blackfeathers book, It had some good info and was an interesting read. I didn't like what he did to his cockpit... but to each their own.
his boat really was only set up for a single purpose/single use, and he didn't even sail it back.
Still a good accomplishment to be proud of though.

Re cockpit drains

FYI, ISAF offshore rules require the cockpit drains to drain at least 6 inches in 5 minutes. I just tested my stock two 1.5 inch drains on my E38. It drained 6 inches in 3 minutes.

I am a dork.

Mark

Shelman said:

Yes I read the Blackfeathers book, It had some good info and was an interesting read. I didn't like what he did to his cockpit... but to each their own.
his boat really was only set up for a single purpose/single use, and he didn't even sail it back.
Still a good accomplishment to be proud of though.

Click to expand...

I read that book as well. It was a fun read. I used to have a Cal 20 back in 1980 and thought it was a great little boat. I cruised it to Catalina many, many times and also harbor hopped up and down the coast. I actually considered going back to one when I decided to downsize from my Catalina 30, but determined it just would be too uncomfortable for cruising now that I'm pushing 60. So I went with an E26-2 for my "pocket cruiser"--which is cavernous compared to a Cal 20. But who knows? Should I ever get an urge to downsize yet again, I might well get another one. They are marvelous boats.

K. P. Chin is another guy who sailed a Cal 20 named "Chalupa" to Hawaii from San Francisco. You can read about it here: http://www.oocities.org/thetropics/5471/chalupaprep.htm

Chalupa !!

Alan Gomes said:

I read that book as well. It was a fun read. I used to have a Cal 20 back in 1980 and thought it was a great little boat. I cruised it to Catalina many, many times and also harbor hopped up and down the coast. I actually considered going back to one when I decided to downsize from my Catalina 30, but determined it just would be too uncomfortable for cruising now that I'm pushing 60. So I went with an E26-2 for my "pocket cruiser"--which is cavernous compared to a Cal 20. But who knows? Should I ever get an urge to downsize yet again, I might well get another one. They are marvelous boats.

K. P. Chin is another guy who sailed a Cal 20 named "Chalupa" to Hawaii from San Francisco. You can read about it here: http://www.oocities.org/thetropics/5471/chalupaprep.htm

Click to expand...

Alan, you've done it!
That's the "lost" URL I was thinking of.

Regards,
Loren

mkollerjr said:

FYI, ISAF offshore rules require the cockpit drains to drain at least 6 inches in 5 minutes. I just tested my stock two 1.5 inch drains on my E38. It drained 6 inches in 3 minutes.

I am a dork.

Mark

Click to expand...

Well, salt water or fresh water for this test?

footrope said:

Well, salt water or fresh water for this test?

Click to expand...

The Rules don't stipulate salt, or fresh, or what temperature or altitude, or hemisphere. For the record, my test was performed with fresh water, 52.6F, sea level, northern hemisphere. I'm not sure how the drains would have performed in the Southern Hemisphere, rotating the other direction.

Mark

mkollerjr said:

I'm not sure how the drains would have performed in the Southern Hemisphere, rotating the other direction.

Mark

Click to expand...

This should not be a problem if you cross the equator on the recommended oblique angle. True, many cockpits were formerly damaged by the sudden reversal of drain flow, but most of them hit the equator straight on, often at six or seven knots. The reverse-flow damage is usually confined just to the hoses flying off, not a big deal in fair weather.

The real problem of sudden anticyclonic impact on drains has been much reduced with the advent of GPS, which easily identifies the equatorial line so crews can prepare. Formerly people were surprised, and hit the north-south division blind and head on, often at night, and in one well known instance when the skipper was on the toilet and found himself evacuated so suddenly that he had to be evacuated.

Thanks everyone - this is very useful information.

Webb Chiles and Gannet

Webb Chiles current boat is a Moore 24, with a new mast and boom and rigging obtained for his circumnavigation attempt. He also added running backstays for those headsail only days. He spent more miles going to windward than he expected on his San Diego-Hawaii-Samoa-Tonga-Opua, NZ passages. Usually that beat the crap out of him and was very wet, but he's a tough dude (only 71 years old). He did some strengthening of the glass work, but only where he added significant fittings, such as for a drogue. He may have doubled up his transom. He uses a Raymarine tiller pilot. Actually, he carries about 4 or 5 because they break/leak/die/wear out. He has about 4 (6?) solar panels glued to his deck. His blog has links to his passage logs, which are very interesting reading. He uses a Torqueedo battery outboard for in-harbor operations.

FWIW I would think that the expert on beefing up an E-27 would be Andrew Urbanczyk. Didn't he sail to Japan and back? I heard there was a book written but it may have been in Polish, not sure.

I followed this guy's blog for the past year or so. He bought an old cheap (engineless) Cal 27 in Tacoma, WA and sailed it to New Zealand via Hawaii. He didn't do much to it. He did lose his rig off of Maui, but it was all new rigging before he left California, so I'm not sure exactly how it failed...

http://www.openbluehorizon.com/

I guess it just goes to show how different people perceive what "blue-water" boats are, or aren't.

Mark

The list is long for me. I do a lot of offshore sailing on my 32-2. I replaced all the standing rigging. I put an autopilot worth almost as much as the boat. I have radar but I put in an AIS receiver. If I were to do it again, I would go with the transceiver. I like to be seen rather than just see. I have an SSB but I always carry an iridium with a modem hookup offshore. I have safety harness clipping points in both cockpits, especially at the companionway. I put in a 3 gal/hr watermaker with a 40 gal. tank. My biggest issue overall was electrical draw. I would pay way more attention to electrical draw and electrical production in future buildouts. I tend to sail conservative and prepared more for heavy weather than others and can say I'm glad I did. When you are offshore in a blow and it has lasted a while so you're tired, its comforting to know the boat can handle the weather rather than trying to finesse through it with too much sail. A triple reef and #4 can get you through A LOT. I broke a furling line in 45 knots off the Southern California coast. It was stressful. I now use warpspeed on the furler. If I had a bigger boat with bigger loads, I would not hesitate to go T-100.
I'm sure there are other things I've done or learned but this is a start.

Jim McCone
Voice of Reason E-32-2 Hull #134
Redondo Beach, CA

windjunkee said:

The list is long for me. I do a lot of offshore sailing on my 32-2. I replaced all the standing rigging. I put an autopilot worth almost as much as the boat. I have radar but I put in an AIS receiver. If I were to do it again, I would go with the transceiver. I like to be seen rather than just see. I have an SSB but I always carry an iridium with a modem hookup offshore. I have safety harness clipping points in both cockpits, especially at the companionway. I put in a 3 gal/hr watermaker with a 40 gal. tank. My biggest issue overall was electrical draw. I would pay way more attention to electrical draw and electrical production in future buildouts. I tend to sail conservative and prepared more for heavy weather than others and can say I'm glad I did. When you are offshore in a blow and it has lasted a while so you're tired, its comforting to know the boat can handle the weather rather than trying to finesse through it with too much sail. A triple reef and #4 can get you through A LOT. I broke a furling line in 45 knots off the Southern California coast. It was stressful. I now use warpspeed on the furler. If I had a bigger boat with bigger loads, I would not hesitate to go T-100.
I'm sure there are other things I've done or learned but this is a start.

Jim McCone
Voice of Reason E-32-2 Hull #134
Redondo Beach, CA

Click to expand...

Good advice Jim. You raced yours offshore too didn't you?

Voice of reason question

Jim,

I have followed with interest your racing as I have an E32-2 and although i have no hopes of racing, I learn a lot from racing boats especially from what systems people put on etc.

I have an E32-2 specific question. So a genoa is useful for all winds but not for high winds -- Partially furled, it does not hold shape etc. It is hard to beat in a partially furled 150... Reaching might be ok in even 35 knots with a little patch showing and a triple reefed main. Changing furling sails in the middle of the ocean is not fun unless I had to do it.... So I was thinking of alternatives to a 90% blade that is just not practical.

How about the stay sail that was rigged to work with the E32-2? I had this idea... If one were to design a high cut, small sail area storm jib that is built on a wire luff.... I would hoist it to the masthead using the spinnaker halyard ( so there is support on the mast, as opposed to hoisting further down which would necessitate running backstays etc.). On deck I would attach it to the T track that is on the centerline of the boat aft of the stemmed. The sail would be built as a storm sail - fairly flat, high cut - it would ideally serve to simply keep a slot open during a beat to really bad weather (40 knots and above). My guess is that with a small sail area, the loads will not be that great and it might be possible to beef up the flimsy blocks on the cabin top that were standard with the boat, and so the sail could in theory be sheeted fairly tight.

Has anyone done this? Have you used that sail rig in any other fashion, or is it not worth doing this at all in your opinion?

Many thanks for your thoughts.