Nav station starts to look great

from left to right is the 12 volt outlet, then 120 outlet, and then the Sat radio with the speaker for the VHF above and to the side is the control panel for the inverter and then of course is the control for the VHF handset. Space under for a computer or charts to slide away and also air venting at the deck. Very neatly and compactly arranged and the face panel hinges down for access. Not a bit of space wasted.

Raymarine E series

is tucked nicely into the space above the hanging locker. Bill feels it can come down a bit and let it fit further back. Visibility from the cockpit and the nav station is excellent, the supporting bracket is simple and effective.

Shore power receptacle

placed in the cockpit well, we have an inverter on board as well. It is a small boat but with the advent of some of these sophisticated electronics it would have seemed a pity not to have the boat with 120 on board. Even if just to allow one to stay connected on the net. It does introduce all kinds of other factors like stray galvanic activity. This can be a major problem when in a marina. Dave put a galvanic isolator on board and hopefully this will assist. There is also provision made for a solar charger which can keep the batteries topped up even when one is away from the baot and still eliminate the need for shore power connection.

Everywhere I look

there are details and the stamp of a professional. Look at the boomkin, thru bolted and then plugged. As strong as a house.

Windlass

I found this baby at Traditional Marine in Annapolis Nova Scotia. John and Anna Edelmann run the company and what pleasant folks they are. The store is filled with all kinds of marine stuff, pity I didn't have more time to peruse but that is the way. Spent a while just chatting to them and of we had to have a cup of tea............ typical Maritime hospitality!

The gypsy for the windlass was slightly over size from the manufacturer, so we had a mismatch, anyway they gave me the whole thing to take to Bill in Camden to see what was to be done. No need to pay for it if it didn't work just send it back!

I explained the situation to Bill when I got to the boat shed and before I had finished breakfast the following day he had the problem fixed on the lathe. I keep on challenging him and he just sort of always fixes things with no fuss. I suspect there isn't anything he can't do but I will keep trying.............

I had actually decided against buying a bronze windlass as they were just too expensive and what with the Canadian dollar doing its nose dive. Well of course ABI is pretty well gone and even if I wanted one I couldn't get one now, so it was great to find this one at a price I could afford. I think it belongs on the foredeck of a BCC, especially mine.

Just Back

Just had a lightening trip down to Maine to see the boatbuilder and see what has been happening. Its always a bit of a pressure cooker getting time off work and loads of driving. The boat shed is of course an interesting place with many of the local characters "floating in" to see whats going on. Bills is obviously highly respected and his work is impeccable.. Always time for a chat, exchanging info and indeed one of the guys was installing a Cape Horn windvane exactly like mine. Great chat and great camaraderie.

The panel is fully wired and what a dandy job Dave has done, his work is so neat and he is really pleased with it and so am I. Recent additions are switches for two electric bilge pumps both of which are directly wired to the batteries. One comes from the head and the other from the aft bilge, this one has an alarm connected as an early warning system. Expensive these alarms so one should be enough which is of course at the deepest bilge point.

There are three switches just above the bilge pumps and these are the battery mains for house engine and then a connector which will allow both to come on stream in case of problems.

I think Dave has put a lot of thought into how it all goes together so that an electrical neophyte like me can interpret problems at a later date. Batteries are installed too, three AGMs as the house for about 320 Ah. They should accept a fast charge either from the shore charger source or from the high output alternator, coupled with the Ample Power V3 and all temp controlled at the battery.

The challenge is to get the system balanced, generally the batts will be charged to 85% (from the engine) and should not be discharged to more than about 50%. If the batts are constantly discharged below 50% then the cycle life of the batts is very poor.

The alt can charge realistically at about 100Ah so with a bit of luck it will take about 1 1/2 hours to charge maybe every second day (with luck) depending on usage, it will be interesting to see what happens in real life.

There is always stuff to consider, eg I bought a sat antennae to use for weather and also it can be coupled into the E series Raymarine and then fed out to the radio for sat radio. Sadly the down side is that the E series has to be on for the radio to be on. So much for reducing the power consumption. I ran into the same issues with other Raymarine add ons to the E series in that you would need a back up gen set running all the time just to keeps the electrons flowing to the toys. Ah well one lives and learns.

I think that the back of the boat will soon be looking like a Christmas tree with all the antennae.

Rope Rack

nice touch, keeps all the mooring lines organised a well placed piece of ss pipe.

The mushroom vents are...............

tucked in well behind the laz. They are low prolfile so I am hoping that they do not snag anything.

The panel is now wired

I have a lot of trouble making sense of all this, so Dave the sparks very kindly has labelled everything. Very neat as it should be, the supporting panel folds down so as everything is readily accessible.

The batteries are now installed too, and Bill is working on the bilge pumps.

I really liked the finish on the skylight, and the metal work just puts the icing on the cake.

In the distance you can see the new cowl vent installed next to the bowsprit. It is of course detachable and I have a metal cover plate to seal it up.

at the top end

Tridata and wind instruments

these instruments will be set into the bulkhead on the aft end of the salon. The nice thing here is that the bulkhead has been shimmed out on the inside so no wires will be evident, makes a very neat finish.

A lick of varnish

and she will be quite perfect

SCUTTLE IN PLACE

There is a lot happening now, the scuttle has found its way on deck and its new home. I ordered the upholstery about two weeks ago, a nice rich blue which I think will look very sharp. Bill is heavily committed on the main hatch and I am starting to get the Electronics organised.

I bought a C120 for my Xmas last year, and the GPS to go with it all from Raymarine. The stereo I ordered last week and its open ended for Sirius Sat Radio. Bose speakers will likely find a slot in the forward bulkhead, one on each side.

Mushrooms spring up in the fall

Proposed spot for the low profile mushroom vent, I hope that tucking it in here will not create any issues with the multitude of tackle in this area.
These items came from the UK and the price was right, I'll let you know about the quality later.............

And at the blunt end....

the boomkin gets fitted, nicely mated against the aft end 0f the coamings.

The boomkin stays connected but not yet tightened.

The dink gets some work

A dyer dhow gets a bit of work. Its second hand but Bill tells me its good and certainly looking at all the fittings and the way its put together it will be just fine. The plan is to put it over the scuttle hatch, which will protect it from breaking waves, it should set down quite nicely and Bill skilfully remodelled the bow to allow it to lie nicely on the foredeck.

A bit of perspective.

A buddy of mine was down in Maine recently and he snapped a few shots for me. He wasn't allowed on board cos some of the varnish was wet. Quite rightly there has been a lot of painstaking effort gone into it to produce the rich mellow depth of color.

At the pointy end.........

The bow sprit emerges from the saw dust and looks great. You can see clearly the 2nd bow roller in place to support the anchor. This, I hope will save me doing a dance on the widow maker when the hook decides to run amok.

The cranse iron fits well and the various stays are fitted. The nice thing about the bowsprit is that it moves all the forces forward and enhances windward performance. Of course the pulpit can now be fitted and we already checked that, so more stuff coming together, however it almost seems that the closer you get to completion the more things there are to do.

More and more details

The laz hinges are made so as the hatch can be opened and removed whilst the tiller is in operation. Nothing worse than coming into a mooring and the stuff you need is in the hatch and the only way to get it is to remove the tiller so as you can access the locker. So many things to think about and of course there will be so many I have missed. Nevermind when we get sailing we shall soon discover the mistakes. At least the BCC forum has lots of suggestions and advice.

Hardware shelf starts to empty and arrive on the boat

A sure sign of progress is the movement off the shelf and onto the boat. Hawse holes are fitted now that the final varnish is completed. The masking tape is disappearing fast and the finish comes together.

The port LED is fitted. Orca green and a very low amperage.

Lexan washboard for the scuttle

A bit of lexan will allow some light into this area which is always nice.

One small step...

It would be a pity to have the bulwarks spoiled by big boots etc, so we decided to place a rub rail right where the gate to the lifelines will go.

A bit of very nice mill work appears

Ready for the varnish and installation

Porthole in place

the first port hole is placed !

Fresh air at last

I was glad we picked up the dorades before ABI disappeared, the deck is starting to look a little bit more complete. Bill did a nice job of fitting the handrail from inside the salon roof. Managed to keep everything well flush, something I shall appreciate greatly. The height is 6' 1" and that is excatly my height.

Electrics breaker panel fitted

Seems like a lot of wire awaiting connection. We have DC panel on top and AC down under a couple of battery switches and a couple of bilge pump switches underneath.

Looking good

It seems that all the work done on the head door is worth it when it it is fitted. I feel it looks very sharp and when there is a bit of light the stain glass will start to show. There is a nice feeling of design coming together now with Bills clever use of wood, and nice architecture.

Wind 'er up

Lewmar windlass on the foredeck, for 5/16ths chain. It also has a manual recovery system which can be used with a reg winch handle. On small luxury for a man with a bad back.

Gallows brackets

Actually it is hard to get a sense of the size here, let me tell its substantial gear, this houses the wood of the gallows and attaches to the support pipe which in inch and a quarter. We may consider hanging a child sswing on this later cuz it could take it. Everything aboit these boats and their hardware is so substantial.

His Master's voice

Speak to me baby, cowl vents for the salon, two there and one up for'ard, trying to find a couple of mushroom vents for aft but the forest is bare. Davey and Co have them for a cool Prince's ransom.

Stanchions, winches and some beautiful woodwork

Lewmar 30 ST provisionally located against the wood wash boards that Bill so beautifully crafted by laminating over a curved frame. The stanchions are placed now with nicely angled individually against the bulwarks to provide bracing. The metal had to be reduced on one aspect to allow them to sit "nicely", quite a lot of work.

The top pic shows the detail of the woodwork which gives the wood a nice slope which will clear water well yet give a nice backrest. Wow!