This is the manual i wrote for the new owner 2009, others of you should find useful. no liability accepted. if you want to download the manual, click here · Cruising Yacht VIAN · Operation manual for ‘VIAN’ June 2009 · Snapdragon 23 · Sail No10, built 1963 · Lifting keel · Mark one/two (low long coachroof, curved shorter cockpit sides) · Written by Nick B.Eng Maritime Technology, · Marine restoration specialist and previous owner · Main Sections; · Safety · Operation · Inflatable · Getting underway · 2.2.16 Sailing · 2.2.16.1 Foresail · 2.2.16.2 Mainsail · 2.2.16.3 Spinakker · Getting back to mooring · Leaving · 3. Maintenance · 4. Troubleshooting · 5. Miscellaneous · 5.4 Mast lowering · Safety · Disclaimer, this manual is advisory only, no liability accepted, this is my advice only · Planning and preparation are vital, make sure you have the following before any trip, I would recommend a Yachtmasters or Coastal Training course run annually in coastal sailing clubs.. · Weather forecast including Wind, Visibility, Sea state, Temperature · Tide tables · Adequate clothing, food, fresh water, gas, petrol- in case it gets cold or you have to stay overnight · a chart and the GPS · a plan that takes account of the tides, so you know what obstacles to avoid in the way and what time you need to turn back for the tide if necc. · an emergency plan or alternative plan in the event of not being able to get to make your destination safely unaided · means and ability to make a distress call VHF · mobile phone 999 / relative · mobile phone to call a boat taxi · taking a tow · anchoring /mooring and using inflatable · Operation · Inflatable · The inflatable pumps (3) · the stirrup hand pump, this makes your back sore, so id advise just using it for the last 1/3 to get the pressure high enough to stop inflatable squashing more than 1/3 when you sit on it. · the foot pump, that’s a spare, in the rope locker, just in case you lose the stirrup. · the 12v blower. Theis is really great, jam the longest nozzle (air out) into the inflatables filler hole, it will inflate up to about ¾ no more, this is because it is fast flow, low pressure. You need to change to the pump to get adequate pressure · The inflatables (2) · The grey one · has 2 valves, each valve leaks slightly without the black plug being jammed in, then its ok · can be deflated by jamming metal springs on plugs into valves , by laying on it and repeatedly folding in two · easiest transported inflated on roof with a blanket imbetween to prevent scratches, roped down · if you deflate it into car boot, remember to take blower to make re-inflation easy. · remember after deflation, to take care of the two bungs, don’t leave the steel spikes in the valves, make sure they don’t get lost, 1 is loose – best plug the bungs into the valves – the spikes fold flat and safe first · the blower has a switch in line of the cord, and sometimes this needs a squeeze or the wheel turning to make sure its blowing. I suppose you could turn it to sucking to deflate too!. · the blue/yellow boat · is really a beach toy because its skin is thin, but I found it handy to stow onboard and lighter to carry · the method of inflating, is to initially remove the single valve , then quickly screw in the valve, and pump with stirrup or footpump up to a good pressure. · its up to you if you want to inflate the floor – its stronger, drier and safer, either by fitting nozzle adaptor to a pump or by mouth, then deflate by squeezing the flap valves between thumb and finger as you fold/flatten it to deflate. · the collapsible oars are a tight squeeze into the black rowlocks, sorry about this, but at least you cant lose the oars! · make sure if you use this boat, you keep all mobiles and water-damageable items in a waterproof container, or at least in a high zipped pocket, or they might get wet during the rowing etc. · best procedure for launching at mudeford, is to · find a bit of water which hasn’t got any sharp things in it/sandy · push the inflatable out so its biggest tube is furthest away in deeper water but nearest end about a foot away · step into boat from the shore · make your way to deepest end · use oar to punt /row off, into deeper water · best procedure for boarding from inflatable · come alongside starboard cockpit · tie up to T-cleat in cal weather or forward around stanction and back to winch on windy days where the boat is being blown aft · unclip safety wire pulling pin release, throw this forward out of the way · unclip starboard side rubber straps for cockpit cover, and throw cover to port so theres a foot or so to get in · get on your knees and pass your goods into the cockpit first. Make sure only one person is not sitting at a time, this is critiacal inflatable safety! · hold pushpit rail, and get your knee onto the blue deck of Vian, DO NOT JUMP!, pulling the boats together. · pull your weight slowly from the inflatable onto both knees or feet onto VIAN, (if you jump out the inflatable it will lurch and the remaining persons may spill into sea so be considerate) · get into cockpit. · secure inflatable to VIAN, its mooring or deflate · if you want to tow an inflatable, it will act as a brake on the boat going more than 3 knots unless its towed so the front is about 6 inches above the water and about 6 foot aft. I would recommend taking a towropeto the underwater hook on the grey boat, possibly over the pushpit rail before tying. · if a towed inflatable gets filled with several gallons of water under tow, it may burst? To stop this, in rough weather deflate and stow, or invert? · you can leave the inflatable on the mooring, but someone might nick it, so I would at least stow the oars onboard, and always have the yellow boat onboard in case youre stranded/grounded and want to get to shore dry after anchoring till the tide returns to float it off later. · Getting underway · Remove cockpit cover, and stowe in gas locker folded up. · unlock cabin always retain padlock on roof or youll lose it and replac key immediately to locker hook,( there is a spare in the chart table drawers btw). Place hatch sections in gas locker too. · open battery locker and turn to “1” – you should hear the wind instrument beep if it was left on · press and hold depth sounder power button for 1 sec, (it will then start up display which also tells you battery voltage which needs to be over 11.5v for reliable starting.) · open engine seacock 2 turns, which is under floorboard in cabin near engine.(this needs to be off after you disembark, or the engines stopped in rough weather) · check the gearstick is in neutral, that’s roughly vertical, but its best to throw it forward and reverse till you can feel it click loose in neutral by feel – sorry its always been stiff! · pull engine run/stop switch UP ( I think but it is labeled “run”) till red light next to it lights up · if its cold or the engine hasn’t been used for weeks, you might want to prime the fuel and use choke · remove the centre section of the engine rear cover, then the starboard one · give the black primer bulb a few LIGHT pumps till it feels full of fuel but DO NOT squeeze hard after that or it will force fuel past carb valves and flood it, obviously(the fuel is gravity fed anyway) · on the carburetor, there is a disconnected choke lever by the inlet throat, choke on if lever up, choke off is lever down till it clicks, best cold starting position is 90% on · once the engine is running after about 5 seconds, the choke should be turned off or it will probably die. · if you think the engine is flooded, heres the procedure · make sure choke is off (will be unless you put it on) · get gear lever into neutral · press red button in on gear lever, may need some rattling of the stick while you do this, this disconnects gear linkage but allows throttle to operate · push lever forward to give full throttle · crank over engine for about 5-10 secs, that will blow out excess fuel · if it hasn’t started, then remove and clean plug which may be shorted with a fuel drop you can blow/burn off with a lighter or wipe dry with tissue – theres a plug spanner next to the plug – it may be hot so if it is, use a glove or pliers once its loose. Replace · crank engine on button, gradually returning throttle to idle position, it will start to fire, and you may open throttle to best position, then give it a rev before idling, · when you want to go forward/reverse again, the red button needs to be let out in the gearstick hub, so just tickle it and rattle gearstick near neutral it will spring back out. · it is all ok now! · check you have water dribbling out of the port engine outlet in the side of the boat or you haven’t got coolant going through the engine · press and hold the white starting button till the engine is firing enough to keep it going, when dry of fuel this might take 10 secs, prob only 1 sec when warmed up though. · place the tiller into the rudder stock, release the uphaul so the rudder can go down · pull the downhaul rope and squeeze it into the cleat that will hold it (unless the rudder hits something later) · check forward and reverse gears thrust the boat forward/reverse and leave in neutral running (just in case the prop is fouled while you were away?) · release the front mooring rope and let the boat drift backwards on the wind about 10 foot · put into forward gear and gently increase revs turning away from the mooring ropes in the water and of course avoiding other boats/buoys you might drive/be blown into. · note – if the engine flutters and sounds like its about to die, quickly back off the throttle slightly till it sounds ok, and gently increase revs. But if the engine just changes note for a few seconds, that’s ok and normal, its probably just some soot on the plug getting on and being burnt off. · Sailing · Forsail · This is roller furling and controlled by blue/white furling halyard, and the 2 sheets. · To unfurl the sail, you loosen the furling halyard from its cleat, and pull on the leeward side sheet. I would state it is important to prevent the halyard flopping loose when all the forsail is unfurled, because it might then fall off it’s drum and jam-which I found most disconcerting in strong winds. The solution is to cleat the halyard taught all the time you aren’t unfurling, or maybe put a knot in to prevent it slipping through the cleat-eye when completely unfurled? · in my experience, its easy and safe to use the forsail without the mainsail in light winds, except when the wind is from a side, then you will need a bit of centerboard to give you steering stability. · The forsail is very big and bigger than the spinnaker, so in light winds F1-4 its better to goosewing with the main than furl the forsail and use a spinnaker. If the wind drops below force 1 then the spinnaker will keep shape easier, but really you ought to motor unless you just love the peace. · Once the forsail is unfurled enough, the halyard should first be cleated, then the leeward sheet turned round a winch once or twice in heavy winds, and cleated behind. Note although the cleats are often slightly loose, they work!. If you must fit the cleats tightly against the cockpit, good luck! Because the holes are blind so you can only use expanding nuts inside(spares in the toolkit), and no sooner do you have thenm tight, than someone thinks they can wrench them loose again. I considered cutting access holes for nuts in the cockpit interior, but decided it would spoil an important part of the boat. · obviously the windward sheet must be completely loose all the time, or it will be difficult to tack or sheet in easily on the leeward side. · Setting the forsail perfectly by sheeting appropriately is a bit subtle, but basically there are 2 modes; Upwind and Downwind · Upwind, you are travelling toward the wind, so to get the maximum lift the sail need sheeting in just till the leading edge doesnt ‘luff’, flap or ‘back’, on the gauge the best you can do is about 35 degrees off the apparent wind direction by the guage. In practice this means in a force 4, at 40 degrees, you need to either use a winch handle or pull the double coiled sheet with most your body weight to set it tight enough. In stronger winds, you will need to furl down the sail smaller, and I would suggest that 50% area (that’s about 1/3 of the foot length) furled in a force 6 unless you are racing and prepared to get wet! Having too much forsail unfurled in strong winds is dangerous and will actually slow the boat down to windward; its better to furl and sheet tight than to have a loose large forsail, because a tight flattened sail will be lower off the sea and produce less heel angle thus avoiding a broach/capsize. (same with mainsail of course) · if you are sailing upwind, then as long as its for more than 20 mins in water over 6 foot deep, you want full centerboard, which happens to be 60 turns down. In practice anything more than 20 turns makes little benefit I found, as most of the board is in the sea but I would suggest in big seas full 60 turn board or the boat might keep getting knocked downwind on top of big waves. If you want an easier way, then it might be possible to fit a ¾” drive into a 12V geared motor off the battery, but it would need to be limited power so it wouldn’t overtighten the chain and cause damage. Someone I met suggested a rechargeable 18V drill for his centerboard screw, but then he had to go on deck in front of the mast with a winch handle normally! · somewhere on the boat I left a packet of stick-on wind indicators (bue threads) – these shouls be placed either side where you need maximum lift, i.e. in the middle towards the leading third, and also at the potential stall points, i.e. 4 inches behind the luff and four inches in front of the leech, probably in a line a metre off the foot would be ideal, then you have to ignore the windward side and either look at the leeward side or their silhouettes, because that’s where the lift is, which moves the boat faster… · At the other extreme is when the wind is on the beam 90 degrees, and this is best learned by monitoring boat speed on the gps as you experiment with the main sheet as well, because at this wind angle, the mainsail will interfere somewhat with the forsail trailing side. I would say it’s a balance between the instability and heel angle you don’t want, and speed you do. Theres no point sheeting the forsail in hard while the boom is a yard out, because the gap between main and forsail will close too small to allow proper efficiency. · Downwind, you are travelling away from the wind, so the forsail is less like a wing, and more like a parachute, youd want to achieve a fuller shape, so loosen the sheet until most of the sail is at right angles to the wind. This is the fastest point of sail, in a force 5 you would expect 5-7 knots in a moderate sea with the full main set sensibly. The further you sail downwind angle, then the further out the sheet, till you have the windward side on the forsail side in which case it will collapse though you could employ the spinnaker pole on a long voyage? · Mainsail · This is boom furling, using a square tipped crank (need some WD40 in the gears 2009). Also slab reefing is alternately possible using the sail eyes. · before you raise the main, its really quite important to remember one thing – DON’T FALL OFF!. So always have at least one hand firmly holding something you can pull against to stop a wave dip throwing you off the roof/deck, and in strong winds/at sea use rubber soled boots, a life jacket is essential, plus either a safety harness or a trained crew that can deal with you falling off properly. · Note ;Fundamentally, in strong winds/storm, a small reefed mainsail is safer than anything else, and failing to raise it or reef it before a situation becomes stormy can be a bad decision. Remember its easy to let out a reef in fresh winds, but very hard to put one in during a squal/gale so act early and safely for your own safety and that of your crew. Remember in any event, pointing the boat into a strong wind and letting the mainsail flap may be noisy but its harmless and you can reef safely in an emergency, providing you furl up the forsail and leave its sheets loose (this safe position is called hoving –to in sailing books worldwide). · Mansail Raising · remove boom cover completely, stowe in a locker. · check the boom is nearly at the top of the mast fixing slide.(so you can slide the boom down later to tension sail) if it isn’t, then slacken kicking strap, undo wing nut one full turn and slide it till it is about 2” from end of travel(as it tightens up there naturally), retighten wing nut moderately. · slacken the mainsheet off, and reconnect to the traveler block, leave it slack · turn the boat heading into wind, ideally so the wind is slightly/10 degrees on the halyard side (starboard tack) – you might like to use the autopilot for this if traveling forwards · raise the mainsail using the blue/white halyard as follows · position your feet so you are facing the boom, and your left foot is jammed against the rigging wire where it meets the deck, and your right foot is close to the mast but slightly forwards of it · pull the halyard taught with right hand that is passing through cleat (gives you stability if you get knocked by a wave · pull the halyard from head level to the waist level, with left hand · as you pulled down the halyard, with your left, the right becomes loose, so you then retighten with the right hand, and repeat cycle till its near top of the mast and getting tight · now to get extra purchase and tension, instead of pulling halyard down, pull it out to starboard like pulling a bow and arrow, you need to keep the cleat end taught of course with your right hand, then pull in the slack through the cleat and repeat till it has some tension. And cleat off · When you cleat off, use a reverse hoop on the top side of the cleat, go round a gain and another reversed hoop tightened is adequate, then I would recommend, you coil all the loos halyard and jam the coil imbetween the mast and the tightened halyard so it cant swim into the propeller · now if you are feeling keen or not just out for an hour, you might want to get the wrinkles out of the luff of the main and improve its shape, because likely just hauling on the halyard isn’t enough. This is achieved by lowering the boom, and you do that by loosingin the wing nut till it slides, then sitting on the boom with your arse/bodyweight and after a few pumps of this, it will slip down its slide several inches and the wrinkles largely gone. Then tighten the wing nut. An easier way might be to tighten the kicking strap instead of using your weight? · now the sail is up, you are safe to loosen the uphaul(otherwise the mainsheet will fail to tighten the leech of the sail later), to do this, simply throw off’ the extra turn around its mast cleat – don’t actually undo it on the cleat it’s a waste of time. · get back into cockpit now, and tighten the mainsheet. Check the uphaul is not tight, and that the traveler is swung onto the leeward side of its cockpit rail. Ok · Mainsail Setting · basically the same guidance applies as for the forsail, only the mainsail will work better to windward than the forsail, so say you were motoring 35 degrees off the wind at 4 knots, then having the mainsail up and closehauled with forsail furled up completely will be stable and efficient. · There are 2 factors to consider on sail setting; Wind angle and Safety · Wind angle is the Upwind/downwind bit, and I refer to the forsail section, whewre the same is true of the mainsail, but the safety is different, because as well as furling the mainsail has additional drag reducing devices that are important in strong winds; the traveler and the kicking strap; · The Traveller – this is the slid rail for the mainsheet, and basically you can use it to flatten or shape the main, by altering where the slide bites and sticks on the rail. In a strong wind say 40 degrees off the bow, the heel angle of the boat is reduced by pushing the traveler down to leeward side and re-tightening the mainsheet there. It has the effect compared to centred traveler, of increasing the leech tension to boom inhaul raitio thus producing a flatter and therefore depowered mainsail but at a sailable angle. · The kicking strap, this will pull the boom down regardless of boom angle, and can depower the sail then downwind, preventing the boom riding up high and filling the main like a parachute which could cause a capsize in a gale. · To reduce the heeling of a yacht, you should first reef/furl, but in racing or situations where you prefer to keep up full sail, you can do it by tightening the sheets and halyards and downhauls. · In very light winds F1-2, the opposite is true, and you want a fuller shaped sails, so not only slackneing the boom slide (/don’t bother doing it down in the first place), there is another trick, which is to pull the traveler to windward/tie it to a rail somehow, and to stop the sails collapsing, you can sit on the leeward side for a change which keeps the sails fillinging/hanging the leeward side nicely. · Mainsail Reefing · Turn boat into wind and keep it there whil you are doing this · Loosen mainsheet a yard, then cleat it again · tighten boom uphaul/’topping lift’ by putting extra turn round its cleat(prevents boom hitting anyone in cockpit) · loosen kicking strap and remove it from the boom, tie up loose rope safely onto mast · remove the spring clip and pin in the mast that prevents the plastic luff slides dropping out the mast slide AND KEEP THEM SAFE IN YOUR DEEP POCKET · insert boom reefing crank into its starboard hole (make sure if it falls out you wont lose it like I did) · loosen main halyard a foot at a time, and crank in the slack, trying to keep the luff rope near the mast as it starts. · look to check the mainsheet –boom shackle is not fouled and is free. · continue (loosening&rolling) till you have reefed enough for the expected not just current conditions · retighten the halyard and cleat/tidy · tension the luff with the boom slide is a good idea (you can NOT have kicking strap in use if you boom roller reef) · re-insert mast slide pin and circlip, so you know where it is, and also if you need to drop mainsail, it wont come off the mast and act like a parachute in a gale later. · loosen the topping lift - throw off the hoop you put on. · back into cockpit, and tighten mainsheet · Dropping Mainsail · Steer into wind unless its calm · slacken mainsheet a yard · tighten topping lift – extra turn · uncleat main halyard and drop sail · as sail drops, pull leff between slides alternately to port and starboard sides so it consatinas · as halyard goes up, ensure it doesn’t twist and catch in its cleat hole · wrap the kicking strap rope around the middle of the sail, tie a knot, that will stop it billowing while you put on the cover. · the cover ties I use are rottable elastic, and need renewing every few years but its important to find something that is easy and quick to reduce the time on deck in a gale etc. · reconnect the mainsheet onto port pushpit eye and tighten (so its now clear of you heads nice) · put on the cover fore end first, then underside (pulling sails and batons above the boom inside, then aft, then pull cover aft will flatten it neatly · tie up halyard on cleat, but don’t tighten it or it will just slap around and pull up the sail – leave it a bit loose · Spinnaker · The spinnaker is rarely useful except racing or keeping a working sail below F1 and 2 knots · The spinnaker is tricky to launch and easy to get in a tangle unless you raise it with preparation and tidiness · it’s a nightmare to get down in a squall or gust, so NEVER fly it if the wind is expected above F4(white crests on waves appear), because as its pulling high up the mast and less likely to spill wind when you heel, it is the MOST likely sail to cause a capsize if you simply silly · The spinnaker should be raised and retrieved very quickly and sailing downwind if possible to avoid rigging tangles · Spinakker Rig – before use, the 2 sheets must be threaded as follows · for either side, the snap shackle clips onto the rope pullpit eye where the guard rail is attatched · the sheet then travels outside everything including all rigging wires and pushpit rails aft, to the block fitted on the deck outside the cockpit, it then passes through and through and tensioned with black cleat – further sheet should be coiled neatly and left on the cockpit floor or shelf ready for use. · put a double knot in the end of each sheet so its impossible for it to pull out the block if the wind gusts when uncleated, because it will be a perfect and painfull whip on the crew 0neday otherwise. · The Spinakker sail should be inspected each season and any tears or weak spots repaired with spinnaker repair tape (some in spares/chandlers) because if you launch a damaged spinnaker it may rip catastrophically. · The spinnaker should be packed so the port clew is hanging out the bag to port, the starboard to starboard and the head facing forward, without twists inside the bag, then it will be ok. · RED is PORT, green is starboard (short words together see) · Launching the Spinnaker · The difficulty is that you are launching an airborne sail flown outside all other rigging, from the deck inside other rigging, so you see you have forst to decide where the launch trajectory will pass through the rigging, then prepar the launch by passing the sheets and halyard around the rigging and attaching through the trajectory onto the deckborne spinnaker, or you will have a mess · my practiced starting point, is to furl the forsail and launch under the forsail sheets between the pulpit and mast stays, above the guard rail and below the forsail sheets, and therefore, its between all these things, that all three ropes must pass and attach to the packed sail on deck. · furl away the forsail so its not in the way, and you will get enough wind to fly the spinakker · sail nearly downwind between 150-170degrees off wind · uncleat the windward spinnaker sheet(‘guy’) · the terminology changes here because the ‘sheet’ is always leeward, and the other (windward)is called a ‘guy’ · Therefore, if you are on starboard tack (wind from starboard side), then the starboard spinnaker rope is not a ‘sheet’ but the ‘guy’, and the port rope IS a ‘sheet’ (this discipline is so the skipper can instruct the crew which rope to adjust without confusion, as everything is wind related as it should be in terms of instantly avoiding disaster) · the ‘guy’ should first be unclipped from the pulpit and passed around and in front the furled forsail into your other hand, and then below both the forsail sheets but above the guard rail, finally onto the spinnaker tack for the guy side . e.g if you are on starboard tack, then the guy is starboard side, and it would go in front of the forsail and clip onto the GREEN spinnaker clew poking out the bag · the guy should then be cleated loose (so it cant pull out any more on launch) · then the spinnaker sheet(leeward side) should be attached, this also unclips from the pulpit, (doesn’t need to pass round forsail ), passes below any forsail sheets but above guard rail, and onto leeward side clew ( · the halyard should be uncleated and then unclipped from the deck(keep a hold the end or it’s a nice thing for the wind to whip away), then this has to be passed around the foresail and under its sheets but over the guard rail before clipping onto the spinnaker head (blue I think) · as you do this, look up to ensure the spinnaker halyard is not snarled around the forestay but running free to leeward of it, if not then it might get caught raising and if you end up with a spinnaker loose all in the sea because you cant raise it, god help you (well best bet release both sheets) · put your foot on the bag’s unfilled bottom edge so when the sail is pulled out, it wont end up in sea · now you are ready to launch – basically briskly hoist the head up till its about a yard lower than the top block (that’s from memory, will give a stable set position with pole ending up vertical if used) and cleat off securely · make sure the sail is successfully flying/flopping outside all forsail rigging and the sheets are clear outside all the way to their blocks aft? · in cockpit, pull the guy and sheet in till they are roughly equal, but you will need to have the centre of the spinnaker roughly directly downwind of the mast, thus the guy will be longer than the sheet. · IF you wish to sail a bit more ‘abeam’ than 150 degrees, i.e. 80-150, then the windward edge of your spinnaker would settle evenly downwind of the forstay, and that results in the guy touching the forestay, and then the spi8nakker collapses SO, you will need the POLE; · the pole clips first onto the windward clew, so youll probably need to pull on the guy rope to get it close enough, then other end clips onto mast. · its IMPORTANT never to let the pole rub or rest on the forestay/furled forsail because in a gust it could snap!, so tension the guy tight enough so it cant. · lots of people have pole downhauls and uphauls fitted to their poles, but it’s a mess and more likely to then snap! So don’t bother, in my opinion, the only good idea on Vian would be to fit a downhaul between the pole end and the mast base?? · steer downwind and remove pole before recovering spinnaker sail of course. · Recovering spinnaker · what you DON’T want is the sail in the water at all, so be prepared, its not easy · sod’s law is always you recover a spinnaker because the wind has picked up above force 4, and you didn’t act quickly, so now maybe youre in a panic, and youre glad you trained and practiced in light and medium winds right? · theres nothing really more disconcerting than having a submerged and full spinnaker anchoring your boat while you have a ½ tonne of wind force trying to blow you downwind, and all the tonnage on your flimsy spinnaker tackle. Twisted around together and you cant now see which sheet to release first / cut in an emergency.(the leeward deckside/ ‘sheet’ by the way) · furl up the forsail · loosen the guy completely (spinnaker will collape down to leeward side now) · loosen the sheet till you can pull the leeward clew into the bag, then cleat it off · uncleat the halyard and loosen gradually as you pull the sail down and entirely into the bag(you have secured onto deck with your foot again.) · secure the halyard back onto deck hoop and cleat/tidy, ensuring its not wound or caught in headsail, but clean drop from block on mast to foredeck hoop. · secure the spinnaker sheet and guy back onto the pulpit rope eyes ready for next launch (or remove entirely if you don’t want them rotting over winter) · stowe the sail and bag securely, setting it up if possible with clews untwisted and ready for next launch? · note there maybe a string/hoop in the spinnaker centre for recovery but this is only neant for recovery into a launch tube Vian hasn’t got (like some dinghys have) · Setting Spinnaker · as I said earlier, it should be centred downwind of the mast up till the guy or pole will allow without touching the forestay anyway. · then theres the question of angle, theres 2 things to consider’; boat type and efficiency; · boat type , well vian definitely isn’t a planning dinghy, so theres no merit in using the spinnaker like a kite to pull the bow out for planning, it should therefore be set so the middle of the spinnaker is vertical to the sea, by adjusting guy/sheet length · efficiency, if the other sails are ‘blanketing’ the spinnaker, it might fly better if the ropes are all eased out a metre or two, including the halyard · if the spinnaker is touching the water, then the halyard should be used to raise the sail higher · Self-steering · Vian can be set up to basically steer on a wind angle between 45-180 without need for steering, in certain conditions; · obviously the autopilot can do it, but otherwise; · the autopilot can be of use to lock the tiller in a position having first ‘balance the sails’ · the sails can be balanced so that the boat steers itself · correctly set, if the boat turns downwind, the mainsail pushes the boat back on course, and if the boat turns upwind, the forsail pushes it back downwind. · to achieve this, there are several helpful factors, the most important being how small the waves are to knock the boat around, how much centerboard, tiller locking, flattened sails, and speed you have – all help. And above all wind angle desired – its easiest to reach 70-110 degrees, but once you fall outside of that its really a matter of furling one sail or the other and using them flatter. · Spinnaker is ideal for downwind steering · initially as a first try, get the boat set up as follows: · centerboard fully down · get the autopilot to steer approx 90 degrees to wind instrument · tension the forsail to something easy · vary the mainsheet tension till the autopilot is generally keeping tiller midships or working less · when you have a steady course, turn off the autopilot power (it will freeze and lock tiller) · watch and see how far off course she blows etc, learn. · you can experiment to find if you can achieve optimum speeds and stability/reliability for different wind angles and sea states. Good challenge fun · to improve control, flatten the mainsail as if you were in strong winds, to improve speed set sails optimum. · Getting safely back to mooring · approach from downwind, · adjust boat speed to mooring about 1mph · have assistant on foredeck with the hook ready · hook the small buoy or better – the thick rope loop · pull onto the foredeck · engine into neutral, make sure you don’t run over the ropes – important! · the mooring rope loop end, is threaded between pulpit front and starboard uprights, then under the anchor, then over the post, then you can ensure its running through the starboard deck cleat(may need a tug and release to do this) – you could rope/padlock etc etc for security, but lets face it is someone wants to illegally unmoor it, they could just slash the mooring rope so whats the point? · engine off (that’s the rocker switch closest to the cockpit just inside the cabin footwell. · Leaving · Mooring/Anchor securely fitted, (in winter a longer chain as backup would be good idea) · Engine seacock OFF · GAS OFF · Electric OFF · Centreboard UP · Rudder up · Sails down and secure for a gale · GPS and tillerpilot and laptop removed if fitted and secured dry · your valuables, keys mobiles and belongings ready · close curtains (I like to) or ensure no valuable visible · LOCK UP and make sure key in position · Maintenance · Engine. · as you know the Vire 6 engine is per manual onboard, please refer to that · there is a greaser on the water pump and also the propshaft which have refillable screwdown cups for white grease, approx half turn every 10 trips id guess just to eliminate wear. · the fuel filter fitted is so oversize it should never need attention. · the pipe between the deck filler plug and the fuel tank is slightly loose, this is necessary to allow the expanding fuel vapour to exit and so not pressurize the system, but its now essential never to fill the tank to the neck. · Battery · is new 2009 but its wise not to leave it uncharged for months, so either run engine monthly 5 minutes or fit solar cell, or remove in winter? · Gas, standard bottle. Left hand thread normal so beware! Check for leaks when refitting diligently please always turn off gas on a left boat. Its important that that gas locker is not airtight and can breathe through to the sea just in case there was a leak it would vent away and not fill the bilges. The only way to ensure gas cylinders cannot fill up your bilges really is either to fit them into a sealed chamber where a vent pipe goes overboard below the level of the cockpit but not blockable by the sea, or just don’t have gas! If you have no leaks, you have no worries. Even a perfect design, someone could leave the unlit cooker on, so just common sense and smell if safe. · Painting · Deck blue is a B&Q colour, theres a can on the boat for reference. Payparticular attention to the joint between the air vents and deck, and also the hatch runners and deck or rain water will drip inside through cracks · Pushpit and topsite non-stainless parts is hammerite silver which does a perfect job in minutes but its rubber so easily rubs off. · rubbbing strake has been teak –oiled last year, the chip on one side isn’t structural of course and could easily be filled with epoxy wood filler, whereas replacing the rubbbing strake is a major 2-day job. Looks fantastic sanded/filled/sanded/varnished, but only stays nice a year or 2 then lots of work again.last varnished 2005. Oil is easy · Hull is not smooth but a major job to repaint smooth. In 2002, I sanded it all down, and 2 coats of international primer hycote, then 2 coats roller of international Brightside above waterline, and some cheap antifoul that was silvery white under waterline. The waterline was some cheap blue, which works fine, although I was advised to use a special £15 a small pot stuff just for the line so it wouldn’t go green – rubbish! Since then, I pressure washed and repainted when she was last out which was Spring 2005. with cheap antifoul and new Brightside international etc. · antifoul – as shes in harbour and easy to scrub, theres really not a lot of problem as she is, with either cheap antifoul £30 can every few years, or just a seasonal clean midsummer when its warm enough to dry washed hull/ paint quick. Christchurch is neither salty (barnacles) nor weedy as its mainly sand and a lot of mullet and swans eat most of its weed. Ideal mooring · The taped over hole in the cockpit bulkhead is because I have yet to find an engine 0-5000 RPM meter that would work with a Vire engine (magneto ign, 1 cyl 2 stroke), and I wanted to have a nice panel to have RPM, fuel level, and exhaust temperature indicated, ideally, set into a mahogany block I have, and then sealed, screwed into place with a discreet wiring done. To this end I collected several tachos from beuliueu jumble last year but none worked properly in test · As part of improvements, I now realize, it would be better to have the run/stop switch, start button and ignition lamp also clumped together in the cockpit on this new panel, and to stop thieves taking advantage, add a battey master switch inside the locked cabin, probably on the bulkhead above the chart table(id then leave on the battery one, just isolating the interior one on entry) · I did consider relocating all switches from the engine board onto the port side of the chart table in a new box, but I rather like the convenience of the nav light switches from the cockpit at least. In a sensible world, you would have a series of fuse holders near the main switch, which lit up when blown, and no switches on equipment that already had its own (VHF/depth, GPS, etc) · Windows – these are really thick Perspex possibly 8mm, and stronger than normal I found out. I was going to have them replaced, but after hours removing the trim and dozens of screws, someone suggested brasso would make the cracks disappear – I didn’t believe it possible but agreed to try, and ten minutes later they nearly dissapeared! So I rebolted and left. The price of 4 new Perspex windows without drill holes made in thinner UV resistant, toughened plastic was over £300. · The curtains are ok, but if I were refitting, I would have roller blinds, 4 of, like they sell for cars to protect baby seated, fixed above, and that would stop curtains letting in light in the mornings you are dried out etc. · Centre – board, · this was brand new 2002 and all refurbished – access is by removing the table, which is easiest by the 4 screws in the 6 holes port/starboard, then all the wood comes off in one go. · the screw can be white greased if it is rusting, but I doubt · the chain attatches onto the glavanised board by a s/s shackle which looks flimsy because in fact only a very thin shackle can fit round the board without gouging a boat-sinking groove in the casing I decided. This shackle is about £2 and ought to be inspected if it ever gets over-strained, then it can be swapped by drying out I think easily if you have a long narrow one like it from the shop first.. · now and then if the boat has got stones jammed in the casing, the board wont go down, so theres a crowbar stowed forward, and with the table removed and the chain a bit slack you can give the board a light lever aft in the slot which frees it – I only had this twice in 7 years sailing. · when you replace table please note the following · only about 4 of the 6 holes are effective screws, so note which ones are in place before removal · the board indicating cord must be free to slide back and forth and not pinched or it wont work. · the water level is only 6 inches below the top, so I think it’s an important idea to seal the table nearly watertight with sealant and plastic bags as you lower it, because if you think pessimistically if the boat were slowly leaking/sinking at sea so it took in a full 12” of waterinside , then the sea level would rise about 6 inches higher in the housing with the heavier boat, and suddenly the water could fill up the whole boat in minutes and sink, SO by restricting the potertial passage of water above the slot into the boat, would buy you extra bailing/rescur/running aground time and save the boat I thought. So if you discard the plastic and sealing work I did, you recreated the weakest link in the boat at sea (though it has to be said this boat lasted 38 years already ok without me spotting it) · there is a fair amount of slop in the casing, which is wider than the plate, and I made 2 marine ply baffles to take up the play, but in practice they just jammed the plate and I removed them, including the original. I had the new plate manufactured with spacer washers welded either side where the pin goes through to stop the plate being loose properly, but to my astonishment, I then had to grind them off at the last minute because the plate was a perfect fit only without them, so the play may at the top by design not accident. I also fitted a new bolt of course and the nut is both tightened and then I filled the area with removable? Silicone sealant in case I wanted to renew in future. I decide on a galvanized bolt being a proper match for the galvanized plate and raw cast iron keel, which were painted with hammerite ate the time before assembly. I noticed once we were in harbour trying to sleep in a storm and the plate was clanging till I lifted it then we rolled around a bit more, and also when you anchor in a swell it will clang so same thing, but sailing, never a problem or noise. I have I must say seen several other lifting keel designs, and the snapdragon 23 later went over to bilge keel which is unseaworthy and unfit to race, and the other designs used by manufacturers all have problems unless new, but what I like most about Vian’s is that if you hit something shallow and hard, the plate simple swings back harmlessly on it, and if anything went wrong its fairly harmless, whereas almost every other design is not swing but lift and will fracture the casing and sink if it strikes a rock hard, and if it jams, it really jams and then your boat may het swamped with the plate locked down when the tide is going out. Vians lasted and proven design is pretty cool. · Anchor chain – theres an astonishing 100feet of this, but the deckside metre or so is rusted, I have bolt croppers/hacksaw to cut off and then the 6mm allen key onboard will reconnect the thief proof? Anchor swivel to the new end. I always looked out for a few metres of s/s chain which would look classy but seems noone sells it retail, then you have to risk a riveted chain link or a shackle that might jam in the feeder pipe? · Interior · Ive never painted really to my discredit, but the ceiling I did, it’s plywood tailored panels, contact adhesive sprayed and wrapped in professional headlining material from zebedees, I still have a fair roll left if you need any more for forepeak etc. · The headlining panels were designed for easy removal by me in case, but its their literal downfall, as rather than directly fix them/risk a screw in a scalp later, they were cut perfectly close so the varnished beading strips would keep them up like trusses. Problem is that the screws holding the trusses up are a bit weak/short in places and then it will look untidy – solution, just a few longer screws in the loose screws. · the headlining above cooker fell down and branded itself, but it showed it was a dangerous idea and ive left it off, but that section now can be used to block the cooker window if your away, from prying eyes, I think if I were refitting, I would definitely line the cooker cubicle with stainless steel sheeting, so it would be flame proof and easy clean, but its difficult to find s/s sheet thin enough to cut and bend easily, and edges would be sharp. · the cooker forward burner isn’t as efficient for some reason, so I always use the rear one unless needing both. It’s a great winter warmer that thing though and anyone with a boat should have a gas stove youll find out in November! · The sink outlet has a sea cock, but I always left it open, its never let water in, even during a gale at 30 degreees sailing stbd tack. · The sea toilet however is only inches above sea level, so its best to always turn off both cocks, and leave the switch on ‘Drain’ (which closes the inlet flap shut) as well. · the seacocks are in good order but due to the age of the boat, the bolts probably rotten weak, and its now the added glassfibre reinforcement is adequately holding. To replace seacock bolts as surveyors often demand is a hugely expensive job, normally the seacock base crumbles on removal as its so devoid of grease for years requiringhundreds of quid on new valves and a hot summers day in the yard to epoxy them in again(just like they were anyway) with the new bolts the surveyor wanted (probably now going through new weakened holes in a weakened hull) – so all that is needed is to continue to make sure the glassfibre inboard is well adhered to the seacock’s body and the hull and they should last another 40 years. Incidentally a new seacock with new bolts only last about 10 years if they are wetted with piss, and not glassed in. Surveyors will fail corroded seacocks or their bolts as they shouls, but what they cant see they cant fail and they should pass a strongly bonded cock without bolts, like Vian’s · Troubleshooting · Miscellaneous · the switch on the interface box, merely redirects the GPS instrument to receive data FROM the depth instead of the PC, this allows the GPS when marking a waypoint (press and hold enter) to store the depth in the fix, but then prevents the GPS doing anything advanced with a PC like saving your waypoints into a program that wants to instruct the GPS to do that. · The automatic bilge pump (not needed really on a watertight VIAN with cockpit cover) is wired directly to the batter via a fuse and the float switch. If the fuse is blown, it cant work, the fuse holder is next to the cabin light control breaker. · the bilge pump is a bayonet fit into the base which is screwed onto the bilges, occasionally it needs to be cleared of crap if its jammed · The fore hatch leaks because of a design fault, it allows water to pool in the window, and not drain it off, so to remedy, would be to fill the pool hole with a thick bit of Perspex higher than the wood surround and silicone the edges. · the flashin red light on the cockpit hatch is just that, its not an alarm, it’s a night-visible deterrent. Its wired from the bilge switch which is always on regardless of battery isolator position being off · if you want to lower the mast, heres the procedure: · turn off power · label and disconnect the wiring under the mast, · pull mast cables free and tape safely to mast · remove boom · remove foresail (halyard) · mark and then loosen all rigging screws ½” but so they wont fall apart and drop in sea · completely unscrew the forward stay’s screws and the side stays, so only the rear stays are in place · make sure its not tensioned still then unbolt forstay 13mm nut and bolt (record washer sequence that’s important) · have a crane or assistants to receive falling mast inline aft · remove the bolt holding the mast in the mast step. · by allowing/walking forestay gradually aft, allow the mast to fall back into strong tall mens hands, stood on the cabin roof, and igrab the mast bottom and make sure it doesn’t gouge anywhere or anyone. · you can then walk the mast forward so its balanced and maybe work on the rigging etc · reassembly is the reverse, but think carefully about the stays where they were inside or outside guard rails? · tension bottlescrews back to the original positions you painted/marked · check the mast is straight by lying on your back at the mast base and sighting up; · the lower shrouds affect the lower half only, the centre stays reposition the top only, and of course the forestay/backstay as appropriate. · cover the tightened screw nuts and tape over if you like. · check reconnected VHF with coastguard, anchor light with binoculars, wind instrument is complex needing all wires good connection. There is a tiny fuse that blew once it’s inside the interface box which is accessed by removing engine cabinet / drawers. Prob a spare in the fuses collection. · Enjoy sailing Vian, she’s a real joy, although she has a lot of age and scratches, she’s a great combination of easy sailing and low depreciation. Most boats either so new they are designed for looks and speed above comfort and ease to sail, or they are so old they are riddled with worn out and bodged systems that ruin the safety and make it stressfull. In vian, you will generally feel safe, comfortable and feel in control, without needing a lot of sail training or any crew. Look after her as her hull is built to last forever, and will be passed on in years to others wanting a good first cruiser who has a thirst for the adventure and learning challenge. ·
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