Sailing Vessel (SV) Sarah
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Sarah's Equipment Here is the list of equipment currently installed or carried on Sarah. I inherited a fair amount of equipment from the Previous Owner (PO). Although that equipment was in fair to good working order at the time of the sale, I completed a fairly massive equipment upgrade to prepare Sarah as a live-aboard vessel in 2003 and as a trans-Atlantic cruiser in 2005. After I returned to the USA in 2007 I started another round of upgrades to prepare Sarah for further cruises. See Equipment Upgrades and Electronics menus on the left for more information on some of these changes. Where I have documented an upgrade with pictures I have provided a link to the upgrade page in the Equipment Item column, below. |
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| Cabin Equipment | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Conditioner | Oceanair, currently in good working condition | ||
| Cushions | The aft and main cabin cushions were 4" foam covered with white vinyl (Naugahyde) and forward cabin cushions are also 4" foam with the original covers. | The aft cabin cushion has been replaced by a 7" latex rubber mattress from HMC in 2003. The main cabin cushions were replaced in 2005. | 2003, 2005 |
| Cabin Lighting | All light fixtures were original equipment as delivered by Pearson. | Replaced all existing light fixtures.
Added new lights to all cabins. Replaced the West Marine overhead dome
lights with Alpenglow fixtures. Upgraded the reading lamps in the main cabin with LED bulbs from DrLED. |
2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2007 |
| Storage | Pearson designed in a great deal of storage space, which is one reason the 424 is such a popular cruising boat | Still you cannot have too much storage space on a cruising boat, so like nearly all of the other 424 owners I have adapted much of the unused space on Sarah for storage. | 2003, 2005, 2008 |
| Galley | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| Refrigeration | Grunert engine-drive with AC motor drive attached | Compressor seized on way to Bermuda. Replaced with Sea Frost Engine Drive w/Shore Assist III | 2002 |
| Fresh Water Pump | PAR 36900-0400 12v, 20-40psi | The original freshwater pump failed in
the first year of my ownership. I replaced it with a PAR 36900-0200 which
is identical except that it has a 10-20psi pressure switch. It was the only
one available at Boat US at the time. I separately purchased a 20-40psi
switch intending to install it. I found that it is a lot easier to conserve
water with the lower pressure and have kept the 10-20psi switch on the
pump. I will likely install the higher pressure pump when I move on board,
but may then change the switch back when we head off-shore again.
The PAR pump body cracked and started to
leak during our trip down the ICW in the fall of 2004. I couldn't get
a replacement in Beaufort, NC. I purchased a JABSCO Sensor MAX In 2008 after several problems with the VSD pump I installed a more conventional JABSCO MAX 4 pump |
2002, 2004, 2007, 2008 |
| Hot Water Heater | Generic 6 gal tank | Raritan 1700 series 6 gal tank. I
didn't properly winterize the old tank in 2000 (forgot about the check
valve) and it cracked. Installed the new Raritan tank in Spring, 2001. I
could not prevent it from over-heating the engine after repeated attempts.
I finally decided a bypass valve was required. I disconnected the tank from
the engine for the Bermuda trip, with the intention of installing a bypass
valve when I returned. This meant we only had hot water when dockside
(110VAC) or running the generator. In 2002 I finally got around to fixing the problem. I decided to try once more to bleed the lines from the engine through the heater. I connected it back up and the engine ran fine. As a matter of fact it cured the tendency of the engine to run a little warm (>190°) at cruising RPMs It appears the additional heat exchanger on the engine coolant lines solved that problem. |
2001 |
| Galley Faucet and mixer. | Appeared to be a low-priced household faucet. | Replaced with moderate-priced unit
from Home Depot. The faucet can be pulled out and used as a sprayer. The Home Depot faucet started to leak in 2008 and it was replaced by a Price Pfister faucet purchased at Loew's. |
2002, 2008 |
| Manual galley pumps | Whale foot pump | Unit was not operational. Found cracked fitting in hose line and it now works fine. | 2001, 2002, 2006 |
| Hand pump for ice box | Pump had broken hose barb.. I removed this pump from the counter behind the galley sink and replaced it with a liquid soap dispenser. | ||
| Hand pump for seawater | This pump is identical to the one for the ice box. It is not very efficient, but I have left it installed for now. I connected the ice box evacuation hose to this pump with a Y-valve so this pump now supports both functions. I replaced that original pump with a Finnspray pump in 2007. | ||
| Galley Stove | Kenyon 3 burner stove w/oven | Replaced with Force 10 3-burner stove with oven/broiler | 2004 |
| Head | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| Shower Mixer | Tempo Faucet | The original mixer was actually a galley faucet mounted vertically on the shower wall. This was not very efficient for controlling the water temperature and flow, but also looked clunky. I replaced it with a standard shower mixer from Home Depot. | 2004 |
| Shower Sump Pan | Fiberglass tank located on top of keel aft of mast step. | This was never an efficient
installation due the nearly horizontal hose run from the shower drain to the
sump tank, which is located just aft of the mast step under the main cabin
sole. Consequently, even when the system was working properly, the shower
drained very slowly into the sump until the pump was turned on. One of the
hose barbs on the tank has broken off so the sump cannot be pumped dry. I
intended to remove the sump tank, but it is nearly inaccessible and appears
to be glassed onto the top of the keel area. I left the tank in place, but
reran the sump hose directly to a whale macerator overboard pump. Since I installed the original Whale pump I've had three failures with two pumps. Currently (March, 2008) the shower sump pump is not operational. |
2003 |
| Basin Faucet | Unknown manufacture | This faucet was functional, but its low profile made it difficult to use. I replaced it with another Home Depot purchase. | 2004 |
| Toilet & Sewage Handling | PAR PHE II Marine Head. Raritan LectraSan treatment tank. | After having to clear clogged sewage hoses on more than one occasion, and having to deal with replacing the LectraSan, I replaced the entire toilet and sewage system with an Airhead Composting Toilet. | 2008 |
| Electrical Systems | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| Batteries | (2) 4D batteries of unknown manufacture. | One of the batteries failed to hold
charge in summer of 2000. Replaced both batteries with West Marine AGM
batteries before Bermuda Trip. One of those batteries failed the next
spring and was replaced by West Marine under warranty. Still evaluating
whether AGM batteries are the way to go. Their specs (no liquid
electrolyte, more efficient charging, etc.) make them seem ideal for
cruising boats. They do not appear to be as robust as flooded cell
batteries, but they certainly are a major improvement over Gel Batteries. The other battery started to fail in 2004 on the way down the ICW. I replaced the AGM batteries with Rolls wet cell batteries. In 2006 I destroyed the Rolls batteries by leaving the battery charger in high output mode (cold temp batteries setting) and ran them dry. The batteries were under warranty, but I was in Portugal and the Rolls dealer was in Florida. I purchased a pair of Tudor batteries in Portugal. In 2008 one of the Tudor batteries failed to hold charge. I have temporarily replaced those batteries with a pair of Group 27 batteries from Wal-Mart while I decide what type and brand of battery I will install next. |
2005, 2006, 2008 |
|
Battery Charger |
Raritan |
This unit was still working, but I replaced it with a Statpower charger to accommodate the AGM batteries and to provide a charge for the generator starting battery. The Statpower (Xantrex) charger also can run on the 50 Hz power in Europe. |
2002 |
|
Shore Power |
110VAC shore power is provided through a Marinco receptacle and a household type breaker box. Power is distributed to various on board circuits by the AC breaker panel over the Navigation Station. | Replaced the deck receptacle. Then added a Mastervolt Isolation Transformer as part of my plan for European 230VAC/50hz power. | 2005 |
| Electric Fans | None | Installed Hella Turbo fans in galley. forward cabin and the aft cabin. | 2000, 2005 |
| Inverter | 600w inverter was wired in an unsafe manner. | The 600W inverter was removed and sold on eBay in 2005. Still (2008) trying to decide what type of inverter to use. | |
| Electronics | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| EPIRB | None | ACR 406mhz unit In 2007 the battery on the EPIRB was out of date and needed to be replaced. I elected instead to replace it with a new unit. This EPIRB has a GPS interface. |
2001, 2007 |
| Radio Receivers/Transceivers | Sarah was equipped with an old, but working Apelco VHF radio. There is a cockpit speaker; however, when it is connected the speaker in the unit is muted. When motoring it is very difficult hear the radio, even with my head within 3 feet of the internal speaker. | I replaced the VHF with in ICOM M402 with Remote Commander. The Remote Commander provides a full-power handheld for the cockpit, replacing the cockpit speaker arrangement. | 2004 |
| Purchased a used ICOM M700 and SGC 230
Antenna Tuner from Dick Juppenlatz (Cruising
Services & Supplies). Added Pactor IIex modem (w/Pactor III upgrade) Replaced the M700 with an ICOM M802 in 2005. Added a Furuno NAVTEX receiver in 2005 |
2001, 2004, 2005 | ||
| Entertainment | Old Panasonic FM/AM/Cassette unit installed at the navigation station. Speakers in the main cabin are working. The speakers in the aft cabin were disconnected. | Replaced the Panasonic with s Sony
AM/FM/CD unit. Added CD changer. Plan to relocate the stereo to the main
cabin, upgrade the cabin speakers and install cockpit speakers.
Added 17" Samsung LCD TV and Sony DVD player to my Boat Entertainment Center. Replaced the Sony stereo receiver with an Alpine 9847 with an iPod interface. See iPod discussion here. Relocated the stereo to the main cabin. The Alpine died in 2007 and was replaced by another Alpine model. |
2000 2003 2004
2005 2006 2007 |
| Sailing Instruments | Signet knot meter and depth sounder. Datamarine wind instrument. | All sailing instruments were replaced with Raymarine ST60 instruments. | 2003 |
| AIS Engine | None | NASA AIS Engine. Replaced the NASA AIS Engine with the SR161 in 2007. | 2006, 2007 |
| Autopilot | Autohelm 3000 Wheel pilot. | Raytheon (Autohelm/Raymarine) ST6000+
w/Remote Replaced the drive motor. Replaced the Type 300 course computer with the S3 course computer. Added wireless remote controller. |
2000 2006 |
| Radar | Sitex T100 | CRT burned out in 2000. No
replacement parts from Sitex. Could not find an electronics shop willing to
work on it. Removed from boat and discarded after return from Bermuda. Replaced with Raymarine Pathfinder 24" Radome Scanner and C-120 LCD display. This display also provides an Electronic Chart Plotter (see Navigation Instruments, below). |
2004 |
| Navigation Instruments | Apelco Loran | We apparently fried the loran while
unit testing the M700 SSB radio just prior to our departure for Bermuda.
I finally got around to installing a fixed mount Raymarine GPS as part of the Radar and Chart Plotter upgrade. The Raymarine C-120 LCD display supports both the Radar (see above), Navionics Electronic Charting as well as all of the other Raymarine instruments connected to the SeaTalk bus (Autopilot, wind, depth, speed, GPS). I also purchased the Fugawi Electronic Chart System for my PC. I intend to use this system primarily for voyage planning than actual navigation, although it is a backup to the Navionics system. It is also the source for most of the charts I have published on this web . I purchased two refurbished Dell Latitude laptops from the Dell Auction web-site. They are identical 1GHz computers These will provide my primary onboard computing for navigation, email and general computing. The computer which I maintain this website (Dell Inspiron 8500) will be secured when underway. The Raymarine Raystar 120 GPS receiver started to fail in 2007 and was replaced by a Raystar 125. The hard drive on one of the Dell laptops failed in 2008. I purchased two more Dell laptops (1.6 GHz) from the Dell Auction site. The old Dells ran under Win2K, the new ones run under WinXP. Now all of my computers use the same OS. I will always have paper charts for whatever cruising area I am in. In addition, I will always carry my 20-year old plastic Davis sextant on off-shore trips. |
2004, 2005, 2007, 2008 |
| NMEA Multiplexer | None | Added a Brookhouse NMEA multiplexer in 2005 to help integrate all of my electronics. In 2007 I upgraded the Brookhouse Mux to their AIS-C model. | 2005, 2007 |
| Man Overboard | Life ring on stern rail. | Replaced the life ring with a Life Sling system. Added Raymarine Lifetag system |
2001, 2007 |
| Deck and Rigging Equipment | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| Winches | Cockpit: Lewmar 48 3-speed | Andersen 46ST 2-speed self-tailing | 2003 |
| Mainsheet: Lewmar 25 2-speed | |||
| Mainmast: (1) Lewmar 25 2-speed, (1) Lewmar 16 2-speed | (2) Andersen 16 2-speed | 2003 | |
| Mizzenmast: (1) Lewmar 16 2-speed, (1) Lewmar 10 single speed | At the suggestion of Jack Tyler I added a small mainsheet block set to the aft end of the mizzen boom. This replaced the previous arrangement of the mizzen sheet running through a block on the stern pulpit back to the mizzen boom and forward to a winch on the mizzen mast. This dinky little sail does not need a winch for trimming the sheet. Making this change will allow the bimini to be higher and extend to the back of the mizzen mast. It also allows the previous mizzen sheet winch to be used as a halyard winch for a future mizzen staysail. | 2004 | |
| Deck Hatches | 4 Bomar hatches | The forward, main cabin and galley hatches have been replaced with Lewmar Ocean Hatches. An additional hatch was installed over the berth in the aft cabin. I don't intend to replace the hatch in the head. | 2001 - 2003 |
| Main Mast Standing Rigging | Original Pearson rigging | Added Solent Stay | 2005 |
| Replaced all of the main mast rigging in 2007 using Sta-Lok terminals. | 2007 | ||
| Dinghy Davits | Caste aluminum cantilevered from cockpit rear deck. | These are very inefficient davits, but they are functional. I removed them and sold them on eBay to make room for the Monitor Wind Vane. | 2004 |
| Lifelines | Double vinyl covered SS wire rope with turnbuckles at each end. Mid ship gate with Pelican hooks. | The lifelines are very old and need to be replaced. Replaced by Mack Sails Rigging in Stuart, FL. | 2005 |
| Mainsheet System | 6:1 mid-boom purchase on a vertically radiused traveler beam track between two aluminum risers. Main sheet led to swivel deck block then to cheek block and winch on cabin trunk. Fixed blocks on boom. | Replaced fixed boom blocks with Lewmar swivel blocks. A few years later I realized that I needed a combination of fixed and swivel blocks. The forward block which leads to the turning block on top of the cabin trunk, needs to be on a swivel to allow it to align with the deck block. The other two mainsheet blocks need to be fixed to prevent the mainsheet from twisting and creating additional friction. I lost the pins that were used to convert the Lewmar blocks to fixed blocks, so I replaced the aft blocks with Schaeffer blocks. | 2000 2004 |
| Mizzen Sheet System | The original arrangement of the mizzen sheet running to a winch on the mast always was overkill for this miserable little sail. | When I ordered a bimini from Leonard Canvas in Solomons, Clark Mckinney pointed out that this arrangement restricted both the height and forward extend of the bimini. After consultation with Jack Tyler, I took Jack's recommendation to put the entire sheet arrangement on stern rail. Now I have freed the winch for a mizzen staysail halyard. | 2004 |
| Halyards and sheets. | Serviceable, but aged rope. Halyards were wire-rope. | Replaced all halyards with NE Rope Sta-Set
X. Replaced Genoa and mizzen sheets, main sail reef lines with Sta-Set.
Replaced main sail sheet, traveler control lines, and davit lines with NE
Rope Regatta Braid. Regatta Braid is my preferred rope where a little
stretch is acceptable. It is by far the easiest braided rope to splice and
handle. Replaced the main mast halyards with 1/2" Sta-Set X again in 2003 after replacing the masthead sheaves and converting the mast to internal halyards. The previous halyards were too large (9/16"). Also added 2nd jib halyard and a topping lift for the boom. The current Genoa sheets are 5/8", which are nice to handle but are too large for the new Andersen self-tailing winches. Will have to drop down to no larger than 1/2" line. Replaced the Genoa halyard with 1/2" Sta-Set X. Needed the two jib halyards to be the same size so they can go through the same double rope clutch on the mast. The old Genoa halyard will become the stay-sail halyard on the Solent Stay. |
2000 2003 2004 2005 |
| Sails | 135% Genoa, Working Jib, Fully Battened Mainsail, Full Battened Mizzen. | Added Asymmetrical Spinnaker, ATN Gale Sail storm jib. | 2001 |
| Replaced Genoa | 2002 | ||
| Replaced Mainsail | 2003 | ||
| Added staysail for Solent Stay in 2005, recut the sail in 2008. Modified the ATN Gale Sail by removing the sleeve that wraps around the furled head sail and added hanks so it can be set on the Solent Stay. | 2005, 2008 | ||
| Navigation Lights | Running: Perko bow and stern lights embedded in hull | Added Aqua-Signal
masthead tricolor. Added Aqua-Signal
stern light to stern rail because the Monitor Wind Vane obscured the
original light mounted on the transom. Replaced the bow lights with Aqua-Signal Bi-Color light on the bow pulpit. |
2003, 2006 |
| Anchor: Perko | Replaced by tricolor | 2003 | |
| Deck: Small Perko spreader lights on main mast, Forespar floodlight on mizzen mast | Replaced spreader lights with larger Perko units. Added Aqua-Signal foredeck light | 2003 | |
| Windvane Self-Steering | I retained my Aries Windvane when I sold my Columbia 8.7, but never installed it on Sarah. The Northern Lights generator blocks access to the portion of the transom where the Aries mounts would have to be installed. I eventually sold the Aries on eBay. | After looking at virtually all of the windvane products on the marker, I finally settled on the Monitor Windvane and installed in spring, 2004. | 2004 |
| Dodger & Sun Cover | Black Sunbrella dodger in poor to fair condition. Small cockpit awning. | Dodger was discarded after Bermuda trip. I have acquired a dodger and bimini from Leonard Canvas in Solomons (Quantum) | 2004 |
| Boarding Ladder | Stern ladder. This ladder was difficult to climb as the stand-offs were too short, and it had to be moved to make room for the Montior Windvane | I replaced the stern ladder with a removable ladder that mounts on the genoa track. | 2005 |
| Passarelle | None. A passarelle is a necessary feature of cruising in Europe as few marinas have finger piers to allow one to get on or off the boat. | I purchased a Passerelle in Gibraltar, but did not install it until I got to Almerimar, Spain. The Passerelle has since been sold. | 2006 |
| Mast Ascension | Bosun chair | Added ATN Top Climber and steps on main mast | 2001-2003 |
| Steering | Edson Quadrant Wheel Steering | Replaced original 32" Destroyer Wheel with 40" Wheel. I like to stand on the cockpit benches when steering into a dock, raft-up or anchorage. When standing on a bench I had to lean down to steer with the 32 " wheel. The 40" wheel allows me to stand erect on the bench giving me greater visibility of the bow. Subsequently I have negated this advantage by covering the cockpit with a Bimini. I can no longer stand erect on either bench. I knew there were reasons I didn't want a Bimini. | 2000 |
| Aluminum Emergency Tiller | I added two sets of block and tackle to the Emergency Tiller to make it more manageable should I ever have to use it. | 2005 | |
| Life Raft | None | Purchased a Switlik MD-2 raft | 2004 |
| Ground Tackle | Lofrans Royal manual windlass. One rope gypsy (port) and one 3/8" BBB chain gypsy (starboard) | No upgrade planned. Purchased 3/8" proof coil gypsy from Imtra for the chain rode on the Bruce anchor. | 2005 |
| 44# Chinese CQR-Type plow anchor, 6'
chain, 150' rope. 28# Danforth anchor, 6' chain, 150 rope |
Added 44# Bruce anchor, 50' 3/8" Proof Coil chain, 400' rope. | 2001 | |
| Mechanical Equipment and Pumps | |||
| Equipment Item | Original Equipment | Replaced by or Augmented with | Upgraded in |
| Deck and Ground Tackle Wash Down | None | Installed Shurflo pump under V-berth in the forward cabin. Seawater pickup is from the unused seacock previously used for a second air conditioner. Deck plug is in the anchor well where the hose is stored. | 2001 |
| Bilge Pump | Manual diaphragm pump in cockpit. Medium performance electric pump and float switch. | Replaced electric pump with larger capacity Rule pump. Replaced float switch with USS switch. | 2003 |
| Generator | Northern Lights 4.5 KVa | No upgrade plans. | |
| Engine | Westerbecke 60, 54 hp | Repowered with Yanmar 4JH4-AE | 2008 |
| Transmission | Paragon | Repowered with Velvet Drive 71C Direct Drive | 2008 |
| Fuel Tank | Original steel tank | Replaced with aluminum tank during repower | 2008 |
| V-Drive | Walter RV-20 | Unit was factory rebuilt in 2000. | 2000 |
| Propeller | Michigan Wheels, 3-Blade, 20x10 | 20" Maxprop Classic | 2003 |