SHETLAND OWNERS ASSOCIATION

Hi,

New to this board so take it easy

I have got a Shetland 27, upgraded from a Viking 23 Narrowbeam. I am based on the Norfolk broads. Now after seeing the Shetland was capable of coast cruising that has got me thinking!

What do I need to do to try a bit of coastal stuff? never been off the Broads and have no coastal experience. Is the boat really suited to coastal work? 50HP Honda fourstroke.

I guess there is more to just sailing out the estuary at Great Yarmouth? Not that I would be stupid or brave enough t o do it anyway. It hasn't got an anchor but has an electric winch with the mudweight. Someone said this need to be changed to a 10Kg plough Anchor for coastal work.

Seen there is some courses available on the RYA webpage but nothing surprisingly comes up in the Norfolk / Suffolk area, however they do look rather expensive. Would be interesting and probably a worthy investment, but not sure if I would ever pluck up the nerve to take it to sea. But it does appeal at the moment.

Any advice on wether to persue this any further or not would be appreciated.

Trevor

Hi And welcome

Before taking to the sea, there are some serious consideration to take onboard.

Firstly your 27 and a 50hp will struggle in anything other than a gentle swell. You have to take into account tides, winds and currents that perhaps dont affect you on the broads.

Essentials for sea work are a working VHF radio, charts, GPS and good life jackets, not life savers, minimum of 150n. A good plough anchor with chain and warp.

An RNLI saftey check which is free is also a good idea.

You may also have to change your insurance policy to include coastal work

I dont mean to put you off but if you are not use to the conditions, it can be a bit scary

Hi

I agree with re. The more the better unless are in inland lochs or places with next to no current and just want to potter or fish. You would also get v v good money the honda 50 as I have a waiting for them and lots of people love them ( they are also perfect for shetland 535/ 536) so you could sell private and upgrade. remember as well its better to be at 80% throttle than 100% as even a 4 stroke will drink a lot more for not a lot more output after the 80% of throttle.

Dave

I am not so sure that adding more horsepower will make that much difference. The hull seems to restrict the speed. At low revs it's potters along at 6mph but increasing the revs just makes the bow come up and a large wave out the back and it and a lot more noise with not much increase in speed about 8-9 mph tops. Which it says is the speed spec in the manual. I tried the trim of the engine but doesn't make much difference. I am guessing as its not a planning hull it's trying to move a shed load of water and even serious horsepower wont make much difference.

Trevor

Dave is our engine guru. What he says makes sense.. If you are thinking if going to sea, you need that leeway SHOULD things get a bit iffy. And believe me, at sea things can change in the blink of an eye.. By all means push your nose out into the estuary. Experience the sea, but please be aware of your boats capabilities.

You can calculate what speed your boat will plane at - it is a function of your waterline length and one or two other factors, but whether you can achieve it will depend on your boat's weight and engine power. As you say, you have to get over the bow wave first to get there, and that takes power. As an example, for a 17 foot boat the hull speed is around 5.5 knots and planing speed is about 15 knots - anywhere in between those two speeds you are just pushing the bow wave and gulping down the fuel. Better to stay below hull speed if you can't get to planing speed. There was some discussion on this in a previous thread: http://www.shetland.owners.org.uk/forum ... &forumid=4.

Having said all that though, I don't think that you necessarily need to plane to go to sea - in fact it is true to say that most sea-going boats travel at displacement speeds. The Shetland 27 is rated at RCD Category C, which means that it is "... designed for voyages in coastal waters, large bays, estuaries, lakes and rivers where conditions up to, and including, wind force 6 and significant wave heights up to, and including, 2 m may be experienced.", so clearly the boat has some innate capacity to cope with sea conditions. If the wind and wave heights haven't put you off, why not have a word with James at Shetland Boats and see if he would recommend the particular boat/engine combination that you have for sea work?

But I fully agree with the other posts that you need to be well-equipped and use a lot of common sense. I would add an echo sounder to the list - knowing how much water is between your hull and hard things underwater is essential! Doing a RYA Day Skipper's course would also be a sensible idea.

R.

All good advice so far. Both of my most recent sailing boats were equipped for going to sea from the Broads but I never managed it due to problems lifting and lowering the masts single handed.

Where on the Broads do you keep your boat? If you would like a chat and a look at some paper charts of the area we could meet up somewhere. I used to be a Yachtmaster Instructor many years ago.

Stan

We are off to the Broads on Saturday for a week on my Family four. So if any members fancy meeying up give me a bell .

Trevor

I have a Shetland 27 (Broads based), which is fitted with a 100HP Yanmar diesel engine.

This will push the boat comfortably to max hull speed (8-9mph) at a little under 2500 rpm. At higher revs, the bow wave just gets bigger along with a deeper trough behind, and no further speed is achievable.

The only difference between your 50HP outboard and this diesel engine, is that at 2500 rpm (8-9mph) my engine isn't working particularly hard, and as such remains quite economical on fuel.

If you can achieve max hull speed into a strong head wind, and have power in reserve, then you should be ok.

The previous owner of my boat, used it quite regularly at sea, on fishing trips, and I would feel comfortable taking it to sea myself. Albeit I have yet to do this.

I have a DSC VHF radio on board, and hold the necessary VHF Short Range Certificate. I would certainly advise you to be so equipped before venturing out to sea.

I also have 10kg Danforth anchor, on a suitable length of chain. Albeit at the moment, the anchor is stowed away, and a mudweight is attached to the anchor chain.

Dave

Hi Dave,
Thanks for the info, you have it exactly. I can get to those speeds and then exactly as you say lots of more noise the bow lifts high and a big wave behind but very little speed increase if any.

Been pottering around on the Broads every weekend now and just love the boat.

Guess the season is coming to an end now but we will be using the boat throughout the winter. Heater on and quiter rivers.

Still would like to take her to sea but I reckon that's for next year now.

I am based at Potter, ther is another shetland 27 in the marina. Maybe that's you?


Trevor.