My wife and I recently purchased MORNINGSTAR, Nordhavn 46 hull #63, Plan
"B".  After a couple of short cruises I have a couple of questions for the
list and my fellow Nordhavn owners.

1. The master stateroom head sink doesn't drain at all and the guest sink
   does very slowly.  The bottom of the sink looks to be about at the water
   line and drains through a check valve to a through hull about a foot below
   the water line.  The check valve is ok so there must not be enough fall.
   The bilge is full of water and holding tanks so I have not found a place for
   a sump.  Any ideas?

2. I would like to install mast steps and a crow's nest for maintenance
   and coral head avoidance.  Space is limited because of the dry stack.  Any
   ideas?

3. The boat didn't come with an owners manual so I am not sure if I fully
   understand the fuel transfer/polishing system.  Last time on the boat I was
   able to empty one tank and then transfer/polish the fuel from tank to tank.
   Does anyone have a systematic plan worked out for polishing?

4. The boat came with an Interphase Forward Scanning Sonar.  I read the
   manual and have played with the unit but I am not understanding what the
   thing is trying to tell me.  Comments?

Thank you in advance for the info.

Jerry Mitchell

Hi jerry:
We own N46-70, "Four Seasons", forward owner's cabin model. I assume that's
plan B.
You obviously have excellent taste in boats.

My wife and I recently purchased MORNINGSTAR, Nordhavn 46 hull #63, Plan
"B".  After a couple of short cruises I have a couple of questions for the
list and my fellow Nordhavn owners.

1. The master stateroom head sink doesn't drain at all and the guest sink
   does very slowly.

The sink draining problem is a chronic one in most 46's. they generally
install the
check valve horizontally under the sink. I fixed the draining problem on
both sinks by
orienting the check valve at a 45-degree angle, close to the sink. Both
sinks now drain
adequately. This allows the valve to hang slightly open, otherwise they
stick and that's
what causes them not to drain. the only downside is that they clank when
rolling in an
anchorage, sometimes necessitating shutting off the thru hull valve, but
I've had no
other problem with them in 2 years.

2. I would like to install mast steps and a crow's nest for maintenance
   and coral head avoidance.  Space is limited because of the dry stack.  Any
   ideas?
   Have no idea on this.

3. The boat didn't come with an owners manual so I am not sure if I fully
   understand the fuel transfer/polishing system.

There are three manifolds: transfer, delivery and return.
Figure out what you want to do, then select a source. For normal running,
select
the source from the delivery manifold.
Select the destination on the return manifold, generally the same
as the source unless you are deliberately transferring, not a good idea when
running.
Turn off all transfer valves if you are pulling from delivery.

Now, If you are transferring or polishing, turn off all sources on the
delivery manifold.
select the source on the transfer manifold. select the destination on the
return manifold.
turn on the pump. fuel will flow from the source to the destination.

The output of the pump is split, going to both the return manifold and to
the delivery manifold.
Therefore, you can actually return fuel through the delivery manifold
instead of the return
manifold if you like. This is a variation, and there are other combinations
that are useful,
such as using the pump to pressurize the system
in the event of an engine fuel pump problem, clogged filter, etc.

I suggest you spend an afternoon in the engine room making a sketch of the
fuel system, then
make an Excel spreadsheet of the combinations of valves that result in
certain actions, such as,
"Transfer fuel from port aft to starboard aft tank" I have a matrix that I
made up for "Venture Forth",
another Nordhavn 46, that might be helpful. If I can remember to do it, I
can send it to you.

4. The boat came with an Interphase Forward Scanning Sonar.

Good luck. I installed one of these on Four Seasons, and I have never gotten
any realistic results
out of the forward and downward scanning features of this thing. It works
fine as an ordinary
video sounder.

Jerry Mitchell

http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/trawler-world-list

I have found boatchart.com but wonder...

if there is a better site for finding places in the Caribbean

as well as doing charting.

Thanks,

Will

We are considering taking our boat to somewhere in the Caribbean when
Hurricane season ends and leaving it their until next hurricane season
starts.

I'm having trouble finding all the places Delta flies to down there... (We
have ton's of frequent flyer miles)

And would like a suggestion on a nice place with a good marina to leave my
boat for several months near that Delta destination.

Thanks,

Will Standley

Gang,

Help!

We are considering taking our boat to the Caribbean in November or December
and leaving it there until May.

Then flying back and forth on Delta... assuming they will honor our
one-zillion frequent flyer miles :)

1 - How is St. Michaels, USVI as a place to visit and leave your boat for
about 6-8 months?

2 - We live near Cape Canaveral, on East coast of Central Florida. What
would be the best trawler route to St. Michaels?

3 - Has anyone been to Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, or Curacao?
(Places we could consider leaving our boat and flying back and forth via
Delta.)

4 - Those places are a long way from here, especially if we need service on
the boat for any reason. Delta also flies to Nassau. I know a lot of tourist
go there but are there any good marina's to leave your boat for 6-8 months ?
At least from there we could take cruises to other places when we flew down,
and just use Nassau as a home base.

Your thoughts please.

Thanks,

Will Standley
53' Westport/Skookup
www.geocities.com/TheYachtContessa.com

PS, for fuel efficiency we cruise at about 8.5 knots... so you can estimate
our travel time at about 10 mph, + or minus.

About 800 to 1000 mile range.

Woops! I meant St. Thomas, USVI and not St. Michaels, USVI. St. Michael's is
on the Eastern shore of the Chesapeake in MD!

I was in St. Michael's last year and it is a nice spot!)

I would still like to hear everyone's comments on the following...

We are considering taking our boat to the Caribbean in November or December
and leaving it there until May.

Then flying back and forth on Delta... assuming they will honor our
one-zillion frequent flyer miles :)

1 - How is St. Thomas, USVI as a place to visit and leave your boat for
about 6-8 months?

2 - We live near Cape Canaveral, on East coast of Central Florida. What
would be the best trawler route to St. Michaels?

3 - Has anyone been to Antigua, St. Lucia, Barbados, Grenada, or Curacao?
(Places we could consider leaving our boat and flying back and forth via
Delta.)

4 - Those places are a long way from here, especially if we need service on
the boat for any reason. Delta also flies to Nassau. I know a lot of tourist
go there but are there any good marina's to leave your boat for 6-8 months ?
At least from there we could take cruises to other places when we flew down,
and just use Nassau as a home base.

Your thoughts please.

Thanks,

Will Standley
53' Westport/Skookup
www.geocities.com/TheYachtContessa.com

PS, for fuel efficiency we cruise at about 8.5 knots... so you can estimate
our travel time at about 10 mph, + or minus.

About 800 to 1000 mile range.

http://lists.samurai.com/mailman/listinfo/trawler-world-list