Dave, A few more questions.

Did you get it rigged for sailing?  If so is there interference with  the
Para-vanes in the up position - maybe they are stowed in the horizontal
position?  Is the lead time about 2 yrs?  One little thing - It looks  like the galley
is below the pilothouse where the dining area is located,  my wife sees that
as an issue, does Jamie?

Thanks again,

Vince

In a message dated 12/22/2004 11:10:48 A.M. Pacific Standard Time,
dfritsch2000@yahoo.com writes:

Vince,

It is always nice to hear that one is not alone in  the
selection of a builder.  Thanks for the  Seahorse
kudos.

Jamie and I had been tracking "the Diesel Duck  story"
for several years after deciding that maybe our
passage making by  sailboat days are getting short.
That is to say getting out of the weather  sounds like
a good idea.  We were looking for an offshore boat
that  would meet our perceived needs:

LLive-aboardppassage makerfor 2  with long legs.
Adequate storage capacity.
Pilothouse.
Will aaccommodateup to two guests for extended  times
(up to 4-6 weeks), children and grandchildren for much
shorter  periods.
Makes passages with crew of 2-4 (I enjoy  "crewed-up"
passage making.
Adequate storage capacity for  intended purpose.
Affordable (not the least of the  requirements).
Reasonable, but not too short lead time (we  have
much to accomplish before getting underway)

I was drawn to the  Duck from the start (but do not
know why and it keeps growing on me), but  also found
other designs in the used market which had  immediate
appeal.  In the end, the Duck meets our needs at  an
affordable price and with a great delivery cruise
(gotta cruise  somewhere).  Jamie and I came to
agreement six months ago when she  said "I guess that's
it, I don't have a better plan!).

We  looked at new production boats as well as used,
both in metal and  fiberglass.  I could live with
either.

Major options included a  modified saloon cabin which
includes an "L" shaped dinette/sea berth and  table to
port and settee/sea berth to starboard to get crew out
of  forward cabin when necessary offshore.  Major
options include Northern  Lights 9KW gen-set, 2
CruiseAir units, high output alternator  for
house-bank, 2 75W solar panels, Red Dot heater in PH,
PUR 12V  water-maker, Para-vanes, LPG cook stove,
Davits, Dickenson diesel cabin  heater, 4KW radar (more
to be determined on  electronics)

Dave

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Vince, good questions!

I am taking the standard Buehler "get home" sailing
rig.  I do not think the Duck with this rig is much of
a sailboat and the "motor-sailer" rig shown by Buehler
and Seahorse might be a better arrangement.  I think
that under favorable conditions the "get home" rig
will steady the vessel and may, in fact, drive it
"home" slowly off the wind.  Bill makes a strong
argument for the balanced motor sailer rig and I am
inclined to agree with him, but I had gotten used to
looking at the funky unbalanced rig shown on all
Buehler Ducks (which of course raises questions about
my rationality).  I believe that David and Dorothy
Nagle have opted for the motor-sailer version and
might be inclined to step in here.

As for interference with the para-vane system, the
little main (after) sail should be no problem, but I
am not sure how I will manage the head-sail; not by
storing the poles in the horizontal position.  One
must remember that we are not talking about tacking up
a narrow channel, just getting everything running fair
in the desired position, either inside or outside the
leeward pole.

Ah, the galley.  Biigg compromise!  Your wife hit the
nail on the head.  Jamie's concern was that the galley
is away from the table as well as being out of the
loop while cooking - she does enjoy being part of the
party during meal prep time.  Her other main concern
is that she has always been comfortable in the galley
of our sailboat as she had a good view to the horizon
which, she believes, makes her impervious to mal de
mer (I must agree with that as I have never seen her
seasick).  It was our hope that we could get the
galley back into the center of things, but now believe
that many other factors prevent that.

Jamie's solution to the location of the table vis a
vis the galley is to add the "L" shaped dinette in the
saloon.  We have retained the dinette in the PH as
this will be a lovely location both offshore in
settled weather and at anchor, and we see it as both
another sea berth or lounge for the off watch.  We
both believe that the settee below is a better eating
location in rough weather, and it does reduce the
distance from the stove to the table.

Of course, as a sea berth someone might be sleeping
there!

As for the view of the horizon, there is a large port
in the galley.  It may do the job - we both hope so.

Two things going for this galley location are that it
is secure at sea and a good utilization of space.

As for lead time, Bill plans to make four 462s per
year, which would suggest a 12 month lead time.  He
still has to prove that, and we are planning on a
little more time.  If you take into consideration that
you must first work with Seahorse to get a contract
done, get a deposit to him, and that, to the best of
my knowledge, all of the 462s through hull number 6
are committed, your two year estimate seems to be
getting close.

Dave

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