Nordvika going a bit dinghy

[Mariner]

Here's what we've been up to with Nordvika the last couple weeks:

Installing and wiring up a new Davit from Olsson Manufacturing:

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The new tender in position:

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Yesterday (after the picture was taken), I got the Weaver chocks installed and made the fine-tuning adjustments to the davit, so it will land where we want it. Today, I'm taking it out to do some stability testing. I'm concerned about the added 450# that high up, and want to see what it does to the heel in a turn. If you don't hear from me, that probably means it didn't go well, lol.

[DougSea]

Well let's hope that testing goes well! Don't need more video of rolling yachts out of the PNW!!!

[Mariner]

Just pulling back into the marina. Remarkably, it seems to have actually improved the stability and corrected the persistent starboard list that the boat has always had.

[marko]

Awesome looking power lift. Does the support tube carry to the stringers below? I've been working on & off on my dinghy situation and just recently installed a wench, wops, a winch on my ET for a boom lift. I don't plan on lifting both engine and dinghy together and have an engine mount on the aft rail. The dinghy is upside down for now on the roof, which i reinforced with an additional vertical sstl pole, slightly inboard next to the center aft seat. Flipping the dinghy over is difficult for one person, but now working on a strong arm for lifting sideways. We'll see. FYI, going to try to up load some photos.

[Mariner]

It actually just goes to the deck. At first I was adamant that it needed to go all the way down to the stringers, but the manufacturer insisted that it didn't need to. The load is mostly lateral, both at the top and at the bottom. And, to their credit, it hasn't fallen through the floor yet, and doesn't appear to be in any danger of doing so.

The davit and dinghy from the flybridge

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A close-up of the davit and forward Weaver chocks

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The rear chocks and the temporary method for securing the boom. Note that the davit extension comes with one pre-drilled hole. It is up to the owner to determine the exact length needed and drill an appropriate hole. This turned out to be more of a challenge than we anticipated, either due to a less-than-perfectly-plumb drill press, or a less-than-perfectly-straight outer pin hole from the manufacturer.

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The interior of the 10' AB with the St. Croix helm. Quite a few riggers tried to talk us out of the St. Croix in favor of one of the fiberglass ones, but the rigger who ultimately built the boat said that he still felt the St. Croix was the best, due to the compactness, and the fact that it folds down. I tend to agree.

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This is just a nice shot of the boat.

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The post positioning, just forward of the seat.

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A port-side view, showing the positioning of the dinghy on the roof. And yes, we added a centerline support years ago, to cut down on flexing of the roof, since we have been using it for storing a sailing dinghy, kayaks, and crab pots for some time now. It seems pretty solid, but I think it does need some additional strengthening, at least before it experiences any heavy seas.

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[Pitou]

That looks like a nice set-up. Good job. I sure do like those AB RIBS with their high bows. . The aluminums are a nice lighter version. This sure beats towing the Whaler.

[Mariner]

Well, I do miss the old Whaler, but this is a lot more practical.

[joreyn]

Very nice, Pete. You'll probably remember that Blue Moon also has the Roskelly-Olsson crane. Our dinghy sits on the starboard side of the bridgedeck facing fore and aft. I was told that was to help balance things. But I have a lot of arc to swing through to get the dinghy on and off the chocks. You only have to rotate a few degrees. Excellent.

One thing I almost learned the hard way. You need to lube the cable per the manufacturers instructions. I did not have the instructions since the crane was installed by the previous owner. Had the boat in the yard for its annual service, and the tech was using it to lift new batteries up to the swimstep. Cable snapped on the first attempt. Fortunately the cable snapped just as the battery was coming up off the ground, so no harm done.

I believe you can use the same teflon based lube that is used to lube bicycle chains.

Sorry you won't be at the rendezvous. I know having a new son is taxing. Just remember, there will be several grandma/grandpa wannabes in attendance! "It takes a fleet to raise a child!"

[Mariner]

Dad and I spent a lot of time thinking about placement. Nordvika tends to list to starboard already, so the idea of putting the boat on the starboard side was nixed early. That would clearly have been the best place otherwise, with the mast placed amidship at the stern, allowing the boat to be hoisted into the water directly behind the swimstep. We even thought about adding ballast to port, but couldn't wrap our heads around adding even MORE weight to the boat. Another idea was aft, but to the port side. That was a good option as well, especially considering that it would allow launching off the port side OR the stern. But, accessing the boom to attach the controls with the dinghy in the way would have been too dangerous.. This spot isn't perfect, but it was the best we could come up with, and so far seems to be working out well. The only problem is that the boat heels WAY over when you are actually hoisting, and even more if you let the boom swing out to a full 90'. The port side chine actually lifts out of the water when you do that. So, we will always use a tending line to keep the dinghy in close when hoisting. It can be done by one person, but it easier with two.

[marko]

It appears the re-balancing helps with the dinghy engine to port. Your support pole for the power lift seems to miss the starboard engine access hatch. At Last does also have a slight list to starboard, even though there are lead ballast bars under the lower berth, to port. Dinghy above to starboard and engine on rail mount to starboard doesn't help. So I put a fresh water flex tank, also under the port berth, when I converted the head to fresh water. Still working on the boom lift, but postponed, as I had an intake water clamp for the generator break today and suddenly the bilge wasn't dry!