What a ride!

[Fogg~Dogg]

Started out last week for a few days in Booth Bay, Me. Got up to Cape Porpoise and then the dreaded Maine fog rolled in. Fog rolled in from the Southeast on 20k winds. Since I was headed North and the fog was overtaking me from the South, I figured I'd head for a port and wait out the fog. Well, the fog is still there! I left yesterday and headed back to Portsmouth, NH. The fog lifted a bit, but with three days of 20K winds, the seas were ripped up. I couldn't have been more happy that I was in an Albin 28! The seas were running 5-7 feet, lots of spray heading back 30 degrees off the wind...and the boat couldn't have handled it any better! The ride was stable...no rolling. A lot of quick turns to avoid lobster pots, and every now and then a 10-footer would roll by. The boat took it all quite well, and she tracked perfectly. I hand steered and actually felt very little flutter in the steering. The boat (at 8-10kts) just kept on pushing through the stuff. Three hours later, back in the perfectly flat Piscataqua River! Gotta say that anyone contemplating a new boat should definately, definately look at and take a ride on the Albin 28. The pilothouse makes all the difference...never felt a drop of spray. The boat never even creaked, nor made any noises but the hissss of waves being smashed by the Albin! My only wish is that I had a new Raymarine GPS/Plotter/Radar. The 2002 vintage RL system was OK, but the type is very small to read in a smashing sea for these old eyes! I'm sure you guys handle bigger and/or worse stuff, but I imagine this boat's pedigree handles it all as well as mine did on my adventure.

[RobS]

Well with a name like Fogg Dogg....

No pics? Were you alone?

[Pitou]

We're headed to the Boothbay region to cruise the rivers next Saturday. Hoping not to encounter what "Fogg Dogg" experienced, but I guess that's Maine cruising when the cool water temps meet that hot humid air that we experienced last week. Maybe an automatic fog horn switch for the helm should be in order. Add that to the list .......

We took ""Pitou" to your neck of the woods and picked up a nicely maintained PYCC mooring last Thursday for an afternoon cookout. Delightful, then the winds picked up making for a gnarley ride home to Gloucester with seas washing over the pilot house into the cockpit. Auto performed flawlessly getting us back into the lee of Cape Ann for a pleasant tail end to the ride.

Glad to hear you got home with confidence and safety.

[jsa3107]

I have to say that today I saw the Fogg Dog going under the 95 Bridge
It looks very nice in the water
I was at Great Cove.....

[Fogg~Dogg]

The "Dogg" was a Great Cove her first year with me.., made it a quick ride to get out to sea. Kinda snarly outside today...no fish...lotsa chop. Good ride through. I take it through the back channel from Wentworth to the Shipyard...sweet in there.

[Mariner]

Five footers and the boat didn't roll? The five footers I've been out in take our 36' for a pretty serious ride. I would think in a 28' you'd be taking green water over the bow.

[jprohan]

Had a similar ride from Block to Montauk...it's only 17 miles; but can be a long 17 with a good NW blow. Pulled into Montauk with the starboard side of my 32 crusted with salt; dropped off some freeloaders; then back out and around the south shore to FI. Being in the lee, you could have waterskied home.

[Fogg~Dogg]

Regarding a rolling motion on the 28's...it really is minimal. The sharp entry boats (Hunt Designs) don't have much beam on them to make you stand up, but the Albins (with the 10 foot beam) tend to track quite nicely. I generally trim the windward side down a bit to get more wave grip...it does bring some spray back, but with the pilothouse and wipers (with fluid wash), it handles everything quite well. In fact, I throttled back to 3000RPM and just motored onward! No problem. And when a wave does hit you, there is no real
s-h-u-d-d-e-r down the longnitudnal axis. I followed an old 32+2 back out of the Great Bay two weekends ago, after the Blue Angels show at Pease Airport. Gotta tell ya...that keel creates one hell of a trailing wake! It was mean, deep, & gnarly. I didn't think he was running with his bow up and arse down all that much...but man, that puppy could take a bite out of following boats!

I also love how the "Clorox bottles" always sneek a peak at the classic styling of the Albin's. I know they have some envy. Gotta love these Albins!

[RobS]

.....and wipers (with fluid wash)...

Wipers with Fluid Wash? I have both Salt & Fresh Water Washdown. So when I am out on spray-heavy days I use the fresh water washdown for an occasional desalinizing of the windshield. I considered a fluid wash setup and if I did not have the fresh water washdown I would certainly have installed it already. Please explain your setup?

I also love how the "Clorox bottles" always sneek a peak at the classic styling of the Albin's. I know they have some envy. Gotta love these Albins!

Agreed.

[Fogg~Dogg]

A pump and water line was attached to the freshwater tank line. It feeds up to a switched system (right off an automobile system essentially). When I want fresh water to flow over the salted-up windows as I'm underway, I turn on ther freshwater pump, and then flip the toggle switch. When enough wash has come over the windscreens (two of the three), I turn on the wiper blades and Presto! Clean windows. It took about four hours to install.

[Pitou]

When I bought PITOU one of the things on the to do list for delivery from the dealer was to install the Vetus windscreen wash kit on all 3 front windows. The kit arrived the day before delivery. Being anxious, I opted to depart without. Sure wish I waited a few more days for install. Rob, I'm in your camp ... fresh water hose wash and a squeegee. Nothing like going for a walk around the trunk for some exercise! The wash system would have been nice.

Here is a link to the Vetus and AFI add-on systems at Jamestown Dist.. ........... someday, maybe .......... http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/1/3/washer-kits

[JackK]

When I bought PITOU one of the things on the to do list for delivery from the dealer was to install the Vetus windscreen wash kit on all 3 front windows. The kit arrived the day before delivery. Being anxious, I opted to depart without. Sure wish I waited a few more days for install. Rob, I'm in your camp ... fresh water hose wash and a squeegee. Nothing like going for a walk around the trunk for some exercise! The wash system would have been nice.

Here is a link to the Vetus and AFI add-on systems at Jamestown Dist.. ........... someday, maybe .......... http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/1/3/washer-kits

I had Kenny (Standish) add the Vetus washer system to my 28 a couple of years ago. The days of running up front with a bucket of fresh water are over Just have to remember to run some anti-freeze up the lines before putting her away for the winter.

Jack

[Pitou]

When I bought PITOU one of the things on the to do list for delivery from the dealer was to install the Vetus windscreen wash kit on all 3 front windows. The kit arrived the day before delivery. Being anxious, I opted to depart without. Sure wish I waited a few more days for install. Rob, I'm in your camp ... fresh water hose wash and a squeegee. Nothing like going for a walk around the trunk for some exercise! The wash system would have been nice.

Here is a link to the Vetus and AFI add-on systems at Jamestown Dist.. ........... someday, maybe .......... http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/1/3/washer-kits

I had Kenny (Standish) add the Vetus washer system to my 28 a couple of years ago. The days of running up front with a bucket of fresh water are over Just have to remember to run some anti-freeze up the lines before putting her away for the winter.

Jack

This thread has me thinking ... layup project in the making.

Jack, Do you know where and how Ken tapped into the onboard water supply? That's the piece of the install I'm unsure of and has held me back. Sure wish I waited a few more days and had him complete that project for me. Any direction is appreciated. Hope you had a good season.

thanks,
Kevin

[Mariner]

Newer Albins used Pex plumbing for their freshwater system. I plumbed my house with Pex about a year ago, and I must say, it is much easier to work with than one might think, especially if you use compression type fittings. The most critical parts are knowing the importance of shielding it from ultraviolet, and creating a clean, burr-free edge prior to making connections. Any exposed pipe should be covered in black wire loom. Use a pipe de-burring tool to clean the connection, and tug on the pipe to test the connection before pressurizing the system.

I looked into making a window washing system for Nordvika, but couldn't find any pre-made spray nozzles that would work. If anyone knows of any available off-the-shelf, I'd love to know about it. The other question that I faced was whether to use the boats existing, on-board system, or to use a repurposed washer bottle system from an automobile, thus allowing the use of de-icer, salt-away, or other special fluids that might work better than pure fresh water.

[JackK]

When I bought PITOU one of the things on the to do list for delivery from the dealer was to install the Vetus windscreen wash kit on all 3 front windows. The kit arrived the day before delivery. Being anxious, I opted to depart without. Sure wish I waited a few more days for install. Rob, I'm in your camp ... fresh water hose wash and a squeegee. Nothing like going for a walk around the trunk for some exercise! The wash system would have been nice.

Here is a link to the Vetus and AFI add-on systems at Jamestown Dist.. ........... someday, maybe .......... http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/1/3/washer-kits

I had Kenny (Standish) add the Vetus washer system to my 28 a couple of years ago. The days of running up front with a bucket of fresh water are over Just have to remember to run some anti-freeze up the lines before putting her away for the winter.

Jack

This thread has me thinking ... layup project in the making.

Jack, Do you know where and how Ken tapped into the onboard water supply? That's the piece of the install I'm unsure of and has held me back. Sure wish I waited a few more days and had him complete that project for me. Any direction is appreciated. Hope you had a good season.

thanks,
Kevin

Like almost everything else on my boat ... it goes through the head I pretty sure he tapped off the cold water connection under the sink. I'll double check this weekend. He added the control knob just underneath the toggle switches for the wipers. The line runs up the upright beside the windshield and he opened the access panel for the wiper motors to make the connections to the nozzles. I'll try to remember and take a few photos this weekend.

Jack