Hi Steve,
As a long time builder, user and owner of aluminum alloy boats perhaps you can answer this question: How does the odd bit of raw 6061, above the waterline , but on the exterior, fare visually over time in comparison to 5086? In particular, we’re building a Dix 43 Pilot House and I’m looking at using a 3″ half pipe extrusion as a rub rail down each side and it is only available in 6061. The hull plating is 5086 H116. The alternative is to buy vastly more expensive 5086 schedule 80 pipe and rip it on the table saw. I don’t mind spending when it’s justified but don’t want to waste money. We love the look and practicality of unpainted alloy, but my experience in non-salt environments with 6061 is that it can look pretty nasty after awhile. Perhaps it’s just a matter of an occasional scotchbrite rub-down.
The other place we’ll be using 6061 is for the rudder shaft . It’s a spade rudder with a 115mm diameter shaft and Jefa self aligning bearings. Appearance is not an issue here, and I think the 6061-T6 will be stronger than 5086 . Do you think corrosion could be an issue on the 6061 rudder shaft? We will have a comprehensive anode system.
Thanks so much-I love the new site format!

Dear Steve, I have just read the glazing section for your FPB boat with much interest. Can you tell how the windows where attached to the aluminum structure? Many thanks, John H.

(We just launched)…an Angelo Lavranos 43 (Barefoot) in British Columbia. It is unpainted. However, I was surprised to find a couple of deck leaks: One in an interior corner of a deck locker, one where the weld was apparently polished too far, and a burn-through where the genoa track flat bar is welded to the 3/16” deck plate. The builders are good welders so I was surprised by these. In your experience with unpainted aluminum boats have you seen this before on new boats? Regards, David

Steve, First let me say I have appreciated the wealth of information in your books and website. Thanks!

In considering an aluminum hull for use primarily in the tropics and temperate zones, I was intrigued by your reference that on Beowulf you chose to use no insulation. You reference careful attention to the head and hull liners. Was there any attempt to provide insulation via the head and hull liners or did you just eliminate the insulation that would have otherwise been used and use standard liner materials? Also, you reference the reveals between the liner panels to promote ventilation between the liner and deck. Did you use a specific % of open space design spec, or just go more with looks? Given your experience in the tropics, would you go this route again, or use insulation? Anything else to consider if choosing to use no insulation?

Thanks for sharing your insights. David

Good day, I am enjoy your site and also using as a reference source as I am presently having a 42′ aluminum cutter built.

I was wondering if you have and could post a detail/close-up look at your stanchion/lifeline setup. There are several pictures on your site which show an overview and it looks like you used SS pipe going into aluminum pipe stanchion bases welded to the deck. One picture looks like you used SS pipe for some of the lifelines. I would appreciate any details you can provide.

Thank you for considering this request. Cheers, John

Hi Steve, I am looking to buy a plan of a sailboat with between 38 & 40 feet with small draft (1.20 to 1.40 m). I know Hartley boats but I would like to contact other designers that have plans to be made in Ferrocement. Do you know any? Best Regards, Eduardo

Hello from New Zealand, We are a 40ft aluminium sailboat called Wyndeavor. We’ve sailed from the Pacific Northwest to New Zealand with our two kids and have recently put our boat on the market. The paint on our boat was chipping terribly so we decided to go with bare aluminium in order to help the boat sell (low maintenance). We recently had the boat sandblasted and are not too happy with the outcome. We have covered most of the deck with a nonskid product (Treadgrip) but the rest of the deck and hull to the waterline are bare. The bare aluminium is very rough and our feet and fingers leave marks. We understand that you have a lot of experience dealing with aluminium so we were wondering if you had any advice regarding these issues. Should we sand the decks? Will it get better as the boat oxidizes? Should we just leave it be? Can you help? Regards, Kelly

Hello Steve & Linda, I just watched Offshore, and enjoyed it very much. I have been looking around on your website, and I think it is fantastic. Well done. I dream of having a lifestyle like yours one day.

I’m 22, and have a 34′ custom riveted aluminum round bilge, Terhou, built in England in ‘59. Within the next decade or so, intend to weld something bigger (and faster) for myself.

This goal has me thinking about design, best practices, etc. You mentioned in Offshore that Sundeer’s keel is welded on. How is the ballast installed? Is it poured inside? I assume it is lead? – Ryan

Good Morning Steve: I have a 98 Valiant 42. I’m selling her and moving to the trawler mode. Most trawlers are just ugly–too high off the water, too much windage. I’ve found the Dieselducks designed by George Buehler and built at Seahorse Marine in China. Please look over these and let me know what you think. Here is their website: http://www.seahorseyachts.com/ Go to the dieselduck 44 and take a look at them. Please let me know how you feel about steel boats and if the design is sound. I respect your opinion more than anyone out there. Thanks again, Roy

What do you consider the best material for pilothouse windows? Lexan, Tempered or safety (laminated tempered) glass?? Phillip

Dear Setsail, I’m in the process of speccing out the glazing for the pilothouse on the boat I am building. I have narrowed it down to either 1/2" tempered glass or 1/2" abrasion resistant polycarbonate and am now looking for a little real world experience to tip the scale. One nagging doubt: the long-term durability of this product in the voyaging environment. I’ve read in your Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia that you recommended and used polycarbonate on your sailing vessels, but noticed that you made the switch to glass in the FPB series. After walking the docks at the boat shows and talking to designers and builders of some of the high-end custom pilothouse and raised saloon boats, it seems they all are going with toughened glass, but none seem to have any direct experience with abrasion resistant polycarbonate. What’s your experience? Best regards, Collin

Hello! First let me just say how much I appreciate your books, your designs and your web site. You really are unique!

We are starting to seriously think about "getting off"and I therefore have a lot of boat design features to sort out.

I hope you can help me with these two: Storm shutters. How did you deal with storm shutters on the Sundeer series? I think about the large windows in the hull and the "pilot house". Are storm shutters used or are the windows simply designed to be "storm proof"? Insubmersibility. What do you think about insubmersible boats, or modifying a boat (injecting foam in interior spaces that are not used for example) so that it becomes insubmersible? I have seen your comment on the Yacht Saver, but this seems like a costly and technically complex solution (just another thing that needs surveys and that will malfunction when it is needed). Another thing is the problems with large balloons inside the boat in a crisis situation. I hope you will take the time to answer these questions. With regards, Erik

Hi Steve, Absolutely the best investment I have made before going full time cruising is your Offshore Cruising Encyclopedia. However I am hoping you can elaborate on one small statement that I keep coming back to, and it has a major bearing on the type of yachts we are looking at purchasing. As you’re aware, there are many more fibreglass boats to choose from, even in the South Pacific where steel is reasonably popular choice. Which seems to confirm your statement that "on average 1 in 12 yachts that spend more than 2 years in the South Pacific basin ends up on a reef permanently". As I am looking at the South Pacific, the Great Barrier Reef, and the archipelago of Western Australia’s Kimberley Coast – much of which is still not charted – as the areas we most wish to spend our time. I had resigned my looking to steel or aluminium yachts, however I have found a strongly built balsa cored 40′ cruising yacht that I particularly like, but I keep thinking about those reefs and rocks. Any more information you can give me or direct me to in helping me make a decision on whether to buy this yacht or keep looking would be very much appreciated. Regards, Peter

Hi Steve Any suggestions for a leaky goit deck hatch (the one under the vang)…thinking of putting some wet suit neoprene in the gasket…Very annoying, Phil