After a very busy week in Whangarei, Todd and I were treated to a home-cooked meal and a walk on the beach yesterday evening.
Posted by Sarah.Dashew (March 24, 2013) | Comments (0)
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Archive for 2013
If It’s Thursday, It Must Be Time To Dock – Posted By Sarah
Yesterday Todd took Buffalo Nickel‘s owners over to Marsden Cove for some close quarter maneuvering drills. The day was a success. Read the rest »
Posted by Sarah.Dashew (March 21, 2013) | Comments (0)
Buffalo Nickels Everywhere – Posted By Sarah
Todd and I landed in Whangarei yesterday morning – where we were greeted by FPB 64-7 Buffalo Nickel‘s proud new owners, Stan and Valerie Creighton. Read the rest »
Posted by Sarah.Dashew (March 19, 2013) | Comments (0)
LA Story – A Silver Lining To Every Cloud
Having grown weary with and needing a break from a long and arduous design cycle, a meeting of the executive committee was called and a weekend away to clear cobwebs was deemed prudent. In olden days this would have indicated a sojourn afloat to a bucolic hideaway known to a relatively few enthusiasts, say Catalina Island. Presently bereft of personal watercraft, Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 12, 2013) | Comments (0)
Let The Plating Begin
It is that time when the real fun begins, the execution of which separates men from boys, and where the wheeling is now in earnest.
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 7, 2013) | Comments (0)
Easy FPB Facelift
We like the matte gray unobtrusive looks of an aluminum hull that has been exposed to sea water for a year or so. But occasionally after a season of roughing it and sharing the odd harbor rafted to commercial or government vessels,
Posted by Steve Dashew (March 6, 2013) | Comments (0)
Singing For My Supper – Posted by Sarah
Some of you know that I’ve been swimming through the seas of the music world for quite a while. Blame my parents for bringing me up on a boat with lots of great music: Janis Joplin, the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder…Today I’m proud to say I’ve just added a new album to their collection. Read the rest »
Posted by Sarah.Dashew (March 1, 2013) | Comments (0)
Snow Job – Maybe The Next Ice Age Is Just Around the Corner
Are you caught up in the global warming debate? There is another theory, less-talked-about, that suggests we could soon be entering an ice age. Glacial ice core samples show that the onset of cooler weather may happen quickly. Consider this alternative, starting with the photo above. And those which follow.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 28, 2013) | Comments (0)
Wicked Stabilizer Bosses and Other Details
The FPB 97 has enormous stabilizer mechanisms, sized for support when aground and hitting things, the loads for which are far more than hydrostatic loads. The over strength mechanism, however, is of no value, and in fact can damage the boat, if it is not properly reinforced. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 27, 2013) | Comments (0)
Making Your Watermaker Happy (Insights Into Taming A Temperamental Beast)
One of the blessings that comes with the FPB program is interaction with highly experienced owners (neophytes rarely have the background to understand the tradeoffs we make in the design process). These owners often bring with them excellent firsthand knowledge, based on years of real world trial and error, that helps us improve the FPB breed.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 21, 2013) | Comments (0)
Buffalo Nickel, FPB 64-7, Is Wet
It is early, the sun still far to the east, when Buffalo Nickel slides under the travel lift for the first time. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 20, 2013) | Comments (0)
Meanwhile, Back In The Sonoran Desert
Being without a boat to think, dream, and plan about is a condition we try to avoid. But since this is the current state of affairs, we’ve been hard at work on all things FPB, Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 17, 2013) | Comments (0)
Getting To Know Grey Wolf: A Brief Video With Mike & Liza Dicks
What’s it really like coming to grips with a new yacht? Read the rest »
Posted by admin (February 15, 2013) | Comments (0)
Moving Day In Whangarei
Big things are happening in the Far North of New Zealand. Moving day for FPB 64-8 has arrived. Hull number eight in this series has been moved out of its shed leaving additional room Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 8, 2013) | Comments (0)
Video: A Peek Behind The Gray Curtain – Posted By Sarah
Want a taste of the FPB cycle? The following video gives an idea of the birthing process… Read the rest »
Posted by Sarah.Dashew (February 6, 2013) | Comments (0)
Noel and Litara Barrott – An Iron Crew In A (Remarkable) Wood Ship
One of the lessons we learned early in our cruising careers is that it is the people – land based, and cruisers – rather than the places, which make this lifestyle so wonderful. This post is about a special couple who are the modern definition of iron crews in wooden ships, and their remarkable yacht, Sina, shown above in a storm off Cape Horn.
Posted by Steve Dashew (February 2, 2013) | Comments (0)
Staying Tight With Your Fabricator
Dean Gunson, Operations Manager at Circa, is showing off a test section of rolled aluminum plate. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 29, 2013) | Comments (0)
Jordan Series Drogue-Real World Survival Experience
During our research for Surviving the Storm, the one heavy weather drogue system that stood out was Donald Jordan’s series drogue design. John Harries has a fascinating account of a true survival Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 22, 2013) | Comments (0)
A Wicked Belting – Or What To Use When You Want To Rub Someone The Wrong Way
We have learned over the years how to rub the world the wrong way and get away with it. This manifests itself in many ways. In the case of the Wicked FPB 97
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 19, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 64-5: A Real Tiger
Sandy and John Henrichs, the owners of FPB 64-5 Tiger, are experienced cruisers who have filled their FPB 64 with interesting details, a few of which you will see here.
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 18, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 64-6 Grey Wolf: Engine Room Art
At the risk of being repetitive, we thought you might like another look at the highest form of engine room art, this time FPB 64-6 Grey Wolf. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 15, 2013) | Comments (0)
Wicked Scale – Or, The Old And The New
Even after all the hours spent working with the Wicked FPB 97 to date, we were not prepared for the scale impact when viewing 97-1 in person. Helping us adjust to this new sense Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 13, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 64-6 Grey Wolf – A Few Details
Yesterday evening we were aboard the sixth FPB 64, Grey Wolf and thought a few of her details might be of interest. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 12, 2013) | Comments (0)
A New Look
We’ve been wrestling with how to make SetSail more user friendly for both longtime SetSailors and newcomers. Sarah, our technical Guru (amongst other duties), has been working with this for the past year. The new look is the result of those labors. We are not yet ready to share, but the new year will bring new exciting FPB developments with application Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 10, 2013) | Comments (0)
It Is America’s Cup Season and Time To Ogle
Your SetSail team will be reporting next week from Down Under. If we find ourselves with spare time we’ll see if we can get a look at the 72s trialing on Auckland harbor. This America’s Cup promises to be the most interesting ever. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 9, 2013) | Comments (0)
Can A Non-Planing Hull Like the FPB Operate Efficiently at Post-Planing Speeds?
Over the years we have had many tools with which to predict performance, some more accurate than others. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 9, 2013) | Comments (0)
Voyaging Under Power – Fourth Edition
The long awaited fourth edition of Bob Beebe’s Voyaging Under Power is now available. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 8, 2013) | Comments (0)
FPB 64 Introduction – Basic Specs
“When the Dashews finally decided to resort to motive power, Steve Dashew designed a boat with the spirit of a yacht that could take on the roughest seas…”
–Boat International Magazine
Every now and then in yacht design, the thousands of details involved to produce a boat combine in a unique way, creating a vessel which performs substantially better than projected. Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 7, 2013) | Comments (0)
Is Your EPIRB Properly Registered?
In order for search and rescue authorities to respond in a timely fashion your EPIRB(s) must be correctly registered Read the rest »
Posted by Steve Dashew (January 4, 2013) | Comments (0)