FROM:Gregg Sawyer, 103161,757
TO:Ray
DATE:Sat, Dec 12, 1998 2:53:25 PM
RE:Your Tartan 33
Ray,
Happy to help, as you requested so politely, and with such good taste. As a
proviso, please note that I am an experienced sailor, but this is the first large boat I
have owned, so I am not in a good position to offer comparisons - just (reasonably
well-considered) opinions.
Does the boat work O.K. in light air (7-10 knots)? I would be sailing
mostly on the Chesapeake Bay, which I believe holds the patent on light
air sailing conditions. I'd rather sail than motor, even if I can only
make 3 knots. But if the boat won't go at all in less than 10 knots of
wind, maybe I should keep looking.
>>>Certainly she sails well in light air; obviously, particular sail configurations affect
actual performance, and she is a compromise rather than a pure racer, but the
relatively large mainsail is a bonus here - as an aside, note that you will probably find
yourself reefing earlier than you might expect - i.e. above 15 knots - to reduce heel
and weather helm. We discovered this one exciting afternoon when we had full sail up
in 25 knot gusts, and it was literally impossible to maintain a beam reach as she
defied full oppostie lock on the wheel to bring her head into the wind - sort of
reassuring, if you're not sailing in a confined space... For more trimming advice, see
the owners manual.
If your boat has a Scheel keel (4'5" draft), do you find the boat
reasonably stable? I'd prefer a shoal draft because the Bay has many
thin spots, but I don't want a boat that washes the port lights whenever
a puff of wind comes along.
>>>The Scheel keel is a great compromise, given the state of technological
development when the boat was built; stability (or the "tilty bits" as my wife, a
sailing neophyte, used to describe it) is certainly not a concern for us, and the shallow
draft has been much appreciated on the Intracoastal and in the Keys. The gunwhales
have rarely been awash, and we have sailed her pretty hard at times.
If your boat has a Universal 25 h.p. for auxiliary power, do you think
generates enough push? Specifically, will your boat make hull speed on
flat water without moving the throttle too far into the "red" zone?
Also, will the motor drive the boat through a moderate seaway without
excessive struggle?
>>>Definitely not underpowered - I think the rev-limiter restricts max. revs to
3,000 rpm; at 2,500 rpm, you get 6.5 knots indicated (though I suspect my speedo is
up to a knot slow at that speed). Banging into the waves does slow her down
significantly, but she still holds her own. I am experiencing over-heating above 2,200
rpm at the moment, but think this may just be a clogged heat-exchanger - I will be
checking that out in a day or two.
>>>Some other random observations follow, based on our experience of the past
year, which includes evening sails, weekend trips, offshore passage down to the
Chesapeake, and the Intracoastal trip to the Florida Keys; if you have more specific
questions, please let me know and I will try to help - of course, the only definitive
answers wll be the ones you supply yourself after owning the boat...
>>>Fully-laden for live-aboard, draft is more like 4'9" - note that you may wish to
apply bottom paint to a slightly higher waterline if you will be using the boat for this.
>>>The fuel gauge appears to stick if you overfill the tank; nothing to be done
about it - just thought it might save you some frustration...
>>>The engine typically runs 180-190 degrees Fahrenheit; we always use the glow
plugs prior to turning it over, and it always fires up within 2-3 revolutions.
>>>If you do not already have a water heater, one can be fitted fairly easily - let
me know if you want details.
>>>Standard configuration includes aluminium toe-rails - we have teak, and I
hesitate to express a preference.
>>>There is an independent spare parts company for the Tartan in Ohio, run by
Joe Palmer, who is a very helpful chap : 800-486-7245
>>>When the engine is first put astern, her stern swings to port, and you need to
get a couple of knots way astern before the helm is responsive; not much you can do
about it except plan ahead - if you do this well, you can execute some nifty
handbrake-style-turns to bring her into berth parallel, but don't get over-ambitious...
>>>Definitely a strong boat capable of open water sailing, but would need some
modifications for long-distance passage making.
>>>She's a handsome boat that get's a lot of compliments from earthy and salty
types alike, and we are really happy with her performance and comfort; however, for
a bigger budget (additional $20,000 or more), we really liked the post-1985 Tartan
34...
>>>A performance note - when sailing down to the Chesapeake "on the outside",
we left Cape May, NJ and arrived at Cape Henry 22 hours later - 7.5 knots average in
a straight line. She peaked at 9.3 knots (admittedly, surfing), but I think that was
faster than anyone had expected, and possibly faster than the crew really wanted to
go.
>>>Get a survey! We reduced an asking price of $45,000 to $30,000 when we
discovered a long-term deck delamination problem that cost $3,000+ to fix. Note
that this problem was the resut of careless owners, not any inherent weakness in the
boat.
Happy spending,
Gregg Sawyer
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