New Boat! Looking forward to Spring:)

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adru

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19517
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After 12 years with my Regal Commodore 242 we have finally made the move to a bigger boat. Last month we purchased a 2003 Mainship Pilot 30 Sedan with a 315 HP Yanmar diesel. I am really looking forward to the bigger boat but have no experience piloting an inboard with a diesel engine. The boat will lay in Rhode Island over the winter till I bring it home to Branford CT in April. I'm thinking of hiring a Capt. then, not to bring it home but to give me a days lesson before I leave. I would appreciate any advice, tips and experience anyone could share with me about the boat, running inboards, and diesels. I have been doing lots of research but know this forum has some great experience behind it that I can count on.
Thanks!

IMG_1630_zpsoitwlrcz.jpg


I'm also looking to sell my 1999 Regal. Below is the Craigslist ad link I published if anyone is interested. Its a comfortable, reliable and clean boat.

http://newhaven.craigslist.org/boa/5376234477.html
 
If I were still into boating that's my kind of boat! Beautiful and best of luck with her.
 
When you first get into it the thing will seem huge but you will get used to it in no time.

I went from a 21'OB to a 27 IB diesel to a 32 single diesel. Once you get the single IB handling down you will forever have a superior attitude towards everything else. Twin engines & OBs is kiddy stuff to proffessionally handling an IB.

If the Mainship has a bowthruster, don't count on it working when you need it most. Make sure you know the boat without the thruster. It will 'pull' one way or another when putting in reverse. Learn to turn this into a handling advantage.

Take a few hours training if you want but get out where you can't hit anything & practice on your own. Anchor a bouy or fender & use it as a refference point for manouvering around. Get to know the various systems of the boat. There is alot more to it than your old one but nothing too complex.

You might get into the habit of closing all seacocks when leaving the boat, & remembering to open first thing when you return. Plenty boats have sunk because of failed hoses or hose clamps.

Have a friend with a Rum Runner Mainship Pilot 30. I have an Albin 32+2. Nice weekend boats.
 
Nice boat, love the lines and the full windshield. Get her in early and practice, practice, practice, docking. Getting her in early will allow you to practice around the dock and not have the fear of hitting another boat. Having one motor makes it more difficult to maneuver on windy days. Hopefully others here will chime in on handling a boat with single screw.

Best of Luck

Walter
 
It is a great solid boat. I chartered this type of boat many times when it was in the Club Nautique's fleet in San Francisco. Without the bowthruster it was hard to control and dock in heavy winds as we have in San Francisco Bay. Make sure you practice a 360 degree turn in narrow channels.
 
Thanks, We took her out in a good breeze in Narragansett Bay during the sea trial, it was awesome to be at the helm of a boat that rides so steady through the chop. The surveyor docked it in a slip with lots of room all around, not like the tighter space I'll be keeping her in. The boat does feel "huge", especially with the 3 foot bow pulpit. Piloting from a semi-enclosed helm will also take a bit of getting used to. I will need to practice! It has the bow thruster but my intent is to learn to dock without it unless I feel I'm getting over my head. Speaking of over my head...I have been following the Legacy Yacht thread and checked out the Yachtworld listing; similar styling but in another class. What a beauty, definitely my dream boat.
 
The bow thruster is a confidence building tool and should only be used for such or your in trouble. As far as the size of the boat and how you feel now, LOL, give it 3 months on the water, it will no longer feel like the queen mary :)
I am speaking from experience!
 
Just curious, will you be backing in to your slip or going in bow first? I've never seen anyone back a single screw that big into a tight slip. Could be interesting. Good luck.
Jim
 
I will be stern in. I didn't mean tight necessarily, I meant it'll be tighter than the one where it was docked in RI because the one in RI didn't have a boat along side it as it had already been lifted. The one in Branford where I expect to dock will have a boat next to it. I have a tentative slip in Branford because the marina will need to determine exactly who's staying in 2016 by who from last year submits their contracts in January. The slip I'm expecting had a 35 foot boat with I believe an 11 ft. beam and fit comfortably, his was 1 foot wider than mine, though it was a twin screw.
If you look at the picture above you can see that there was much space on the starboard side of my boat where another boat would normally be. The surveyor used it to his advantage at the end of our sea trial.
 
Congratulations - she looks great.

If your CT slip has the normal P&S outboard bow spiles (unlike that RI one in the pic which doesn't appear to have one to stbd ), run dock lines from each spile straight back to the dock cleats to pen the boat into the slip space and allow you to grab them and get boat under good control in a cross wind. And add loops on them in appropriate place to attach to mid spring cleats.

Instead of attempting to back straight in , start with bow aimed out at an angle to the opposide side as prop rotation. If it is a semi-common single diesel LH prop for instance have bow angled to stbd and plan so you can curve your track into the slip using the prop walk pulling stern to stbd. Don't steer in rev., only in fwd with very quick burst to correct keel heading.

With helm kept hard over to port with single LH prop , you can turn the boat 180* or even 360* if desired in a crowded harbor in about 1 1/2 boat lengths just with repeated slight bursts between F & R. It will turn in FWD.

Approaching to dock abeam as at many fuel docks, you need only approach close enough to secure a mid spring , then ease slowly in reverse to snug up parallel to the dock in complete control . (Going forward, on the other hand, often results in the curved bow swinging in too far.) Reverse idle will keep it there while you secure bow and stern before shifting to N.

Have fun . C'mon Spring!
 
Congratulations. Don't avoid the thruster; use it until you gain confidence that it is not necessary at particular time. Do practice as there is a lot a single can do such as rotating as above. Some things it wont like to do. Depending on rudder size you may actually be able to steer in reverse if you are going fast enough. Only way to try getting a little speed in reverse then try turning with low engine rpms.
 
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