Ian,

We installed a Victron inverter/charger that we have been very happy with--so far.  No noticable electrical noise, low idle current draw.  They make a full line of chargers, inverters, solar controllers, and such.  Nothing onboard has complained about the quality of power.  It is pretty sophisticated, and the charger and inverter functions are highly configurable.

The are a Dutch company, so I assume they are widely available in the EU.  The 2KW inverter is about US$850 from their US outlets.

Will it last 20 years?  Come back and ask me in another 19...

 

Bill Kinney

SM160, Harmonie

Key West, Florida

---In amelyachtowners@..., wrote :

Crusader is fitted with a Cristec 1600VA 50Hz inverter which has just
failed. Having taken it out and examined it briefly, it would seem that
there is damage to one of the relays and evidence of burnt tracks on one
of the PCB's. Cristec will repair the unit by replacing both the PCB's
but to do so will cost around €1050 including shipping. The 1600VA model
is no longer available. A 2000VA model costs €1528 plus VAT at 20%.

I shall probably send it back for repair, but before doing so I am
wondering if there are any recommendations for a good cheaper
alternative? You can get a 2KW inverter for less than $400 on eBay, but
I would expect that they might be electrically very noisy and the sine
wave not so 'pure' as is claimed, which could cause equipment damage.

Does anyone recommend a cheaper alternative that will not cause
interference to laptops, SSB, Navtex etc?

With thanks

Ian Shepherd SM2K 414 Crusader Larnaca Cyprus

 

Hello Ian,

I installed a Cotek 3KW… Look them up; they have 100% of the Canadian fishing boat fleet.  Turn them on and go… 

Very reliable.

Jean-Pierre

SY Eleuthera SM007, Panama

On 3 Jan 2018, at 11:42, Ian Shepherd sv_freespirit@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

Crusader is fitted with a Cristec 1600VA 50Hz inverter which has just 
failed. Having taken it out and examined it briefly, it would seem that 
there is damage to one of the relays and evidence of burnt tracks on one 
of the PCB's. Cristec will repair the unit by replacing both the PCB's 
but to do so will cost around €1050 including shipping. The 1600VA model 
is no longer available. A 2000VA model costs €1528 plus VAT at 20%.

I shall probably send it back for repair, but before doing so I am 
wondering if there are any recommendations for a good cheaper 
alternative? You can get a 2KW inverter for less than $400 on eBay, but 
I would expect that they might be electrically very noisy and the sine 
wave not so 'pure' as is claimed, which could cause equipment damage.

Does anyone recommend a cheaper alternative that will not cause 
interference to laptops, SSB, Navtex etc?

With thanks

Ian Shepherd SM2K 414 Crusader Larnaca Cyprus

On Jan 3, 2018, at 12:46 PM, jacob.champness@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

Poor Lark (#202) did not fare well with Irma.  I'm trying to decide whether to fix her or replace and looking at the Maramus currently on the market.  There aren't many.  

I wondered if any of you would have any information either on Marion (#264) in Miami or on Brigantine in Rochefort?  

Do you know of any other Maramus currently or soon to be on the market (besides those currently on YW?)

Thanks,

Jacob Champness

Lark, Maramu #202

St. Martin

 

On 04 January 2018 at 02:03 "Patrick Mcaneny sailw32@... [amelyachtowners]" <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

 

Danny, I have been dealing with the Mack family for 30 years , a father and two sons . The sons Travis and Colin have been running the business for the last several years. If you met them you would impressed with what nice guys they are and even more so with their depth of knowledge regarding  anything related to sailboats , particularly sails. I have bought many sails for different boats , furlers , rigging , etc. They only do excellent work , have exceptional standards and very competitive prices . Their quote on a new main came in $800 less than North Sails. They build everything in their loft in Fla. , North Sails , not sure where they are built. I like buying from the guy who is actually building the sails not just selling them. Hope all is good in N.Z. , wish you and Yvonne a Happy New Year !

Pat & Diane

SM Shenanigans

-----Original Message-----
From: simms@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...>
To: Patrick Mcaneny sailw32@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...>
Sent: Tue, Jan 2, 2018 8:24 pm
Subject: [Amel Yacht Owners] Re: Mack Sails

 

 

Hi Pat, I've changed your thread from rigging to Mack Sails. When we bought Ocean Pearl in 2008 she had a full set of near new Mack sails. We must have done over 30,000 ocean miles before we changed the headsail and main. The mizzen  has 40,000 miles and still going. I was impressed with the sails from day  one and we did some really good passage times with them.
Pleased to do  a plug for a quality provider.
Regards
Danny
SM 299
Ocean Pearl

Sent from my Vodafone Smart

On 3 Jan 2018 09:28, "Patrick Mcaneny sailw32@... [amelyachtowners]" <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

 

Bill, Does Acmo manufacture wire themselves or are they a distributor of wire ? Their website does not indicate they are a manufacturer of wire , seemed more they supplied rigging . From what Annapolis Rigging and other riggers such as Mack Sails say , it sounds like the highest quality of wire today , in their opinion is being manufactured in South Korea by KOS . I was just speaking with Mack and they said it may well be that ACMO also buys their wire from KOS .He said there is not many wire manufacturers left . He agreed that you need to certify your source as their is cheap wire out there , much from China. He also said that much name brand hardware is also from China and  one is lead to believe its manufactured elsewhere . 

Happy New Year,

Pat SM #123

-----Original Message-----
From: 'Bill & Judy Rouse' yahoogroups@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...>
To: amelyachtowners <amelyachtowners@...>
Sent: Tue, Jan 2, 2018 12:32 pm
Subject: Re: [Amel Yacht Owners] Riggers In Trinidad and Martinique

 

 

Bill,

Thanks for the information.

As you know, not all rigging wire is created equal, and rigging wire is made in metric and inch dimensions. I noted that you did not specify, but I am fairly sure that the rigging wire available in Seattle and possibly Trinidad are inch. My experience is that when riggers use inch dimensions, they use slightly smaller wire than the original metric dimensions than Amel uses.

Additionally, Chinese stainless steel is popping up everywhere. Did you ask for a certificate of origin or some other proof of country of manufacture? Also, I have seen many riggers use existing Amel rigging parts when re-rigging an Amel because they cannot source some parts, especially the small turnbuckle on the forestay.

Over the years I have seen many marine suppliers cave into the price pressure placed on them and when people only compare prices. Many of these suppliers give their customers what they ask for...the lowest price without regard to quality. The best examples of this are the very low quality products offered by Worst Marine.

Lastly, I am familiar with a Super Maramu owner that used the wrong rigger, who used bad materials about a year ago. He is going to sail to Martinique to have everything replaced again. Martinique isn't the only good place to replace Amel SM rigging, but they certainly are the most experienced on this side of the Atlantic. I have a quote from them done in 2016 for 9032..34 Euro. I am going to write Gaetan and ask what the difference is. I will CC you of the email.

I believe that you are on the right track, but there are other variables that you need to address in your comparisons.

Your current rigging lasted 22 years and on a recent circumnavigation. There has to be a reason that Amel OEM rigging outlasts other rigging by almost two times the norm. The OEM rigging is available in kit form and ready to install from ACMO, the OEM supplier to Amel for your boat. The kit includes everything down to the washers. Email philippe"at"acmo.fr

I hope this helps you.

Best,

CW Bill Rouse
Admiral, Texas Navy
Commander Emeritus
Amel School  http://www.amelschool.com
720 Winnie St
Galveston Island, TX 77550
+1(832) 380-4970

On Tue, Jan 2, 2018 at 10:48 AM, pacificcool@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

 

 

I've been in the group a while but don't often access it.  I' finishing up a circumnavigation and planning to replace the rigging on my 1995 Super Maramu.  It looks great to me, but it is 22 years old.  I have three quotes from different riggers in different countries. The costs vary greatly for both labor and parts, but especially labor.  I have included a summary of the quotes below broken down by labor and parts.  All quotes are for 316 stainless steel and includes all turnbuckles and upper eye pieces.  My question to this forum is whether any of you have knowledge of Jason Romell in Trinidad.  I've had good reports on Gaetan of Caraibe Marine  in Martinique who is recommended by the local Amel office.   Romell is recommended by Peake Yachts in Trinidad where my boat is on the hard.  I include these details since it may help other owners thinking of re-rigging.  BTW, one owner noted that he was told by Gaetan that he had never seen an Amel with a failed rig.  I provide the costs in Euros and US Dollars converted at a rate of 1.19 US dollars per Euro.  

 

Quote From	Euro              Labor	Euro            Parts	Euro          Total	Dollars      Total
Trinidad - Jason Romell	1,513	6,607	8,119	$9662
Martinique - Caraibe Marine	3,429	8,106	11,535	$13,726
Seattle - Northwest Rigging	8,580	9,552	18,132	$21,577
Seattle Higher Than Trinidad By	150%	18%	57%	57%
Martinique Higher Than Trinidad By	127%	23%	42%	42%
NW Higher Than Trinidad By	467%	45%	123%	123%

I am trending toward the less expensive quote from Trinidad contingent on meeting Jason on Friday.  But I'm very tempted to go for the more expensive quote from Martinique given the recommendation form Amel.   Ken Powers had Aquarius rigged in Martinique last year and was quite happy.  

Any comments appreciated.  Happy New Year to all!

Bill Shaproski

S/V Pacific Cool

 

 

--

 

 

 

 

 

 

On 3 Jan 2018, at 11:42, Ian Shepherd sv_freespirit@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

Crusader is fitted with a Cristec 1600VA 50Hz inverter which has just 
failed. Having taken it out and examined it briefly, it would seem that 
there is damage to one of the relays and evidence of burnt tracks on one 
of the PCB's. Cristec will repair the unit by replacing both the PCB's 
but to do so will cost around €1050 including shipping. The 1600VA model 
is no longer available. A 2000VA model costs €1528 plus VAT at 20%.

I shall probably send it back for repair, but before doing so I am 
wondering if there are any recommendations for a good cheaper 
alternative? You can get a 2KW inverter for less than $400 on eBay, but 
I would expect that they might be electrically very noisy and the sine 
wave not so 'pure' as is claimed, which could cause equipment damage.

Does anyone recommend a cheaper alternative that will not cause 
interference to laptops, SSB, Navtex etc?

With thanks

Ian Shepherd SM2K 414 Crusader Larnaca Cyprus

On Jan 3, 2018, at 6:01 AM, Brent Cameron brentcameron61@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...> wrote:

I’m a lurker here and love watching this forum for the very useful nuggets of information that leak out on a daily basis from the owners so don’t usually contribute but buried down in the original question on this topic was a statement: "BTW, one owner noted that he was told by Gaetan that he had never seen an Amel with a failed rig. “  

I can’t say whether or not this is actually true or not, but on a  passage from Bermuda to Antiqua this last November, there was an Amel (a Kirk I believe) that lost it’s rig in a series of squalls that two other Amel’s (Super Maramus - including the one I was crewimg  on) went through within radio distance of each other without drama.  The other Amel saw them and went over to lend some fuel so that they could make landfall as they were about 400 nautical miles from shore when it happened and weren’t sure they had enough to motor in.   I have left the names of the boats out in order to protect the privacy of the owners.   Also, there is a youtube episode of S/V Delos (another SM) on youtube where they re rigged her (they had the fittings professionally done in Thailand but did the installation themselves) and had cut one of the fittings apart  just as Eric mentioned with his sage advice - they found that it wasn’t far away from failing after being “inspected” bay a professional rigger.   I’d listen to Eric on this one…. (Back to lurking until I get my SM hopefully this fall).  

Brent Cameron,

Future SM Owner

On Jan 2, 2018, 10:44 PM -0500, 'sailormon' kimberlite@... [amelyachtowners] <amelyachtowners@...>, wrote:

 

Mike,

Rigging wire does not usually fail. The rigging usually fails at the fittings. Beside magna fluxing or x raying

You do not know what is going on inside the fitting.

 

Gaetan’s head rigger showed me a swage eye stud that he cut open with a band saw. It was on its last legs- the attached wire looked fine. He showed me a new swage that he had cut open from his rotary swaging machines. You could hardly see the strands of wire as the swage was so tight.

 

Kimberlite is in the open ocean 85 percent of the time, if not sitting in a hot marina with salt water down in the swages.  After 15 years , it was time for me to replace the rigging. I had previously mentioned that I replaced 3 pieces of wire and fittings at a very reputable St Maarten rigger due to the impending failure of the wire two fitting  and one fitting was cracked. That was 2 years ago.

However we have put a lot of miles on Kimberlite.

 

Rigging is like the line in dirty harry “how lucky do you feel?”

If you are just coastal cruising then I guess if the rig comes down and doesn’t kill anyone you will be fine.

However using an Amel for what it was built for , I would change the rig.

Fair Winds

Eric

Kimberlite Amel Super Maramu #376

 

 

 

 

From: amelyachtowners@... [mailto:amelyachtowners@...]
Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2018 3:06 PM
To: amelyachtowners@...
Subject: [Amel Yacht Owners] Replacing standing rigging

 

 

Aletes SM#240 1999 is also facing the re-rigging decision. Various people and sources on internet search suggest wire rigging service life of 16, 12, or even 6 years. Most recommendations are by those with vested interest in replacements, ie. riggers and wire manufacturers. I have seen a Coast Guard report relating to failures on commercial catamarans in Hawaii that talk about 10 years. Finally I checked with our insurance agent. I figure if any entity has skin in the game (other than the boat owner/occupants) it would be the insurance industry. Our agent was quick to say that the insurance carriers are OK with standing rigging up to 20 years. Thereafter they will require detailed rigging inspections (not just looking up from the deck) every 2 to 5 years (depending on the insurer). This seems like a reasonable and reasoned way to address the aging rigging question and for me was comforting relative to the somewhat arbitrary nature of the shorter lifespan recommendations.

 

So. Here we are with an 18 year old boat that in Amel terms I would consider lightly used (probably less than 12 months total in the open ocean). We are looking at a $13K investment with Gaetan at Caraibe Marine, possibly later this month. This is not quite a case of “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” but it does feel like, if a  thorough inspection does not identify any problems, why replace a perfectly good rig, especially one this robust.

 

Anyway, we are leaning towards doing it. There seems to be no way to evaluate investing $13K in the equation of risk v. peace of mind.

 

Thoughts welcome.

 

Mike Ondra

Aletes SM#240 Falmouth, Antigua

 

From: amelyachtowners@... [mailto:amelyachtowners@...]
Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2018 11:48 AM
To: amelyachtowners@...
Subject: [Amel Yacht Owners] Riggers In Trinidad and Martinique

 

 

I've been in the group a while but don't often access it.  I' finishing up a circumnavigation and planning to replace the rigging on my 1995 Super Maramu.  It looks great to me, but it is 22 years old.  I have three quotes from different riggers in different countries. The costs vary greatly for both labor and parts, but especially labor.  I have included a summary of the quotes below broken down by labor and parts.  All quotes are for 316 stainless steel and includes all turnbuckles and upper eye pieces.  My question to this forum is whether any of you have knowledge of Jason Romell in Trinidad.  I've had good reports on Gaetan of Caraibe Marine  in Martinique who is recommended by the local Amel office.   Romell is recommended by Peake Yachts in Trinidad where my boat is on the hard.  I include these details since it may help other owners thinking of re-rigging.  BTW, one owner not ed that he was told by Gaetan that he had never seen an Amel with a failed rig.  I provide the costs in Euros and US Dollars converted at a rate of 1.19 US dollars per Euro.  

 

 

Quote From	Euro              Labor	Euro            Parts	Euro          Total	Dollars      Total
Trinidad - Jason Romell	1,513	6,607	8,119	$9662
Martinique - Caraibe Marine	3,429	8,106	11,535	$13,726
Seattle - Northwest Rigging	8,580	9,552	18,132	$21,577
Seattle Higher Than Trinidad By	150%	18%	57%	57%
Martinique Higher Than Trinidad By	127%	23%	42%	42%
NW Higher Than Trinidad By	467%	45%	123%	123%

I am trending toward the less expensive quote from Trinidad contingent on meeting Jason on Friday.  But I'm very tempted to go for the more expensive quote from Martinique given the recommendation form Amel.   Ken Powers had Aquarius rigged in Martinique last year and was quite happy.  

 

Any comments appreciated.  Happy New Year to all!

 

Bill Shaproski

S/V Pacific Cool

 

 

Aletes SM#240 1999 is also facing the re-rigging decision. Various people and sources on internet search suggest wire rigging service life of 16, 12, or even 6 years. Most recommendations are by those with vested interest in replacements, ie. riggers and wire manufacturers. I have seen a Coast Guard report relating to failures on commercial catamarans in Hawaii that talk about 10 years. Finally I checked with our insurance agent. I figure if any entity has skin in the game (other than the boat owner/occupants) it would be the insurance industry. Our agent was quick to say that the insurance carriers are OK with standing rigging up to 20 years. Thereafter they will require detailed rigging inspections (not just looking up from the deck) every 2 to 5 years (depending on the insurer). This seems like a reasonable and reasoned way to address the aging rigging question and for me was comforting relative to the somewhat arbitrary nature of the shorter lifespan recommendations.

 

So. Here we are with an 18 year old boat that in Amel terms I would consider lightly used (probably less than 12 months total in the open ocean). We are looking at a $13K investment with Gaetan at Caraibe Marine, possibly later this month. This is not quite a case of “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” but it does feel like, if a  thorough inspection does not identify any problems, why replace a perfectly good rig, especially one this robust.

 

Anyway, we are leaning towards doing it. There seems to be no way to evaluate investing $13K in the equation of risk v. peace of mind.

 

Thoughts welcome.

 

Mike Ondra

Aletes SM#240 Falmouth, Antigua

 

From: amelyachtowners@... [mailto:amelyachtowners@...]
Sent: Tuesday, January 02, 2018 11:48 AM
To: amelyachtowners@...
Subject: [Amel Yacht Owners] Riggers In Trinidad and Martinique

 

 

I've been in the group a while but don't often access it.  I' finishing up a circumnavigation and planning to replace the rigging on my 1995 Super Maramu.  It looks great to me, but it is 22 years old.  I have three quotes from different riggers in different countries. The costs vary greatly for both labor and parts, but especially labor.  I have included a summary of the quotes below broken down by labor and parts.  All quotes are for 316 stainless steel and includes all turnbuckles and upper eye pieces.  My question to this forum is whether any of you have knowledge of Jason Romell in Trinidad.  I've had good reports on Gaetan of Caraibe Marine  in Martinique who is recommended by the local Amel office.   Romell is recommended by Peake Yachts in Trinidad where my boat is on the hard.  I include these details since it may help other owners thinking of re-rigging.  BTW, one owner not ed that he was told by Gaetan that he had never seen an Amel with a failed rig.  I provide the costs in Euros and US Dollars converted at a rate of 1.19 US dollars per Euro.  

 

 

Quote From	Euro              Labor	Euro            Parts	Euro          Total	Dollars      Total
Trinidad - Jason Romell	1,513	6,607	8,119	$9662
Martinique - Caraibe Marine	3,429	8,106	11,535	$13,726
Seattle - Northwest Rigging	8,580	9,552	18,132	$21,577
Seattle Higher Than Trinidad By	150%	18%	57%	57%
Martinique Higher Than Trinidad By	127%	23%	42%	42%
NW Higher Than Trinidad By	467%	45%	123%	123%

I am trending toward the less expensive quote from Trinidad contingent on meeting Jason on Friday.  But I'm very tempted to go for the more expensive quote from Martinique given the recommendation form Amel.   Ken Powers had Aquarius rigged in Martinique last year and was quite happy.  

 

Any comments appreciated.  Happy New Year to all!

 

Bill Shaproski

S/V Pacific Cool