New member questions

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Rufduck
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New member questions

Post by Rufduck »

Hi all,
Am a new member and have been piqued about the Capella. My wife and I have been playing with "big" boats since buying a Corsair 27 in 2000. 15 years and 12-14,000 hours later, we've been through 2 more Farrier designs. Our original desire was gunkholing (didn't even know the word existed) but were bitten by the racing bug and nearly all the time was doing same. Our present boat, Moxie, is a pretty bare race machine that we have minimally modified to allow for 360 day sailing here in the PNW and then strengthened for facing same. We have come full circle and I want a few more creature comforts. Also, we are big people (I'm 6'3 and the skipper is 5'10, wife does most of the driving and I'm the horsepower engineer) so a question of "fit" is a real concern. We sail and I stress sail, in all weather and conditions, so we want a sailboat rather than a boat with a sail.
I well know the passionate following that the Corsair owners are and I presume the same is true of the PDQ as well. That said, I also know the wealth of collective knowledge that the Corsair group possesses and I presume or at least hope the same is true for the PDQ group.

-I have yet to sail one! Any owners out there that just need to exercise their boat? We are planning a trip to Florida in the next 2 weeks...hint, hint.
-What kind of tacking angles do you usually see when sailing close hauled? We strive for 90* when performance sailing but usually find it closer to 100 or even 110 when maximizing VMG and the wind is up around 15 TWS (about 9-10 kn boat speed). We can easily get to 90 but then we are pretty slow as well (>8 kn).
-What is the standing head room in the salon? 6'4 I've been told. I was given to understand that there is more room in the hulls.
-Are there indeed 2 mast heights available? Pros and cons?
-Is a self tacking jib an option? (I know getting lazy).
-THE biggie...What 6 defects or concerns need to be considered for the various iterations of the 36 when buying? Yes, there will be a survey but there may be some things that simply "disqualify" a particular boat from my consideration. I do know that there are some things that bode ill or at least may be disproportionately expensive to correct. Rot, delamination, lightning strike, etc. I'm 68 and have done the "project boat" and just don't have enough gas in the tank to tackle another. Also, I will be delivering her home to the greater Seattle, WA area and would prefer not having her come apart on the way.
All help regarding any of the above will be greatly appreciated.

Beam winds,

Martyn Adams
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thinwater
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Re: New member questions

Post by thinwater »

PDQ 36 speed polar. I sail a PD32/34, so I can't say how accurate it is. Typically these are optimistic, based upon burnished bottom, new sails, MT tanks, no dingy, and zero cruising gear.

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Rufduck
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Re: New member questions

Post by Rufduck »

Thank you Tom. A bit of a surprise. Anyone know of any 36s in the Pacific NW?

Cheers,

Martyn
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Lady of the Lake
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Re: New member questions

Post by Lady of the Lake »

Check www.pdq36.com

Sam
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36041
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Re: New member questions

Post by 36041 »

Martyn,

There were two options for mast height, 47' and I believe 51'. Ours it the 47 footer. I've never seen a PDQ36 that had a self tacking head sail, but most of the 32's came that way.

Standing room in the hulls is 7' 6" on our boat and 6''3" just inside the main salon.

As for defects....most long term 36 owners have had to (or had done) repair/re-bed where the forward baby stay mounts. Ours leaked enough over the years that I had to replace a 6" wide strip of the damaged bulkhead where the chain plate mounts. Not the end of the world, but it seems to crop up on most of the 36's.

Good luck,
Tom
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Rufduck
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Re: New member questions

Post by Rufduck »

Wonderful trip so far and a multitude of questions answered. Been in on around and through half a dozen and they, as expected, ranged from groan to very cool. My concerns re fit are answered and even the early ones are ok. The owners I've met are first rate and willingly candid about their boats, their knowledge or lack thereof and their seamanship. More to see tomorrow.
Biggest remaining question is, How do they sail? Time will tell.
Cheers, Martyn
Rufduck
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Re: New member questions

Post by Rufduck »

Hi all,
In my search for a 36, I found something that puzzled me. On one, the Selden mast had a splice in the area between the gooseneck and the deck. It was a beautiful job and appeared factory but gave me pause. I did not notice it on the others I looked at.
Anyone familiar with this?

In looking at the return trip via Panama to Seattle, I was looking at transit speeds. The best post indicated 24 hrs runs (average?) of about 135-150 nm. This sound about right and is it distance sailed or distance made good? If so a and it is distance sailed, the uphill run on the west shore of NA will be quite a slog. I understand speed is pretty hard to define but surely there are numbers you cruisers use for route planning.

Info much appreciated ,

Martyn
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Re: New member questions

Post by duetto »

hi,

you might want to look into the 36's that were built/converted to daggerboards. i believe factory did one and we saw another in the bahamas, which i believe was a convert.
john & diane cummings
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Re: New member questions

Post by doubledutch »

My 32 has the spliced mast as well. I suspect the masts were spiced when they increased the mast heights. The splices are properly done and should be of no concern.

The 36 with daggerboards was a factory build - they called it the 36 Express - I think they only made one.

Henry
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thinwater
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Re: New member questions

Post by thinwater »

I hit a floating log and bent a rudder earlier this year, as have many others. I crushed a dagger board on my Stiletto on a lost dredge pipe.

Daggerboards on a PDQ? No thank you.
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Rufduck
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Re: New member questions

Post by Rufduck »

2+ knots better speed and 10* higher point...If I could find an express, it would be a serious contender. We are fortunate that we don't regularly sail in thin water.
The only problem is if I got the Express, I would have to race it and that is precisely why I am moving from my present rocket ship to the PDQ...I want to cruise it. But, darn...the best of both worlds.

Still no average transit speeds...perhaps I'm moving into a whole new world where time has no meaning. Novel thought.

May I ask how one bends a rudder that is protected by the mini keel...?
Cheers,

Martyn
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thinwater
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Re: New member questions

Post by thinwater »

Yeah, I had a rocket too. Though honestly, it was the shoal draft I miss more than the screaming reaches.

a. The 2 knots and 10 degrees is probably an exaggeration if you tune the PDQ standard well. >5 degrees is true enough, but once you get off the wind the speed differential is much smaller, and mostly has to do with people who own performance boats keeping them lighter! I've gained 2 knots and 10 degrees to weather by tuning, minor mods (some not so minor), and cleaning out lockers.

b. Easy. Hit a log with the keel, ride over the log, and then hit it on the rudder (there were 2 loud booms). I never did see the log--it was submerged. The keels have a nice slope on the front, the rudders are more plumb. Fortunately, they are not hard to straighten, so that cost me nothing but a few hours labor. Bear in mind this had NOTHING to do with shallow water--I was in over 50 feet.

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chicagocat
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Re: New member questions

Post by chicagocat »

My 36 in Florida (Cat Tales) has the tall rig. The mast has a splice in it a couple feet above the goose neck. I was told that this was because Selden couldn't ship a mast the full length, although that seems strange to me.
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Re: New member questions

Post by Smj »

Admiral, the owner of the PDQ 36 with daggerboards has purchased a Outremer 45 and was interested in selling his PDQ 36. May be worth shooting him a pm if interested.
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