A crazy project I'm very seriously considering...Swede 55

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Fri Apr 20, 2007 10:21 pm

What a long day...

We hauled and surveyed the Swede earlier today. It passed a survey (with some known issues) and I'm a happy (overwhelmed) owner of a Swede 55.

I also had the fun job of getting it ready to ship by myself. Everything is ready to go, mast is wrapped and de-rigged, wheel pulled, etc etc.

I'm totally beat. I won't be around when the boat is loaded onto the truck (the seller will stop by to check everything out) so I wanted to make sure that everything is ready to go.

Pictures coming at some point.

dmairspotter · Post by **dmairspotter** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 11:39 am

Congratulations!!!

DELETED · Post by **DELETED** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 4:20 pm

DELETED

MQMurphy · Post by **MQMurphy** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 10:13 pm

Congratulations! That is one loooong choo-choo . . .

Peter · Post by **Peter** » Sat Apr 21, 2007 10:14 pm

$^&$#@, that's a big Folkboat !!!

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Sun Apr 22, 2007 2:58 pm

Well my first real sailboat was a folkboat, so I guess it makes sense...

There will be plenty of questions and pictures coming soon.

Mark.Wilme · Post by **Mark.Wilme** » Mon Apr 23, 2007 8:58 pm

Oh that's just too cool ....

Did I miss the big photo gallery with oh say a hundred plus photos in it ?

JMS · Post by **JMS** » Wed Apr 25, 2007 2:04 pm

I posted in thread on Sailing Anarchy -> but that boat is so cool you deserve to be congratulated twice! :-)

solosailor · Post by **solosailor** » Wed Oct 29, 2008 11:27 pm

SHWING!

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:10 pm

Still another week before I put my Swede 55 away for the year, but today was nice, so we decided to go out for a sail.

Probably only 8-9 knots of wind, so we could have used a bit more power, but 7.7 isn't bad upwind.

We sailed out of Shelburne Bay, and around Juniper Island:

Looking back at Burlington:

More coming...

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Sun Nov 02, 2008 10:14 pm

We set the Spinnaker on a tight reach, and sailed back to the mooring. We were definitely strapped trying to carry the Spinnaker, but it's an Asym so it does pretty well.

Good speed, but we could have used more wind:

And last but not least, your intrepid skipper:

Bluenose · Post by **Bluenose** » Mon Nov 03, 2008 5:42 pm

Wow! Just stunning. What a lovely sailing craft. 8.5 knots just ain't too shabby in lightish air. What is your hull speed on those gorgeous needle?

Also, how are you rigging your sheets for your spinnaker? I don't quite understand the eye splice on the lazy sheet.

Thanks again for the great photos.

Bill

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Mon Nov 03, 2008 6:39 pm

Thanks for the comments. That's just the lazy sheet going to the clew. I "luggage tag" the two sheets onto a short 6ft light spectra pendant so you only need to untie one knot on the spinnaker and it keeps the weight off the clew for light air performance.

We do inside jibes, meaning that the clew of the Asym goes inside the tack and in front of the forestay. Some folks do outside jibes where you pull the clew around the front of the spinnaker, but then you need some way to keep the lazy sheet from falling under the boat.

I'm still learning how to make her go in all conditions. Sometimes she's fast as hell, and other times I just can't make her go. The light stuff (4-7 knots) is still a challenge. She is very sensitive to rig tune and main trimming. Even up to 13 knots of wind speed we have a soft backstay, very soft forestay, with the trav up and the main eased off for twist.

A couple more:

Look across the Lake at New York:

Looking under the Spinnaker:

And starting to get some projection to windward as we head down. It takes concentrated work of both the driver and trimmer, but we are able project the kite way out in front and run pretty deep with good speed.

solosailor · Post by **solosailor** » Mon Nov 03, 2008 11:00 pm

Can you post some pictures of the interior? What's the standing room like?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 11:04 am

Headroom is probably 6'5" in the galley/nav area, 6'2" near the table, and decreasing as you move forward. Maybe 5'10" in the head and 5'8" in the v-birth area.

BTW, sorry for the crappy photo

The galley (with funky Eno propane stove, double sink and Norcold 120/12 fridge)

And the nav station complete with parts of the old B&G system and ancient VHF

Shark · Post by **Shark** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 3:44 pm

Noah: "That's just the lazy sheet going to the clew. I "luggage tag" the two sheets onto a short 6ft light spectra pendant so you only need to untie one knot on the spinnaker and it keeps the weight off the clew for light air performance."

Could you take another run at this explanation? I'm not following.

Is "lazy sheet" just the windward sheet? Also do you untie the spinnaker clew each time you jibe?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 3:57 pm

Ok, let's try this one again, and see if I can explain it better.

The basics - I'm using an Asymmetrical Spinnaker, so it has (for these purposes) a fixed tack, and a single clew.

I use two spinnaker sheets - the "lazy" sheet is the one that's not doing anything on one jibe - generally the windward sheet, though that could get fuzzy as we have run wing and wing or directly down wind, once and a while even through the wind.

The lazy sheet runs around the forestay and out to the clew.

I have attached the two sheets together about 6 feet from the clew, and use a single light spectra "pendant" that runs up to the clew.

The 3 lines are attached only via splices, so there are no knots to get caught going around the forestay.

When we jibe we just pull the sail around to the other side of the boat (though there is more to it trying to move 1775sq ft of sail). The old lazy sheet becomes the new working sheet, and the other one becomes "lazy". I don't need to untie anything.

We do "inside" jibes, meaning that the clew of the spinnaker is moved around to the new side inside the tack (but in front of the forestay). In heavy wind, etc we can do "outside" jibes, where you pull the clew around to the new side in front of the tack (and the boat).

The easiest way to picture the whole thing is cutter rig only the front sail is a spinnaker instead of a genoa.

Shark · Post by **Shark** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 4:31 pm

So, the 2 spinnaker sheets are actually tied together to form one continuous sheet and the 6 ft "pendant" performs the function of a sheet. Yes?

So you never have to change the length of the "pendant"? Is that because the boat is so long that the spinnaker clew never gets close enough to the winch to become a problem?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 4:47 pm

Yep, that's about right.

The Spinnaker Foot is 33'6", and the Spin blocks are at the back of the boat, so I have an extra 20ft between the block and the clew of the kite. Still, I can't really ever picture wanting to strap down a spinnaker that tight anyway. Usually a reacher or code zero would have would have a shorter foot.

Once of these days I'm going to do the same thing with my genoa sheets. A short pendant will work just right, and I can tie a very small knot so it won't get caught on the shrouds when tacking.

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 4:50 pm

Here is an image - you can just see the sheets, and what it looks like.

Shark · Post by **Shark** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 5:08 pm

Thanks that's clear now.

Just one more question: You said you "luggage tagged" the sheets. What does that mean? Is that some sort of toggle hanging from the leeward sheet in the first picture?

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 5:23 pm

From APS - essentially you splice a loop into the sheet (or all 3 in this case) and then connect them together, much like you would with a luggage tag on a suitcase.

12 Strand 'Luggage Tag' Splice

Applies to single braids (Vectrus 12, Ultrex 12 and AmSteel 12) or the uncovered cores of high tech double braids (Crystalyne, V2, Maxibraid Plus, D2 and Warp Speed). Basically, a large eye splice that attaches like a luggage tag to a suitcase handle. Use it to attach your halyard shackle for convenient replacement, or to securely attach a sheet directly to a sail's tack or clew, avoiding the weight of a shackle. Includes Whiplock™. This splice will consume two feet of line, so make sure your order your line long enough.

Shark · Post by **Shark** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 6:57 pm

Thanks for the info. It's always nice to find a new way to do some of these things.

That's one gorgeous boat, by the way. 55 feet. My boat's 24 feet long and seems plenty long to me. I can't imagine what it's like docking a 55 foot boat.

Bluenose · Post by **Bluenose** » Wed Nov 05, 2008 2:00 am

I just love that photo of your Swede under her spinnaker. Talk about a sweet looking boat that just longs to be sailed. I also like the white sail cloth with the colored stripes on the luff and leech. So what effective wind angles do you get with it? I think an asym is in my future.

Cheers, Bill

solosailor · Post by **solosailor** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 1:03 am

Noah, I want one. How many of those were built? How do I find the same deal? There is something about that boat that really tugs at the heart strings. Yes I suppose a person could argue that it's not that practical. But just look at it.

I guy has to wonder what a boat like this is like at sea? Could it be considered a blue water cruiser?

Hey, keep your eyes open for another. I would seriously consider it.

Bluenose · Post by **Bluenose** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 3:48 am

Yes I suppose a person could argue that it's not that practical.

Perhaps, but I really like the idea that sailboats should be measured base on their displacement as much or more than their length. If you were considering, say a Pearson Invicta at 38 ft and 19,000 lbs displacement, that might seem more practical to most. But I look at Noah's Swede, at 55 ft and around 17,000 lbs displacement, to be long (ok very long) for her weight. They both carry similar sail area (Invicta 660 vs Swede 690) and as we have seen, Noah's Swede just screams along.

I run into this same problem as the first question people ask me about my new boat is "how long is it?". When I say 30 ft I hear "wow that is big". But the Shields is closer in displacement to a Pearson Commander than boats closer to her length.

Obviously everyone has their own style of boat.

Hey, keep your eyes open for another. I would seriously consider it.

I don't know what kind of deal you would need but there appears to be one for sail in Maine. Here is the link.

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 11:19 am

There is no doubt it's a cool boat - I love mine! That said, it's totally impractical. I pay for hauling and storage of a 55ft boat and still bump my head in the head...But they are really fun to sail, and very easy to make go fast - especially downwind.

There is no question that it's a blue water boat. A couple of years ago a Swede 55 won the double handed division of the Pacific cup in heavy weather. This speaks both to it's toughness and to the ease of sailing it. Double digit speeds are easy to achieve downwind. (My max is a low 14.5, though others have seen speed in the 20's. Keep in mind I've only been sailing in flat water so no big waves to break it loose.) The plus side is that while fast, it handles more like a classic - no spinning out upwind or broaching down. The helm stays light and it tracks like a dream.

As for a cruiser, it has similar interior volume to a classic 40ft cruiser + a whole lot of storage. I think it would be a very nice boat to cruise with a couple. I should add that I'm 6'2" 210 and 32 years old, so I have no problem getting physical with the boat. My main has an Antal track system but it still takes some grunt work getting it up. I can reach the headboard shackle no problem, but my 5'8" friends can't.

The first couple of times I was worried bringing it into the dock, but at this point I have no problem. I sail it on and off the mooring single handed regularly.

As for finding one cheap - I'm afraid I don't know of any available. There is the one in Mass for $89k. Seems like it's in good condition, and that's a fair price. One sold last year in NY for somewhere around $70k I think, but needed a bunch of work.

The hardware to make these boats easy to handle is expensive. I put $2000 of Harken bling into the mainsheet and traveler system this spring. Though now it works like a dream.

An upwind shot from last year before I repainted and re-systemed the boat:

Noah · Post by **Noah** » Mon Nov 10, 2008 4:30 pm

Hi Bill, Sorry I didn't answer your question about the Asym earlier - The answer would be that the sail works at all apparent wind angles - I know that sounds silly, but it this shot the apparent wind was coming from dead ahead - we were doing about 8 knots in 5-6 knots of wind on a reach. We can also run dead downwind with the thing.

I use a snuffer on mine, which makes handling that much easier, but on a smaller kite you shouldn't have any problem.

Here is a video of us sailing on Sat. The reefed main and 135% jib probably wasn't the fastest combo, but that's what we were sailing with. We were doing about 7.5 upwind and hit 10 down. I would say it was blowing 12-14 or so.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbhBVpVvOEQ

I don't usually take sunset pictures, but who could resist...

And a day later beating upwind:

We were all having a great time - it was actually pretty warm:

Juniper Island, which was in one of the other pictures from the other day:

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