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We started with a basic 28' racer/cruiser that was equipped for sailing in the San Francisco bay. We then thought about all the safety and cruising gear we needed to add to the boat, and came up with the following list. Since we are both unemployed, we realized we would have to do some very good shopping in order to get all that we wanted.

Our Wish List:

Reality tells us we are still unemployed, and our wish list should turn into a necessity list. I am sure we will compromise somewhere in between.

Additional diesel tank

The additional diesel tank is being replaced by jerry cans that we can stow in the lazaret, and use when we go into the towns to buy fuel at the local gas station.

Additional fresh water tank

The additional fresh water tank has been ordered. We found the company that made the original water tanks for our boat. They also manufactured the optional tank that was not ordered on our boat. We have ordered it and will install it in the storage compartment under the forward berth.

Windlass

We bought a Horizon 600 windlass at West Marine. We are making a stainless steel panel that replaces our anchor locker cover. We will mount the windlass on this, allowing the rode to drop into the locker. This design also allows us to remove the windlass and reattach the original cover when we return. Use the following link for more on this project: windlass

Radar

We purchased the Raytheon SL72 radar. We will mount it on a pole that we are having made at Garhaurer. John at Garhaurer Marine made the pole just right. I sent him a mock up of what I wanted, he turned it out in stainless steel in less than a week. Great job at a good price.

VHF radio in the cockpit

We have a VHF radio in the cabin now with the antenna on the top of the mast. We installed a new radio in the cockpit and hooked it up to the antenna on the mast. We hooked the old radio up to a new whip antenna mounted on the stern rail. Now we will have a radio if the mast is lost. We also have a couple of hand held units for use in the dinghy and ashore.

Refrigeration for our icebox

We installed a new unit in our existing icebox. It works very good, we can even make ice.

Water maker

Too expensive for us on this short of a trip. We will use bottled water.

Ham/SSB Radio

Larry bought the top of the line model, Icom 710 with an antenna tuner. Since Larry has a HAM license, they have programmed it to operate on all the legal ham and marine band frequencies.

We had the backstay antenna made and we installed it the day before we left. I got the antenna ground run in San Diego (50' of 3" copper foil along the inside of the hull below the waterline). I was able to finish the installation at our stop in Turtle Bay.

Radio email

This requires a special modem that costs about $1000. Since the radio wasn't installed and working before we left, I felt it was something we had better pass on for this trip.

GPS with charts

We bought the Garmin 376 with a chip with all of the ocean charts from San Francisco down the coast of Mexico. It has worked great! We hardly ever use a paper chart (only to go into port). Using the GPS with the radar has been the easiest way to navigate.

Additional bank of house batteries

We bought two 6 volt golf cart batteries, which hooked together gives us 12 volts. Golf cart batteries are good because they are made to last for many deep discharges. These are rated at 230 amp hours at 12 volts. Hopefully they will be able to keep up with all of the electronics we have added.

Upgraded alternator and regulator

Our engine is so small that most high output alternators will not fit. We are buying a automotive alternator that can put out a peak of 150 amps, but should run at about 100 amps most of the time. This will go through our new regulator and battery combiner.

Solar panels with regulator

We are installing five flexible 21 watt panels that will attach to the bimini and dodger tops. In addition, we are adding a 64 watt rigid panel off the back of the bimini. This should give us enough power to run the refrigerator and basic house items. The electrical loads and usage are all guesses as everything is new to us and we have no historical information yet. We are installing a load panel so we will have better information for the next trip.

Dodger and bimini enclosure

We looked at having these made, but balked at the prices we were quoted - $3000 to $5000. We decided to do it ourselves. We bought stainless steel tubing at Kronke, had it bent to our design at Svendsens Metal shop, and sewed the fabric and windows with a little help from our friends. Use the following link for more on this project: Dodger and bimini

Three anchors

We used our existing anchor as a main backup. Our friend Ray is lending us two of his extra anchors to use. We then added two sets of 40' chain and 200' rope.

Propane locker

We had a place on the boat already, we just needed to finish it out to work with the propane can. We have a 10 gallon can. We also installed a propane/gas fumes detector in the engine compartment.

Propane stove

No time to find or install this, so we went with the original alcohol one.

EPIRB

We bought a 406 EPIRB from Waterways. It interfaces with our GPS and broadcasts our location if there is an emergency.

Life raft

Too expensive for a short, near the coast trip. We can make due with the dinghy and a good survival kit.

Dinghy with outboard

Larry and his friend Bob own an 11 foot long dinghy together. It is bigger than we need, almost too big to fit on the boat. But the price is right, and we will be very comfortable cruising around with the included 8 hp motor. Update: the 8 hp motor was too small, so we took a 10 hp one instead.

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