Fluid Motion, LLC, designers and builders of the Ranger Tugs line of trailerable “pocket trawlers” this week announced a new flagship to the fleet — the Ranger 31′. The new R31 will make its debut at the Seattle Boat Show from January 26 to February 5; followed by an expected East Coast debut at the [...]
Pacific Asian Enterprises, Inc., today passed along a new collection of informal photos updating the construction progress of the new Nordhavn 120. The new-design megayacht will become the new queen of the Nordhavn fleet sometime late this year. According to PAE, “Work continues on the first hull of the future queenship of the Nordhavn line: [...]
The first Kadey-Krogen 52′ arrived in the U.S. in time for the recent Seattle Boat Show and made her public debut there. The timing was so tight that the Kadey-Krogen team hadn’t had a chance to really begin the commissioning process, so in many of these photos you will see a fairly bare interior. I [...]
A fascinating blog entry yesterday on the Kadey-Krogen Yachts website recounts the Hurricane Irene experience of Chesapeake ship pilot Bill Band, father of Shannon Band, KKY’s marketing manager. Band was one of two pilots who took the 960-foot Carnival Pride out of the Port of Baltimore and into the Bay to ride out the hurricane. [...]
Kadey-Krogen has released the first photos of the nearly complete first Krogen 52′, which should be leaving the factory shortly by ship in time (hopefully) to make its debut at Seattle’s Lake Union Boats Afloat Show September 14 [...]
Nobeltec said today it has released a free service pack update for users of the new (January 2011) version of Admiral and VNS. The service pack offers integration with Furuno’s popular Digital Fish Finder (DFF1) Sounder, as well as a number of NMEA 2000 integration improvements. While I don’t often simply reprint a press release, [...]
We’ve got a great collection of photos of the very first Nordhavn 63, Silver Spray, taken by Billy Black in Stuart, Florida, for P.A.E. last month just before delivery. There is quite a bit of detail to absorb and the photos leave you with the overwhelming impression of a luxurious, capable bluewater yacht. I happen [...]
Pacific Asian Enterprises, Inc., yesterday released the first published performance data for the new Nordhavn 63. The data are from the first hull, Silver Spray, which was just delivered to its owner at PAE’s Stuart, Florida commissioning facility. As you can see in the accompanying photo above, taken by the yacht’s owner, the N63 truly [...]
In a piece I wrote for YachtWorld.com this week, I said that the new Nordic Tugs 39, an updated replacement for the NT-37, is a worthy successor. The couple I interviewed in the story, Donna and Kevin Steele, went through a meticulous process that culminated in choosing the new NT-39 and their experience would serve [...]
The Expedition Medical Chest series is unlike the cheap kits you get from the typical marine supply house, these kits are stocked with professional-grade supplies and tools to help you deal with health emergencies while at sea.
Bimini Breakdown by Victoria Allman We were only going to be in Bimini for two days. There was no time to waste. I wanted Bimini Bread. Trouble was, we were anchored two miles off the east coast of the island and the tender was broken. Harry, our engineer was busy trying to fix it. [...]
Pacific Asian Enterprises, Inc., reports the joining of pilothouse and deck to the hull of N120-01, a major milestone in the assembly of the first Nordhavn megayacht. There is still a long way to go as the company and its construction partner begin to stuff the hull with systems and accommodations, but for the first [...]
My fellow Write on The Water blogger, Christine Kling, has another fabulous tech piece on the blog today about a WiFi solution for her boat. Christine is a successful published author (I LOVE her Seychelle Sullivan mystery series), and she did a great piece for us here on using your iPad onboard the boat. Christine [...]
One of the more significant news items from the recent Miami Show was the announcement from KVH of its new mini-VSAT package, the TracPhone V3, which is the smallest Ku-band maritime VSAT antenna in the world at just 14.5″ (37 cm) in diameter. The company said today that it has shipped the first fully FCC-licensed units [...]
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Simrad Yachting this week announced a significant upgrade to its “”broadband” radar capability with the “Broadband 3G Radar,” which increases the range of its not-so-old BR24 Broadband Radar. I wrote about the BR24 when it was demonstrated at the Miami show last year and decided it was the real deal for short-range, high-definition radar detection. [...]
Apr 26, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
An updated 2011 Atlantic basin hurricane forecast from Colorado State University yesterday should serve as a reminder to all East Coast and Gulf Coast boaters to check their insurance policies for hurricane coverage. More importantly, now is the time to create your own “hurricane plan” — whether it is to move the boat, haul it, secure [...]
Apr 07, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Tribal Bartering By Victoria Allman “Are they still there?” I asked Patrick as he walked through the galley. “They haven’t left.” Patrick grabbed a slice of pineapple from the platter in front of me. “We’re surrounded.” I swatted his hand as he reached for another slice. The fruit tray was for the guests on Pangaea, [...]
Apr 06, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Simrad Yachting last week announced a new series of touch-screen multifunction displays — the NSS Sport Series. Available in 7-inch, 8-inch, and 12-inch models, the NSS Sport units feature LED backlighting and allow the user to control the display with the touchscreen, keypad and/or the “Simrad Yachting-signature” rotary control knob. My friend Ben Ellison at [...]
Mar 29, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Pacific Asian Enterprises, Inc., said last night that progress continues with the build process on its first true superyacht, the Nordhavn 120. According to the company, the hull and deck are joined, while the engine beds have been made and are ready for installation of the main engines (twin MTU 8V 2000 M72′s, rated at [...]
Mar 22, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Brian Chen, at Wired, has a piece today that suggests a clever way to avoid having to pay the extra money for a 3G version of the iPad 2 just to get GPS and phone data network capability. The solution basically involves using your current Smartphone as a wireless hotspot. Here’s an excerpt of his [...]
Mar 18, 2011 | 2 comments | View Post
I know that’s a bold statement, but when I can have access to a library that will eventually likely hold many thousands of already planned (by me AND other boaters) routes, and then someday soon use those routes with more ActiveCaptain technology to tell me what’s up ahead, I will be in a different place [...]
Mar 17, 2011 | 7 comments | View Post
Kadey-Krogen Yachts said today that hull number one of the new Krogen 52′ line has been released from its mold. Krogen 5201 will be a single engine vessel with hydraulic bow and stern thrusters. The new yacht is scheduled to be delivered sometime this summer. There’s a lot to like about this slightly smaller version [...]
Mar 16, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Vessel Assist San Diego routinely performs some pretty amazing salvage work, but refloating a 150-ton Nordhavn 75 EYF that sank in its slip in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico, was an especially prodigious effort since it required driving all the proper salvage equipment 24 hours down the Mexican penninsula. You can read the full story [...]
Mar 15, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Sunreef Yachts said last week that modifications it has made to the 70 Sunreef Power catamaran JAMBO have nearly doubled the yacht’s fuel efficiency. The fuel consumption on JAMBO dropped from 13 liters/hour/engine at 10 knots at 2,300 rpm, to 7.5 liters/hour/engine at 10 knots at only 1,500 rpm. The mods are a demonstration of [...]
Mar 14, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Call them pocket-trawlers or mini/pocket-tugs, the North Pacific Yachts 28’ Pilothouse, Nordic Tugs 26, Ranger Tugs 25SC, Minor Offshore 25, and Rosborough RF-246 have hardiness and efficiency in common. The terms “pocket trawler” and “pocket tug” don’t really have precise definitions, yet both connote a small, salty vessel that’s probably a jack-of-all-trades and won’t break [...]
I have seen the future of Nobeltec, and it has no. . . okay, okay, I couldn’t resist. But c’mon, let’s admit, that dongle was the only real thing we hated about Nobeltec navigation software. And yes, I know all the reasons they had for using it, but it really got in the way. And [...]
Conflicting news reports this morning have agreed on one sad fact, that the four passagemakers aboard the S/V Quest, hijacked late last week by Somali pirates, are dead. The CBS report is HERE. The pirates reportedly told Reuters that they killed the hostages after their two commanders were killed by U.S. military forces shadowing the [...]
Feb 22, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
You saw it here first, folks. The first photos of Island Pilot’s new IP535. It’s a monster! And definitely an Island Pilot “fast trawler.” Island Pilot’s Reuben Trane confirms the boat will be on display at next week’s Miami Boat Show, so if you want to see one of the truly unique new boats out [...]
Feb 11, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
Yeah, I know this photo is from a press release. But maybe it’s not just a cute demonstration. Maybe it’s actually an effective way to prove a marketing claim of dust- and waterproof capabilities. Nauticomp says it tests its marine LED-lit LCD displays to an IP67 ingress protection standard. The ’6′ in that designation indicates [...]
Feb 08, 2011 | 0 comments | View Post
