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ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Initially Posted - 01/14/2009 : 17:26:57

Hi all! After nightly searches and some fractional sailing memberships I finally purchased a Cat. 250 WK in November. I have enjoyed the informative forums for the past few months. My family and I are used to bigger boats with more amenities, so I am looking for ways in which to make my boat more user friendly on a tight budget. Most importantly, I find that the 250 with a wheel is more difficult to single hand than a Cat 350 and as I have smallish squalling children this is an alarming fact. I do not have a wheel lock currently and since this is not a very pricey item I'm hoping it will enable me to at least go forward to grab a rope or two bring it back and initiate a tack or a gybe. Coming winches placed in the cockpit seem to be a good option but seem like they may be pricey as some kind of cabin top winches will need to stay. Any tips on single handing a 250 wk with a wheel?
[/Users/vernonwright/Desktop/IMG_0245.JPG]

Thank you.

p.s. how do you insert images?

97 Catalina 250 TR/ WK
Hull #301
Attleboro, MA

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/14/2009 : 17:55:47

Welcome to the group Vern. We've got a '97 WK as well. What's your sail number? Ours is a tiller model, but I'm sure some of the wheel folks will chime in shortly. I originally wanted a wheel as well, but am now glad that I have a tiller simply for the extra room and the ability to tuck it out of the way.

Probably one of the most effective ways to increase your maneuvering ability is either a soft or hard link to your outboard when in tight quarters. There are any number of threads on this, lots of us have made this modification to our boats and it makes a big difference. There are also a number of external sites by members where there is a wealth of information. Arlyn Stewart's site is a great place to start, he's made any number of mods to his boat that lots of us have copied. He is a proponent of the soft link and maybe the inventor, not sure. I have built several hard links for our boat (multiple outboards), and am still trying to come up with a workable version for my new Tohatsu engine.

Winches on your coamings are also a good idea for wheel boats, there are also a number of articles on doing this. This is one of the mods I eventually want to make, but it's not critical for me, with the tiller I can get forward enough to work my sheets if Rita's snoozing or whatever, and our new autopilot should make this even easier.

Attaching photos requires that you have an external service like Shutterfly or Photobucket to host the photos. I personally like use Shutterfly, but there's unlikely to be any great difference in the services. Instructions for inserting a photo are on the testing forum and are pretty straight forward.

If you learn to set the "Format Mode" to "Prompt" (upper left of the blue box you edit your posts in), it'll make your life easier, and you don't have to learn how to use tags. I haven't discovered a way to make it stick, so you have to change it to prompt each time you log onto the site if you want to be prompted for your links, photos, etc.

To find all the various threads I've talked about here, use the search function (top right of the page, underneath the blue banner on the page) to search for topics of interest to you.

Hope this was helpful, we look forward to hearing about your boat & her adventures.

Edited by - delliottg on 01/14/2009 17:59:46

pa-sailor
1st Mate

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USA
67 Posts

Response Posted - 01/14/2009 : 17:56:05

Not sure why you would have trouble sailing solo with the the 250WK.
I sail mostly solo with my 2004 WK with Edson wheel. As for the wheel lock--mine has a hand wheel lock on the steering post. I'm not sure what you could do to put a lock on your setup without seeing it. The lock sure does help when you need to go into the cabin while on a tack. Good luck.

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/14/2009 : 20:23:20

Thanks guys for the info. It sounds like the wheel lock on the steering post actually might work without going into the trouble of an autohelm or cockpit winches. I'm not sure why the edson pedestal system didn't already come with a lock but I'm guessing that a previous owner lost it or something. In any case they're not so expensive.

Edited by - on

bren737
Captain

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291 Posts

Response Posted - 01/14/2009 : 22:01:53

Vern,

I had a WB with wheel and once I installed a wheel lock it was much easier to handle the boat, even with the winches being cabin-top mounted. Makes a huge difference.

I see you're a pastor and was curious about your screen name. . . Hebrew? My 250 was named 'Ruah', without the 'c', but I've seen it spelled both ways. Love it!

Edited by - on

JohnP
Master Marine Consultant

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1520 Posts

Response Posted - 01/15/2009 : 14:33:18

Vern,

Welcome to the Forum. Is the boat still in East Greenwich, RI? At Norton's Marina? I have 2 friends with boats there. Happy sailing on the Narragansett Bay. It's an interesting sailing venue.

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/15/2009 : 18:23:30

John,
It was at Norton's and shall be again if they are reasonable and not booked. Right now she's on the hard at Pleasure Marina in Warwick. I'm looking forward to exploring Prudens, Newport, Block Island, Kutty Hunk etc... Where do you sail out of?

Edited by - on

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 01/15/2009 : 18:41:23

Vern,
Welcome to 1997 club!

What's your hull number?

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/15/2009 : 23:11:20

Tom, I've enjoyed your vids and mods. You have a very nice boat. My hull id# says CTYAO301C797, but that seems kind of long- must be the hull registration number rather than the production number. I'll find it hopefully next time I get on board to check the bilge and tarp.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/16/2009 : 00:36:43

Vern,
I believe your hull is #301, built in March of 1997.

Here's a breakdown on how to read the numbers from a C-22 site (I couldn't find one for C-250s):

CTYH5390F697 A 1997 model year Catalina 22. Built in June 1996. Sail number 15390.

CTY= Manufacturer’s Identification Code (Catalina Yachts)
H= Model (Catalina 22)
5390= Hull Serial Number
F= Month Built (June). A=January, B=February, and so on.
6= Year Built (1996). Last digit of the year of manufacture.
97= Model Year (1997). August is the start of a new model year.

Edited by - delliottg on 01/16/2009 00:39:01

Tom Potter
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
1913 Posts

Response Posted - 01/16/2009 : 21:53:28

Vern, Thanks for the kind words on vids and mods. Looks like you got yourself a Tall Rig too. I looked up hull #301 in the members section and found the previous owners.

#301 - Bean Fiend (original, Gussie) , 1997 Tall Wing Keel
Jay and Alicia Eshleman , Attleboro MA

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 05:19:45

Tom and David,
Thanks for the research and info. Alicia and Jay are the second owners and really great people to boot. I had no idea that it was a tall rig or that he originally had named it Bean Fiend, because Jay's current name for the vessel is Hajime, which is Japanese for to begin. I'll have to talk to him and see if it really is a tall rig, since I don't have the original paper work. If it is, it would certainly explain that tender feeling in 15+ winds. Were thinking of renaming her Haiku, though after a bad experience with the fouled and tearing 150 jenny while I was single handing (and unable to do anything about it because I couldn't leave the helm), I was tempted to call her something much less complimentary. Here's hoping for a successful wheel lock fix. Thanks again and fair winds this spring, (although I bet your still sailing Tom).

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 05:26:29

P.S. Notice the newly updated signature. Thanks.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 11:36:59

Vern,
Welcome to the tall rig club. When our main has it's first reef in it, we're using pretty close to the same amount of sail area the rest of these guys are using normally. Learn to reef early, my wife really doesn't like to heel, so we've bought a 70% storm jib & rigged the double reef to work from the cockpit (numerous discussions about this on the forum if you're interested). Sailing on Puget Sound, especially fall/winter you're going to get some high winds and need to be prepared. Our first experience with this was nearly our last, I was sure I'd never get her on the boat again. Once the heeling gets past about 10 degrees, Rita's no longer having fun, she's hanging on and frightened. I can occasionally sneak up on 15 degrees if there's no chop to pitch the boat around, but that's rare indeed, and all it takes is one boat wake to push us around a bit and she's clamped onto the winches for dear life, eyes squeezed shut trying not to cry. I try to avoid this.

We've found that about 10-15kn is just about perfect for a nice sailing experience for all. The boat doesn't heel excessively, and I can still get up to hull speed. Rita doesn't put fingerprints into the winches from white knuckling them, and we both get to have fun sailing. The dog sleeps through all of it.

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 12:20:32

Hi Vern and all

My site is down. My son gave me space for several years and he made a business change and with it went the server space. I'm doubtful I will go back up with the site but I could make some of the stuff available for the association tech section if it was desired.

To Vern's question of easing the task of single handing the 250 with wheel. You're probably not but if your running a 110 headsail I've got a suggestion.

Edited by - on

delliottg
Former Mainsheet C250 Tech Editor

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USA
4479 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 12:40:59

Paul,
If you're reading this, the loss of Arlyn's content alone seems worth the effort to allow folks to store blogs, tips, etc. on the site.

Assuming that the changes Paul is proposing go through, Arlyn, would you be willing to use your content as a test bed? There are lots of things to be figured out, but it seems a shame to lose so much good info when server space is beyond dirt cheap and all it takes is some effort on our side.

Edited by - on

JohnP
Master Marine Consultant

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1520 Posts

Response Posted - 01/18/2009 : 20:55:59

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by ruachwrights
 John,
It was at Norton's and shall be again if they are reasonable and not booked. Right now she's on the hard at Pleasure Marina in Warwick. I'm looking forward to exploring Prudens, Newport, Block Island, Kutty Hunk etc... Where do you sail out of?
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">I have a boat on the Chesapeake Bay, but when I visit my college pal in RI we sail out of East Greenwich.

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 06:28:34

David... I just took a look at my ISP provider info page and was surprised to see it says 2 gig storage. If that is the case, I will put my site back on. I've had a small site there for a year or so and when putting it up the site was limited to 100 meg IIRC. My son had asked me to max out at one gig on the sailing site and I'd reached that.

post note: Well, I just uploaded my old sailing site to my ISP provider space so evidently the comment about having two gig was correct. It will take me some time to sort out the links and get it up however as I've got a big job going on at work now and little spare time.

Edited by - Arlyn Stewart on 01/19/2009 06:58:52

Nautiduck
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3704 Posts

Response Posted - 01/19/2009 : 13:14:44

IMHO the number one mod for single handing a wheel 250 is to mount the winches on the coaming. You can move the ST16s and just replace the starboard cabin winch with a lesser unit (I use a Lewmar 7C) to raise the main. The coaming winches dramatically ease single handing.

This year I will add a brake to my Edson wheel. We used to have Auto Helm which had its own lock but I removed the Auto Helm and sold it. For the sailing we do it was unnecessary. Others will swear by AH for single handing but for me a wheel brake will more than suffice. Adding an Edson wheel brake is an easy project as is moving the winches.

Welcome to the wonderful world of C250s!!

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/20/2009 : 21:17:50

Randy and Pat,
How much does a Lewmar 7C run? Do you have two 7Cs or one?

Edited by - on

britinusa
Web Editor

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USA
5404 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2009 : 06:58:45

Vern, regarding the wheel lock... The edson wheel on JD has ~3" kurled wheel/bolt in the center of the wheel, we loosen it to unlock the wheel and tighten it to lock the wheel in place.

What's in the middle of your wheel??

Paul.

Edited by - on

ruachwrights
Captain

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USA
258 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2009 : 20:40:08

Paul,
What I'm really referring to as a necessity, is probably what Randy (Nautiduck) calls a wheel brake. Currently, I have one of those oversized, circular Edson wheel nuts that one can conveniently take on and off the wheel by hand.

Edited by - on

britinusa
Web Editor

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USA
5404 Posts

Response Posted - 01/21/2009 : 21:00:57

Vern, that nut is the wheel brake. Works great from full lock (tight) to no brake (loose). Do you have a problem with it?

Paul

Edited by - on

Arlyn Stewart
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
2980 Posts

Response Posted - 01/24/2009 : 12:10:54

Paul, I'm thinking he is talking about a quick wheel nut like this

Edited by - Arlyn Stewart on 01/27/2009 16:54:07

Nautiduck
Master Marine Consultant

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USA
3704 Posts

Response Posted - 01/24/2009 : 12:44:08

A Lewmar 7C is about $200 which is waaaaaaay less than a 16ST. We have just one 7C mounted on the starboard cabin for raising the main.

We also have the knurled quick wheel nut which is a nice thing to have so you can quickly remove the wheel. This makes use of the ladder much more practical for swimming or getting in and out of a dink. I don't think that quick nut has any braking effect. Edson also makes a little gizmo that attaches to the rail and lets you mount the wheel to it for safekeeping.

The wheel brake I am talking about goes in the side of the pedestal (there is a hole already there) and when you turn the brake knob it actually presses against the wheel shaft and stops it.

Go the the [url="http://www.edsonmarine.com/"]Edson Web Site[/url] and check out the sailboat products catalog. It is on the top right corner of the home page. On page 16 of the catalog is the quick release nut and wheel holder. On page 73 is the wheel brake. Once you figure out the part # you want Google it and see if you can get a good price. Edson stuff is very well made and expensive.

Edited by - Nautiduck on 01/24/2009 12:45:31

welshoff
Captain

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USA
253 Posts

Response Posted - 01/26/2009 : 10:05:36

FYI - On my Edson wheel, that same center knurled knob is the wheel brake - not a quick release knob.

Edited by - on

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