ANTON DIMECH: What should have been a standard delivery trip turned into a very expensive detour when the steering fluid ran low
Delivering a Sunseeker Superhawk 43 from Malta to Majorca is one of the joys of being a professional skipper – if that’s what the client wants then I’m only too happy to oblige. Earlier this year, my route took me from Malta to Sicily, then on to Sardinia and across to Majorca. The first part of the journey went smoothly enough, stopping briefly to brim the tanks in Marsala on the north-west coast of Sicily before pressing on towards Carloforte on the island of San Pietro off Sardinia.
The Superhawk was running like a dream, skipping across the sea at 32 knots. But after a couple of hours, the steering veered off to one side and an alarm came up on the autopilot. I went to check the engineroom and discovered that the steering fluid level was low.
I had half a litre of ATF fluid on board so I poured it into the system and carried on. After 45 minutes the alarm went off again, but with no more spare fluid, I resorted to siphoning some out of the trim tabs and used that instead. It wasn’t enough though, and I could now see that the fluid was leaking out of the steering rams.
We were still around 10nm from the southern tip of Sardinia but even at idle, the propellers pushed the outdrives over to one side so we could only go round in circles.
Denne historien er fra August 2017-utgaven av Motor Boat & Yachting.
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Denne historien er fra August 2017-utgaven av Motor Boat & Yachting.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Lofoten or Bust- Part 4- Grandezza owner Per Harrtoft heads back to Sweden after an epic 3500nm adventure deep into the Arctic Circle to visit the mythical Lofoten islands
After ten memorable days in the Lofoten Islands in the far north of Norway, we are on our way back south towards Sweden. We have already made it as far as Trondheim, a charming place even if it was raining so hard we had to cycle round the city centre clutching umbrellas. But now we are back on board Deamare, our Grandezza 40 Fly, eating up the miles at a steady 31 knots.
EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT YACHT TRANSPORT
As the name suggests it's a means of having your boat moved professionally from one location to another. It might be as simple as hiring someone to tow your RIB a few miles down the road or as complex as shipping a superyacht halfway around the world.
HANDLE A SINGLE SHAFTDRIVE BOAT PART 1
Single shaftdrive boats are relatively rare these days but the reduced costs of buying, servicing and fuelling such a simple but reliable drivetrain does mean they are making a bit of a comeback.
COCKWELLS MOTOR LAUNCH
There can be very few boats that have appeared three times at the Southampton Boat Show and been sold off the stand each time.
INSTALLING AN AUTOPILOT
Rick Channon makes solo boating simple with a Raymarine Evolution Autopilot
GOOD AS NEW
Why fit a brand new engine when Volvo Penta's remanufacturing service can rebuild you an old one to the same standard for a fraction of the price?
BENETEAU SWIFT TRAWLER 54
Alex Smith heads to France's Beneteau HQ for a UK exclusive on what might just be the best Swift Trawler yet
ΧΟ EXPLR 44
Can XO's all-new aluminium flagship really make it big in the Med?
BUYING OUR FIRST CLASSIC
Instead of whiling away their retirement playing bowls, Rob and Shona Adams decided to invest their time and money in a classic Silver gentleman's yacht. Would the gamble pay off?
PRINCESS S65
Torn between the V and F Class flagships? The new S65 might be the boat you've been waiting for...
