Cav 32 modifications for ocean sailing

[Spirit of Wray 0]

Hi ,what has been done by others to get offshore by the way of beefing up a standard production boat?

ie glassing knees in the cabin sides between the main windows etc...

 

Cheeers

[Black Panther 1,591]

For a cav 32, nothing. They are built like a brick shithouse.but it will be getting on a bit so a good look at rudder shaft, rig, sails, keel bolts, windows, through hulls bearings - all the usual sh*t. And get a good windvane.

[Zozza 293]

Calling BP...think he went offshore in one years ago

Edit:  I have magic powers!

[Black Panther 1,591]

Just now, Zozza said:

Calling BP...think he went offshore in one years ago

A period that I still look back upon fondly. It could be argued that I spent most of 1975 to 1987 sailing offshore on a cav 32.

[Zozza 293]

1 minute ago, Black Panther said:

A period that I still look back upon fondly. It could be argued that I spent most of 1975 to 1987 sailing offshore on a cav 32.

You have any issue in a following sea with her little backside?  There is some foreign designer / builder that lives down south island, that says some less than savoury things about the following sea capabilities of Cav 32's & Contessa 32's .... but I think he also doesn't believe in drogues, so maybe a crackpot

[Zozza 293]

Found it:  Eric from Nordkyn Design on the Contessa 32 and the weakness of that pinched stern in following seas:
Heavy weather dynamics: the behaviour of yachts in following seas | Nordkyn Design
These are his opinions, not mime.  

The Cav gets a mention:

Hindsight is always a wonderful thing of course, but – assuming that a Contessa 32 can point acceptably in high winds and heavy seas, a very open question – had she turned it around and sailed upwind, she might have come out better off because designs like this one just won’t run in heavy seas.
Another one is the Cavalier 32, with pinched stern lines, but a fin keel this time. They become completely unsteerable in following seas and broach and I know of one that was also dismasted on the same passage while trying to run and eventually made Hobart under jury rig.

 

[Pecco 10]

I would personally replace any of the fundamental elements of the boat unless they had been taken care of already. 

About following seas, I am not sure I can agree....it does not feel that bad....

 

[Spirit of Wray 0]

1 hour ago, Black Panther said:

For a cav 32, nothing. They are built like a brick shithouse.but it will be getting on a bit so a good look at rudder shaft, rig, sails, keel bolts, windows, through hulls bearings - all the usual sh*t. And get a good windvane.

Thanks ,I have got an Aries in storage I want to mount the tubes on the deck rather than bolting into the transom ,any thoughts re that?

[ricka 3]

8 hours ago, Spirit of Wray said:

Thanks ,I have got an Aries in storage I want to mount the tubes on the deck rather than bolting into the transom ,any thoughts re that?

I have fitted a Fleming servo pendulum unit to the deck of Stormbird. If you would like to look at it to get some ideas PM to arrange. The boat is at Westhaven.

[Black Panther 1,591]

Never had a problem downwind.  Usedca drogue in anything over about 40kn. Sailed through much more on occasion 

[Sudden5869 17]

Our Family had the Cav 32, Sunbird in the 80s.  Great boat.  It was always kept in great condition, and for many years fastidiously maintained in Mangonui. 
About 5 - 10 years ago a French couple purchased it and have set it up for offshore.  They moved chainplates out to the hull.  Not sure why. Photo below.  
It was very cool to find out 30+ years later the old boat was being well looked after.

[chariot 243]

Think you did a couple of races with me in the trans Tasman series on Goldilocks many tears ago Sudden. I did a few Wednesday night races on Sunbird. 

[Unicorn 6]

Another one is the Cavalier 32, with pinched stern lines, but a fin keel this time. They become completely unsteerable in following seas and broach 

I disagree with this.

Back in 1977 I spent quite a few hours steering a Cav 32 in a southerly storm off the Wairarapa Coast, running with just a storm jib on (We were heading up from Wellington for the Auckland-Suva race).

There was a lot of white water coming over the back of the boat and filling the cockpit quite regularly. The waves were often very steep and quite large.  The worst of it came through during the night, so not much to be seen other than white foam in the stern light.  It felt like running too square would result in a pitchpole.  It felt like running too much across the waves would result in rolling the boat.  But we had enough power from the storm jib to enable good control of the boat and hold at the most suitable angle to the waves.   I suspect that if we had tried to run under bare poles we may have lost control.

The Portland Island lighthouse reported 86 knots - and the wind had dropped off a bit at that stage.  So the Cav 32 is capable of handling quite extreme conditions.