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Nice video!

I only realised a very few days ago that the atom voyager is also the circumnavigator at age 21 in minimalist ship !

It is very difficult to install the bonding and grounding system used for buildings. I have found that a large dimeter bare cable dropped into the sea with a metre immersed provides a very good ground. For a small boat I think these cables could be clipped to the shrouds prior to thunder and also to the mast a little way up from the deck and dropped over the side. All large metal objects and the electrical grounding busbars to be connected together, including anchor chain.

Bow fishermen have been doing this for a long time. Its where i got my idea. A generator hooked to powermax converters power the electric motor direct or can have batteries in between and will charge your batteries while your moving. The powermax controllers will stop chatging the batteries when they are full.

Nice job and well done. I owned a 1959 7/8 rig, modified in 1960 to a mast head rig. Spent many years sailing out of Newport Beach,Ca.

I hear that you can just make one batt bank with lithium amd lead-acid together and not need the dc to dc charger. The theory is that the lead-acid will soak up the over charge as well as replenish the low batt levels...

I have an Alberg 30, displacement closer to that of CD27. I HATE the noise of outboard in the well. Given that I mostly motor in and out of marina, do you feel I should purchase Navy 6.0 or 3.0? Currently use Tohatsu 6hp sailpro....I have to admit my A30 feels underpowered with the Tohatsu. I'm leaning toward 6.0, just much bigger and heavier than 3.0. I do not kick outboard up, just remove it...much smaller hole in the boat

These are diaphragm pumps. problem is, they compressing air directly from the 'brushed' motor/armature housing. also, they could fail any minute. I already had one fail on the test bench. Defective 'commutator' *Never would I rely on a single one of these pumps with my life.*

My friend boat bottom cleaning, was also using that same kind of air pump. He constantly complained the air taste awful. After a long day of diving he went to hospital, where they put him on a ventilator, for corrective measures. Use at your own risk, the pump designed for plants.

Hello Mr Baldwin, can you tell the brand of the swing arm, please?. Thx

Another excellent video.

I just found your channel. I’m going to buy a C22 soon and this is like the Rolls Royse of Catalina 22’s. Amazing 🤩

Long live Yanmar!

Given that the boat is fitted with a shore power circuit and AC-48V DC charger, I can see this as being a "simple" setup in the context of operation, but from the point of view of efficiency it looks like a bit of a dog's breakfast. Those 2200i's are AC-DC-AC in operation. You're then stepping down the AC at the charger to 48V and rectifying the current again to DC to charge the battery. Then there are the losses in either inverting that current to AC at the motor or the inherent inefficiencies that come with DC motors. That's a pretty lossy circuit. And at roughly 800cc. of petrol per hour to produce just 900 watts at the prop, in the context of fuel efficiency, that's pretty bad. I get that in this application the motor is only being used for getting in and out of the harbour, so it's no big deal, and generators come in handy for lots of other things, but I would expect a conventional diesel driving the prop via a gearbox to easily achieve 6kwh of power at the prop for the same fuel burn or even less. Interesting project, just the same. Hopefully a bit more battery and a bit more solar and perhaps wind generation is on its way.

In your video you have vented the collection bucket, instead of just venting the C-Head housing is this the correct way of doing it

In rough conditions i see this system well... useless and noisy , gas is also a bomb compared to diesel.

Liking the modular flexibility of this arrangement very much

Beautiful work James. If I ever decide to get another large sailboat, I will definately go for this arrangement. My current project doesn't require that much re-engineering. But I've always liked this redesign that you've become famous for. It's so well thought out and executed. A quick question though, do you have a preference for a kick up rudder manufacturer? I could make one myself, but in the interest of research, I'm looking for cost estimates of companies who sell the kits. I'm refitting a Balboa 26' and the tiler head and rudder assembly are a one piece unit that drops into the cockpit floor. Previously, the outboard was on the center of the transom, but I am wanting to move the tiller and rudder assembly there and make it a kick up rudder, with the outboard to port and swim ladder on starboard. A Code Catalina 25' kickup rudder is probably the closest off the shelf rudder kit that I have found so far. This boat has a swing keel that I am eliminating. I am adding short twin bilge keels and filling the old keel trunk in to keep the weight the same and the draft the same as the original with the keel fully retracted in the upright position. I want to be able to launch, retrieve and transport on a flat trailer and be able to beach flat for drying out. I'm building a Great Loop boat, a Camp Cruiser with extended range in mind for 2 people. Even the sail rig is getting revamped with a round spreaderless mast and a Wharram style Bird Wing Sail. It's a 2-3 year project for me and I'm doing it here at my home, which meant first to build a building to do it in, thanks to Ohio winters. I just enjoy cutting and refitting old boats and making them slightly better really. There are lots of other little details, as I'm sure you are aware.

Across Islands and Oceans was the first ebook that I read when I got my first sailboat, a decrepit 1985 Catalina 25'. The price was right at $10.00 for the title transfer though. It seemed only fitting a free boat and a free ebook download, but it was the last of the free items coming into sailboat ownership. I looked for a Triton, but alas there were none to be had. Later, I purhased a Watkins 29' Seawolf and spent many years aboard. Glad to see that you're still messing about James. Thanks for the inspiration. I wouldn't be afraid to take that C22 to the Bahamas in good weather, not my first choice but they are pretty good boats. I'm refitting a 76' Balboa 26' now, getting ready for the Great Loop next season, with any luck. Cheers and Fairwinds everyone!

Really interesting and inspiring setup.

I appreciate the exercise and effort in documentation, it's interesting. Huge amounts of electrical complexity though, in a moisture laden environment. And mains voltage at that. A well maintained single cylinder marine diesel walks all over this stuff for efficiency and reliability... You could actually even use a modern petrol stationary engine if you were really careful and strapped for cash. Or, just buy a Tohatsu Sailpro they're amazing... Solar is not great in anything but ideal conditions. The amount of real estate required for the panels is not achievable. Except perhaps on a big cat. Realistically, electricity for motive power in these sorts of settings is an exercise in futility. The amount of storage required, the energy density... why? Sorry if this comes off as a hugely negative blast, it's not meant to be.

Lol i recently made all the mounting brackets for a replacement generator install on a setup like these for a customer......38ft steel yacht with electric auxiliary drive with a 5.5kva silent generator in a designated forward locker and 48v 60kw battery bank.....dunno what the motor size was but would do 5.9 knots

More than one sailboat has replaced that awful diesel with a 4-stoke outboard. I like the four blade prop on the Tohatsu. How much did the 200 lbs. of lead cost? Did anyone want the diesel ? What the critics do not understand is that with the low lead ballast replacing the engine and with the prop apperature filled in, the boat will sail better and can do without the inboard diesel.

I like the 9.8 Tohatsu conversion. It should have sufficient power to take the boat anywhere on the inter-coastal. I used the 6hp long shaft Yohatsu on my Glander Cay for the Erie Canal. My concern is the draft. I do not like anything more than 4 feet.

Thank you for another video.

I think I’d just buy a normal outboard to save all this complexity 🤷‍♂️

The thing about a Honda generator is it is incredibly reliable. I took mine across the Atlantic twice. I would say I used it more then 100 times both at sea and at anchor. I ve had it about 10 years. I would say that of all the things I have owned that have a pull cord- - the Honda generator is the most reliable thing I have ever owned. I’ve never had a problem with the CO sensor, but ai did have that neutral ground issue. For storage, I always drain all the gas out of it. Great looking CD 36 there, and Atom Voyager, thanks for all you do! Lastly I suggest you might buy a ‘rattle siphon ‘ to make transfer of gasoline easier.

Thank you for taking the time to record, edit and share. BTW, I loved your books.

i'm a huge fan of the work that you do, but I guess I'm a little confused with the point of this video. Wouldn't it just make more sense to use a gas motor before going through this. After all, if you were to back off on the throttle of the gasoline motor to maintain about 3 knots, wouldn't your fuel consumption drop to about the same as the generator usage? I think that would have been the next most logical test / comparison. Either way both methods inevitably tie ones fate to the same fossil fuel -- it might be nice to get a realistic comparison of the two methods (also comparing the overall performance of each type of outboard as well). For that matter, what about a comparison to an inboard diesel for range and power also in the mix. Just my two cents!! Keep up the great work!

What’s the point of this? If you’re having to use a gasoline powered generator to charge your engine battery, you might just as well have a diesel engine drive your boat in the first place

Nice test! Thanks for uploading!

Nicely executed. I especially like the set up on the 27 footer. It is similar to the system I have been using on my Ericson 27. Truth be told I’ve only used it twice in 17 years. Great projects please keep up the wonderful work!

The steersman seems (from videos) to work, but commercially it's gone I think. The website's down and I've not seen found from the past few years about it. Perhaps because it offers no advantage over a well set up conventional sheet-to-tiller arrangement. There's a lot of fine, easy adjustment possible with a few blocks, clutches, and eyes, it's not necessary or economical to involve rods, rails, and various other rigid metal structures.

Very interesting, thanks for the information

I have been waiting for this video even though I didn't know that you were working on it. I'd been thinking that a future tilting, sealed outboard well might be extra modified to fit one of these suitcase generators. The lines of the boat would have to be altered likely to create a raised lazarrette. -Mark in Maine

As always, well executed and explained James. It's a clever workable system but seems like a lot of liability and extra equipment to avoid the noise of a gas outboard--and you end up with the noise of a generator anyway to gain the range but with less speed than you would have with the gas outboard. It will be interesting to hear the owner's perspective about it after a few years of extended cruising.

Big fan of regen!

I'm a bit surprised 3kn requires 900w. From the testing some have done with displacement boats (admittedly fin keels and inboard electric motors), 3kn in calm is achievable with more like 300-400w draw. Must be the wetted surface, because I can't imagine a direct drive motor should have any particular disadvantage over an inboard. But regardless, 15 miles range per gallon of gas?!?!? Just goes to show what's possible with a serial hybrid drive. The list of reasons to prefer diesel inboards shrinks further still.

no has translater ? Why , this is automatic no youtube !

Looks like a few shiny spots and Can be ugly in different daylights. Anyway to correct this with maybe flatening agent ?

Thank you. I'm coming up to this on Little Girl. I did complete deck rebuild (2 years worth) and now I am' paining and getting ready for KiwiGrip. Good instructions especially on taping. ("de-taping") before the KG dries. czcams.com/video/d2vmkpVsIpU/video.html

Hi James (yes Figment from PCF), I'd love to hear your retrospective opinion on how the kiwigrip performed in use.

Any idea if the owners took it to the Bahamas? Looking at doing something similar and wanted to know thier experience

Jim thats brilliant . Do you think this could be done with a pacific or south atlantic windvane?

That Sail Pro 6HP seemed to move her along nicely

Every time I get in my head some fun boat idea, Atom voyages did a video on it! Great stuff as always James.

Good sailboat ⛵ she is not Flying Vessel

That was a wonderful ending to the video. I always love seeing the end result of your craftsmanship.

Great modifications. You're using brains, instead of brawn.

Hello there, great video! I am wanting to install a small reefing winch on the boom of my Roughwater 33, my reefing is all external, low friction rings on dyneema strops around the boom. I'm not a fan of the internal boom end sheaves either. My question is for the winch install is simply drilling and tapping with machine screws adequately strong for a reef outhaul winch or do you have to slide some kind of backing plate in there like with inner forestay fittings on a mast?