True Stories

From: Mike Meador
Sent: June 21, 2014
To: Will Curry
Subject: RE: First time Hydrovane owner – Valiant 40

Will,

Thanks again for your support. Our maiden voyage from Florida to the Chesapeake Bay on our just-purchased 1991 Valiant 40 was uneventful. The Hydrovane hadn’t been used for at least six years; I [readied] it as you suggested, installed the rudder and vane, set up a control line, and quickly figured out how to engage it once we were underway. It functioned as advertised, much to the amazement of a couple of crew who weren’t aware of wind vanes. We used it for a third of the trip; other times we were forced to motor sail with the autopilot.

I understand the loose, no-lubrication engineering design, but what about using a bit of silicone grease on the worm gear?

Thanks,

Mike

From: Bob Scholl
Sent: September-18-13
To: Valerie Williams
Subject: Re: UPS SHIPPING

I installed and started to use when I left my home port on Sept 4. Unfortunately there was only 1 day of wind in the first 7. Since then the winds have varied from 5 to 35 knots (rounding Pt Conception on the California coast). The vane has worked well. I find I have to make some adjustments as the wind speed varies to keep the boat from rounding up. This adjustment is either on the vane or by a small adjustment on the boat helm.

Somehow we misconnected on the vane. The title of this email is stubby vane which is what I wanted for future installation of an arch. I was sent the standard vane. I am happy with this for the time being. If I do get the arch which may be someway down the road I may want to switch to the stubby.

I plan on posting a report on the Freeport Owners Yahoo Group to show the installation and indicate I am pleased with it. Note we did have to make some adjustments in the ribbing in the stern of the boat to make it work. The only installation problem so far has been the control arm at the top of the shaft came loose at the end of the first day.

Thanks,

Bob Scholl

…

Later Bob wrote to Latitude 38 magazine – quoted in the CHANGES section of the March 2014 issue:

“One of the bits of gear I’m most satisfied with is my Hydrovane. The Cadillac of vanes. It’s also the most expensive as it cost $6,000 installed. But two things make it particularly good for me. First, it could be installed offset, which it had to be because of the door that opens in the back of the boat cockpit. Because it’s offset, the rudder is out of the slipstream of the main rudder, and is therefore more efficient. Secondly, its a totally independent steering system, so if the main rudder fails, I can steer the boat using the vane rudder.”

From: Sergio Mitrotti
Sent: June 18, 2014
To: John Curry
Subject: Thanks from Honolulu

Hi John,

I finally tested the hydrovane I installed on my Columbia 43……

I sailed from Honolulu to Hanalei bay in Kauai, only 125 nautical miles…but with 25 knots wind gusting up. Going with the wind at 150 degrees, coming back sailing to weather 45 to 50 degrees.

I did not touch the steering wheel until was time to drop anchor…or ready to drop sail at the entrance of the marina..

great….

I may need a spare pin, just in case.

thank you

Sergio

From: DeLorme inReach
Sent: June-16-14
To: Valerie Williams
Subject: inReach message from Vince Denhertog

Thanks. This is my first time sailing with a Hydrovane and it performs so well under all kinds of conditions. A work of art really. Vince

Vince Denhertog sent this message from:
Lat 6.530857 Lon -156.668923
This message was sent to you using the DeLorme inReach two-way satellite communicator with GPS.

From: Ulf Olsson
Date: Jun 10, 2014
Subject: Re: Hydrovane on Clary
To: Will Curry

Hi Will,

so now the first report from Clary with Hydrovane – we are soooooo disappointed, the rudder does not work at all, the vane is f______g up and the rudder goes all ways – what is this for joke ……

Honestly Will, I´m joking of course – the rudder is magnifique, it worked after 5 second trial. we have sailed up to 30 knots and we have a new member onboard, even during reefing the rudder keep Clary in perfect position – I´m super impressed

The only issue I have is steering in the harbour – so far I´m locking the rudder and steer wirth my original rudder but Clary reacts prettys slow – maybe I have to play with both rudder the same time – here ther is something to learn – hints are welcome.

Regards
//Ulf

From: Bob Williams
Sent: April-21-14
To: Sarah Curry
Subject: Re: Hydrovane Parts

Hi Sarah,

It seems I am fated to purchase a new wind vane right about now.  Having just replaced the outer tube and being very pleased with my old Hydrovane’s renewed performance I managed to get myself tangled up with a 100,000 tonne container ship.  Of course Sylph came off second best, and the wind vane took the brunt of the collision, so it is now completely wrecked.  I think the only thing salvageable from it will be the rudder and the brackets.

All very distressing but I am counting my blessings – Sylph is still afloat and my cat and I are alive and unhurt.  Meanwhile, nearby to where I am, the South Korean ferry sank with tragic loss of life, which puts our own small disasters into a broader perspective.

So I am now back in Fukuoka, Japan licking my wounds.  I received the mid-bearing, but ironically now have no wind vane to install it in.  Bother!

Could you please advise how much a new unit will cost, minus the rudder and the mounting brackets, plus shipping costs to the previous address I gave you to Japan.

And an estimated time that you might be able to put one together and ship it.

Thank you for your help.

Best regards,
Bob Williams
SY Sylph VI
blog.mailasail.com/sylph

—

From: Bob Williams
Sent: June-02-14
To: Valerie Williams
Subject: Re: Hydrovane

Hi Valerie,

….My old HV was pretty good, but the new one is even better. I am sure that no other windvane on the market can match this very important characteristic for me, especially as I hate to motor.

Right now I am drifting around in the middle of the Sea of Japan waiting for some wind – not even the Hydrovane works when there is no wind.

Regards,
Bob Williams
SY Sylph VI
blog.mailasail.com/sylph

From: Peter Whatley
Sent: May-25-14
To: Will Curry
Subject: Fwd: hydrovane

Hi Will

I thought I would send this to you for your thoughts and comments.

Our boat is a Jeanneau Sun Odyseey 45. My son, William (aka Skip) is sailing back from Antigua to the UK via Bermuda and the Azores with his friend Tom. Both are very experienced sailors. William sailed across with me last November to the Caribbean. They wisely opted to sail to Bermuda first thereby avoiding the deep depression in which Cheeki Rafiki found herself.

Before leaving the Caribbean I fitted new bearings and stripped the system to clean and check. Everything was in perfect order even after many miles of use.

I am a big fan of the Hydrovane and am always extolling its virtues. Before passing comment on to fellow users I thought I would speak with you first to see what your thoughts might be regarding the cause of the failure.

Please be assured that my aim is to support and promote this excellent product.

Kind regards
Peter
Peter Whatley
Vice Commodore
Ocean Cruising Club

—

From: Peter Whatley
Sent: Monday, June 2, 2014
To: Will Curry
Cc: John Curry; Sarah Curry
Subject: Re: hydrovane

Hi Will

The measurement of the shaft on our boat is 1190mm. I have asked William, my son, to check and double check and he confirms that this is the measurement.

I have attached a photo of the broken shaft for interest. The other photo shows the Hydrovane working well as our boat powers along at 10.3 kts.

Our top speed with the Hydrovane in control is 16.5kts but it was getting a bit wild so we put the inboard pilot on as well. This works really well and keeps the boat under control.

Kind regard

Peter

[Editor’s note: Fractured shaft from ‘crevice corrosion’ – an older ‘316’ shaft. The new ‘super duplex’ shafts are less prone to this]

From: Dan Alonso
Sent: May 26, 2014
To: John Curry
Subject: Brochures

Hi John

We bought HydroVane last year. I went off and did 4 Ocean races including an offshore rescue. STORY HERE.

As you may recall, I had difficulty with the install on the way to Bermuda.

Like all the other testimony, I just can’t say enough about it, it’s fantastic. I just did a solo, nonstop Charleston to Portland without my pilot. Winds 0 to 40 and the HydroVane was just perfect. Even under power in 8 foot trailing seas, heavy fog pulling into Portland it perform wonderfully. I had waves breaking on the transom with no canvas and it was fine . I can’t tell you how many times I look back at the vane and think it’s just Magic.

As I first started to use the HydroVane, I struggled. I doubted that it could steer the boat, too much boat. I was over correcting, not properly trimming the main sail, not using the rudder for gusts. On the other side of this learning curve, it just magic. Thank you so much. It’s the best money we’ve spent on the boat. The funny thing is that, $6k held me back. It took two years before we bought. The peace of mind, savings in energy consumption and the quiet, I’ll say quiet again! It’s by far the best 6K we ever spent.

I got my friend Bill on his HR 43 to get it. It’s being installed and I’ll be helping him dial it in.

Stanley Paris, is preparing to race around the world and has asked me about it. He’s sailing a Farr 63 but with similar displacement as Halcyon. His adventure is a green. I can’t say enough for the safety side of it. If possible a kick up rudder adapter would be good for his application. He may help in the production of such an adapter. His adventure is enormously publicized.

Approaching Maine, the lobster pots became more dense. I was concerned about damage to the vane if I got hung up. What are your thoughts on that? I also wondered about a kick up adapter with a shear pin for that issue. I’d buy it.

Because of the rescue, I’ve been asked to speak at a Seven Seas Cruising Association rally next month in Essex, CT. Although, HydroVane was not the star of the rescue story, it could have been. I didn’t have the time to practice and learn to use it. I now believe, it can make you a better sailor, keeping the boat in proper balance and matching the environment. I will be pitching it as a “must have” piece of equipment. I feel so strongly about your product. Honestly, It’s foolish not to have it. There will be about 40-50 offshore cruisers. Do you have brochures you can forward. They need to know HydroVane and what it can do. I’d like to put something in their hands. Halcyon’s getting a little bit of a name. I think we’ve got a website in our future and will be looking to help promote HydroVane as well.

Thank you

Dan Alonso

From: Graham Perry
Sent: May 9, 2014
To: John Curry; Will Curry
Subject: WattAndSea

Hi John and Will

Hope all is well! I am still in Toronto. Salty Ginger in in Antigua. Our new Hydrovane steered Salty Ginger effortlessly across the Atlantic in 2012.

I am very interested in the Watt@Sea Hydrogenerator and low and behold – you are a distributor.

…

Graham

From: Hellmuth Starnitzky
Sent: May 4, 2014
To: Will Curry
Cc: John Curry
Subject: Hawaii Passage

Hi Will,

Thanks for a great piece in April’s Latitude 38. Must have been fun!

In response to your April 16, 2014, e-mail to WDE7227:

We were sailing at an apparent wind angle of 120 degrees mostly on starboard tack in winds of 25+ knots. As the wind clocked further to the ENE, this being a cutter rig, we changed the sail plan and had the staysail set to leeward and a partially unfurled Genoa on a pole to windward. Winds increased to the high 20s and topped out at 36 knots true with big waves to 25′.

Heeding your advice to play around with the sail area to achieve as good a balance as could be had, the vane performed flawlessly and kept us at an apparent wind angle of 160 – 170 degrees. Hydrovane steered us for more than 2,500 nautical miles of the total of 3,118 nm on our way from Puerto Vallarta to Honolulu where we arrived a week ago.

“Lucy” is truly an amazing device, reliable and strongly built which afforded the crew a lot of comfort: knowing that also at night we did not have to worry about an accidental jibe, would stay on the same wind angle and had much time for other things like navigation, cooking and sleeping.

I was initially somewhat concerned about the start-up investment of purchase and installation but meanwhile think that it was the best upgrade to the boat which has paid a handsome return in terms of comfort and less wear and tear on the main steering system and autopilot. It just worked great!

When unshipping the Hydrovane rudder upon arrival, I noticed again a slight warp in the rudder’s shape. When holding the rudder such that I can look down its leading edge, there is a small but noticeable bend to the left, as mentioned before. Anything I can do to straighten the rudder? – I also noticed that along the center of the seam on the slanted top where one grabs the rudder, a number of small holes opened up as if some glue was washed out. I do not consider this a deficiency at this time but wonder if this may be a sign of beginning delamination of the two halves? As always, your comment is appreciated.

We will continue to Sitka, Alaska, at the end of June for the summer before eventually returning to the San Francisco Bay Area.

I attach a Word file being an editorial I sent to Latitude 38 about our crossing from P.V. As you can read, I mentioned Hydrovane as well.

This as an update. I appreciate your availability and promptness in rendering assistance and advice!

Best regards,

Hellmuth Starnitzky
“Ocean Echo”
Hallberg Rassy 45

From: Scott Waddington
To: Will Curry
Subject: Amble – Course setting wheel / Worm Stiffness

Hi Will

Hope you are well. I tried the Hydrovane for the first time the other day and got on very well all things considered. I used it for 3 hours from home port to Yarmouth in the Isle of Wight and by the time I got there I already had confidence in the Hydrovane. I clearly needed to do some tweaking but to all intents and purposes, it was working well. On the way back I had set up the course setting line up properly and was even tacking with the Hydrovane, leaving the tiller locked until on the new tack and then slightly adjusting back to the sweet spot.

However, this was a couple of weeks ago and I went out to Amble yesterday and was making a few adjustments, like fitting bunny cord to the rudder and I tried the course setting line (not sure why). To my surprise it was very stiff, the line just slipped on the pulley. When I tried to turn the pulley by hand, it was definitely stiff and I can’t work out what has happened.

I am sure this is something very simple indeed, so perhaps you could shed some light on it. I tried WD40 everything but that didn’t make any difference.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Regards,
Scott

Scott Waddington
Managing Director
WicorMarine Yacht Haven
Cranleigh Road, Portchester, Fareham, Hampshire PO16 9DR
t 01329 237112 f 01329 825660

—

From: Scott Waddington
Sent: May-01-14 12:43 PM
To: Will Curry
Subject: Amble – Course setting wheel / Worm Stiffness

Will

I should have read your Tips first!! I’ve just seen the note about the worm swelling and that it might need reaming. I will try this today so please don’t waste your time replying as I suspect this is the problem.

Many thanks
Scott

[Editor’s note: The Worm bearings/bushings can get a little too tight from heat and humidity. We thought we had this one licked but it does re-appear. Units that were perfectly fine in the shop and stayed OK for some time and miles finally started to seize up. A simple fix – ream out the two bearings/bushings with an electric drill. See Troubleshooting]

—

From: Scott Waddington
Sent:  July 03, 2014
To: Will Curry
Subject: One for the catalog?

Will,

Hope you and yours are well.

She’s been a dream, more obedient than any crew member and such a calm nature!

Regards,

Scott (of WicorMarine – as listed on our ‘INSTALLERS’ webpage)

From: Mike and Carol Kefford
Sent: May-01-14
To: Will Curry
Subject: RE: Hydrovane

Hi Will,

Thank you for taking the time and trouble to enquire about us. 2176 miles behind us and 924 to Fatu Hiva to go. The Hydrovane has steered all the way, except for sail changes and adjustments, when we neutralise him to hand steer to windward etc. The bracket is holding up well. It is checked every day and shows no signs of stress. Hurray! We have been experimenting with settings for the vane and variable control to get the best performance downwind in steep following seas, mainly to avoid gybing! However, strong winds 25 – 30 kts plus 3m swell and 2m crossing waves over the past 4 days have made life somewhat tense. All is well on board.

I will send a full passage report once we are at anchor and include some photos.

You will note the reference to the Hydrovane as “him”. I am sure it takes on a personality for everyone. Ours is called “Barrett” after Barrett Bonden, Captain Jack Aubrey’s coxswain in the Patrick O’Brian books.

So, we love Barrett, he is doing a magnificent job for us. And thanks again for asking.

Kind regards.
Mike and Carol
09* 54′ S 123* 02′ W

—

From: Mike and Carol Kefford
Sent: May-05-14
To: ‘Will – Hydrovane’
Subject: RE: Email from fellow Beneteau 423 owner

Hi Will,

No worries.  I will send a holding reply until we are at anchor and recovered.  We will happily pass on our experiences of setting up a Beneteau 423 for major cruising to them.  Things we got right and things we wish we had known at the time etc.  All good about the Hydrovane though.  Best thing we did.  We currently have only 10 kts of wind but at least the sea is calm.

490 nm to go, even at 4 kts SOG it is a delight.

Mike

From: steven slater
Sent: April-05-14
To: Valerie Williams
Subject: Hi

Hi Valerie

Don’t know if you remember me, Steve Slater gaff cutter Lovely Edith, I bought a hydrovane from you last year!  I have finally fitted it and tried it out.

What a piece of kit! it manages to keep my boat on course up or down wind with almost no effort and I don’t have to work at it that hard to balance the boat, but the more I work at it the better it gets. It’s so easy! If I want to alter course just tweak the control lines and trim. Brilliant!!

I know you have a gallery of boats and the options they use with custom made brackets so I have sent a couple of photo’s for you to use if you care too.

I knew it was a good buy!

Take care and many thanks

Steve (Lovely Edith)

From: Dick Jones
Sent: April-25-14
To: Valerie Williams
Subject: RE: Vane cover replacement

… I love my unit, allowed me to single hand for long offshore sails the Island Packet 32 responds well to it. It took me a while to really be able to balance the sail trim and helm in different weather conditions, but got it down pat now. The arch with the radar and KVH receiver just give me a spot about 10 degrees where I have some dead spots, but that is not a problem, just adjust for it. I love it!!!!

Thanks for your help, Regards, Dick Jones (the old man of the sea, turning 82 this year and still going strong)

From: Ian Hilder
Sent: April 4, 2014
To: Hydrovane
Subject: Hydro generators

Hi

I purchased one of your units back in 2010 in preparation for the first half of a circumnavigation on a Moody 44. I have to say that it was the most useful bit of kit I put on the boat.

…

Regards
Ian Hilder