Details Without Deadlines

Wherever she goes Silent Maid attracts attention and draws comment. It is a very positive experience. Even in places with a very strong classic yachting scene she stands out. Part of this is because she is a cat boat by Sweisguth decidedly not a Herreshoff or Sparkman and Stephens. Maid comes from a whole different tradition than that, one with working roots. yet she has that acre of varnish, and a full share of mahogany. She is a unique boat designed for comfortable sailing in shoal water and because of this she appeals to those on the estuaries; most of us.
Because she is unique she poses problems as well. Getting all of her details just right has been quite a process. This has been an iterative process like so much else in boats. We are proceeding through a series of refinements. We are also at a place in the job where we are deciding where to stop. Do we really need a radar unit? As we head north there will be times when it will be nice but we also also traveling in company with two boats that have it and in her home waters on the back bays of New Jersey there is little need for it. Then there is the matter of getting all the stuff we already have working really well, making it all truly reliable. This is accomplished by  learning the equipment and by refining the installation process, getting the wiring really buttoned down so to speak. I just spent the better part of the day with the refrigerator for example, getting to know its components and workings and making refinements to our installation. This is a process that must be gone through with each piece of equipment we have and we have a lot of them. My day with the refrigerator was gratifying, I learned a few things and made the system a little better. It was a no pressure patient sort of exercise that will be keeping food and drink cold for a while to come. It was not the beginning of a great and passionate carer in HVAC however. Next up are the cell phone extender and the Okham wiring.