Wandering Star

Other Stuff

Navpod 4 instrument pod with a couple of cutouts.
Navpod with cutout for a 12” chartplotter
Navpod stainless assembly to mount over companionway hatch to take instrument Navpod (new)
Large stainless pole with baseplate and supporting struts. This was formerly used on a 42’ sailing boat for mounting a wind genny but I intended to modify for mounting solar panels.
7 new Majomi blue fenders with sox - possibly too large for boat but I got them free!

Sails

Fairly elderly Kemp mainsail. Inspected and resitched as necessary by Sanders Sails a couple of months ago. New battens supplied. 3 reefing points.
Furling Genoa purchased secondhand from CJ Marine a couple of months ago - good condition.

Work Required

1. Ditch the built in fridge and fit a new single piece of galley worktop in place of the existing one which is a) dark and b) butchered around to incorporate the icebox. Currently there’s no sink unit which is daft! The galley tap is still in place and the sink outlet and freshwater supply are in place, so really just some carpentry skills plus cost of worktop and sink unit.

2. Sort out the 12 volt system. The mast wiring including VHF aerial & wind transducer cable, looks fine as far as deck level (I inspected it when the mast was down) but it needs reconnecting inside the boat. The wiring inside the boat looks fairly haphazard with some redundant wiring & switches. The basic circuits are very simple and I’d be inclined to rewire the whole shebang - the heavy battery and anchor windlass cables look fine. The 2 x batteries were replaced in 2017 so are fine

3. All the sailing instruments (speed, log, depth, wind) require replacing. Its possible the NASA wind instrument may work but I haven’t tested it. A brand new complete (still boxed) Raymarine ST60+ speed/log system is included but requires installing. There are 4 thru hull transducers fitted, but only 2 (new ones) will be needed so 2 transducer holes are redundant, I’d prefer to blank off the 2 redundant holes (by welding in small disks presumably) although of course you could do as the previous owner has done, and just leave the redundant transducers in place, as plugs.

4. The cooker was missing when I purchased the boat. I purchased a good secondhand (Plastimo Neptune 2 burner with grill & oven) to replace it and this is fitted on gimbals, however whilst the copper microbore gas supply tube runs from the gas locker (in the cockpit) through to the cooker looks fine, it’s not terminated at either end. I purchased new gas hose, regulator and 2 new Camping Gaz 907 bottles plus one or two fittings, but it needs a gas fitter to make the final connections and pronounce it safe. The gas cylinders also require restraining in the gas locker.

5. What I would term “canvas” needs organising and properly attaching. E.g. the spray hood has the stainless steel hoops/frame and acrylic spray hood cover appears to be ok but I can’t fathom how it attaches to the coachroof! There’s also a lazy jacks system for catching the mainsail but this requires setting up with lines from the sailcover to the masthead spreaders. The blocks on the spreaders are all there, it just needs setting up!

6. Ocean rigging of Lymington replaced the forestay when they raised the mast because they said it was the sensible thing to do for a boat with roller furling Genoa. They also replaced the Genoa halyard and mainsail halyard. However all the other ropes, halyards, sheets, control lines etc are pretty grotty and work hardened. You may well want to replace them. Ocean rigging also renewed the guard wires from pulpit to pushpit.

8. I repainted the topsides using 2 pack International Perfection, I also painted the cabin top with International Interdeck. Unfortunately I didn’t mask things off properly and there are several paint drips and smears that need cleaning and tidying especially on the cabin top around the winches and teak handrails. They will need a light sanding to remove the paint. I didn’t get round to painting the cabin sides or the painted cockpit area though I did buy the paint!

9. The whole of the interior joinery would be improved and freshened up with a coat of varnish. In particular, the interior companionway bulkhead (teak I think) is spoiled with black mildew staining. I’ve found (on another boat I owned) that washing the timber throughly with a fine grade of wire wool dipped in white vinegar, works wonders. Then obviously a coat or two of varnish.

10. All the deck head and side linings need scrubbing clean bit should come up fine.

11. All the upholstery including the foam, was renewed about 3 years ago and is all in excellent condition however due to lack of use there are water mark stains (condensation caused by lack of air circulation) which will need scrubbing out.

12. She needs a new main sheet tackle and new reefing lines. Halyards & reefing lines come back to the cockpit - there are winches & clutches mounted on the coachroof.

13. The timber cabin sole/floor was replaced professionally a couple of years ago but left as bare wood. I’ve covered the floor with carpet off to add a bit of warmth but really the wooden floor needs covering properly.

14. When I bought the boat there was no saloon table (presumably removed when the sole/floor was replaced. I’ve purchased a temporary boat table which is ok but which needs bolting down and in any case is impractical as it doesn’t have fiddles and does have a slippery top! It’s impractical so probably wants something different!

Notes

This is quite obviously an amateurs attempt at creating a website - please excuse the design and any mistakes. A couple of notes, pictures of the boat showing the blue band on the topsides, are most recent, the pictures showing her with a red band were taken when I purchsed her, but she's the same boat! Also, might as well mention before anyone asks, the picture of the engine makes it look far worse than it is - it's a good reliable engine, just rusty. The boats been afloat all season so the antifoul isn't as pristine as the pictures show.Finally, some of the photos are duplicated ` I can't work out how to remove the duplicates.

Observations

Wandering Star was professionally built in steel by D B Marine, Grays, Essex and professionally fitted out by Mitchell Marine, Canvey Island, Essex in 1983. She is almost identical to the better known Golden Hind 31, in fact the only difference between the designs I can identify is the Golden Hind has a transom mounted rudder whereas the Seareach uses a skeg mounted rudder. I can’t find much (any) information on the Seareach but there are several accounts of the Golden Hinds performance and seaworthiness which would be very similar available on the internet as well as some YouTube videos too.

She is a true passage maker and has a fully working (expensive) servo pendulum windvane steering system installed as well as an electronic autopilot. I have sailed all my life and have several successful Transats and other longer passages under my belt (mainly on my Vancouver 27) but after some health problems had thought my sailing days were numbered and I sold the Vancouver 4 years ago. However, on recovering my health, I bought the MG31 about a year ago. I fully planned to refit her and sail her but logistics (I had in the meantime retired to Ireland) and ongoing health problems, realistically mean it won’t happen. I want to sell the boat while she’s still solid and seaworthy and not watch her deteriorate.

There are quite a number of old invoices and papers including Bills of Sales although not a full history of her ownership. Also included are a partial survey report done in May 92 and a full comprehensive survey report done in July 2009 (when incidentally she changed hands for £29,500.

As far as I honestly know, she’s still a good solid boat, her hull is absolutely fine, there are a few rust spots on her topsides in the area of the blue paint but really (as far as I know) they’re superficial. She had a new teak deck laid 10 years which (again, as far as I know) is in excellent condition and makes the whole boat stand out on her mooring.

I will be sad to see her go but pleased for someone else to take her on, refit her and sail her. She’s presently a liability for me, I can’t get to her easily and I’m shelling out almost £300 a month in storage and other expenses, to be honest, I shouldn't’t really of bought her when I did. I think the price I’m asking is very fair but I will entertain realistic offers as I want to sell her!

On a personal note, as mentioned I live in Ireland, my son who lives in Bournemouth has offered to show people the boat when he’s available and he’s authorised to answer questions or take offers on my behalf. But first, please address any questions or whatever to me using either email or text messages as I’m profoundly deaf and don’t use the phone for speech calls!

Random pictures