Rudders, keels and that sinking feeling...

2:49 AM Wed 29 Oct 2008 GMT
Was last week's Palm Beach yacht rescue yet another Rudder failure at sea?

And frankly, there should be no Hush Hush about such things. This is dangerous stuff.

These facts should not be continually quelled - a potential buyer deserves to know What is failing, Who and Why and whether it has been indeed a repetitive occurrence.

Lives are at stake in these situations out there on the ocean .and not to mention that it must be pretty damn sad to watch those thousand dollar multiples and a long held dream just go down the plug hole.

Seriously the weather alone just can't be blamed here and whether it's 35+ knots or not - this should not happen.

But it is simply amazing - and it should not be rocket science either - that the facts of rudder and keel construction and the hull for that matter, are often glossed over and not given the due critical and practical consideration in the purchase of a yacht.

This is all about putting yourself, family and crew out in the harbour, bay, sea or ocean -whatever body of water. It's not like buying a car where there is a little more mental latitude and you can just pull over to the curb or into the next side street when there's a problem!

Buying a yacht is much much more. This is where responsible research is necessary to find out what really is underneath that lovely saloon with the sails.

But when the push is for bigger, cheaper boats - it is that old old adage that we all know that somehow seems to get brushed aside at times - and frankly, you get what you pay for!

And if you stop and think, in this push to catch the market with numbers and with price in the total picture of manufacturing economics of many series production boats - compromises may well be made.

And that's where Elan Yachts have gained an enviable reputation for making some of the best built boats in the business. And top performers too.

Elan Marine is not about taking shortcuts to turn out a cheaper boat. Elan meets the highest technical and safety requirements in their manufacture of boats and come with the foremost build certification of Germanischer Lloyd. This means that the construction of every single one of Elan's luxurious yachts is carried out under the technical supervision of GL certifiers. And every individual yacht is certified to the highest level.

It is the inspired design by Rob Humphreys of the Elan range that brings all elements intrinsically together and not at the expense of the other in a visually attractive boat - the boat's sailing ability / performance, responsive handling, stability and seaworthiness especially for offshore. Humphreys' configuration of keel, rudder, rig and hull design is masterful and this produces extremely well balanced yachts with high stability ratings.

Elan rudders have stocks of stainless steel. A well designed rudder with a stainless steel stock is much stronger than Aluminium and proven to be more reliable especially for Australian conditions than some of the composite material used by some major brand name series producers.

A strong design feature in Elan's Impression cruising range is their purpose built independent powerful rudder housing that is self supported in a robust four armed web structure which is an integral part of the hull. This is a superior and strong rudder configuration that is extremely well suited for our offshore conditions here.

Another critical area on a yacht is the keel to hull fixing. And it is in this area that Elan strictly complies with the superior design details and exacting Germanischer Lloyd directives in their production.

Underpinning this further, is the Elan signature 3D Vacuum Infused Lamination construction method which results in their hulls being much stronger with greater flexural strength. The hulls are additionally reinforced in the critical keel fixing areas and specifically engineered plates are bedded to the inner hull prior to the coupling of the keel to the boat. This ensures the best possible strength should there be an event of a severe grounding.

Peace of mind and confidence are essential for all round enjoyment to skipper, family and crew and this comes with the knowledge that they are out on the water in an exceptional seaworthy boat that has been designed and built to the very highest standard.

Contact Navsail for more details on the Elan yacht range and their exceptional technical attributes: 0299996730, 0421 353535, [email protected]. www.navsail.com.au.

by Gael Moldan

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