C380 Shakedown Cruise - the good and bad

[taylort100]

Just got back from a weeklong cruise with our C380 of 6 weeks ownership. Some very good and not so good points.
Good sailing ability with no bad habits (crucial when the weather builds). We included a 20 hour overnight south of Long Island to Block. Storms passed over with big gusts and rotating wind but the boat did well.
Good accomodations - got 13 in the cockpit for an impromptu cocktail hour. Great rear berth plus that shower.
Seems to have poor ventillation in the bilge areas. Its easy to find mold buried throughout - seems like the construction leaves too many dead spaces with no air flow. I need to fix this one. We don't have leaks from hardware or hatches - but condensation is not getting dried out.
The helm - we just can't actually feel the groove. You have to go by the speed. Might be that our rig is not tuned right or the sails are just too old. But my opinion is that the rudder might be balanced too much. The feeling is extremely light.
The only actual issue we had was leaking mast step - water coming down the compression post in heavy rain. Its slight, but a problem.

So, very pleased with our purchase.

Tom

 

[ITMaster]

Glad you like it, as we are very happy and quite satisfied with ours. Perhaps put a Loos Gauge on the Standing Rigging and check to see the tension is adjusted properly and go from there, sails may be old and tired if they are origional. Bilge may be a factor of previous ownership and maintenance. I keep mine clean and dry and don't have much of a mold issue, and I am in a mold prone environment with the high temps and humidity.

Fair winds Captain