Swan 47CB centerboard issues
Im considering getting an S&S Swan and am attracted to the 47CB because of the convenience of the reduced draught. However, Im aware that convenience will come at a cost in terms of maintenance and performance. Id also like to know more about the centreboard mechanism and housing - how long does it take to raise/lower, what needs to be considered when doing this underway?
Ill be using the boat for cruising primarily. Is there anyone that could comment on their experiences here?
Many thanks in advance,
John

John, I own the 47CB "Black Tie" and had similar questions to yours prior to buying 4 years ago. I got no answers from the US Swan forum but was encouraged by one example that had won her class in the Bermuda race.
I am biased, but I think that the 47CB is a great example of S&S's understanding of how to do a great centreboard boat. I am thinking of the heavier displacement, the shorter rig and the keel mechanism.
Net, net the boat appears to work very well in all except very light airs. Black Tie was able to sail to her rating in the last Rolex cup and beat the fixed keel boat in all races.
I the windy long race, we finished on the water ahead of the Swan 57's and the new Frers Swan 53.
The centreboard is made of stainless steel, weights a ton and is properly shaped. It raises and lowers on a very simple "luke" winch which means you can stop at any point between fullly down and fully up.
Boat can be cruised with the keel up, but I generally lower it as she pivots better for parking with the board down and in an anchorage we sometimes put it down to reduce rolling.
We have had no work done on our keel in 4 years. Occaisionally you will need to replace the lifting strop and I get the yard to pressure clean the slot which Black Tie comes out.
Please let me know if you'd like to discuss further.
Gavin

Great, thankyou Gavin, that answers the main points of my query. Roughly how long does it take to fully lower and raise? (I had a frustrating experience on an Etap that required about 20 minutes of winching each way).

John

I can not quite agree with Gavin on two points:

- The rig is not shorter but same length as other 47:s if original.

- The weight of the board is 209 kg, or 461 lbs.

There is also a version around denoted NYYC 48, basically it is a 47 CB with 2 ft longer boom and 1.2 ft longer spi pole.

The pennant has two parts and passes around a sheave in the board, the dead end is found under a small screw cap at the saloon table where the bigger tube terminates, the other part goes up to the winch on deck. With this arrangement the pennant can be hauled around and inspected over the whole length by attaching a piece of line to the end. The sheave in the board comes out just below the bottom of the lead when the board is in down position, enabling a new pennant to be reeved by diving.

Later S&S models with CB may have an electric or hydraulic lifting system controlled from the cockpit, but the pennant arrangement is basically the same two-part system. There may also be sideways adjustment for the board in the slot with threaded plugs through the lead. this prevents the board from making a noise when the yacht rolls.

In conclusion the CB system is rather sophisticated compared to many other yachts.

Kind regards

Lars

Sorry for the slow response. It takes about 2 minutes to raise or lower the board which is done with a lanyard running to a Luke winch about a metre aft of the mast on the deck. The winch is interesting in that it allows you to position the board as any point and it holds that position. Its a good system and doesn't need any power assitance.

To answer the the "professor's" point. All 47CB's are NYYC 48's and the spec is in the S&S database. This means accomdations 2 ft back from the original so smaller aft cabin, bigger tanks, more ballast, shorter mast and longer boom. Arthur Beiser, author of the Proper Yacht was one of the first customers and describes the boat in detail in that book. Later versions of the Swan 47 fixed keel also had the NYYC accomodation and the called them 47 Mk 11's.

Regards, Gavin