STARLIGHT52' New England Boatworks Hood Custom Expedition 1998

STARLIGHT is a unique vessel. She was specifically designed and built for self-sufficient exploration in remote places. Her design criteria mission statement was for a fast, very competent, long range, owner-operated vessel. STARLIGHT can cruise at 20 knots, and has a range of over 850 miles. Her construction detail includes several watertight bulkheads, special engine mounts, and gear and equipment all chosen to make her ready to take on some pretty severe offshore conditions.

STARLIGHT is a boat with competencies that few others can match. She now awaits a new owner and is ready to be truly put through her paces.

The galley is in the pilothouse/salon and to port. The same 360° visibility is evident when working in the galley. The refrigerator and freezers are serviced by Grunert holding plates. The refrigerator is large and is both top and side loading. The freezer is also of big capacity and top loading. Both are located aft where storage lockers are above. The stove is propane with three burners, oven, and broiler. Sink is stainless with stainless steel Grohe faucet. The counters are oiled cherry.

The hull, deck and pilothouse structure were designed to meet or exceed the American Bureau of Shipping standards. The hull is molded E-glass and Kevlar with Vinylester resin laid by hand with a core of 1” thick Core Cell on the topsides, 1 ¼” thick Core Cell on the bottom, and solid fiberglass at the hull flange, centerline and in the area of all thru-hulls and shaft struts. The deck and superstructure is molded E-glass with epoxy resin laid up by hand with a core of rigid PVC foam. The pilothouse top is molded carbon fiber with epoxy resin with a core of 2” rigid PVC foam. Carbon stringers on the underside of the pilothouse top provide overhead handholds and are finished in clear epoxy to highlight the carbon construction. Vacuum bagging techniques were applied throughout the lamination process.

STARLIGHT has several watertight bulkheads:

• Collision bulkhead (chain locker compartment)
• Bulkhead between forward cabin and head and guest cabin
• Bulkhead between head/work bench area and engine compartment
• Bulkhead between engine compartment and auxiliary machinery compartment
• Bulkhead between auxiliary machinery compartment and lazarette

Structural bulkheads are laminated fiberglass with 20 oz. tri-axial cloth with PVC form core; doors are ship-grade aluminum, watertight and locking.

On deck STARLIGHT is again all business. Her cockpit was designed to accommodate her 15’ hard bottom dinghy equipped with its own Fortress anchor. This is an easy roll-on/roll-off affair with a powerful electronic winch. The dinghy has a 50 HP Yamaha outboard. On the foredeck is an Ideal windlass with laterally-mounted winch and capstan for both chain and rode. There are two serious bow rollers for two anchors. Anchors are Bruce with all chain for rode and a Fortress anchor with chain and anchor line. Adjacent to the windlass is a saltwater washdown faucet. Everything on deck is both functional and rugged. 

• Twin Caterpillar 3196 Marine Propulsion, 660 hp each (E rating). Total power: 1,320 hp
• A twin disk gearbox MG 5114A 7-degree down angle with a reduction of 1.92:1, with the controls at the helm
• New Glendenning engine controls
• Cables for port and stbd. engines
• Hydraulic bow thruster, runs off of PTO from main engine

FUEL TANKS:

• (3) Tanks ¼” aluminum-welded, type 5052
• (2) 500 gallons each (port and stbd.)
• (1) 500 gallons aft

The electrical installation was divided in a 120/240V AC 50/60 Hz, single-phase system and a 12/24V DC system. Electrical cables are all clearly marked and color coded. The AC and DC systems are designed and built according to the standards set out under CFR 169,6692 to 169.6686 and those of ABTC sections E and A. 

She is equipped with a Northern Lights 12 kW generator (NEW June 2014, 276 hours as of 3/2020).

BATTERIES:

House Service

• Bank of (6) batteries wired in series to produce 24V DC
• 8D gel cell 12 V DC 200 Amp

Electronics Reserve

• 12-volt battery located in the navigation area

AC SYSTEMS:

The 120V AC power is the secondary electrical system on board and is supplied through either the shore power system or the inverter. The shore system consists of 120/240V shore power cord and an isolation transformer. The isolation transformer allows the yacht to connect to both American and European shore power, as well as electrically grounding the yacht while connected to shore power.

POWER CONVERSION:

Inverter/Charger

When away from shore service, all AC power is provided by the charger/inverter. Power for the 12V electronics system is provided by a 24V DC to 12V DC converter powered by the house bank and a dedicated electronics reserve bank. The wiring arrangement allows the converter to act as a battery charger so that the electronics bank is charged by the house bank.

• Furuno 1942 radar (primary)
• Furuno 841 Radar (secondary)
• Northstar GPS 951 XD
• (2) Northstar GPS: one with color screen and one black and white
• Robertson AP300-CX Autopilot
• B&G Network Quad speed indicator
• B&G LX-260 Wind Machine/Network Quad with direction/speed
• Weems and Plath Barometer & Clock
• ICOM IC-M710 SSB
• Enhanced cell antenna
• Manual and operational instruction books
• Chart plotter 

• New Glendenning engine controls for both port and stbd. engines (2014)
• New fresh water pump (2014)
• New saloon windows (2014)
• New engine room lighting (2014)
• Northern Lights 12 kW generator (2014)
• New hatch sky shades and screens
• Hatch drains installed on Freeman deck hatches
• Samson posts on bow re-chromed
• New gas locker solenoid

STARLIGHT is in nice shape and ready to go cruising.