Nelson 45 (1991) for sale in Pwllheli, United Kingdom

English

please also visit the Seaward Sapphire Website: seawardsapphire.com

Seaward Sapphire is a classic Nelson motor yacht.  She was built in 1991 by Seaward Marine on a Tyler moulding to exacting Nelson specifications, with heavy GRP laminate, substantial ribs, stringers and engine bearers, and heavy duty fittings throughout. This vessel is from an era when expense was not spared, and boats were built to last.  As would be expected, the fit-out was to the highest standard, with beautiful teak cabinetry throughout.

Description / Owners Notes

Please also visit    WWW.seawardsapphire.com     for additional information and videos.

Seaward Sapphire – specification

The Nelson 45 was designed as a fast semi displacement, exceptionally robust, all-weather pilot vessel. Its lovely lines – fine entry, flared bow, round bilge, flattened stern and long skeg give it  unrivalled seakeeping qualities and safe passage making (see Tom Cunliffe: https://seawardboat.com/tom-cunliffe-nelson/ )

The boat was purchased  by the present owners in August 2018. On receipt at Pwllheli the vessel, although sound, was found to need considerable upgrade. A significant refit, restoration and modernisation is at point of completion.

Dimensions and principal details

LOA – 45’ (13.85m)

Beam – 13’ (3.9m)

Draft – 3’6” (1.07m)

Displacement – 15.5 tonnes

Top speed – 22kts

Fuel capacity – 2500 ltr

Freshwater capacity – 1000 ltr

Engine hours - Port engine 1209. Starboard engine 1218.

The hull has a round bilge form with a long keelson, a raked stem and transom stern. The superstructure consists of fore and side decks with a forward coach roof, a wheelhouse/deck saloon, and raised aft deck with upper steering position. Twin Sabre 6 cylinder turbo charged 370hp diesels are fitted, driving conventional stern gear through twin disc gear boxes, 1¼” stainless steel prop shafts and 27” bronze propellers.

Hull

The hull is constructed from GRP, stiffened by bonding in of substantial bulkheads, ribs and longitudinal stringers, with heavy duty engine mountings (original drawings from TT Boat Designs below). The exterior of the hull topsides is finished in blue gel coat with varnished teak rubbing strake and typical Nelson detail fitted to the top side and transom.

The underwater area is finished in red commercial antifouling with a white gloss boot top. The 2023 survey showed satisfactory moisture readings and no signs of osmosis, voids or delamination.

The deck to hull edge is protected with typical Nelson heavy duty black rubber D-fendering

Cathodic protection is provided by a pair of 200mm hull anodes through-bolted to bonding cable connecting engines, P-brackets, props and prop shafts, rudders and bronze skin fittings. Collar anodes are fitted to the prop shafts and replacement anodes to the SPURS rope cutters.

Superstructure and coach roof

GRP finished externally in white gel coat with varnished teak edging and detailing. The fore and side decks are finished with Treadmaster and the aft deck with solid laid teak recently restored. Spray dodgers fitted around the after deck.

Windows and hatches

Cabin and wheelhouse windows are alloy framed and glazed with toughened glass with sliding opening panels port and starboard to the wheelhouse and hinged openers in the galley and ensuites.

Five Lewmar alloy framed hatches are fitted and secured with twin locking levers onto rubber seals.

Deck fittings

Stainless steel pulpit with stainless steel side rails. The aft rails are vanished teak on stainless steel stanchions.  The windlass is a Lofrans 24V, operated by a pair of foot switches and controlled by a 70amp breaker at the main 24V panel. The anchor is a 60lb CQR shackled to 50m+ of 3/8” 10mm galvanised short link chain leading through a chain pipe into a locker in the fore peak. This, and the associated wiring is accessed in the fore cabin via a Lewmar hatch. The bow roller is stainless steel and the rest of the deck fittings, fairleads and mooring cleats being heavy duty alloy. An alloy white painted mast is fitted on the coach roof, carrying navigation lights and GPS.

Cabin top and wheelhouse handrails are stainless steel tube. At the stern is a pair of Whittall stainless steel davits, together with a stainless steel and teak bathing platform/boarding ladder. 8 fender baskets are fitted at the stern with new fenders and fender socks.  Emergency steering gear access point is located on the starboard side just forward of the transom

Colour coated water and fuel inlets are located on the port and starboard decks

Upper helm

Fitted with an alloy windscreen glazed with glass, with helm and co-pilot Besenzoni pedestal seats and protected by a navy canvas canopy on stainless steel tube frame.

Interior layout

The interior has been fully refurbished, with new teak veneered cabinetry in the galley and all the original teak restored as necessary. The cabin sole boards have been newly teak veneered on a plywood sub-floor and all soft furnishings reupholstered.

From the upper helm, a pair of teak companionway doors leads to the wheelhouse/saloon. The aft cabin and aft ensuite are accessed via steps (port side) down from the saloon.

Centrally placed steps lead forward to the galley/dining and seating area. The helm and instrument panel are to port with Bemshey fully adjustable suspension seats for the helm and co-pilot. The 24V DC breaker panel is located on the starboard side of the steps down to the galley, with the AC breaker panel and generator start/stop on the aft starboard bulkhead of the galley.  

A door leads forward to the V berth fore cabin with port side ensuite compartment.

Ensuite fittings as follows:

• Tecma ceramic fresh water electric flush toilets. The fore cabin ensuite WC is connected to a moulded Vetus blackwater holding tank with dockside and marine discharge options and the aft cabin ensuite is connected directly a sea cock in the engine room, although it may be feasible to install a blackwater holding tank if required
• Moulded Durasein wash basins with chrome basin mixers set into white Durasein worktops
• Integrated shower GRP shower trays with teak slatted floors and recessed thermostatic chrome shower controls and riser bars. The shower pump-out in both ensuites is a fully automatic Whale intelligent system
• Ceiling mounted extractors and LED downlights in both ensuites

  Equipment

Fiamm Horn - mounted on the wheelhouse roof and operated from the wheelhouse instrument panel

Wynn straight line marine window wipers – Type C x3 operated from wheelhouse instrument panel

Screen wash - operated from wheelhouse instrument panel

Heated windscreen x3 operated from wheelhouse instrument panel

Lights

• Search light mounted forward on the wheelhouse roof and operated from the main helm
• Aft facing fixed spotlight with LED lamp switched at the 24v breaker panel
• Port and starboard navigation lights mounted on wheelhouse roof and switched at the 24v breaker panel
• Steaming light, all-round white light and stern light all with LED lamps and mounted on the mast. Switched at the wheelhouse instrument panel

Navigation equipment:

• Sestrel magnetic compass wheelhouse mounted
• Furuno Model 1930 radar0.25 – 26 mile range, mounted on the wheelhouse roof forward of the mast
• Raytheon ST60 Tri data – speed/log/depth wheelhouse mounted
• Raymarine C90 GPS/plotter wheelhouse mounted
• Raymarine ST7002 autopilot wheelhouse mounted with fluxgate compass mounted under forward seating in galley
• Raymarine ST60+ depth instrument mounted upper helm with new depth transducer aft of the port engine
• Raymarine ST60 electronic compass mounted upper helm
• Raymarine ST60+ speed/log mounted upper helm with new speed/temperature transducer mounted forward of the starboard engine

All Raymarine instruments are daisy chain linked by Seatalk cables

• 2x GPS domes mounted on the mast currently not being used but available
• NASA Target Navtex-pro-plus mounted wheelhouse starboard navigation desk

VHF equipment

• Icom IC-M56 VHF radio with handheld speaker – mounted on the wheelhouse starboard navigation desk
• Navico Axis RT1200 VHF radio with handheld speaker mounted at the upper helm

Entertainment equipment

• Fusion RA60 2-zone marine stereo with Bluetooth, mounted aft saloon
• Speakers – 2 aft cabin, 2 saloon, 2 galley

  Batteries and charging

8x110Ah lead/acid batteries installed aft engine room in 2 banks (Bank 1 stbd, Bank 2 Port) connected in series-parallel to give 24V supply. Boat functions are split between 2 banks

Engine starting - port engine Bank 2 (port), stbd engine Bank 1 (stbd), with battery combining switch in main battery fuse box operated by push button on the instrument panel at the lower helm

New Victron 40Ah Centaur 24/40 charger, using 2 of the 3 available output terminals

Security and Fire

• Fire extinguishers AFFF as follows: upper helm 6kg, saloon 2kg, galley 2kg, fore cabin 2kg
• A fire port is fitted to the fore cabin between the V-berths to enable firefighting in the enclosed bow thruster area (as recommended in the recent survey)
• Seafire fire extinguisher in engine room – fixed installation operated from saloon (port side of steps to galley)
• Emergency air shut off levers for port and starboard engine room air intakes
• Kidd carbon monoxide alarm: engine room forward bulkhead

Machinery installation

Engines: a pair of Sabre Lehman type 370L turbo charged 6 cylinder straight diesels coupled to MG 507A Twin Disc gear boxes. Port engine serial no. B9137, hours logged 1209. Starboard engine no. B9138, hours logged 1218.

The engines are installed in an enclosed engine bay beneath the wheelhouse, accessed via a floor hatch with gas lift. The engines have flexible engine mounts bolted to substantial glassed-in longitudinal engine beds. Cooling is indirect via raw water heat exchangers, with heavy duty bronze raw water intakes fitted with strainers. The wet exhausts discharge as follows: main exhaust pipes port and starboard through underwater outlets, with smaller diameter exhaust pipes discharging at the waterline level. This ensures that exhaust back pressure is minimised when the engines are idling.

Kobelt 2090 remote controls are fitted at the wheelhouse (main station) and at the upper helm (slave station), with a control panel and warning gauges for each engine at both helm stations.

Steering Gear: located in the aft cabin steering locker. A pair of stainless steel rudders are fitted through glassed-in tubes with lip seals with remote greasers.

The dual helm consists of hydraulic pumps attached to each wheel, plumbed with copper and then flexible hose connections to the hydraulic ram.

Provision is made for emergency steering in the event of hydraulic system failure, which includes access points through the top of the steering locker, through the head lining (with teak closer, labelled accordingly) and out through a labelled screw cap in the aft deck. The necessary drive rods are stored under the aft cabin bed base boards.

Stern Gear: 3-bladed 26”x27” bronze propellers are fitted to stainless steel 1¼” stainless steel shafts run through cutlass bearings contained within bronze P-brackets and then through water lubricated intermediate cutlass bearings within the stern tubes. The shafts are sealed through grease packed stuffing glands. Spurs rope cutters are fitted forward of the props. New shaft and rope cutter anodes are fitted.

Generator: G&M 4.2Kva generator set is installed within a sound insulated steel casing at the aft end of the engine room. It is powered by a Volvo 2001 direct raw water cooled single cylinder diesel engine running at 3000rpm to generate 230V AC. Fuel is drawn from the aft keel tank

Generator starting is via a 12V dedicated generator starting battery with isolation switch and is independent of the main battery banks. When running, the generator battery is charged as normal by the generator’s alternator, but to avoid self-discharge during prolonged periods of inactivity, there is also a Victron Orion battery -to-battery charger supplying the gen set battery from the main port battery bank.

The wet exhaust system incorporates a Vetus water lock, muffler and gooseneck, and discharges through the starboard topside at the waterline level.

Bow thruster: a Max Power CT60 twin propeller 24v bow thruster is installed under the forward V berth. It is powered by a pair of 24V batteries fitted under the forward cabin berth in a compartment vented by the bilge ventilation system. The circuit is protected by an overload fuse and master switch.

Joystick controls are fitted at both the lower and upper helm.

Fuel installation

2 in-line GRP keel tanks are moulded into the vessel, situated between engine bearers, each engine being independently supplied by its own dedicated fuel tank. These keel tanks are gravity fed by elevated port and starboard tanks in the aft cabin and controlled by appropriate isolation and cross-pipe valves.

All tanks are fitted with tank breathers, opening to the topside port and starboard, and the tanks are filled from labelled fillers situated in the port and starboard side decks and connected to the port and starboard aft tanks only.

The fuel system pipework is copper and fuel grade hose and incorporates a substantial Racor filter/fuel separator to each engine, with a fuel gauge to each tank. There are also two engine mounted fuel filters per engine.

Freshwater installation

Two GRP freshwater tanks are moulded into the forward bilge. These are filled via a labelled filler cap in the port forward side deck and vented through the forward topside. They are connected to a 24V Cleghorn Waring Maxi System pressurised pump system which supplies the hot and cold circuits throughout the boat.

There is a separate independent deck-wash system, as well as screen wash, also supplied from the freshwater tanks.

Hot water is provided by an ASAP 55ltr Hotpot calorifier heated by 240V immersion heater and the diesel powered heating system. There are connection terminals fitted to the starboard engine’s cooling system should this be required.

Ventilation system

ACS stainless steel mushroom vents are fitted to all accommodation spaces, except for the ensuites which have switched extractors. Additional switched extractors are fitted in aft and fore cabins.

Bilge extraction is installed throughout the boat, with a 240V extraction fan located in the engine room port aft and discharging through the wheelhouse side via a stainless steel grille (a 24V fan could be substituted). This system also vents the bow thruster battery compartment.

The engine room is ventilated through characteristic Nelson air intake cowls to port and starboard in the wheelhouse sides, with two 24V blowers switched as required from the helm.

Gas installation

All gas appliances and pipework removed but the external gas locker remains on the port side deck

Heating

Space heating is provided by a 5kW MV Hydro 24V diesel heater, installed in the engine room starboard side aft. This supplies a 22mm speedfit heating ring main serving six Kalori Silencio matrix heat exchange units with 24V fans to: fore cabin, forward ensuite, galley, wheelhouse saloon, aft cabin, aft ensuite. Each zone is controlled by a Heatmiser thermostat control panel.

Contact Information

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