SPIRIT OF EPSILON is a good example of her class.   The Oyster 53 is a superb blue water cruising yacht with sufficient accommodation for family and friends to sail in comfort, yet she is compact enough that she does not need crew.  She has been sparingly used and much loved and is now ready her new owner and new adventures. 

Built in 2003, launched 2004, she sailed to Palma and remained there mostly as a floating holiday home – this included 11 months out of the water.

We bought her in 2008. Prior to sailing back to the UK, we checked all the running rigging and it was all replaced including the swage at the top of the forestay which Oyster identified as a factory defect.

In the UK, we undertook renovations in 2009 including new electronics, new wiring, new upholstery in the saloon and chart table, cruising chute, minor repairs to joinery, cubby holes in the cockpit, new stereo and additional speakers in the cockpit, ships radio speaker in the cockpit, upgrades to the compass and bow thruster and gas sensor fitted.

She's mostly just been for club cruising, Gentlemens’ racing as well as 2 Oyster regattas in the Solent and French Coast.  So all in all, she has been very sparingly used through life.  

RCD Status: The yacht conforms with the essential safety requirements of Directive 94/25EC (Recreational Craft Directive) and is categorised A

Hull, Deck & Superstructure Construction:

·         GRP hull is laid up single skin with structural stringers and floors to Lloyds approved design specification.

·         Hull colour white with blue cove lines.

·         Deck structure moulded in GRP with balsa core for strength and insulation, featuring Oyster’s renowned Deck Saloon profile with eyebrow detail.

·         Fully laid teak decks, cockpit seats, sole and helmsman’s seat.

Keel & Rudder:

·         High performance bulb keel.

Engine & Gearboxes:

·         Yanmar 4JH3-HTBE, 4-cylinder diesel engine of 100hp.

·         Racor model 500FG fuel filter and water separator.

Maintenance & Performance:

·         Engine hours: 1088 as at February 2015

Propulsion & Steering:

·         Whitlock “Athena” pedestal with 1065mm (42”) diameter stainless steel steering wheel.

·         Stainless steel mugrack and grabrail on pedestal.

·         Max-Prop, 3 bladed 55cm (22”) feathering propeller.

·         Ambassador AM15 rope cutter.

·         Sleipner 10hp bowthruster. 

Voltage Systems:

·         24V DC.

·         220V AC ring main with 3 x double, 3-pin Clipsal sockets

Battery Banks:

·         8 x 6V heavy duty, deep cycle batteries giving 460Ah dedicated to domestic supply.

·         2 x 12V batteries giving 176Ah dedicated to engine start.

·         2 x extra blocks of 5 circuit breakers.

·         Gel batteries installed in 2009.

·         All ships batteries replaced with gel batteries.

Battery Chargers:

·         2 x extra blocks of 5 circuit breakers.

·         Mastervolt MICC battery controller.

·         Mastervolt 220V Mass 24/75 battery charger.

·         Mastervolt 220V Mass sine inverter.

Alternators:

·         Yanmar alternator – 55A 12V for engine start battery.

·         Mastervolt alternator – 150A 24V charging domestic battery bank.

Generator:

·         Westerbeke BTD7.5 generator (7.5kW, 220V, 50Hz).

Shore Power:

·         Shorepower: Hubbell socket in coaming and 18m (60’) 30A cable.

Fresh Water & Water Heating System:

·         Insulated hot water tank of 76lt heated by engine’s heat exchanger, or by 220V 2kW immersion heater element.

·         Par pressurised hot and cold freshwater system.

Watermaker:

·         Seafresh 206A 220V AC watermaker producing 95litres per hour. 

Fuel:

·         Total capacity of 850 litres in 1 x GRP tank, fuel gauge fitted.

Fresh water:

·         Total capacity of 750 litres in 1 x GRP tank, water gauge fitted.

Grey/Blackwater holding tanks:

·         Separate holding tanks for both fore and aft heads.

Compasses:

·         S.I.R.S. Major 150mm (6”)

Instruments:

·         Raytheon ST60s.

·         Companionway console: Speed, wind speed/direction, depth.

·         Chart table: Multi-function display.

·         E120 and E80 (on swivel NavPod).

·         Navionics Platinum Plus Charts.

GPS:

·         RayNav 300, 12-channel GPS interfaced to autopilot.

·         SPX30 Course Computer and replacement fluxgate compass.

Radar/Plotter:

·         4kW radome repeater at companionway.

·         Raystar 125 GPS Antenna.

·         Jotron Tron 40 GPS EPIRB.

·         Digital AIS transmitter/receiver.

·         Active Sea-Me radar reflector (passive reflector on mast retained).

Autopilot:

·         Raymarine automatic pilot with ST6001+ controller at pedestal.

·         Drives replaced.

Navigation lights:

·         Aquasignal navigation lights.

·         Steaming/deck floodlight.

·         Tri-white with strobe at masthead.

Windex:

·         Windex at masthead.

Navtex:

·         ICS Navtex6+ with GPS interface.

VHF radio:

·         Raytheon Ray230E Class D-DSC VHF radio-telephone.

·         Waterproof VHF cockpit speakers & switch in cockpit.

Satellite phone:

·         Skanti Iridium phone system.

Galley:

·         Frigomatic 50F twin compressor freezer system for galley coolbox.

·         Bosch WVF2000 washer/dryer.

·         Oyster customised crockery & cutlery.

Heads/Showers:

·         Hot and cold transom shower.

Entertainment:

·         Fusion stereo FM radio with ipod/iPhone connectivity with twin speakers in saloon and pair of waterproof speakers in cockpit.

·         Selective area to isolate saloon and/or cockpit.

·         Status TV/AM-FM aerial at masthead.

Summary of Accommodation:

·         8 berths in 4 cabins, excluding the saloon; 2 x double cabins and 2 x twins.

·         Interior joinery in American light oak to Oyster “Millennium” styling. Features include sculpted fiddles and grabrails, ‘shadowgap’ joints between joinery panels, solid, shaped teak and stainless steel grabhandles.

·         Headlining: Beige vinyl.

·         Lee cloths to all sea berths.

·         Wempe clock on saloon bulkhead.

·         Wempe Barometer/Hygrometer/thermometer on saloon bulkhead.

Hatches:

·         Lewmar alloy-framed, silver-anodised deck hatches.

·         Alloy-framed saloon windows in toughened, smoked 12mm glass with two forward windows opening.

·         Gebo alloy-framed opening ports in coachroof and opening hullports.

·         Opening ports in cockpit to galley and cockpit to fourth cabin.

·         Oceanair “Skyscreens” to all deck hatches.

Description of layout from forwards:

Fore cabin:

·         With centreline double berth, upholstered seat with vanity table, plentiful clothes lockers and a hanging locker.

Cabin to Starboard:

·         Upper and lower berths, lockers, vanity unit and hanging locker.

Heads:

·         To port with Jabsco manual WC, washbasin and shower.

·         Lockers and mirror.

Saloon:

·         Features a squared off settee area and table to starboard.

·         The table opens to form a large dining table and has provision for two folding director’s chairs to be stowed under the saloon settee, which provide extra, in-harbour seating at the table.

·         To port is a two-seater settee. 

·         The forward bar unit accommodates glass and bottle stowage plus lockers.

·         Wine cabinet under table.

Navigation area:

·         To port at aft end of saloon with forward-facing chart table and bookshelf.

Galley:

·         To starboard with a gimballed Force 10 FT60451 cooker in stainless steel, with 4 burners, grill and oven.

·         Electric solenoid gas shut-off valve.

·         MarineCare Dualwatch gas alarm.

·         New gas regulator and replacement hoses.

·         Twin stainless steel sinks.

·         AEG stainless steel combined microwave oven/grill.

·         Front-opening refrigerator and top-opening freezer.

·         Formica worktops.

·         Wet locker for wet weather gear.

Guest cabin:

·         To port with upper and lower berths, hanging locker and storage.

·         Walk in access to the engine space

Owner's cabin:

·         With double berth offset to starboard, a curved settee, dressing table and a large hanging locker, with abundant drawer and locker space.

En-suite heads:

·         With Jabsco manual WC, washbasin and separate shower stall.

·         Lockers and mirror.

Rig:

·         Hood Stoway mainmast. White finish.

·         Selden solid rod kicker.

·         Harken backstay adjusters.

·         Continuous stainless steel wire rigging.

·         Headsail furling - Harken Unit 3 headsail furling gear.

·         Spinnaker package including pole, topping lift, fore guy, guy blocks and clutches.

·         Spinnaker pole stowed vertically on mast.

Winches:

·         Lewmar Ocean winches, all self-tailing inc:

·         2 x #64 CEST 2-speed electric primaries.

·         1 x #48 CEST electric mainsheet.

·         2 x #48 CST 2-speed main & genoa halyards.

·         2 x #16 CST 2-speed mainsheet traveller control lines.

Sails (Dolphin):  

·         In-mast furling main.

·         Furling #1 genoa – 140% Dacron crosscut with foam luff pad and white acrylic UV strips.

·         Large cruising chute with snuffer.

General:

·         Stainless steel pulpit, pushpit, and gateway midship stanchions.

·         Large, and small, lazarette locker with twin stainless steel gas struts to lid.

·         Bathing platform trimmed with teak slats.

·         Pushpit seats in teak and stainless steel.

·         Masthead burgee staff.

·         Drop down washboard to cockpit.

·         Bathing Ladder; duplicate onboard.

·         Fold-down stainless steel bathing/boarding ladder for access to stern deck.

·         Besenzoni alloy folding passerelle.

·         Heyco tool kit.

·         Assorted spares and manuals.

Anchoring & Mooring Equipment:

·         Recessed anchor locker on foredeck with hinged lids.

·         CQR 34kg (75lb) anchor with 60m (197’) chain.

·         Lewmar Ocean 3 24V electric anchor windlass.

·         Warps & fenders.

Covers, Canvas & Cushions:

·         Sprayhood –All PVC windows replaced.

·         Folding bimini with cover.

·         Wheel, pedestal and cockpit table covers.

·         Winch covers.

Tender & Outboard:

·         Davits by Whittal.

·         Brig Falcon Sport 360 RIB 2014

·         Yamaha 4 stroke 20hp outboard motor.

Safety Equipment:

·         Forties 6-person liferaft in valise – Valid to 2009.

·         Radar reflector

·         Firdell “Blipper” on mast.

·         Jabsco Maxi 3000 puppy electric bilge pump with Par hydro air switch.

·         Henderson MkV manual bilge pump operated from the cockpit.

·         Webbing jackstays.

·         Emergency stainless steel tiller.

·         Raymarine LifeTag system fitted.

·         Various fire extinguishers including automatic fire extinguisher in engine bay.

·         MarineCare Dualwatch gas alarm.

·         New gas regulator and replacement hoses.

Fire-fighting equipment:

·         Automatic engine room fire extinguisher.