SharonG, Thank you so much for the link. I actually did view that video on youtube and quilter in the video was on a house boat. I have to believe that someone somewhere is doing some kind of sewing on a sailboat. Its just been extremely difficult to find that person though, lol! I will endeavor to continue the search. I would be interested in what your friend, Lois, thinks. Do you think you could ask her for me? Many thanks...

Lois is a member here.......when she checks in and sees 'sailboat' she'll check it out. It's her main passion. :-)

We spend winters in the sailing capital of the Caribbean, the BVI. Perhaps I should say spent, as Irma was a beast, likely with imbedded tornados. Our garage roof blew completely off. Naturally, my first thought was, "Did my Bernina survive?" I still don't know. It was in a plastic tub in our storage closet, under very sturdy marine ply shelves, so I remain hopeful.

Salt air, humidity and hot air are not your machine's friends. Last year my machine did not fire up. After a long conversation with my dealer in the US, who said I needed to lug the machine back for a new power supply, I turned to YouTube. Sure enough, there was a video that noted this problem with certain Bernina models. The solution was to plug it in, turn it on and leave it for up to an hour. About twenty minutes later it started! You might be better off with a Featherweight on a boat.

Unless you are planning on hand quilting, your big issue will be power. You will need to: a) run the genny b) have good battery back-up c) have shore power.

Where is your husband talking about going on this sailboat? Around us, 40' is small for a mono these days. A few more feet would give you more storage options. Depending on where you are, you can easily have fabric and supplies sent to you. There is not much available for sale where we are. Assuming you have a stash at home, you will need to adjust your habits, but it should be very do-able.

Isn't Lois having her second knee done today?

Theresa

I lived and sewed on a 37 foot monohull sailboat for four years in the 1980s. I mainly made clothes, including a very nice wool coat. The only problem I remember was that my Singer machine wasn’t happy. It was stored in a locker that was not insulated so it got cold and a bit damp, which affected the motor. The machine never recovered from my ex-husband using it to make a lightweight sail.

Latifolia & socalgal, Thanks so much for all the insight and info! I planned on configuring a desiccated storage bin, likely of plastic, to store my Bernina 1090. My biggest hurdle I think will be to design a space that's comfortable for quilting with the support I need to spread the quilt out while I work.