On our trip south last year we had some rather alarming creaks coming from the boat. We had been in conversation with the company about this and Manfred Schoechl said he would come and fix it. Manfred designed, builds and sails the sunbeam range (he also owns the company) so if anyone was going to sort a problem it is him! He was due to arrive the morning of the 20th but we waited and waited but no Manfred. We eventually heard that they had missed their flight from Munich due to roadworks (at 4am) on the way to the airport.
He arrived with Hannes, one of the retired Sunbeam boatbuilders and they immediately set to identifying noises and rectify them. It was amazing that a couple of pieces of trim rubbing together could make such a load and worrying noise. The main creak was tracked down to slight movement on an internal partition which was then glued into place. All done in a day.
Manfred was delightful company we enjoyed several happy hours chatting over a beer or two about boats and what his company is up to.
The next day we took the boat out to ensure the noises were fixed. Sadly it was flat calm and we were only able to motor until the wind came up at 3pm. Manfred then set to tuning up the boat which responded by sailing faster than it had ever done and looking great.
That evening we all dined together along with Damian Raffell who had just arrived in his Sunbeam 44 from Croatia via Italy.
The following morning we decided to change the anchor chain for heavier grade and Manfred and Hannes, who now had a spare day, were enlisted to help. It was great to have such expert help and more pairs of hands to complete what turned out to be a difficult job.
We were grateful to Manfred and Sunbeam for their excellent service and great company and help and were left pleased with our choice of boat and a feeling of confidence in the boat and the people that made it.
Deja Vu 
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