Tips, Tricks & Thoughts:
Tips
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A very bad place to put a solar panel
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Read more: A very bad place to put a solar panelSeriously? One wave strike, or even a gale, and this will end very badly. More on why we should not do stuff like this, at least if we plan to go offshore.
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Electrical Quiz
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Read more: Electrical QuizQuiz is closed, here’s the answer. Why am I methodically disconnecting each load from the battery, and then reconnecting it while looking at a volt meter? And what’s the meter connected to? Answer in the comments: First right answer wins an Adventure 40 T-shirt.
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Preventing Unintended Jib Unfurls
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Read more: Preventing Unintended Jib UnfurlsThe furler line is only secured by a cam cleat (under dodger flap in shadow) on our J/109, so when leaving the boat we clove hitch it around the winch. Also note the sheet is half hitched around the standing part. Before leaving the boat we also make very sure the jib is neatly rolled […]
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A Not Boring Accountant
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Read more: A Not Boring AccountantMark Goodfield was our accountant and tax advisor, both personally and for AAC, for some ten years until he retired from public practice, and he never steered us wrong. He has blogged about personal finances, investing, tax planning, and accounting for some 15 years (guess) as the Blunt Bean Counter. Given that, if we want […]
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McCurdy and Rhodes 56 For Sale
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Read more: McCurdy and Rhodes 56 For SaleThe McCurdy and Rhodes 56 that we owned and loved for thirty years is for sale again. The asking price has recently been dropped to CAD$349,000 / ~US$259,000. This is a great boat at any price, but at this new price she represents a once in a very-long-while opportunity to buy an offshore-ready boat at […]
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Mono- or Multihull?
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Read more: Mono- or Multihull?As I have said many times before, I’m agnostic about the number of hulls a cruising boat should have. There are benefits and drawbacks to one, two, or three. That said, I do have a soft spot for some boats with three hulls, but that’s another post. Anyway, I came across this good article comparing […]
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Servo-pendulum is Not Bullet Proof Either
4 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Servo-pendulum is Not Bullet Proof EitherA few weeks ago I pondered the very high loads that auxiliary-rudder self-steering gears put on themselves and the parts of the boat they are bolted to, based on the failure of Simon Curwen’s Hydrovane gear while leading the GGR. Now we are getting reports that Abhilash Tomy is having a hell of a time […]
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Invaluable Measurement Tools
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Read more: Invaluable Measurement ToolsI have a couple of tape measures (one metric, the other imperial) in my tool bag, and even have a really nice digital calliper for when dead-nuts measurement is required, but the two measurement tools in my kit that get the most use are a cheap pocket calliper (top photo) and an even cheaper metal […]
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Inflatable Boat Maintenance Wisdom
3 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Inflatable Boat Maintenance WisdomI just got off the phone with a local guy who repairs inflatable boats. Seems like he really knows of what he speaks. I learned a few things: He is going to rehab our nearly four-decade old Avon. If it goes another 20 years I’m thinking I might be done with it. Final tip from […]
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The Perfect Mallet
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Read more: The Perfect MalletI pretty much never use a hard-headed hammer on a boat; in fact, I don’t even have one in my onboard tool kit on our new-to-us J/109. But I use a mallet often to move something stuck without damaging it, or drive a punch or chisel. This one from Lixie is just the right weight […]
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Garmin Cut Vesper Users Loose
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Read more: Garmin Cut Vesper Users LooseAlthough we had a lot of trouble with our first Vesper AIS, I have long been a fan of their products, with the exception of the Cortex, which tried to do too many things in one unit and had a lot of issues as a result. When Garmin bought Vesper I had a sense of […]
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Lubricate Steering Chains and Cables
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Read more: Lubricate Steering Chains and CablesI mentioned in another tip that I have just finished a full maintenance on the steering gear on our new-to-us J/109 and that nothing was properly lubricated before I started and probably never had been. On that subject, I have long noticed that the chain and steering cables on many boats are bereft of any […]
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TZ iBoat Updated
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Read more: TZ iBoat UpdatedI have used a bunch of iPad navigation software over the years, but TZ iBoat, by the same folks who have been doing navigation software on computers for some 30 years, is by far the best. Lots of reasons, but the most important is that it’s the only app that I can enter and edit […]
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A Good Hacksaw
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Read more: A Good HacksawSince I let all my old tools go when we sold our last boat, I have been upping my standards as I buy new tools for our new-to-us J/109. One of my best acquisitions has been this premium hacksaw from CK Tools. It’s quite amazing how much easier this saw is to use with its […]
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Are Auxiliary Rudder Self-Steering Gears Strong Enough?
21 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Are Auxiliary Rudder Self-Steering Gears Strong Enough?I was really saddened to hear that Golden Globe Race leader Simon Curwen is probably out of the race due to a catastrophic failure of his auxiliary rudder self-steering gear in a broach. I have long wondered if these gears that actually steer the boat with a separate rudder, rather than control the main rudder […]
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When Did Your Steering Last Feel The Love?
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Read more: When Did Your Steering Last Feel The Love?I’m just about finished rebuilding the steering gear, less the rudder since we did that last year, on our new to-us J/109. When I pulled it apart half the bearings fell out and there was not a drop of grease or oil on any of it…except the brake pad, where we don’t want it! I’m […]
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Installing a Propane Detector
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Read more: Installing a Propane Detectori just finished installing a propane gas detector with two sensors, one near the stove and the other just aft of the engine where gas would pool prior to kaboom, on our new-to-us J/109. I settled on the above-pictured unit from BEP Marine. So far it seems like a well-thought-out piece of safety gear. One […]
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Q & A: Iridium Go! or Go Exec
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Read more: Q & A: Iridium Go! or Go ExecThe new Predict Wind Iridium Go Exec device does indeed have a subscription plan that limits data according to how much one pays, i.e: $159.95/month buys you only 50MB of data. That includes all data transfer including tracking data. Do you happen to have a clue how much data you found that you used, on […]
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Good Wire Cutters
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Read more: Good Wire CuttersNormally I’m reasonably good at keeping track of my tools, but there is an exception: Every few years I lose my wire (diagonal) cutters—I’m not talking misplaced, but rather gone forever. How this happens, particularly on a small boat like our new-to-us J/109, is beyond me, but nonetheless it’s true. In the past I have […]
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Updated: Our Tips On Using Tablets For Navigation
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Read more: Updated: Our Tips On Using Tablets For NavigationWe just updated our 11 tips to make navigating with a tablet easier and safer chapter based on our experience of doing just that on our new-to-us J/109.
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The Rolls Royce of iPad Waterproof Covers
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Read more: The Rolls Royce of iPad Waterproof CoversWhile I’m not a fan of relying on tablets exclusively for navigation, on smaller boats like our new-to-us J/109 they can be a good option, at least in conjunction with a plotter. However, the big problem can be how to charge a tablet and still keep it waterproof. The product pictured above solves that problem. […]
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Dive Weights Are Useful In The Workshop
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Read more: Dive Weights Are Useful In The WorkshopIt’s amazing how often I use the stack of dive weights I needed to get neutral when wearing my Arctic-level dry suit, (bought when we were cruising the high latitudes) to hold stuff down or together while glue is kicking off. In the photo above the weights were invaluable while I was splatting¹ new TreadMaster […]
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Winch-Cleaning Solvent
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Read more: Winch-Cleaning SolventI have always cleaned winches with kerosene, but I hate the smell and I’m guessing that breathing the vapours for hours is not good for us. So last winter I tried this water-based degreaser from WD-40, even though I don’t like or use their spray lubricant. The stuff really works. After a good soak the […]
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Check For Correct Winch Pawl Springs
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Read more: Check For Correct Winch Pawl SpringsWe have to check everything on a new-to-us boat. The top spring is for Lewmar, the bottom for Harken. All of our Harken winches had a mix of both. Trust no one, least of all boatyards who will often use whatever is to hand. Would the wrong spring cause the winch to slip? Probably not, […]
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Credit Where It’s Due: McMaster-Carr
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Read more: Credit Where It’s Due: McMaster-CarrPhyllis and I have been buying tools, fastenings, and half a hundred other things from McMaster Carr for decades, and are such fans that I often say that if the company goes out of business I’m selling our boat and taking up golf…and I hate golf. Over all those years, and hundreds of orders, I […]
