umop_apisdn

A webcam. While working on installing my motor mount this weekend I spent a lot of time laying in awkward positions that brought back long repressed memories of college twister games. And with only one access hole to the lazarette, which was occupied by my arm, I found myself wishing I had eyeballs on the tips of my fingers. A webcam attached to a laptop did the trick quite nicely. Noel

bought one that didn't already have fiberglass on it.... Noel

I imagine any of the techniques used to get a person back onboard would work pretty well for a dog as well. Dogs should, in fact, be easier since most dog-vests are designed for lifting as well. Use the topping lift to raise your boom up a bit and swing it out over the side of the boat. Now unshacke the mainsheet from the lazerette, and attach to the dog's vest. That will give you 3:1 purchase to lift the dog up out of the water. Once the dog is high enough, swing her over the boat. But then again, I own a Yorkie. All I need is a fishing net. Reminds me of my favorite dog-overboard story. Here in WA state, a guy's dog fell off the ferry. They guy was worried the ferry crew wouldn't stop to rescue a dog. But he figured they WOULD stop to rescue him, so over he went. Some state official announced on TV that evening "Yes, we DO send out a crew to rescue pets that have fallen overboard, so you don't need to jump in after your pet." heh heh heh Noel

Bumper crop. Fender render is where you photshop them into the picture because you hung them out on the starbroard side, and then approched with the dock on your port. Noel

I carry two, neither one of which is suitable for overnight anchoring. I have a 15 lb navy, and a small mushroom. The mushroom gets used the most, I use it when launching and retrieving the boat if there isn't a dock. I toss the mushroom up on the beach (usually behind a log or large rock) and push the boat off the trailer. Then I pull the boat up onto the beach. A grapnel would work better, but I don't have a grapnel - I have a mushroom. :-) The navy is for emergency use should I ever find myself in a bad situation where I decide "ok, time to stop everything and get this boat fixed or wait for help". I have 10 feet of 1/4" chain and 100 feet of nylon rope for it. None of it has ever gotten wet. Should that sitation arise, the navy and chain will go off the bow, and I'll toss the mushroom over the stern. I've asked a lot of people what they recommend for a "real" anchor in the puget sound, more people have recommended claw anchors than anything else. I've got my eye on a nice stainless 11lb claw, and additional 10 feet of chain. Noel

I also made a motor stand that bolts to the trailer, so the motor will only be on the boat while in the water. When trailering down the road, the motor will ride on its own stand. EDIT: Well, it will ride on the transom down the ramp, and those can be rather rough sometimes. So I guess it will bounce around a bit back there. Hmm..... Noel

The bracket is from the 50's and has no tilt adjustment, hence the need for wedges. I will post pictures when I get it put back together. It still needs one more coat of paint. Noel

One more thing: I was planning on adding wedges between the bracket and transom, to keep the bracket vertical. Any reason not to do this? Thanks, Noel

So the little antique motor I got runs like a champ, and I got an antique motor bracket to go with it, which cleaned up quite nicely. Now to get it all installed. So I need ideas for re-inforcing the transom for mounting the new bracket. I have a 5 inch access port to the inside of the lazerette. Oh, and the inside of the lazerette is painted with oil enamel. What kind of materials should I use to strengthen the transom? I was thinking a pair of fir 1x4s placed vertically? Should I try to also involve the deck or port topsides somehow, to spread the load away from the transom? What kind of glue should I use? I have heard lots about not putting epoxy over paint. Should I put additional fasters in, beyond the bolts attaching the bracket? BTW, the motor is a 3.5 horse. I haven't weighed it, but I think around 30 lbs or so. Thanks in advance, Noel

Are public mooring buoys generally "one to a boat"? Or is it comon for multiple boats to use the same buoy? (Assume here the boats are not part of a fleet or otherwise previously acquainted.) How many boats to a buoy, before you are supposed to pass it by and drop an anchor? Should the second boat ask permission from the first boat? Or does the second boat have an equal right to the buoy? Do all boats tie to the buoy itself? or only the first boat, and the other boats raft to it? Thanks, Noel

hmm... my post ended up in the great bit-bucket in the sky. So once again.... I've read a number of web sites on how to use telltales on your mainsail, and each one leaves me more confused. Some say put telltales on the luff, to aid in steering while headed into the wind. Others say those telltales are not useful because of turbulence from the mast. Some say put telltales on the leech to assist in sail trim, to determine the right amount of sail twist. But gaff rigged sails always have a lot of twist in them, so is that still applicable? So how exactly are telltales best used on a gaff rigged mainsail? Thanks, Noel

Should they be near the luff or the leech? At what height? Thanks, Noel

So I finally found a motor that is properly sized to my Weekender. It is an old Foremost 3.5, sold by JC Penny's back in the 60's. It has been in storage since the mid 60's, and looks to be in great shape, but I haven't tried to start it yet. It appears to be air cooled, but I am not sure. The cylinder is all covered with fins like an air cooled motor, but there is also a small pencil sized tube that exits out the exhaust. After exiting the exhaust hole, the tube angles back so its opening faces the prop in such a way that the prop would tend to push water up this tube a bit. I've never seen anything like it before, so I am wondering: 1) does anyone have any idea what this tube does? My guess is that this provides additional cooling when the motor is running hard. 2) can anyone point me to an internet resource for old or antique outboards? 3) The question I really want to know is, does this motor have a water pump that I need to inspect before running it. I am guessing not. I am guessing that at low speeds, it relys on air cooling. At high speeds, it replies on pressure from the prop wash to force water up this tube for additional cooling. But I'd rather not find out the hard way that there is a dead waterpump in there someplace. Thanks, Noel

Thank you, Jeff. I am still learning all the proper nautical terms that go with being a sailor. :-) Now if I can just figure out why the turn signals on my boat are different colors, I'll be set to go... Noel

That is something I noticed. Maybe it is just me, but it seems to me that sailboats are ALWAYS racing. If you are anywhere in the vicinity of another boat headed even remotely in the same direction as you are, it automatically becomes a race. I'm not just imagining that, am I? Noel

Ok, I am having a hard time visualizing what you are trying to do. If you attach the gaff to the mast via a track, how does it swing off to the side? you would need some kind of gooseneck attaching the gaff to the track, wouldn't you? Noel

Anyone on this board try this? Seems to me that with this setup, you have two more lines hanging loose off your jib, waiting to get snagged on something during a tack. It would probably work great with the club-foot. But on a lapper, I would be afraid the downhaul would get snagged in the shrouds. Noel

So why didn't that make a click-able thumbnail? Grrrr... Noel

When I rigged my inverted-V mainsheet, I needed eyepads on the aft corners of the deck. I made these heavy duty eye bolts, with a stainless backing plate behind them, and now they double as tie-downs for my trailer. [/img]

At the Oly wooden boat fair I saw a number of boats using horizontal fenders. I'm gonna try that next time I need to tie up to a dock. That should also satisfy the requirement to keep most of the force on the sheer rather than the topsides.

Just wanted to chime in that I had to fix this very problem, and I also modified the tabernacle by cutting a 9 degree wedge off of one side and glueing it to the other. Very easy, worked perfect, and looks great. Noel

What is the shelf life of unmixed epoxy components? Does it vary by brand? Thanks, Noel

Ahhh... we got there around 12:30. Well, some other day then. RE:Buskers. Not the scheduled music, there were a number (I counted 3) people who just found some spot with some space, and started playing music. There was a girl playing a violin up on the street, another girl playing guitar over by the restrooms (she was trying to raise money for charity), and a guy playing banjo near the food vendors. BTW, "busker" comes from from the term "busk", meaning to go about seeking, as a pirate would. Maybe the wooden boats attract them. ;-) Noel

Capt. Jake! I was there, I saw your boat, but you were no place to be seen. :-( Nice to at least meet Fire Escape in person. ;-) Jake's pictures of his boat don't do it justice, people. BTW, I like how you opened up the area under the seats for more foot space. The wooden jet boat was nice. I noticed it has a plastic bottom on it to protect it. He also used rope, glued to the side of his boat, as rub rails. I didn't care for that much, but it was still a fine looking boat. On an unrelated note, there were a lot of buskers there, which was cool. (what can I say? I like street musicians.) Noel.