The other day I was checking out the VolkCruiser stats and saw I was getting some hits from a couple of new blogs who had linked to the site...
Being curious, I trundled over to check them out and they seemed like nice sites by very nice and interesting people who were all about getting ready to cruise off into the sunset/sunrise who seem to equate getting ready to cruise with a whole lot of buying stuff. Really, just about every post was about something they'd just bought or something they were about to buy and they both seemed to have a long list of stuff they thought they needed to get.
It was just a little depressing...
Of course, it's all understandable and the pressure to conform to the consumerist agenda is both ruthless and unrelenting. Come to think about it, there's not a whole lot of pressure from any direction telling folks to use less and simplify is there?
Just something to think about...
Wednesday, July 30, 2014
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Monday, July 21, 2014
Saturday, July 12, 2014
Something you'll want to read...
Over at SailFeed there's a pretty good article about sails for downwind sailing...
That said, I disagree strongly with their thoughts on drifters.
That said, I disagree strongly with their thoughts on drifters.
Friday, July 4, 2014
Tuesday, July 1, 2014
A reality based multihull..
Yesterday while running errands we noticed a new boat in the anchorage... A very nice example of a Wharram Tiki 30.
What a great boat...
Rowing by I was struck with just how much sense it makes and what a great design it is.
Sure, it might not be everything you want in a boat but it pretty much covers anything you'd actually need...
Definitely a design to spend some time studying.
That said, it does fly in the face of where catamaran design has wandered since cat design took a left at the corner of Charterland and MacMansion leaving real world needs in the dust.
What a great boat...
Rowing by I was struck with just how much sense it makes and what a great design it is.
Sure, it might not be everything you want in a boat but it pretty much covers anything you'd actually need...
Definitely a design to spend some time studying.
That said, it does fly in the face of where catamaran design has wandered since cat design took a left at the corner of Charterland and MacMansion leaving real world needs in the dust.
Thursday, June 26, 2014
a quick response for that guy who must have the perfect boat...
I have very few illusions about boats...
I don't over-romanticize, put it on a pedestal, or fetishize them because, when all is said and done, a boat is just a boat.
Webb Chiles is currently doing his thing on a Moore 24 which is not the sort of boat most folks would consider for sailing off into the sunrise on but I'm pretty sure that "Gannet" will take Webb wherever he wants to go. That said, so would any boat that Mr Chiles decided to sail off on...
It's really never about the boat but always about the person sailing it.
The boat's just a tool...
Of course, in time and when deserved love and respect come into play but that's something else entirely.
I don't over-romanticize, put it on a pedestal, or fetishize them because, when all is said and done, a boat is just a boat.
Webb Chiles is currently doing his thing on a Moore 24 which is not the sort of boat most folks would consider for sailing off into the sunrise on but I'm pretty sure that "Gannet" will take Webb wherever he wants to go. That said, so would any boat that Mr Chiles decided to sail off on...
It's really never about the boat but always about the person sailing it.
The boat's just a tool...
Of course, in time and when deserved love and respect come into play but that's something else entirely.
Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Sunday, June 15, 2014
Why your local lumber yard might be your first stop...
I've got a couple of pieces of wood that have been sitting out in the open for the last couple of years as sort of a "when-will-this-stuff-rot/fall-apart" test.
Now, I'll admit it's not a serious scientific test and more a simple bit of satisfying my curiosity but it has been enlightening.
The wood in question is a bit of yellow pine "2X4" , a bit of cypress 1"X6" and a scrap of some formply I used for a mold section when I was strip-planking my new mast. For a control I have a little offcut of teak and a scrap of marine plywood.
As to the conditions it's been subjected to, I happen to be in the Caribbean and it's been through the same old same tropical weather and conditions that everyone warns you about when they are telling you that you need an expensive tropical hardwood because anything else will deteriorate and rot.
So, here's the thing...
The pine 2" X 4" is, except for some minor discoloration, just peachy keen and so is the cypress 1' X 6". As for the formply it looks pretty much as it did when I cut it out. I should restate the point that it has been out in the sun/rain/humidity unprotected all this time.
The teak on the other hand has some "soft" spots and the marine ply is delaminating.
So ends this test as I threw out the control groups the other day...
While not exactly conclusive, it does reinforce some opinions I've had for a long while about teak being just about the last wood I'd use for boat construction (well, unless it was FREE) brought about by having worked on a lot of boats with serious rot issues that involved teak and redecking an old schooner built in 1910 whose original pine deck was in pretty much pristine condition the problem being the oak beams under the deck which were soft.
In a couple of weeks I'm going to build a new T-section boom for "So It Goes" and I'll be building it out of yellow pine. It's cheap and more than strong enough with the addition of a bit of carbon roving I happen to have laying around. Coated with epoxy then painted, it will likely last twenty years or so with minimal maintenance. Better yet, I don't have to take out a mortgage to be able to afford a more seamanlike wood.
Even more important, woods like yellow pine and cypress are much more sustainable materials than exotic hardwoods... Not only are you saving a lot of money, you're also doing the right thing ecology wise. What's not to love?
The formply, on the other hand, needs some more testing where long term epoxy/glassfiber adhesion is concerned. That said, If I were going to build a sharpie or any traditional plywood construction boat I'd be looking very seriously at formply for the hull, deck, and bulkheads...
Now, I'll admit it's not a serious scientific test and more a simple bit of satisfying my curiosity but it has been enlightening.
The wood in question is a bit of yellow pine "2X4" , a bit of cypress 1"X6" and a scrap of some formply I used for a mold section when I was strip-planking my new mast. For a control I have a little offcut of teak and a scrap of marine plywood.
As to the conditions it's been subjected to, I happen to be in the Caribbean and it's been through the same old same tropical weather and conditions that everyone warns you about when they are telling you that you need an expensive tropical hardwood because anything else will deteriorate and rot.
So, here's the thing...
The pine 2" X 4" is, except for some minor discoloration, just peachy keen and so is the cypress 1' X 6". As for the formply it looks pretty much as it did when I cut it out. I should restate the point that it has been out in the sun/rain/humidity unprotected all this time.
The teak on the other hand has some "soft" spots and the marine ply is delaminating.
So ends this test as I threw out the control groups the other day...
While not exactly conclusive, it does reinforce some opinions I've had for a long while about teak being just about the last wood I'd use for boat construction (well, unless it was FREE) brought about by having worked on a lot of boats with serious rot issues that involved teak and redecking an old schooner built in 1910 whose original pine deck was in pretty much pristine condition the problem being the oak beams under the deck which were soft.
In a couple of weeks I'm going to build a new T-section boom for "So It Goes" and I'll be building it out of yellow pine. It's cheap and more than strong enough with the addition of a bit of carbon roving I happen to have laying around. Coated with epoxy then painted, it will likely last twenty years or so with minimal maintenance. Better yet, I don't have to take out a mortgage to be able to afford a more seamanlike wood.
Even more important, woods like yellow pine and cypress are much more sustainable materials than exotic hardwoods... Not only are you saving a lot of money, you're also doing the right thing ecology wise. What's not to love?
The formply, on the other hand, needs some more testing where long term epoxy/glassfiber adhesion is concerned. That said, If I were going to build a sharpie or any traditional plywood construction boat I'd be looking very seriously at formply for the hull, deck, and bulkheads...
Friday, June 13, 2014
On the premise that spending money to save money is a good idea...
I'm currently fleshing out some ideas about frugal cruising for my Island Gourmand blog. While reading some other blogs on cooking on boats I detected a certain trend where saving money was concerned. The solution most put forward to spending less seemed to be to go out and spend more.
I'll be honest this sorta/kinda surprised me.
Looking at a lot of advice on the web regarding saving money cruising or for your boat there it was again; the same spend money to save money mantra... So, for instance, if you have an inboard engine that uses too much fuel (or so you think) and you run your engine 300 hours a year, your best solution would be to...
On the food front my basic premise is simply to fish more, spend less, and, when needful to spend money, make sure the math works out in your favor whenever possible.
Applied to general boatbuilding, boat upkeep, and cruising, translates to DIY more, spend less, and, when needful to spend money, make sure the math works out in your favor whenever possible...
Not exactly rocket science is it?
I'll be honest this sorta/kinda surprised me.
Looking at a lot of advice on the web regarding saving money cruising or for your boat there it was again; the same spend money to save money mantra... So, for instance, if you have an inboard engine that uses too much fuel (or so you think) and you run your engine 300 hours a year, your best solution would be to...
- Live with the problem as 1.1 gallons an hour instead of 1 gallon an hour only adds $120 to the yearly fuel bill.
- Replace the engine for around $10K to save that $120 a year.
- Live with the problem, sail more, and use your engine less.
On the food front my basic premise is simply to fish more, spend less, and, when needful to spend money, make sure the math works out in your favor whenever possible.
Applied to general boatbuilding, boat upkeep, and cruising, translates to DIY more, spend less, and, when needful to spend money, make sure the math works out in your favor whenever possible...
Not exactly rocket science is it?
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