Confronting your fears...

One of our readers here at Boat Bits wrote recently and disclosed that he had a fear of doing some rigging work that was needful on his boat and simply too expensive to have done by a "professional rigger"...

I get that, I used to have a fear of spars...

What I mean is, I used to feel more than able to build a boat but spar-making worried me. I could plank a hull, build cabinets, and do all manner of boatbuilding mayhem but when it came to masts I had this feeling that, just maybe, I should leave that to someone with greater skills than I.

Like most irrational fears, when you look into them deeply you find that they simply do not make any sense. In this case, if I could lay a keel, do a teak deck that did not leak, and do pretty joinery, it's obvious that I possess enough woodworking skills to do a mast but I still had that feeling that it was beyond me...

I have run into so many people that suffered from the same problem though in some cases it was engine repair, rigging or sail repair. Fact is, a lot of the mailbag from Boat Bits readers concerns these mental road blocks we set to keep us from doing certain boat tasks.

In my case, dealing with my fear of spars came about simply because way back when, I needed a mast and I simply could not afford one so it was dealing with the fear or not sailing. Or in other words, my being Mr Cheapseats trumps fear!

Once I started that very first mast I found that not only was it not difficult or beyond my abilities, but was easily the most enjoyable work I had ever done in a boat yard.

Now, many years and spars later, I still love building spars...

Which is not to say you will find that you love whatever boat task you find your fear factor in, but if you take the time and work through your fear you will find that it is a lot easier than you thought, and the rewards are great. More than likely, you will also save yourself a lot of money in the process as well.

Listening to Lowell's daughter sing

So it goes...

Sort of a restatement of purpose...

Some food for thought before you dust off the BBQ and get to the holidaze ting...

Robert Reich brings clarity to the economy circa 2011, Skippy points out some things regarding the environment and it's scary, good men and women in uniform continue to die in needless wars, and the rich just keep getting richer...

Same as it ever was... you'd really think we'd get a clue.

Which, of course, has bugger all to do with boats, boatbuilding, and cruising... Except for the fact that what's going on in the world affects us big time whether we are anchored in (insert your most dreamed about or favorite anchorage here), and if you do not believe, just look at how much it costs you to fill a grocery basket with provisions, fill your fuel tanks, or get a new sail.

Which is why I subtitled this blog "Sailing in Hard Times" to try and be a small link to the real world and not just another escapist let's-party-till-the-lights-go-out and adopt an Alfred E.Newman take on sailing...

Have a happy and safe Memorial Day.

Listening to Crooked Still

So it goes...

Face it, folks who dance are scary...

"Dissent is the highest form of patriotism."
                                           Thomas Jefferson

Will the mimes be next?

A good read...

It's out and it's an excellent issue... Get it here!

An interesting book...

Like a lot of people, I keep looking at the new battery chemistries with great interest. Actually maybe more than some, as having electric propulsion, I may be just that little bit closer to being watt-centric than most.

I expect the two lead-acid (Trojan T-106's) battery banks aboard "So It Goes" will be good till 2016 or thereabouts. I would be very surprised if when it's time to replace them that lead acid is even in the running, with the price of lead acid batteries going up and lithium chemistry batteries coming down...

At the moment according to my inner "spidey sense"  the new batteries don't quite live up their claims on a cost/utility/longevity basis but it seems it's getting closer. So at the moment since I have some years of lead-acid energy in hand to wait it out, I don't feel the need to jump quite yet and lead-acid is more than up to doing the job for the moment.

That said, I'll admit to not really knowing what makes the new batteries tick as most of the information I receive about them is from people having a vested interest in selling me their new/better battery and I expect them to tell me whatever they want whether it is true or not... Trust, my friends, where money and profits are concerned, is not my strong suit.

Which is why I was excited to see "Bottled Lightning: Superbatteries, Electric Cars, and the New Lithium Economy" pop up on my books-to-read list. While I don't expect it to answer all my questions, it's a start...


Listening to Pearl Harbor and the Explosions 


So it goes...

Good news...

A quick note...

 The film "180 South" just won best film at the Cine de Surf Festival... Great stuff!

Tool meltdown blues...

Diverse reading this morning... Toolmonger discusses what's needed for the Zombie Apocalypse, Global Guerrillas points out some ways to thrive as things around us fall apart, and TechDirt makes a point...

I spent part of yesterday cutting up wood and discovered I have a problem with my big circular saw (not quite sure what) and my Dewalt tools are all dead as the last set of batteries are no longer with the living. A real bummer in that they are not old enough to be in such a sorry state and my belief is that Dewalt while raising prices has downgraded their quality...

While I am a little pissed about the current tool meltdown, as most boat folks know, having stuff cease to function always has a silver lining of being able to get new gear to replace that which no longer works and dump the old (the Number 3 Rippingille stove rule). Even a dedicated dumpster diving cheapseats like yours truly, will feel that tinge of excitement of being able to buy NEW TOOLS...

Actually, I have been thinking a lot about something of a tool regime aboard "So It Goes" as some of my tools just don't seem to be earning their keep of late and they do take up valuable space and a lighter boat would be no bad thing. This does not mean I'd be willing to trade function but more along the lines of taking advantage of some of the new smaller tools that have been cropping up over the last few years...

A good case in point would be my router (I have a Ryobi) which, while an excellent tool, is big, heavy, and a bit overkill for most boat jobs short of full scale boatbuilding. When I use it I tend to wish for a lighter palm router (bastard son of a laminate trimmer and a router) as it would be handier for most jobs and not take up an entire tool box like my Ryobi.

Much the same could be said for my circular saw... The minute I got my Dewalt cordless circular saw, my 7 1/4 inch circular became a seldom used piece of gear and mostly just sat in the locker rusting. Which told me that in point of fact a 5 1/2 inch circular saw would be a better match... The thing is, tools are so cheap these days that if I need a 7 1/4 inch circular saw for a project I can simply buy one for the duration...

Less as they say, can be more...

Listening to Muddy Waters

So it goes...

I know where my towel is...

Do you?

Happy towel day to all!

Being curious and all...

I'm wondering...

How many of the Boat Bits readership have a dedicated emergency rudder of one sort or another?

Of those who do not...

How many have a "cunning plan" to throw one together if the need arises?

Just thinking...

Listening to  The Turtles

So it goes...

Easy wrongs and hard rights...

Here is a Republican I'd vote for...

How is it things get lost on boats?

Some time back, Scott Williams sent me his new book to read and review and, like an idiot, I misplaced it. Today it has magically resurfaced from whence it has been hiding... So expect a full review soonish, but in the meantime, if his last book is anything to go by, "Getting Out Alive" is well worth taking a look at...

A bit of sunshine behind the deluge...

We've had a couple of weeks of what has seemed like non-stop rain... So much so, that when I went to get a sheet of plywood yesterday, they asked me how many cubits I needed... Hopefully the sun will shine just long enough to get through the current spate of projects.

This morning's reading consisted of some good points by Kuntsler on the Lance Armstrong brouhaha, how Harold Camping just keeps bouncing back (Rapture rescheduled for October 21), and how folks who consider their boats a second home for tax purposes should be writing their folks in Congress...

On the gear side, I've mentioned in the past that I'm looking for a portable depth sounder for the dinghy and for checking out hurricane holes (yep, its that time of year again...). So far my search has just not panned out too well, as nothing seems to scream "Buy me", but the other day while researching some fishing gear I happened across this fishfinder and while it did not so much scream "Buy me" it has been whispering seductively...

What's cool about the Hummingbird Smartcast is that the transducer is wireless and encased in a float that you can cast with a fishing rod and the fishfinder screen is in a cool (shades-of-Dick-Tracy) wristwatch housing... Yowza!

When you think about it, this is all sorts of practical and makes all kinds of sense and could lend itself to all sorts of useful depth finding mayhem aboard a sailboat. The fact that it also functions as a fishfinder is just icing on the cake! Even better for a person of my frugal nature... it's cheap!

Listening to Anna Singt

So it goes...

A must see/read...

Dmitry Orlov was at the Northern California Ecofest and explained why sailboats make so much sense in a world where we've reached "Peak Everything"...




This is just the sort of presentation that would be great to share with our land bound friends who just don't get it!

Some advice concerning vises...

So, we were talking about vises...

The thing about a good (not to be confused with "expensive") vise is that it is a very useful, if simple, tool aboard a boat. Simple is a good thing.

Everyone knows that vises hold things, that's pretty much their role in life and they do it pretty well. What most people forget is that the mechanics that allow it to grip things also can be used to exert force... Handy when you need to crimp some battery cables and dropped your crimper overboard or suchlike. A proper vise is also an anvil and more often than you'd think, being able to pound the hell out of a piece of metal with a five pound sledge or a ball pein hammer (you do of course have ball pein hammers, right?) will make an unruly part fit or function...

Like anchors, a vise should have some weight and next-gen vises should be avoided. A good rule of thumb is if it does not weigh at least fifteen or twenty pounds simply say NO!

The vise on "So It Goes" is a Pony which I picked up on sale for $20, and because I don't have a proper workbench to bolt it to, I simply bolted it to a 2' X 2' scrap of 1/2" plywood. The weight of the vise keeps it in place on a cockpit seat (for instance) when I'm cutting, grinding, hammering, or other metal mayhem. For those rare times I need something even more solid I can always clamp the plywood down when needful.

The Pony is an excellent vise but really no different than a cheap Chinese copy. If you really feel the need to look hip, a can of orange spray paint only runs a couple of bucks. So my advice is buy cheap, but buy heavy.

A quick word about those sad wannabee vises that come and go every so often geared to the yacht trade... Don't! They are silly expensive and they simply don't work worth a damn. Those clever vises that fit into a winch are the worst of the bunch as they are not very good vises but are really excellent at destroying winches. Actually just about any tool that says "yacht" or "marine" on the box is best avoided...

Listening to David Ruiz

So it goes...

Went shopping yesterday...

Hmmm... I see we're all still here today!

A couple of boats and a vise...

I've been a little distracted this morning, what with the approaching Rapture and all but luckily my morning reading helped me regain some focus...

1001 Boats (always a good read) had a great post regarding a very cool cruising rowboat...

Meanwhile, ace designer Michael Storer and builder/client Perttu got together and came up with a very cool nano cruising boat design based on the open source PD Racer... Is it just me or does this make a lot of sense as a lifeboat/dinghy concept for a medium sized cruising boat?

Be talking vise today I know, but with Day of Rapture and Talk Like Yoda, behind I am... If at 6:01 PM we still here be, right on it I will get. Some vise porn in the meantime, to enjoy...

Listening to The Commodores

So it goes...

Talking about tools that crimp...

A friend of mine recently asked me if I had any cunning plans on how to crimp some battery lugs without a proper tool (he being a couple of thousand miles away so borrowing mine was somewhat problematic)...

I gave it some quick thought and came up with a work-around using a quickie DIY die made from scrap metal and using a vise. Somewhat kludgy, but workable, so I sent him an email with the details.

A couple of minutes later I got a return email with the statement "But, I don't have a bench vise"...

Now, some scientists believe that the thing that separates us from being common animals is our ability to use tools... Personally I don't buy that theory as I've seen animals make and use tools enough to know that Homo Sapiens is not alone in the tool use gig. For what it's worth, I think the scientists were pretty close but actually, what separates us from the animals, is our ability to use a vise.

Since vises are such an important tool aboard a boat I'll talk about that in depth tomorrow with another post, but for now we are going to talk about battery cable crimpers... Because my sub-human buddy needs to crimp him some cables and he needs to do them NOW!

Most of us on boats would really like to have a pro cable crimper like this one from Ancor...

It's powerful, precise, and not silly expensive (less than $300) in the world of really good professional tools (some "Pro" crimpers can go as high as $5000). While it does a great job, it is a bit overkill for the needs of a cruising sailor (unless that cruising sailor is running a battery cable business) and it takes up more room than most of us are comfortable giving to a tool that gets used for a job every other blue moon...

Now here is a really neat hydraulic crimper I really lust after.

It does everything the Ancor does yet in a smaller size and at a quarter of the cost. Last time I rewired "So It Goes" 48V battery bank I used one... and, well orgasmic is the only word that comes to mind... A truly awesome tool. If someone made carbide blades for this to make it into a crimper/cutter it would be a must have.

Of course, as cool as that hydraulic crimper is and however much I lust for it, I already have a hammer/anvil sort of crimper that works really well, takes up almost no space and costs less than $20. Since it works as well as it does, replacing it just does not make any sense. It's a very good tool and hard to beat for a boat's tool kit... So overall, I'd say this was the tool to get.

Have you ever noticed that no one ever tells you about the tools you SHOULD NOT get until after you buy it and then they tell you how awful it is? Man, I hate it when folks do that, so my apologies if you happen to have one of these lug crimpers from hell...

They are awful. They are expensive. They are dangerous (well unless you do electrical work wearing full body armor). It is a wonder that the company that makes such a great pro crimper also makes and sells this dangerous waste of space (Hey, I got all the way though that without saying SHIT once)...

Listening to The Chieftains

So it goes...

Really good music...

...and a really good cause.



Buy the Music or CD and help out!

One thing about cruisers they understand the importance of a checklist...

Rain day...

It's raining...

I'm not complaining, just simply stating a fact. I had planned to buy a sheet of plywood today and spend the afternoon cutting it into smaller pieces for various projects. But, I can do that manana...

Mananas though, for some folks, might get a little iffy with the rapture just around the corner on Saturday. Which, as it happens, is also "Talk like Yoda Day". Truth be told, I have a whole lot more faith that we will all be talking like Yoda...

That said, I really have to admire those folks who have seen the Rapture as a new growth industry. Something not unlike the Cruising Rally Business...

I've actually been giving some serious thought about a new sort of Cruising Rally married with the idea that when the Zombie apocalypse happens it will open a whole new cruising dynamic. As a member in good standing of the marine trades, I am honor bound to try and make an obscene profit on disasters. So, if I can't seriously gouge someone with an upcoming Zombie apocalypse, I'll be drummed out of the Marine Trades Association...

I think Z.A.R.C. has a nice ring to it and beats the hell out of the Sailing Dead 1500!

Of course, ripping people off on this scale takes some serious planning and is not without some serious competition. I notice a lot of other folks are sniffing around the Zombie Apocalypse trend and it's not just cruising rallies. Rumour has it that Harken is working up a new line of zombie proof winches, Colligo has some interesting new lifeline kits (I didn't even know there was such a thing as barbed Dynex Dux) and then there's Rocna...

The bad news is that the Center for Disease Control is working really hard on preparing for the Zombie apocalypse and doing their best to take the apocalypse part out of the equation, which obviously would cut into profits. Fact is, they have already published a guide to staying safe in the event of a Zombie breakout... Bummer, that would really screw up my rally plans. I'd feel so much more comfortable if instead of the all too competent CDC working on keeping the Zombie hordes at bay, that a more inept and fumbling agency (FEMA, TSA, etc) were to take over and help put a capital "A" back in Apocalypse...

Listening to Sister Hazel

So it goes...

Some coffee and...

Today's morning reading included scary stuff about the market for human organs, more depressing stuff regarding our oceans, some thoughts on rapture (my bet is there are going to be a lot of pissed off folks on the 22nd) and a good excuse I can use for drinking lots of coffee...

The last time I got gas, fuel had just gone up, so not a huge surprise getting a couple of gallons of gas yesterday only to find that fuel had gone up another thirty-cents a gallon ($4.55 a gallon). Kind of makes me wonder if this is going to be an every time I need fuel scenario... Almost makes you understand why some people are looking forward to being raptured or trying to sell a kidney!

As for me... The sun is shining, the solar panels are putting about eight amps into our batteries, and there is a fresh pot of coffee to drink. Life is just fine.

Listening to The Pouges

So it goes...

There are idiots minding the store...

Making the Chicago River safe enough for swimming would waste taxpayer money and increase the risk of people drowning, officials who oversee the waterway said today...

Sound of head banging on desk...

Do I really need this?

I've been thinking a lot lately about getting an iPad...

Partly because my current MacBook is getting somewhat long in the tooth, and partly because I'd really like the electronic equivalent of a pen and paper so I could spend more time writing while out and about.

Now, part of me is loath to spend the sort of money that this exercise entails. For what would be in all reality a replacement for said pad and pen (cost about $2), my consumerist demons seductively whisper to me that it would also do double duty as a media center, navigation station (there are some very cool apps you know!), and I could use it to store my recipes...

To tell you the truth, Mr Cheapseats is mightily swayed, but is hanging on by just a thread to sanity to the need/want continuum.

Even as much as I want the iPad and as many clever and cunning selling points I can come up with for it and various needful accessories, I just can't escape the fact that I simply don't really need it at this point in time.

Bummer!

Truth is, I'm used to it... Being frugal on a sailboat means applying the need/want equation to just about everything you spend money on, and while from time to time it is a little painful, more often than not it is simply a way of sorting out what is needful or not, and once you have arrived at your decision it's somewhat happy making...

I currently have a project in the works which really seems to call for a bench grinder...

I do, of course, have an angle grinder (sort of the wrong grinder for most every job and cousin, I'm sure, to a Leatherman or ViceGrips). I could do this job using it but the result would be less than it could be and the use of a bench grinder would make the result both nicer, cut way down on the amount of labor, and make the operation somewhat safer in the grand scheme of things.

I can buy a bench grinder for around $50 and since tools hold their value, I can easily sell it off (if I care to) for near two-thirds of what I pay for it. The bench grinder starts looking like a good investment whether I keep it or not. Throw in the fact that I do quite a lot of rigging work and being able to grind, polish. and buff stainless is often called for, it is something of a slam dunk... I actually need a bench grinder.

Now, if the iPad only had a grinding app...

Listening to John Lee Hooker

So it goes...

Must be defective sailing gloves...

Face it, all of us who sail on boats have our personal collection of "days of shame" where we screwed up and looked foolish... It's all part of the gig. Then again, for a lot of sailing glove wearing bareboat captains, it would appear that screwing up "IS" the gig...

Now, a pair of hip sailing gloves will set you back between $20-40 so here's a thought... Get a book on how to sail instead and give it a read! Might help avoid looking like these guys...



Listening to Hot Bitch Arsenal

So it goes...

Speaking of #3 Rippingille stoves...

I've just started listening to an audio version of "Riddle of the Sands" (you can get it here for free) and as often as I've read this book it never gets old and is easily the best sailing yarn I have ever come across...

The funny thing is... as many times as I have devoured the "Riddle of the Sands" I have never had a clear picture of exactly what a Number 3 Rippingille stove actually looks like, so on a whim did a search and found the very thing...

A seriously cool stove!

Is not the internet wonderful?

Funny thing, I always expected the #3 Rippingille to look something like an old brass Optimus instead of a precursor to what most of us think as a proper boat stove (like the Camp Chef).

Listening to Jo Mama

So it goes...

Bet you never thought I'd say this...

Since we had our little waterspout adventure, I've spent some time diving the various affected boat's ground tackle, to see how things looked... This is what fuels my opinions relating to ground tackle.

One of the problems with various anchor tests is that (in my opinion) they really don't simulate what happens when a boat is at anchor (a nearly impossible feat) and replace it with a simple "strength" testing of one sort or another which has bugger all to do with real holding power, how an anchor will hold up, or the reality of what keeps your boat in place.

Recently Rocna anchors has come under some fire as another anchor company has "independently tested" (yeah sure) a Rocna and it did not live up to the Rocna claims.

Now, some of you may remember that I am no big fan of Rocna, or its marketing methods, and I personally feel that the whole "next-gen" anchor thing is just so much snake oil. So why would I come to the defense of said Rocna anchors or question a test that shows it to be less than Rocna says it is?

Well first, snake oil aside, I believe that the Rocna anchors are actually an acceptable anchor design and work at doing what they are designed to do. Second, I can take ANY anchor and put it on a test bench and find any number of ways to destroy it. You simply have to exert enough force in the right place. Though, more than likely, doing that sort of test would place the anchor in conditions or subject it to stresses that simply do not exist in an actual boat at anchor situation (not unlike the famous test of a typewriter by Ruscha/Mason throwing it out the window of a moving car at 90MPH. While entertaining, hardly a test that makes sense if you want a typewriter for typing). Such is the stuff of most anchor testing...

Of course, that's just my opinion and, like most things not paid for, more than likely worth what you're paying for it. That said, if you are going to put a lot of credence in anchor tests, and especially anchor tests done or paid for by anchor companies, you really should get one of these...

Listening to The Persuasions

So it goes...

Just when you thought it was safe to go shopping...

Yesterday we had to do some shopping and when we left the boat there was not so much as a breath of wind, the sky was an azure blue and the water was as smooth as glass...

A couple hours later, while we contemplated whether to buy a large box of Oreos or Famous Amos cookies, our cell phone rang.

The boat moored next to us was calling to tell us that a waterspout seemed to be forming less than a hundred feet away from us and that maybe we should know...

Being that we were in a store, and, at best, a half hour from our dinghy, this was something of a can't really do anything but pray to the PTB"s situation. So we got a play by play commentary of all hell breaking loose while we stood in a supermarket aisle powerless to do anything.

The next five minutes seemed to last forever...

The water spout formed between us and two other boats (So It Goes is just out of frame to the left in the picture). As we listened, we heard how one boat was enveloped and then that it appeared that one boat had come loose from its mooring (luckily it did not). The ensuing mayhem had all of the boats in touch with the spout in unnatural positions to each other. The spout then went through the anchorage nearly causing a collision between two boats as they were both sucked towards each other then it continued to the launching ramp and dissipated as it came into contact with the land...

"So It Goes" did not sustain any damage nor did anyone else in the anchorage but it was a very close thing and it could have been very ugly. After we returned I dived on my ground tackle to find that our bow was nearly on top of the anchor and that our chain was laid out in two nearly perfect circles around it... Pretty impressive considering I have nearly 150' of chain out.

Our cats (Buffy and Willow) were a little shell shocked having been inside while "So It Goes" did, or so I'm told, a fairly convincing imitation of a dradle. Both Buffy and Willow appear to believe this is not what they signed up for and can we spell c-o-m-p-e-n-s-a-t-i-o-n? It appears that many cat treats and string time is the order of the day.

Listening to a Buffet clone

So it goes...

Sort of a snow day...

Blogger seemed to have gone all FUBAR, so I went and did some free diving instead... More tomorrow!

This is just so wrong...

City of Dallas steals $2,000 from child

What a great month...

As everyone knows, things are hectic aboard "So It Goes" during Zombie Awareness Month (or for some Zombie Cultural Appreciation Month) so we may not be posting as much as usual...

Lucky for you, some of our compatriots are pulling their weight while we get zombied...

Navagear (or, as those in the know call it, "Crab Trap Central", CTC for short) has a new toy! Meanwhile 70.8% is talking both bikes and boats (we like that!) and Odda Sea waxes eloquent about his new non-skid...

Listening to Roky and the Explosives

So it goes...

Money for old rope, or something like it...

I noticed the other day that a large "discount" chandler was offering 12-strand splicing at $22 a pop, $15 for a three-strand eye splice, $30 for a rope/chain splice, and $5 for a whipping...

Talk about a whipping...OUCH!

I really try not to make categorical statements but if you pay that sort of money for splicing you are a seriously flawed (and flailed) human being and by the way, you just might be interested in this tower I have for sale in the middle of Paris...

Seriously, splicing is one of the first bits of boat work you need to know how to do. It's easy, needful, and it will save you a lot of money... With me so far?

Take the rig on "So It Goes" we have four halyards each needing an eye splice, nine stays needing two each... At $22 a pop that is $286 for splicing and we won't even get into the various other splices that come into play with sheets, rodes, and other marlinspike miscellany.

Now, an unhurried 12-strand splice done to good music while sipping coffee or a beer takes a little less than ten minutes. So being industrious you could knock out the rig and halyards in about two hours if you are sipping coffee, and, let's say three if you are doing the Moose Drool.  Thinking along those lines you'd be paying that discount chandler between $95 to $143 and hour to do your needful splices.

Tools for splicing are really simple you can get by with knitting needle, a bit of copper tubing, forceps, or even buy a bespoke everything you need kit for not much more than a single splice at that discount chandlery. Everything you need to learn is in Mr Toss's excellent "The Complete Rigger's Apprentice" book or his "Eye Splices" DVD. For those of a very frugal nature and some time on their hands, how-to's for most needful splices can be found on the net and YouTube.

Listening to Dan Hicks and his Hot Licks (with the Lickettes!)

So it goes...

Way cool...

Talk with a dolphin via underwater translation machine... Check it out

Some tool talk...

I've never been much of a tool snob...

Granted, I have a great admiration for a good tool, but just don't seem to see needing tools that are also works of art. As long as they are functional I'm happy. There is a lot to be said for tools that are affordable, functional, and long wearing... Funny thing many of the bespoke expensive tools you find these days are simply recreations of old lower-end tools and that might be something to ponder next time you start drooling over a $200 block plane which is a copy of a plane that cost a $1 when your grandfather bought one... Then again, if you really feel you need classic tools I have only two words for you...

Garage sale!

But, that's not what I wanted to talk about...  I wanted to point out how a lot of boatfolk don't always have the right tool for the job. My Dad used to tell me that there were three types of tool users. Those who used the right tool for the job, those who did not, and those in the middle ground with as much sense as a bag of hammers. Much to my father's shame, I fall into the latter category.

I actually do know that there is always a right tool for a given job as well as a wrong tool (almost always a pair of vice-grips in my experience) but, being lazy and cheap, I often find myself in that middle ground trying to find a sorta/kinda substitute...

For instance, "So It Goes" has no shortage of split rings aboard and as a result, it's hardly surprising that I need to deal with split rings on a pretty regular basis. Of course, I know that there is a right tool for the job (split ring pliers) and I know there is a really, really bad tool, the dreaded vice grips, but for some silly reason continue to try and use all manner of tools that sorta/kinda work to avoid spending $5-15 on the right tool.

Screwdrivers sorta work but they also have a nasty habit of impaling the hand holding the split ring. Which (I speak from experience) is both painful and results in copious blood flow and stains of clothing, deck and suchlike. Thumbnails sorta/kinda work and do not result in copious blood flow but ripping out a nail is, trust me on this, rather more painful and best avoided.

I'm happy to say that split ring pliers now have a treasured spot in my tool box and they do deal with split rings finest kind as well as sorta/kinda working as a clamp when soldering PC boards...

Listening to Jean Luc Ponty

So it goes...

Just another Mothers day...

Face it, some holidays are special.

Yeah, I know that Mothers Day is actually supposed to be about "Mothers" as opposed to the "Mothers of Invention" but on the universe aboard "So It Goes" I get to define holidays (well except those that fall in the month of March) so on Mothers day, it IS all about the Mothers of Invention!

Frank Zappa was as close as it comes to a true Renaissance man of his time. Keen political thinker, multi-faceted musician/composer, and an astute businessman who both played the music industry to his own interests (a very rare accomplishment) and seeing the future demise of the music industry as it was, began to adopt what has become the model for independent music and media as we know it today...

I count myself very lucky to have both had the pleasure of seeing Zappa and his various bands play on many occasions, visit with him a few times, and, even once, opened a show that included Frank headlining...

Happy Mothers Day...



Listening to Hot Rats

So it goes...

A few thoughts on marine trades...

The other day The Path Less Pedaled had an interesting post about how businesses could be more bike friendly and it got me thinking...

Marine businesses always seem to be complaining about how hard times are but don't seem to be all that interested in working to attract more business outside of sales and more sales. Not that I am adverse to sales and the odd discount but if your only means of attracting customers is by slashing prices you quickly find yourself in an unwinnable situation. If your clients are only interested in price, the customer will always go to the next guy who is a few pennies cheaper.

Of course, providing good service used to be the hallmark of a good marine store or business but that seems to have fallen by the wayside as the first casualty of "LOW PRICES" seems to be "GOOD SERVICE". It has been pointed out to me more than a few times that since I bought the stuff from them, why would I expect to have it work or actually function?

Sadly the folks who don't discount seem to have gone to the extreme in the other direction marking up already high prices to a level on par with bank robbery or Ponzi schemes. Marine businesses of this ilk don't seem to put a high priority on good service and it has been my experience that they only excel in being rude and unwelcoming (if they deign to bother with you at all).

Which is not to say that there are not some excellent businesses in the middle ground that seem able to do a good job, have fair prices, and a good attitude. I know from personal experience that this is a hard road to plow as far too often buyers of marine gear can be problematic at best and at worst a nightmare of epic proportions... So there is some fault on both sides of the counter for the less-than-wonderful state of modern marine business.

So, how to make things better?

If you are a business... Why not think in terms of value added instead of discounting? Adding value to the mix can come in many forms from education, providing a dinghy dock, or a place for cruisers to dispose of their trash. Throw in fair pricing and a good shop personality and you might be very surprised just how much stuff actually gets sold... Plus, here is a thought, look up the word "marketing" and do some!

Boat folk, on the other hand, could also improve their lot in life by not using a marine store as a place to check out gear while picking the brains of shop people with no intention of buying. Buying it online from a box store that provides zero personal assistance/service but sells for a few cents cheaper is certainly OK but not if you are using someone local as a surrogate salesman for advice and information. Or, if you have bought from a box store, then, when you have a problem don't use your local shop as a repair/warranty center because you don't want to spend to ship it back to the folks you bought it from.

Nuff said...

Listening to Jo Jo Gunne

So it goes...

Speaking of bikes...

We bought gas yesterday ($4.25 a gallon) and even though we have an electric drive and our fossil fuel needs (outboard, generator and stove) are frugal, the simple act of paying that kind of money is painful...

We still have not decided on the next bikes for the boat (so many great bikes, so little time) but holding off on getting them was something of a bungle in planning, as the added freedom and mobility for things like shopping would have been a very good thing.

I really hate how hindsight is 20/20...

Bikes and boats...

Over at the Surly blog they are getting the boat bug...

Today a pack raft, tomorrow a sailboat?

Listening to Paul Revere & the Raiders

So it goes...

Worth a read...

Gary over at OceanMedia makes a couple of points about St. Maarten...

The minimalist conundrum...

I keep looking for more boat and island friendly shoes as I expect to blow out yet another pair of Tevas in the foreseeable future but I'm finding Minimalist Footwear to have very non-minimalist pricing...

That said, I really like the range of choice in the Vibram Five-finger models!

Oops...

I made a mistake yesterday... Fact is, I have made more mistakes than most folks I know. Not bragging, simply a statement of fact...

In this case, the mistake made was not getting enough material for the project in process. Getting more entails getting online and ordering it from someplace in Kansas or suchlike. The downside is that this job just got put on hold for the next couple of weeks.

The upside is that I can take a moment and reconsider the project and choices made so far. Ask myself is this the right way to do it and, if not, work out a better way. Making mistakes is almost always a learning experience if we take the time and let them teach us something...

Listening to The Jukes 

So it goes...

Lifeboat stations...

Speaking of triage and priorities...

Texas, a state with a 27 billion dollar deficit, is making deep cuts in education and government services while at the same time giving a big tax break to folks with yachts by capping the sales tax so that no tax would be collected on transactions over the $250,000 mark.

So, in short, if you buy a boat for $250,000 you'll pay the same tax as someone who bought a mega yacht for $250,000,000.00...

Listening to James McMurtry maybe you should too...



So it goes...

Triage...

Yesterday I took my ailing Atoms clone self-steering apart and found myself in that no-mans land of triage... Do I repair? Rebuild/modify? Or just build a whole new one...

More than likely I'll just repair it, derust as much as possible and give it some paint to make it a kiss more attractive at the next nautical flea market/boat jumble I find myself at.

The upside is I have been just itching to build a new gear as there are some things I'd really like to try out (like not using a trim tab for one and some cunning carbon trickery for another), plus I'd feel better with an auxiliary rudder system when all is said and done.

Fun stuff...

Listening to Dexys Midnight Runners

So it goes...

On wealth and riches not being the same thing...

I suppose it is all a matter of perspective. I think I'm rich and this silly fool thinks he's poor...

By today's standards our "So It Goes" is a quite small boat. Fifteen years ago it would have been a medium-sized cruising boat and, ten years before that, it would have even been considered large by a lot of people in the cruising world.

Times change...

On the other hand, basic needs never really do. Our boat is comfortable and fulfills all our needs (well, one can always use some more space for guitars and film gear) but really, what more can one ask for? We have a galley I'm able to cook anything we desire, a comfortable bed, space to lounge in comfort, all the toys we feel are needful to folks who like their media in high quality and the beer is cold. In other words... All the comforts of home!

If I had more money I'd likely have a slightly different boat. Possibly a couple of feet longer and, just maybe, I'd get real playful with design parameters. I really love playing with how a boat works and, if I were wealthy, I'd be doing a lot more cunning plan fun and frolic... Not that "So It Goes" has not been an ongoing test bed of both good and silly ideas, but more money would allow more silly input into the mix.

So, while I'm not wealthy, I do feel rich... Not a bad place to be as far as I can tell. For those who need to know, that place would be anchored a stones throw from a multimillion dollar mega-yacht. We have the same view and truth be told, I think we have the better deal...

Listening to Quicksilver Messenger Service

So it goes...