Random thoughts and rants on boat design, boat building, and other boat bits for those in the 99%...
Stolen raccoons, exploding whales, and in the "Milk with Dignity" department...
Atom Voyager has taken the whole outboard conversion process to a level approaching art and there is a lot to be learned by following along while an artist works his magic.
Color me impressed.
Listening to Arny Margret
So it goes...
Some hellish thinking, wood skyscrapers, and Webb Chiles with some thought on the current round-the-world race norm...
It's really that time of year again.
Yesterday, I was considering getting started on another dinghy and a new hard dodger but not so trustful on what the weather will be like come the weekend.
As I've said before, the best place to be during "H" season is at sidewalk cafe drinking Pastis in the south of France.
I'm really looking forward to that new dinghy and dodger as I've never been fully satisfied with the looks of the current dodger and since I just bought a new to me Cruise n' Carry outboard, a dinghy with an outboard-friendly transom would be no bad thing.
Not that I plan to quit rowing but it will be nice to have the option of the motor from time to time.
I suspect that today's tasks will be sorting out the mooring and checking out the ground tackle, as it's that time of year again.
Listening to Killer Whale
So it goes...
Some good news from Puerto Rico, republican thinking regarding demons, and in the "Hindsight's a bitch" department...
Sort of a blast from the past.
The Cruise'n carry, a rebranded Tanaka outboard, might not be the quietest outboard around but it has as much horsepower as most small hard dinghies require to make hull speed. Even better at only 12 pounds it's easy on the back.
For those interested in such a beast you should also be aware that the Tanaka was also rebranded by Gamefisher (Sears), and Waterbug.
Listening to a good/better/best coverage of the LA's
So it goes...
A sobering point, some steps in the right direction, and the Antarctic heat wave continues...
I just saw a 2.5 HP British Seagull motor for sale in Washington on Craig's List for the princely sum of $95! As someone who loves things pared down to the bare necessities, to say that I admire Seagull outboards would be an understatement.
According to the seller, the motor works well and my experience with Seagulls tells me that it's typical for their motors to keep going forever.
Did I mention that the motor in question was built in 1956?
Of course, when asked if he would be willing to ship it to the Caribbean, the seller did not want the hassle of taking a motor to the local post office (bummer), but it did get me thinking...
The Seagull is a real exercise in simplicity and, as such, the idea of just building a reasonable facsimile is not out of reach of even the most ham-fisted DIYer.
Being that it's 2022 and I really hate internal combustion engines, the home-cobbled Seagull I'm seeing in my head is going to be an electric motor that resembles a 66-year old Seagull.
I'm guessing the power source will be either 18V Ryobi or surplus 32V electric bike/scooter batteries. As I'm heavily invested in Ryobi tools, it kind of makes sense on one level but the large number of scooter/bike batteries available lends itself to the more oomph side of things. That said, the optimum HP needed for an eight foot pram dinghy is really only about 1HP so the Ryobi option might actually make more sense.
Obviously I have some more stuff to work through but it's going on lunchtime and I have to do the galley thing. Hopefully, more soon come.
Listening to Phosphorescent
So it goes...
A reasonable excuse, something interesting about cheese, and in the "Not at all surprising" department...
While I enjoy rowing I'll be the first to admit that on occasion a small outboard is no bad thing. I use the word 'small' because when I do the need/want test I find that what I need to power a small displacement dinghy to hull speed is just around 1HP.
Now, if you think about, it one horse power is actually a whole lot of energy and hardly a thing that is a candidate for derision. Trust me it will move your boat just fine.
Of course, our consumerist overlords don't seem willing to produce a one horse power outboard engine and these days finding a 2HP engine has become quite the problematic exercise.
The old air cooled 2-stroke Cruise N Carry outboard with 1.5HP was actually a pretty good motor as it was simple, easy to fix, and only weighed twelve pounds. The downside was being air-cooled and two-stroke it was a noisy little sucker.
It seems obvious, to me at least, that the way to go with a small outboard these days is going electric. There are lots of little trolling motor that would push your little displacement dinghy just fine.
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| Saturn 65pond thrust/1 HP motor |
The problems with little trolling motors for a cruiser is that while the motors are relatively inexpensive and light they do require a largish battery to make them work. The idea of having to wrangle a 100AH battery in and out of the dinghy on a regular basis as well as having to charge the battery does not induce a warm and fuzzy feeling.
There is one little electric outboard that checks off most of my list and that's the EP Carry which is a great design but somewhat pricey at $1600. Especially when considering that an electric weed wacker can be bought for less than $200.
Did I really just say weed wacker?
Think about that for a moment... It's an electric motor on a stick that turns something. While, granted, a polypro string is not exactly a great way to push your dinghy through the water it does not seem all that difficult of a stretch to imagine that one could attach a propeller to such a beast and see what happens.
Listening to ADG7
So it goes...
Greenwashing in aid of profits, an entertaining/educational app, and in the "Just in time for Christmas" department...
For a long time I've been pondering where or not to buy a Ryobi electric weed-whacker with the intention of morphing it into a dinghy propulsion device. As it happens, apparently, one of the big interest items at the Paris Boat Show is this electric godille (sculling oar). Bateaux magazine has an interesting write up on the motor as well.
Of course, being a product aimed at folks on boats it is a whole lot more expensive ($1600) than it should/could be. That said it is a pretty good proof of concept for me to get that Ryobi weed-whacker and get to doing.
Listening to New Order
So it goes...
An important milestone, a concise (if a bit self-promoting) history of surfboards, and a very good point...
tRump sending a message, a bit of needful reading, and some agribusiness criminality that really pisses me off...
So, the metal bits for my Jean du Sud style side mount outboard bracket project are now on island and, hopefully, I'll be able to get to doing soonish.
The real advantage of the new outboard location revolves around some serious boat butchery to the cockpit and going into test-bed mode for a couple of rudder designs with integrated self-steering while improving the general stowage and ergonomics of the cockpit in general.
Fun stuff.
Oh yeah, there will be bumpy (spelled t-u-b-e-r-c-l-e) bits.
Listening to some Springsteen coverage
So it goes...
Wendig with some advice I really needed today, a soundtrack we should not be letting happen, and because, you know, aliens and stuff...
A new video from James at Atom Voyages showing a very nice outboard installation you might want to check out.
If that doesn't do it for you Far Reach Voyages has what may be just the thing.
Listening to Howlin' Rain
So it goes...
Insanity being the new norm, a patriotic skier, and in the "Not in our best interests" department...
Makes all kinds of sense. For more about the motor check it out.
Listening to some Japanese rock
So it goes...
Kurt Vonnegut on nuclear annihilation,
vicarious liability, and some not at all good news regarding clean water...
I like to row. Really, I find the repetition of the oar stroke combined with the sound of the water induces a kind of clarity that is both relaxing and helpful the thought process. Most of my best ideas tend to pop up when rowing or bicycling.
Which is not to say I'm against outboard motors and I have a 5HP stored on my pushpit because, from time to time, you might find yourself somewhere where an outboard is needful. Though the last time I found a n outboard needful on the dinghy was several years ago and in those years I've happily rowed several hundred miles or so in spite of the fact that, as a rule, half of that rowing has been into the wind and current.
Every once in awhile I consider putting the outboard on the dinghy but the hassle factor of the motor always seems to point to the conclusion that it's just more hassle than it merits.
This really impresses me, what you should be doing if you're in Seattle on Oct 6, and a little surf film history to round things out...
I did something stupid yesterday. All I can say is if you're working on an outboard on the back of your boat the very last thing you want to hear is a little splash.
So, a five minute job becomes a wait a week (or more) for a part to get here sorta job.
Listening to Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas
So it goes...
This just might make your head explode, hardly a surprise, and folks keep telling me things are looking up but not so much the numbers...
Some times change is hard and you find yourself jumping through all sorts of hoops to avoid the reality of the need/want voice that is whispering in your ear...
I'm pretty sure that anyone who has been reading this blog knows I'm a huge booster of the whole electric propulsion bandwagon. Fact is, I'm pretty sure I've been promoting and using electric propulsion even before the band got their wagon (so to speak). So, it might surprise you that I'm in the process of removing a perfectly good electric propulsion system on "So It Goes" in favor of a more engine-less approach.
Our current Electric Yacht system has worked flawlessly. It does everything a propulsion system should, has no real maintenance costs or issues, pretty much keeps itself charged through regeneration, and provides plenty of power when needed. What's not to like?
Liking my system, actually, is a big part of the problem. It is such an awesome piece of gear that even though I really don't use it, I want to keep it because not too many things on a boat work so well. As a result, I'm just that little bit reluctant to follow my rule that, if it's on the boat and I'm not using it, it should be gone.
We sail and never make passages under power. Which, as it happens, is not what I think YOU should do but it is what makes us happy. The downside of that is from time to time we find ourselves sitting with no wind... waiting and, I would be dishonest if I did not say that I hate sitting waiting for wind but since I actually hate motoring more it is the lesser evil. Then again we're not in any sort of a hurry to get anywhere so it is a lot easier for us to roll with the flow than for some.
When we have very little wind I actually enjoy it because it's a great game keeping the momentum going following the tiniest of wind shifts. It's good practice because it teaches you how to really sail with something approaching finesse and, dare I say it, art.
Of course, the fact is, the more you sail the less you need a motor and the less you need a motor the more you sail is a spiral that not everyone understands or appreciates. Or not until one day you realize that you have not turned on your motor for over a year and all of a sudden that motor and its related baggage is just taking up space and payload that could be better used in some other way.
Now I'm pretty sure some of the diesel heads who read this might jump to the conclusion that removing our motor is somehow a failure of electric propulsion and they would be wrong. The thing is, if we had a Saab diesel installed on the boat it would be getting the same exact treatment and be looking for a new home... It's not about the type of propulsion, it is simply about the fact that we simply don't need any sort of inboard propulsion system whether it be gas/diesel/electric.
We do have a 6HP outboard we can use if/when needed and I'm in the process of planning out some 16-18 foot sweeps and oarlocks so I can row or scull if needful but that's mostly because I've always been a belt and braces kind of guy.
For the next boat, if I were to put in an inboard propulsion system, I'm 99.99% sure it would be an electric system especially if I were building it myself because then I'd be able to design in the battery bank as an integral component of the ballast which would seriously rock... That said, I'm pretty sure it still would not get used very much.
Listening to David Bowie
So it goes...
Reich making some sense, a not unreasonable workaround, and a dolphin I must see in the wild...
Wow, the sun just came out!
The last week or so has been windy, rolly, and rainy... Not exactly conducive to painting the deck and all the other little jobs on my to-do list.
So, today seems to be a row to shore and trek to the post office. I get to pick up my new-to-me Navico Tiller Pilot which I picked up for $100!
There's a lot to be said for buying used electronic gear... For one, it's cheap (the same tillerpilot now marketed under the Simrad name costs a whole lot more), and if something electronic still works after a few years it is more than likely going to continue working till the cows come home, which, I might add, is not something you can say about NEW electronics these days.
As for the rowing gig... I'm still enjoying it. That said, the return row is almost always dead to windward and swell so I almost always arrive back at the boat wet (then again, if memory serves I was mostly wet when motoring back as well...) but I tell myself that it's both good exercise and all the money I'm saving on gas and two-stroke oil brings a smile to my face.
Listening to Bahamas
So it goes...
Rewriting history, a very, very cool ride, and Dave Z is making a lot of good points...
I need a new outboard... and, yes, I've already put it through my need/want calculator. As much as I don't want a new outboard I really do need one.
Part of the reason we need a new outboard is the cost of gas just keeps going up and even though I've downsized to a 5HP a few years back I'd prefer to spend less rather than more in the gas department.
So we're thinking a 2.5 HP would be no bad thing. Four-stroke, of course, would nearly double up on the fuel savings and make me that little less guilty about the awful pollution that is part and parcel that running a two stroke brings to the equation.
One area I've been looking at since we're now in four-stroke land is trying to find a carburetor kit that would allow for using propane as well as gas as a fuel.. So far, not a whole lot of luck on that front.
Why propane?
Well, mostly it is a lot less polluting than a gasoline engine, fewer oil changes, and, right now where I sit in the Caribbean, propane is a bit cheaper than gasoline... So, you might say propane makes a whole lot of sense and you have to wonder why no one has bothered to build a propane only or multi-fuel outboard so far.
Speaking of the devil...
