Doing the math...

An important read, a point well made, and in the "Why isn't this idiot not in an orange jumpsuit already?"... 

So, I've been pricing out a build of a KD860 Open and, at first glance, it's a fairly depressing exercise. Nothing makes a forty year old classic plastic sailboat in need of an extreme refit look affordable like the cost of 60 odd sheets of marine ply and the epoxy and glass to cover it with.

Then again, the first budget for a new boat is always daunting and as Hunter S. Thompson said...

 "When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro." 

Still, I do have a cunning plan.

Listening to Making Movies

So it goes...

a bit of ply boat building...

A shitload of fertilizer information, regarding the current La Nina situation, and a performance of note...

A very smart way to build a plywood boat.

Listening to some 80th birthday coverage

So it goes...

a depressing state of affairs...

A book on AI I think I need to read, why the word "concerning" makes me nervous, and in the "It's about time to nail these these jerks to the wall" department...

I just noticed that RAKA has a newish website with higher prices. 

Yeah, prices on everything just keep going up and it's getting harder and harder to build a boat on a workingman's budget.

It's a depressing state of affairs.

Luckily, old classic and not so classic boats still abound while the cost of buying and refitting an elderly boat is still within the reach of someone on a very tight budget. Albeit, a task akin to swimming upstream against a strong current with your hands tied behind your back.

A $400 boat on CraigsList

What we could use is some real progress in the design and building of boats. Sadly, what passes these days for progress is more about bigger, more expensive, and fashion rather than simpler, sustainable, and affordable.

Things really do need to change.

Listening to an interesting cover

So it goes...

The cost of stuff...

Unsurprising but it still pisses me off, an example of real heroism found lacking elsewhere, and John Waters says it all...

The other day I stopped by the local lumber yard to pick up a couple of ten foot 1" X "4s and the cost set me back a step.

$34.42

That's just nuts.

Listening to Lukas Nelson

So it goes...

on getting into more earth friendly materials...

EBM with a question that I've been asking myself  lately, not the news you want to hear, and in the "Climate change just keeps on giving" department...

For awhile now I find myself being somewhat put off with the amount of plastic that's found itself into my life. Not only is my life besieged by needless plastic packaging but it seems that just about everything is based on plastic parts.

Hell, most of the lures in my fishing gear are plastic (more about that soonish over on Fishing Under Sail). 

Yeah, and then there's the amount of plastic in my boat building materials locker, in spite of trying to use more earth friendly resins, goops, and materials. Even so, the bottom line still seems to say they're, at best, just less bad than other alternatives. Sure plastic derived from vegetable sources are better than those based on oil but in the end they're all just plastics.

There's got to be a better way and I'll be working on some alternatives in upcoming posts.

Listening to the Sinseers

So it goes...

they had me at bamboo fiber...

A good point being made, Steve Earle making sense on CNN, and in the "To serve and protect themselves" department...

Here's an interesting link to an article about building boats that use bio-based resin, recycled PET cores, and bamboo fiber to achieve a "Less dirty" boat in terms of ecological impact.

I'd like to see more designers like Antoine Mainfray working on such common sensible and honest goals.

Listening to Arcade Fire

So it goes...

A material I want to play with...

Some needful information,  little steps, and in the "When Dazzle is not quite enough for your boat's paint scheme" department...

I recently came across this three-dimensional fiberglass material and I'm kinda excited. You might say they had me with this sentence : "Since only a minimal amount of resin is needed, resin waste through over-saturation is a thing of the past".

I'll be trying to get my hands on enough of this stuff to build a dinghy to see how it works in practice. Anyone in the Netherlands that knows anything about the product please drop me a line.

Listening to  Los Bitchos 

So it goes...

a humongous water ballasted trailer sailer...

Putting the new COVID strain in perspective, thoughts on mindfulness, and in the "Just do the damn math" department...

I always read Epoxyworks. Partly because it always has a lot of great articles and partly because they find project that simply blow my mind. The current issue is a good example with an interesting article on making a vase as well as a very impressive trailer sailer that really blew my mind. 

I'd really love to see a set of plans for LULU...

Listening to Jems

So it goes...

a couple of quick thoughts on boat kits...

This had me knocking my head against a bulkhead, the current trend in school health practices, and in the "Just another asshole" department...

I'm not a huge fan of building kit boats as the added cost of a "kit" seldom seems to save that much in terms of labor. Sure, those CNC cut panels are nifty but I find that  the lofting and cutting of wood is pretty easy and (dare I say it?) enjoyable.

Then again, if someone found a way to make the epoxy and glass work part of boat building superfluous I'd certainly consider changing my mind.

The one good point about boat building kits is not so much their labor saving but simply the fact that the idea of a boat in a box is a very attractive concept. Chasing down all of the required materials these days is a royal pain in the ass so at least there's that advantage.

Listening to Boz Scaggs

So it goes...

How about ferrocement?

Something interesting about Goldfish, follow the money, and Jimmy Carter making an important point...

I've pointed out in the past that ferrocement boat building, done well, is an excellent way to build a boat. The problem being that building a boat in cement has now become something of a deeply unpopular lost art and is no longer considered these days.

Pity that.

I've also previously pointed out that if a lot of the materials we now use in boat building like epoxy were applied to the ferrocement matrix that would go a long way to improving the process and longevity of the boats.

One material in particular, graphene, as an additive to cement is now something of a game changer in the cement trade and could, if applied to boats, bring ferrocement boat building into the current century,

I think that's called progress.

That being the case, maybe it's time to lose the "ferro" part of the ferrocement matrix as well. Lord knows that there are any number of modern materials of the scrim variety that could be used to reinforce cement in the shape of a boat...

Maybe it's time to rethink reinforced cement boat building with a blank sheet of paper in hand to see just what a 2022 cement boat would look like.

Listening to some David Bowie coverage

So it goes...

Something interesting about rope...

A whale of a tale, something from the inappropriate files, and in the "Why the fuck is no one in jail?" department...

Yeah, I know it pisses some folks off when I link to or have things in French but all you need is the visual so you could just turn your sound off.

But better if you leave the sound on because you might learn something.

Listening to a bookish playlist

So it goes...

Looking for input...

A social network of note, some seriously scary shit, and in the "understanding the anti-vax pro-horse dewormer mentality" department...

In my current search for boat building materials that are sustainable, non-polluting, and affordable I find myself often frustrated by the general lack of good information on materials like bamboo, flax, jute, and hemp. As it stands, most of the available information on these items tend to be less than technical and all about how these various materials are the new hip thing as a decorative material.

So, I'd really love to hear from any readers that actually knows something about these materials or happens to know someone that does. Seriously, I thrive on input.

Now, with that request out of the way I have to get to doing on the new tabernacle...

Listening to Dave Davies

So it goes...

t y T Y

speaking of hemp and flax...

Some Supreme Court induced fuckery, a quick dose of insanity, and a different sort of Afghanistan story that's well worth reading...

While it's been decades since I last drove a car but I do keep an eye on what's happening on the automotive front.

As it happens, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport caught my attention as the body is constructed partly of natural fibers including hemp and flax which mirror the strength, stiffness, and weight of carbon fiber. On the plus side, hemp and flax are both sustainable raw materials and much less costly than carbon or glass fiber.

Of course, using sustainable materials in an automobile that is a black hole for the use of petroleum products is just so much greenwashing but it does point out that natural composite structures are a reality and given the right sort of project (spelled b-o-a-t) could make a whole lot of sense.

Listening to The Beach Boys

So it goes...

A differnet way to build a sharpie?

Doctors making a point, Greenland ice still melting, and in the "Just a glimmer of hope" department...

About a couple of decades or so ago I found myself reading a description of a boat building method by Derek Kelsall called KSS (Kelsall Swiftsure Sandwich) which is a very clever way to fabricate flat panels to build roundish hulls. At the time I was not overly impressed with the method as a way to build multihulls but I do remember thinking that it would be an excellent way to build sharpies. 

That said, at the time, plywood was fairly reasonable and still had an edge over building composite panels as foam was fairly expensive and getting in to resin infusion seemed like a rather steep learning curve at the time.

So, I filed it away as a boat building method with possibilities along with Hughes Cylinder molding, Constant Camber, and other various interesting ways to put boats together.Thinking that some or all of the various methodologys would come in handy.

Add to the list of emerging tech that I've been following is the use of more organic or sustainable materials for composite use. Materials like jute, hemp, and other fibers that, with the addition of a resin to bind them together, would make for a more sustainable, earth friendly, and affordable boat building material.

Of course, with the current price of good quality plywood being nuts these days all of a sudden the basic idea of the KSS, Constant camber, and Cylinder molding all start looking a whole lot more interesting. 

Anyone know a good source for jupe?

Listening to the Isley Brothers

So it goes...

What stuff costs ongoing....

Some depressing penguin news, a basketball player of note, and in the "Someone should have come up with this years ago" department...

So, the other day, I found myself at the local Ace hardware in search of four 8mm machine nylok nuts so I could reinstall a couple of cleats at the stern of "So It Goes". The good news is they had the nuts but the bad news was that they cost $1.19 a pop!

Seriously, is that batshit crazy or what?

Once back aboard I checked my normal supplier of fastenings to see that their price was $0.15 which a a heck of a difference. If I were to buy a sack of a hundred they'd cost $10.32 which brings the price down to just about $0.10.

Ten cents makes a heck-of-a-lot -of-sense over a buck nineteen!

Face it, boat projects always cost more than we want them to but buying stuff from folks who are gouging at the levels I keep running into is just stupid and it makes all kinds of sense to invest in a supply of the most used bolts, screws, and nuts as it will save you a lot of money and even more importantly it will also save you a lot of time.

By the way, Bolt Depot is really good at shipping quickly and affordably as the various bolts, nuts and other various fasteners I needed for my current self-steering build were shipped within an hour of placing the order and in our hands down here in the Caribbean within three days.

Listening to Los Lobos covering the Beach Boys

So it goes...

Dealing with hindsight...

A climate change news story involving bareboats, some depressing Covid information, and an interesting video on how some folks learn a language...

Yesterday I finished seizing various chafe areas on the new lifelines which should extend their life considerably. It was not lost on me as I was doing it that seizing Dyneema with waxed twine was mixing old and new tech but, in my experience, the use of old/new tech often results in an appropriate solution to a problem. 

Truth be told, it occurred to me that since seizing is such an easy and inexpensive way to protect Dyneema that I was an idiot not to seize the standing rigging aboard "So It Goes".

The late great Brion Toss pointed out that seizing Dyneema which protects the stays from UV and chafe pretty much made for rigging that would last forever.

Of course, hindsight is a bitch. Especially for boat builders as we're always able to see better ways to do things after the fact. When building my Wharram cat, finishing the first hull was tempered by the fact that I knew that the second hull would be better than the first because my skill set had improved. Every mast I build is going to be better than previous masts simply because I'm better at it, have absorbed new techniques, and studied how other folks have built their masts.

Which, of course, is one of the reasons that I really want to build a new mast for "So It Goes" as I learned a lot and can build a better one based on a Reuel Parker mast section that will be easier to build, lighter and less expensive than the one I have currently. Better yet, It would have a better mast tabernacle system which will free me from the clutches of greed-head boatyards, make maintenance simpler, allow for low bridge situations and allow me to seize the standing rigging as a bonus.

Listening to Bo Diddley

So it goes...

A strong case for plywood...

Donkey Mountain makes a good point, a bit of important hindsight, and the word for the day is “aridification”...

RM Yachts makes the case for plywood. 

Listening to Artur Menezes

So it goes...

On building a better rig...

 Killing our mother ocean, a book on my must read list, and in the "No cure for selfish stupidity" department...

Someone recently asked me about my opinions on chainplate materials for his switch to textile rigging. The main part of the question involved whether to use expensive 316 stainless vs the use of much more expensive titanium. When I told him that my choice would be Delrin I'm pretty sure he thought I'd lost my mind.

Now, I'll admit that I'm pretty sensitive to the importance of having a bombproof connection between the rig and the boat and I might be extra careful as I lost a rig to a stainless steel chainplate failure and in the same time period two different friends lost their rigs due to the failure of titanium tangs. So it's a subject that I've given a lot of serious thought to especially where textile rigging is concerned.

A lot of folks now favor the use of carbon fiber or composite chainplates glassed in to the hull which has the advantage of spreading the rigging loads over a much greater area and dispenses with the negative factors of stainless steel and titanium. If I were building a new boat I'd seriously consider this avenue but since the person in question is refitting an existing boat so it's not as easily done and somewhat problematic.

Some time ago, in my ongoing research to make textile rigging more affordable, it occurred to me that if using textile rigging metal chainplates are really sort of a one step forward two steps back kind of thing. You're still using parts that are prone to failure, not exactly textile friendly, and, to add insult to injury, are really quite expensive.

Since the main purpose of a chainplate is to distribute rigging loads on to the hull all we really need to do is to find a more textile friendly way of doing it. 

My first thought, since we're talking "rope", was something akin to a thimble but then realized that any circular or teardrop shapes would be better at distributing the shroud loads to the hull. Better yet the disc or teardrops would not need to be in a metal at all and any high density plastic like Delrin or HDPE would work just fine. The only metal at all in the shroud to hull matrix would be through bolts and backing plates.

The upside is that the plastic chainplates are both inexpensive and easily fabricated by anyone with a DIY bent. The downside is they're not the same old same so if you were to go with the idea I'd factor in that you'd have to do a lot of explaining to passers-by of the less than bright sort. Of course, if you're doing a textile rig you will be having those sort of conversations anyway so not really a factor.

I'm currently writing a more in depth how to on applying some creative frugality to textile rigging design so that anyone can build an inexpensive, user maintainable, and bombproof rig.

More about that soonish.

Listening to Nick Lowe

So it goes...

Pennies on the dollar...

Regarding a favorite book/film, an accessible art collection, and a question answered...

One of the great advantages frugal cruisers have these days is a direct offshoot of the stupidity of our entrenched consumerist addicted brethren. Folks with an insatiable urge to buy, often need to make room for that new and better thing to achieve their consumerist high.

A friend just dropped me a line about buying a bit of unused boat gear for $400 that retails for a couple of thousand dollars and change. Which on the part of the buyer is a good deal but as far as the seller's side of things is some seriously stupid economics.

Then again, junkies are seldom known for intelligence when they're Jonesing for their drug of choice.

Of course, there is still a downside to the whole consumerist spiral we're all, to some extent or another, caught in. The greed-fueled distorted market is selling stuff for much more than it's actually worth. This means those great deals might not be such bargains at all and are more along the lines of what the item in question is actually worth.

Just saying.

Listening to Run River North

So it goes...

What stuff costs...

EBM pretty much nails it, some ongoing USPS news, and in the "and the tubes they glow in the dark" department..

Back when I was building the mast for "So It Goes" I used quite a bit of carbon tow in the layup as it would stiffen the spar, was easy to use, and it was cheap. Fact of the matter is that carbon tow has a lot of uses as a way if adding selective reinforcement and rigidity to any number of boat oriented building project and as I've already said it's cheap.

So, this morning while perusing a boat designer and boatbuilder's website who also sells various boat building materials on their site I was surprised to see that they were selling 12K carbon tow for $0.29 a foot.

The price seemed a little high.

Worried that the price of carbon tow had went through the roof due to some sort of world shortage or suchlike I went over to my usual purveyor of carbon tow and other needful composite materials to find that carbon tow was still very affordable at between eight and thirty-five dollars a pound for 12K tow.

For those unacquainted with carbon tow a pound is a lot of tow as the tow I used for my mast was was 1734 feet to the pound and that works out to (rounded up) $0.0139 a foot or $24 a pound. As it happens this tow was actually the most expensive per foot from my supplier.

Now, at $0.29 a foot a pound of my tow would cost $502.86. or as best said in my favorite scene from "Used Cars".

Need I say more? Do your homework when dealing with marine suppliers.

Listening to a bunch of good songs

So it goes...