Free Bottom Paint
Bob, the owner of Admiral Ship Supply, has several gallons of bottom paint he would like to give away in exchange for a report on how well it has preformed after one year. If you need bottom paint and would like to try an experiment, talk to Bob and he will set you up. Admiral is in the Boat Haven shipyard near the heavy haul out.
Return of the Riblets
It’s almost bottom paint time, how smooth are you going to sand and burnish? Could super smooth be slower? From Scuttlebutt. Washington, DC (January 17, 2014) – From the sleek hulls of racing yachts to Michael Phelps’ shaved legs, most objects that move through the water quickly are also smooth. But researchers from UCLA have found that bumpiness can sometimes be better. “A properly designed rough surface, contrary to our intuition, can reduce skin-friction drag,” said John Kim, a professor in the mechanical and aerospace engineering department at UCLA. Kim and his colleagues modeled the fluid flow between two surfaces [...]
Boat Winter Checklist
Post by Beth Leonard on the Boat US Seaworthy blog. Good chafe protection can prevent shredded lines. Fight the winter blues by paying your boat a visit and making sure all is well. Whether it's stored on the hard or in the water, you may just forestall some spring problems. The Walk-Around, If Your Boat's In The Water Take a close look at the waterline. Is there a change? If the boat looks lower on its lines than the last time you saw it, or if it's down at the bow or the stern, check for water in [...]
Heresy! Modify a T-Bird?
Does This Make Sense? Down in Australia some kids who didn't know any better cut the cabin off their T-Bird in an effort to make it more race friendly. Looks pretty good from that aspect but not as comfortable to cruise. Wait a minute, they're already too fast.
Clean and Green Boating Products 101: non-zinc anodes
Spring time is coming and with it a haul out and time to get your boat ready for the year. For many of us that means making hard choices: balancing a desire to use more environmentally friendly products against the need to protect our boat from the sea’s ability to quickly degrade it. The problem is that many of the tried and true materials work because of their toxicity – for instance Trinidad SR with its high copper content – and many of the new non-toxic products have not proven to work very well. Aluminum anodes MAY be an exception, [...]
Marine Battery Types and Charging Tips
Story by Peter d’Anjou, from Boat Trader Most boats under 50 feet in length have 12-volt electrical systems. Yet many experienced boaters can’t tell you much about the batteries they have on board, let alone how their batteries and charging systems work. Take my buddy Jeff, for instance. It’s the middle of the season and one of the two 12-volt batteries on his 30-foot sailboat is nearing the end of its life. When I asked Jeff, an engineer by trade and an experienced boater, what kind of battery he was choosing to replace the old one, he blithely said, “Oh, [...]
Seattle Boat Show, Jan 25 to Feb 3
Check with Lisa at PTSA sponsor PT Rigging who has a very limited number of tickets available.
Superstorm Sandy damages more than 65,000 boats
Record-high surge levels caused hundreds, if not thousands, of boats stored at low elevations to drift away. Photo courtesy of BoatUS This doesn't bode well for anyone, including those of us who write a yearly check for boat insurance. From Three Sheets Northwest. Nov 15 2012 in Currents by Deborah Bach More than 65,000 recreational boats were damaged or lost as a result of Superstorm Sandy, according to BoatUS. The insurance and advocacy association also estimates that Sandy-related damages to recreational boats total $650 million, making the late October storm the single largest industry loss since BoatUS began [...]
What’s your boat look like from underwater?
Here is a interesting concept, Roth Diving Services, one of our club sponsors, has set up the ability to do on the spot videos, for inspecting everything from zincs, props, rudders, hulls, anything you may want inspected and captured on video. I plan a haulout to repaint the bottom on the one week off we have during the Spring Whitecap series. Looks like it is due, as there is some hard growth starting in some places, not exactly a race ready bottom! If you would like Mike Roth to do a video inspection, his contact information is on the scrolling Sponsor banner [...]
Tuning the Rig to Balance Your Boat
From Elliot / Pattison Sailmakers website, another early season boat tune-up post. The basis for tuning a boat starts with an understanding of what it is you are trying to accomplish. While many one design classes publish tuning guides the top sailors realize that those guides are merely starting points and have to be adjusted to fit individual boats, sails, and even the way that different people sail. The basis for tuning your boat should start with balancing the boat. This means having your sailplan balanced with your hull shape or having the Center of Effort of your [...]
Thinking Of Switching Over To Flush Thru-Hulls? Practical Sailor Has Some Tips
Thanks to Hill at North American Sailor for the tip. If you sail a lot in light air, there are a number of upgrades you can consider. From new sails, to light-weight halyards, to removing gear from the boat. We’ve already talked before about the value of training as well. But one upgrade which will improve your performance – no matter how badly you sail – is making sure you’ve got a fair bottom. On many cruisers, thru-hulls are an important component of drag, and can be faired or recessed to improve performance. Practical-Sailor highlights these two major options: fairing [...]
Scholarships available for sailmaking and rigging course
From Three Sheets NW, Deborah Bach There are still spaces left in the Northwest School of Wooden Boatbuilding’s upcoming sailmaking and rigging course, and even better — there are also scholarships available. The scholarships offered by the boat school reduce tuition by 50 percent to $2,175, plus a $100 registration fee. The course, which starts Jan. 9 and runs through March 23 at the Port Hadlock school, is aimed at beginning students interested in tradition sailmaking and rigging techniques. It runs five days a week for nine hours most days. Taught by master sailmaker Sean Rankins of Northwest Sails, [...]
Project Time – Mike’s Quick Rope Whipping
Time to clean up some of those fraying lines, from Boating Safety Tips, Tricks & Thoughts from Captnmike This is the quick and secure whipping I use to whip the ends on double braid line. I have not seen this in any book. It has some of the elements of the classic quick temporary whipping but this method is much more secure and almost as quick as the classic quick temporary whipping. Properly whipped line ends in addition to keeping line ends from fraying also helps give your boat more “style points” and adds to your reputation as a knowledgeable [...]
Standing Rigging Checks – the vital checklist
Sail-World picked up a post from Captain John at Skippertips that lists the most vital rigging checks you need to make. Sailing Rigging Inspection Checklist: Just as pilots of aircraft large or small wouldn't think of taking off without their standard checks, neither should the competent skipper. Put these five inspections on your sailing checklist to keep your sailing rigging strong and secure. 1. Shroud and Stay Cotter Pins: Cotter pins are those nautical bobby pins that hold your standing rigging together. Cruising sailboats can have dozens of these vital fasteners. Look for cotters in the ends of [...]
Stretch vs. Creep
A post by Ryan Scott on the West Marine Rigging-Newport site that might be helpful as you prepare your boat for the coming season. One common misconception that I am asked about, is whether stretch and creep are the same thing. They are not. I saw an analogy a while ago describing the difference, and I still think it is one of the best ways to demonstrate it. Rubber bands stretch, taffy creeps. […]
PTMTU Proposes Changes to Copper Paint Ban Bill
This morning Bertram Levy of the Port Townsend Moorage Tenants Union sent along the following memo that makes three specific changes to the proposed legislation that phases out copper bottom to recreational boats under 65′. Over the past ten days since we sent out the February 11 position paper on Senate Bill 5436, House Bill 1785 that is similar in many ways to the Senate bill, has been posted on the web. Both bills have undergone hearings and some changes. During this time, three members of the Moorage Tenants Union have been speaking to a variety of people, [...]
Puget Soundkeeper Alliance Responds on Copper Bottom Paint
Chris Wilke, Puget Soundkeeper and Executive Director, Puget Soundkeeper Alliance sent in this response to the earlier PT Moorage Tenants Union (MTU) post. Stay tuned for a response from the MTU. Posting of Comments and entries in the Forum are encouraged. Let your voice be heard. Having a problem registering to post? Jak did some work to straighten out that function, try it again and the “Forgot my password” function is working. I read your recent story on copper bottom paint [on the PTSA website] which was a reprint of the recent Marina Tenants Union (MTU) position paper. I have [...]
Port Considers Banning Copper Bottom Paint
When I was down at the Seattle Boat Show I talked to both the Interlux and and the Petite reps and came away with the impression that while both companies offer non-copper based bottom paints, neither is producing a product that works as well as their current copper-based paints. Good sense suggests that the life cycle of copper-based paints is coming to an end, one can only hope that the new technology reaches greater effectiveness before it does. From Bertram Levy of the PT Moorgage Tenants Union reporting on a recent Port of PT commission meeting. At the [...]
Need a Project? Replace Your Steel Lifelines With Dyneema.
What do you think of this idea? Does it make sense to change out steel lifelines with Dyneema which probably is stronger at the same diameter but easier to cut? The forum is open, what do you think of this idea from West Marine Rigging? One of our next projects [at West Marine Rigging – Newport] is converting an IRC’ed Club Swan 42 from stainless steel lifelines to New England Ropes STS-12 SK90. Why convert??? Weight- Converting to Dyneema from SS is a HUGE weight savings. We recently replaced a Swan 55′s runners from oversized 1×19 wire to SK90. The assembly of their [...]
Storms, ice and snow can sink boats, pollute waters
by Deborah Bach from threesheetsnw.com A rash of sunken boats and oil spills over the past two months prompted the Washington state Department of Ecology to remind boaters to properly maintain their vessels. Winter weather, unrepaired leaks and other poor maintenance can cause boats to sink and trigger fuel spills that can harm marine life. In the last two months, Ecology received more than 45 reports of oil spills and sheens involving recreational boats and commercial fishing vessels. Most were a result of inattention as the boating season wound down, according to Ecology. From Sept. 13 through Nov. [...]
Some Thoughts on Building Low Weight Structures
From the always active mind of Dan Newland ….. Hey guys. I was using this table when it occurred to me that perhaps you could also use these figures. Attached are some real, measured weights I’ve kept for when I need to do calculations, (the exception are the foam cores that are calculated). Many came from laminate samples or real wood pieces that I have and commonly use around the shop. It occurred to me that maybe you could use this but if not, I will assume the delete button works well and it can go into the Ether. Anyway, [...]
Cleaning the brush: A Chemical Engineer’s perspective
Take a look around the docks and it’s clear that the Wooden Boat Festival is around the corner. There’s lots of last minute work going on to get already well tended boats even better tended. In that spirit, here’s a short item on cleaning your varnish brush from the blog Windborne in Puget Sound. Good varnishing brushes are definitely not cheap! The quickest way to ruin one is to let varnish dry in the brush – not something any of us wants to do. But cleaning a brush is not an easy task. You may think that after [...]
Projects
We pulled into the waiting line at the Kingston ferry and through the fog I saw an unexpected sight – an old flat bed truck with what appeared to be a Jensen Healey struggling to stay on board. A Jensen Healey? On a flat bed truck? So I wandered over. I didn’t get the whole story but the gist of it was that for $300 cash money this historic pile of rust, whitworth (or maybe just metric) bolts, dreams and unlimited potential, fresh from being excavated from the salal could be mine. One voice in my head raised from a [...]
Missing Miss Annie
Since this spring's Round-the-County, Annie Too has been sitting at the dock with her stick out. According to Ted Pike, the mast cracked in the high winds of the race and he's been working hard to put it back together. You got to love a town where folks take a classic, race the hell out of it, and if it breaks, know how (or know someone here who knows how) to put it back together again. Hopefully, she'll be back out on the Bay soon. But until then, a gallery of pictures to remind us what great lines Bill Lapworth [...]
Single Braid Line and the Brummel Splice
In a simplistic view of the history of marine lines, there's been a progression from single braid manilla three strand, to double braid with the load being carried by the inner core, to today's return to single braid but using high-tech materials, most frequently with 12 or more strands. The new single braid lines can be super strong, small in diameter, and relatively easy to work with. They aren't for use everywhere on your boat, some flatten out and don't like to work in a clutch, some need UV protection, and some need the wear resistance of a [...]
Boatyard Stormwater Regulations Forum
From a flyer sent over by the Port Townsend Yacht Club .... New regulations seek to tighten the allowable heavy metal content in the stormwater outflows of ports and boatyard across Washington. The Port of Port Townsend may not be able to meet these new standards resulting in huge fines and possible closures. Get educated. let your opinions be heard. Tuesday, March 22, 5:15 PM, Port Townsend Yacht Club. More information on this issue can be found on Three Sheets Northwest here, here, here, and here. What are your thoughts on this issue? Use the comments below to make your [...]
A Reminder about Bottom Work and Wind
big wind and not enough pads can work out badly Many of us will no doubt be doing bottom work this coming spring and this picture is a reminder that although it is tempting to move the stand yourself, it might be better to ask the yard guys for a hand. The story behind this shot from Sailing Anarchy is that a stand was moved to paint an area of the bottom that had been covered by a stand pad, the wind came up, the boat came down. The Sydney 32 and the Alden in the picture took [...]