Tips, Tricks & Thoughts:
Tips
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Getting Ready for a Hurricane
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Read more: Getting Ready for a HurricaneThe North Atlantic heating up in the last week got me working on preparing our new-to-us J/109 for a strike. We have always added a backup pendant before expected winds of storm force or over, but in the past it was chain. Now, with a smaller boat and the availability of high-modulus rope, we are […]
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Justifying Expensive Tools
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Read more: Justifying Expensive ToolsThe enjoyment of one’s tools is an essential ingredient of successful work Donald Knuth This quote makes me feel a lot better about blowing the price of a nice second hand car on new tools after we sold the McCurdy and Rhodes 56 with all my old tools. Thanks to Stan Honey for the heads […]
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A Fractional Rig is Like a Gearbox
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Read more: A Fractional Rig is Like a GearboxAbove is with the backstay set for light air (about 7 knots true) and mast on our J/109 pretty much straight. Big time power in the mainsail and lots of sag in the headstay powering up the jib. This is the same two sails in 14 knots true at which point we de-powered by pumping […]
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49er, 49er FX and NACRA 17 Worlds
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Read more: 49er, 49er FX and NACRA 17 WorldsA friend invited me along to watch some of the races. Amazing how performance sailing has changed since my days in the 505, and yet, in some ways, is still very much the same. Also interesting that of the few races we watched, the women’s teams in the FX seemed by far the most aggressive, […]
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Don’t Ever Lie Ahull
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Read more: Don’t Ever Lie AhullI can’t believe that experienced ocean sailors are still making the mistake of lying ahull in heavy weather and then blaming a freak or rogue wave when they get rolled. We have known for over 40 years how dangerous lying ahull is. Extra big waves are a reality in anything over gale force offshore, not […]
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Slippery Deck Shoe Fix
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Read more: Slippery Deck Shoe FixMy Gill deck shoes were completely losing their grip. We are talking scary-slippery, to the point I nearly went on my ass, and overboard was a real possibility. We have seen this before. Seems like whatever material deck shoe soles are being made of these days, it develops a hard yellowy layer way before the […]
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Why We Need a Traveler
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Read more: Why We Need a TravelerWe increasingly see boats without travellers, but that’s a big performance hit, particularly in light air going to windward where we want the boom on the centreline but the sheet not too tight. To make that happen the traveler car needs to be well to windward of centre. Check out the nice twist and leach […]
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Demo of In-Boom Furling
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Read more: Demo of In-Boom FurlingMy friend Hans, who advised me while I was writing the article on the tragedy aboard Escape, took me out on his Farr 56 for a demo of hoisting, reefing, and furling, using his in-boom automated mainsail-handling system. Hans is an incredible resource, since he has owned boats with slab, in-mast, and in-boom furling, as […]
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Safer Transom Ladder
3 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Safer Transom LadderOur new-to-us J/109 has a robust transom swim ladder that could definitely enable someone who fell overboard get back into the boat, at least in smooth water. But check out the photo above: There’s no way for someone in the water, particularly wearing a lifejacket, to deploy the ladder unassisted. The angle is just wrong […]
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Nylon Line In Europe 2
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Read more: Nylon Line In Europe 2The plot thickens. I came across this product page at RobLine an Austrian rope maker and they have a bunch of lines for mooring, docking, that will be good for anchor snubbers. Interesting quote from that page: Robline caters to the trend toward using different fibers for mooring and anchor lines, depending on the specific […]
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Starlink Maritime
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Read more: Starlink MaritimeStarlink are going to provide a solution for moving vessels, but before we get too excited check out the price! Think US$10,000 for the unit and US$7000/month for service! Looks like I will be right that Iridium will the solution for most of us for some time to come. In 2019 I predicted 10 years […]
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Nylon Rope in Europe
5 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Nylon Rope in EuropeA member was having a heck of a time finding Nylon rope for a snubber, as we recommend, in Europe. After some research I think I have found out why: What we call Nylon in North America, and the UK, is known as H.T. Polyester in Europe and staff in stores sometimes refer to it […]
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Backstay Adjusters & Fractional Rigs
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Read more: Backstay Adjusters & Fractional RigsWith fractional rigs we are way more interested in how much pumping the adjuster down has shortened the backstay and bent the mast than we are the reading on the pressure gauge (within reason). That’s why the marked batten. Click on images to enlarge
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Reaving Halyards
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Read more: Reaving HalyardsYou see people taping messenger lines to halyards, but that can lead to tears when the messenger comes off inside the mast. So way better to put a flemish eye, sometimes known as a reaving eye, in the bitter end of all halyards and internal reefing lines. The key to success is that the eye […]
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Whip Before Cut
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Read more: Whip Before CutWhen shortening a line, it’s way easier if we put on two sailmakers whippings and then cut the line between them. Whipping how-to. (Scroll down to #6)
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Folding Props Not For Cruising
3 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Folding Props Not For CruisingI made a bollocks of sailing off the mooring today and got stuck stern upwind on the chain. Not a big deal to sort out on a light J/109, but I did get a graphic reminder of how little reverse thrust folding props have. Definitely not appropriate for a cruising boat where the bigtime reverse […]
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Balmar Battery Monitor On-Test
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Read more: Balmar Battery Monitor On-TestAfter two months and four defects: I finally got the SG200 we bought for our J/109 working. I will write a review once I have more experience with it.
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Whipping not Dipping
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Read more: Whipping not DippingThis dock line came with our new-to us J/109. Not only does it have a loop spliced in one end, which I recommend against (#2), someone first whipped it and then dipped it in some goop for reasons I can’t fathom. There is no better way to prevent a line end unraveling than a sailmaker’s […]
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Dean Barker is Back
0 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Dean Barker is BackNice to see that one of the best, and arguably most unlucky, sailors in America’s Cup modern history is back with a team. I’m a huge fan of the quiet Kiwi. The man is a class act. He will be a great coach, I’m sure. Might end up back on the wheel, too, I’m guessing.
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Most “Drop In” Lithium Batteries Not ABYC Compliant
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Read more: Most “Drop In” Lithium Batteries Not ABYC CompliantThe way I read this, batteries with BMSs that do not communicate are now obsolete: If a shutdown condition is approaching a battery system should notify the operator with a visual and/or audible alarm before disconnecting the battery from the DC system. ABYC E13-7 Login to continue reading (scroll down) Learn About Membership Get to […]
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ABYC Publishes Lithium Battery Standard
0 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: ABYC Publishes Lithium Battery StandardThe TE-13 technical note is now a standard: E-13. To me, a woefully inadequate one that relies far too much on the vendors to do the right thing, but it’s a start. Panbo has a good analysis, most of which I agree with.
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Great Borescope
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Read more: Great BorescopeA borescope is how we knew what the problem was causing chafe of the main halyard in our mast way out of sight: Black and white messenger is for the main halyard. Deflection is clear. Tor of mast sheave to left. When buying, make sure you get one with a longer focal length.
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Our Season Saved
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Read more: Our Season Savedor at least extended by installing spectra chafe sleeve. Love the stuff. More here. Not a permanent fix. That will take unstepping and some very tricky work.
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Stupid Mast Errors
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Read more: Stupid Mast ErrorsAfter just three day sails our main halyard is mangled. Turns out @sparcraft jammed the wiring conduit right up under the sheave on our brand new mast so it deflects the halyard and chafes it. Looked like end of season. We were gutted. No way to fix without unstep, but see next tip.
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Great Credit Card For Cruisers
9 CommentsReading Time: < 1 minuteFreeRead more: Great Credit Card For CruisersIf you are a cruiser and need to manage multiple currencies and make payments in many countries you need @Wise.
