Doing some math...

Some seriously scary shit, Deepwater Horizon the gift that just keeps on giving, and since we were speaking of oil spills...

I need some new chain as our 5/16" high test is getting way past its sell by date. There, I've said it and I'd be lying if I told you I had not been avoiding the subject of new chain for "So It Goes" because it is an expense I never relish thinking about much less going to a purveyor of chain and forking out an obscene amount of money for a 150-foot length of the stuff.

So, Friday we trundled over to the local purveyor of chain to get a quote for 8mm or 5/16" BBB chain (both fit my gypsy). They did not have any 8mm but did have 5/16" BBB for $6.50 a foot... Doing the math that comes to the hellacious amount of $975.

Ouch!

Of course, the chain size I'd prefer is 8mm which costs in the neighborhood of $3 a foot and the total on that, while still pain-inducing, is a whole lot better than $975 and all I have to do to get it is sail to a different island...

I can live with that.

The thing is, 8mm and 5/16" BBB are nearly identical in strength/weight/size and 8mm fits most 5/16" BBB gypsies finest kind. Fact of the matter is, 8mm and other metric chains are calibrated for use in gypsies as the norm so it's pretty much perfect for use on a boat and, if you factor in the fact that it's generally less than half the cost of BBB chain, choosing it is something of a slam dunk.

A quick side note on the high test chain we're replacing is that while stronger than standard chain, it has about half to two-thirds the life cycle. The added strength of high test is at the cost of using an alloy more susceptible to corrosion. Something you might want to factor in next time you're buying chain.

Listening to Valley Queen

So it goes...

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A world with options...

Very much worth reading (and acting upon), a little good news, and the word of the day is S-T-E-A-M-P-U-N-K...

Some time ago a rigger of note came up with a very cool clutch system for sailboats that worked great, did little or no damage to the line, and from the looks of it should be cheaper than existing systems due to its overall simplicity of materials and labor.

This one in fact...



Yeah, the Chinese handcuffs clutch... A small block of alloy with a few holes drilled in it, some Kernmantle cover, and a bit of string. Something an inspired DIYer could throw together for $10- $20 bucks a pop with a little sweat equity and a bit of cunning. No rocket science involved but brilliant all the same.

That said, once the idea became a product of the yachting sort not all that affordable anymore.

Of course, the choice of paths is up to you but it's nice to know you have options...

Listening to Kitty, Daisy, & Lewis

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Too many knives?

Krugman with a very good post, everything you need to know about equality/equity, and something that needed to be said...

We have a lot of knives aboard "So It Goes". Face it, knives are really the ubiquitous marine tool and, since knives have an annoying habit of going walkabout or rusting away on a boat, you really can't have too many.

Which does not mean we have a lot of E-X-P-E-N-S-I-V-E knives (which can also be spelled P-R-E-T-E-N-T-I-O-U-S) so we just muddle through with a variety of sharp objects that hold their edge, mostly don't rust, and cost less than thirty bucks.

Seriously, what on earth would you do with a $385 knife except lose it sometime?

One thing we do when the boat is in cruising mode is lash a set of cheap stainless steak knives in various key spots around the boat so no matter where you are there's a sharp knife available to cut a line in a hurry. That said, the last couple of cheap stainless steak knife sets we've bought just don't hold a candle to previous ones we've had and seem to rust out in days rather than months.

So, I'm going upscale and buying a half dozen of these net knives..

Which look like just the sort of thing that will do the job, be easy to mount in needful places, and, hopefully, won't rust all to hell.

I'll let you know how they work out down the line.


Listening to the Honeycutters

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about those costs...

I'll admit it... I kind of like Bernie, not so much this guy, and this nearly made my head explode...

Have you ever noticed how much good quality, lightly used, boat gear is available for sale? Or how it sells at a fraction of the cost?

I mention this because yesterday I was tempted to buy a near state-of-the-art radar with a carbon mast that was selling for less than the carbon mast alone would go for. The reason the guy was selling it is he felt he needed to upgrade from near state-of-the-art to full-blown-state-of-the-art.

I suspect the guy is a regular reader of Panbo...

But, it got me thinking about how big of a percentage of operating and maintenance costs for some folks on boats is about replacing stuff that really does not need replacing at all.

Oh yeah, I decided against the radar...

Listening to Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers

So it goes...

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Now this is interesting...

A drought problem I suspect you were unaware of, some battery news, and the stupidity it burns...



Listening to some Bj�rn Ulvaeus (ABBA) covers

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Surplus to requirements...

News of note, some important political content for boaters, and in the "it's about time" department...

Over the next couple of weeks we're doing our annual purge of stuff not pulling its weight and taking up needful space aboard the good ship "So It Goes".

So, to get the ball rolling...

Anyone need a brand new but never installed AIS receiver that's taking up space in a locker?

You can read all about the unit on its NASA page. We've always had great luck with NASA gear. It can take up space in your locker for all of $125 (and that include USPS Priority  mail for those stateside). SOLD


Or maybe you have a tiller steered boat and need a used but recently refurbed stainless steel NAVIK windvane self-steering gear?

Complete and includes all needful mounting hardware for $750 (plus shipping) SOLD.

More soon come as I still have a bunch of lockers to go through...

Listening to Mel Brown

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On spending a lot of money on something simple or getting creative...

Inspired timing, some interesting numbers, and something interesting about coral...

Here's a question you might want to ponder while you go about your daily business...

Why does this...

Cost so much more than this...

Now, it may just be me looking for a new project to waste time on but, if I were considering an electric outboard motor for a dinghy, I'd get one of these lawn mowers on sale, tear it apart and reconfigure the bits into a dinghy propulsion device.

Just saying...

Listening to Banta

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Because we're all handy folks on boats...

Some thoughts on the concept of "home", a quick take on threat assessment, and a needful read on the subject of denial...

Here's Tom Cunliffe making some sense.



Listening to The Bohannons

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Affordable clean water...

Your world economy on austerity and unconventional monetary policy, that's the way it was/is, and I guess in 2015 America bigotry pays off...


Bucket Filter Assembly and Maintenance from Sawyer Products on Vimeo.

We've been using the Sawyer bucket filter day in and day to filter all the water we use aboard "So It Goes" for something like six years and it's still working finestkind.

Listening to the Blue Water Highway Band

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a neo-luddites thought process on a needful purchase...

On the subject of a fair living wages, a depressing trend in modern education, and just business as usual...

We live in wonderful times in some ways...

For instance, West Marine dropped me their usual weekly "you need to buy stuff" email and they had a deal on a floating, waterproof, and rather impressive pocket sized GPS for $99 bucks. Seriously, that much technology in something you can put in your pocket for $99 is just frelling amazing.

Since I was on the West site I decided to check out what a good cheap plastic sextant would cost and saw that, the one I tend to recommend is priced at $199... That said, a more than decent cheapie (the Davis MK3) sextant is priced at $57.99 so, I suppose, non-electronic position finding is still a bit cheaper than electronic but just barely.

Now, personally, me being a neo-luddite and all, I find the ongoing disappearance of traditional sailing and navigation skills somewhat irksome but, since my mother didn't actually raise a complete idiot, I also see the value of a pocket sized GPS that floats and has an on board celestial calculator as one of it's apps.

So, while I won't be trading in my sextant anytime soon, I may just be investing in another GPS while it's on sale.

Listening to a really good podcast

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sheet to tiller self-steering...

Someone we should be paying attention to, an interesting read, and a little bit of history that explains a lot...

A guy making a lot of sense.



Listening to Jake McMullen

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A really good example of thinking outside the box...

Unintended environmental consequences, not exactly a surprise, and a "top priority" we'd be a lot better off without...

The other day rowing in to do some shopping I noticed that a boat that had anchored near us was a Reuel Parker design. This one as it happens...

Like all of Reuel's designs there is a lot interesting about it but the most exceptional thing in my view is what Parker has done with the head. It's in the cockpit.

Sort of a minimal little outhouse/shower nestled in the starboard corner of the cockpit right behind the helm. See it?

The logic of such an installation makes all kinds of sense and, as most cruisers tend to shower in the cockpit anyway, I'm amazed that no one has actually done this before.

Listening to the Ajax Diner Book Club podcast

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a better cockpit shower...

This is really interesting, a hotel chain to avoid, and big (slimy murdering greedheads) tobacco is perturbed...

Over the years we've used a succession of cheap plastic pump-up pesticide sprayers for our cockpit shower, They used to work finestkind.

Not so much anymore as the spray heads don't last and the cost of the part you need to fix tends to cost about what an entire unit goes for. This does not make for happy camper mode...

Duckworks has had a sprayer for awhile that I've had my eye on. The downside is that it looked like the real deal online but the only way to know for sure is to stump up some money ($40!!!) and have one shipped down.

So I did...

The good news it's seriously better built and heavier industrial duty than the $20 Ace hardware variety we're all used to. Better yet it's black so it will heat up water a bit and be far less susceptible to becoming an algae garden.

Should have bought two...

Listening to a pretty good mixtape

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A good, if pricey, idea...

A good question, needful reading, and about that skidmarks in your coffee cup idea from the Republicans...

Over at Navagear Tim writes about a newish product I've been looking forward to seeing called the SeaBung.

It's certainly kind of cool and it is a major improvement over the standard wooden bung that we've all been using since Columbus first cruised the Caribbean.

It's also sorta/kinda e-x-p-e-n-s-i-v-e for what it is. Especially for something so easily copied by any industrious boat owner with a bent for DIY and five dollars or less in his/her pocket.

Just saying...

Listening to "Pops" Staples

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an interesting dinghy...

In the "not very good news" department, some stuff you need to be aware of, and on the absurdity of pursuing limitless growth on a finite and fragile planet...

Here is an interesting take on the dinghy conundrum...



More information about it here.

Listening to Two White Cranes

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This is just neat...

Badtux makes a bombproof point, a passing of note, and today in the stupid-stupid-stupid department...

Anything that translates to better music on a boat gets my attention.



Really.

Listening to Le Vent du Nord



So it goes...

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So, I'm at the list making stage...

L,G,&M has an important reminder, G&T wth some thoughts on the current definition of "Good", and some lucid thoughts on why some folks are stupid...

Of late, I've been doing a lot of thinking about the next boat and how I'd fit it out because I need a budget to work with and I need it soonish.

The funny thing is the fit out list in my head is actually pretty short and, as a result, so is the monetary outlay. Partly due to the fact that good marine electronics have actually become quite cheap since the last time I built a boat, partly because I have a much better understanding of the whole need/want thing than I did before, but mostly because having been on boats for so long I've developed an appreciation for simplicity and an aversion for anything on a boat that adds unneedful complexity.

My categories for list triage is pretty basic...

1. It has to be needful.
2. I have to be able to fix and maintain it myself or cheap enough that I can afford to back it up.
3. It's something I don't have to make up reasons or improbable possibilities to justify needing it.

Pretty simple and a lot more effective than you might actually suspect.

Listening to some Country Fried Rock

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Some seriously good thinking in action...

Not the most uplifting read to start your day, how doing the right thing can pay off in a big way, and in the "this video will destroy your faith in humanity" department...

Colligo has a great idea...



More info at Colligo.

Listening to Ray Wylie Hubbard

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A pretty good idea...

You might need a strong drink after reading this, now this, on the other hand, should scare some politicians shitless, and over here, some sense being made...

Here's a good idea and Kickstarter campaign that you might want to support...



Nuff said.

Listening to the Texas Tornados

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Maybe it's just me being nervous...

L,G,& M pointing something out, some seriously scary numbers, and a little playing with the facts...

Not all that long ago a friend noticed that there was smoke coming out of the front seat locker in his Caribe dinghy. He told me that this was both irksome as well as confusing because, as far as he was concerned, there was nothing that should spontaneously combust in the locker. He also admitted he was a little off put because he had a fire extinguisher on the boat but, as luck would have it, it happened to be in the aforementioned seat locker that was now seriously smoking and it appeared that the top of lid was sorta/kinda melting...

Amazing what sort of mayhem three flares going off on their own can cause on a small dinghy while you're going home from work. For those who need details: the flares were in date, packaged/stowed appropriately, and the Caribe was a total loss.

Maybe it's just me but flares scare me... It's not about having to use flares but the fact that things designed to burn stored away on a boat just make me nervous.

As it happens, I need to buy some more flares because the ones I have are about to hit their expiry dates and this actually pisses me off for a variety of reasons...

For one, they're going out of date because when I bought them the only ones available to me in the USVI were older stock. Not only was I paying a highly inflated price for flares but I was paying that highly inflated price for flares that I'd have to replace sooner rather than later.

Another reason I'm not too happy about having to replace flares is that it is nearly impossible to dispose of them in a safe, sane, and ecologically sensible manner. Last time I tried, I dropped by the USCG station only to be told that I'd have to take them to the police. Of course, the police told me that I'd have to take them to the Fire station but the guy at the fire station told me that I'd have to take them to another fire station who then told me they don't do that anymore and suggested I try the USCG...

So, I actually have a lot of flares sitting around on my boat some with dates that I suspect actually came with the boat when it was new. Any of which could spontaneously combust at any moment...

Color me nervous.

The thing is, in the year 2014 with EPIRB's, PLB's, and modern communication technology you'd think we'd have a better safer flare system.You know something like this...



Listening to Leon Russell

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