TFH

This may make you sick to your stomach, a question of note, and it's hard being a clown these days...

Some time ago (20-30 years or so I suspect) I saw a clever idea in Practical Boat Owner for a boarding step that hooked over your toerail that you could make with some scrap plywood. It was a good idea, easy/quick to build, and wouldn't set you back much more than $10 in today's world.

So, it was with some interest I saw that in the new Cruising World they had a blurb about a "new" product that was a simple boarding step that hooked over your toerail and looked not a whole lot different than the PBO DIY sort...

Of course, the difference is that the one Cruising World is pimping costs $299. Think about that for a moment or two.

OK, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt and admit that aluminum costs more than some plywood scrap you have laying around but looking at my favorite purveyor of metal for boat projects, Online Metal Supply, I find that the needful square tube, channel, and plate would cost me around $20... Throw in another $10 for fastenings, a couple of hours with a hacksaw/drill, and hey presto you have yourself a reasonable facsimile of a "$299 boarding step".

That said, I'd go with the cheaper plywood version... Wouldn't you?

I don't really need a boarding step but I mention this because it's just another example of people making products and pricing them, apparently, using the "People who buy stuff for their boats are stupid and we can jack the price sky high" equation. So, today's mantra is...



"Too Fucking High"

Listening to Gene Jr and the Family

So it goes...

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Some common sense amidst the consumerism...

A couple of very good points, a bit of truth in advertising, and in the "if you want a drill, drill em" department...

Deb and TJ (who have the most excellent "The Retirement Project" blog ) sent me a copy of their new book "How Not to Buy a Cruising Boat" which, as it happens, is also now available as a KINDLE book.

Now, as a general rule, I'm not a big fan of what passes for "How-To" books of the sailing/cruising variety these days. The problem is they're either just rehashed clones of books that are already on my book shelf or a concoction of recipes of how to throw money at stuff and buy needless shit. So, I'll be honest and admit I wasn't exactly excited by the prospect of reading HNTBACB if it was the same old same.

So, here's the short form good news... It's a good book and if you are currently thinking about buying a sailboat to go cruising it's a must read.

The reason it's good is that they did all of the right stuff we're told is needful and still had problems. Which is not to say they did not make some mistakes along the way as well but they had the good sense to learn from them. A surprisingly rare trait in writers dispensing advice of a nautical nature.

Take their issues/problems with some marine tradesmen...

They don't like surveyors. Point of fact; this state of affairs is contrary to most everyone's advice on how to buy a boat. The current accepted carved in granite mindset is that whenever buying a boat you MUST GET A SURVEY! As it happens, I know quite a few surveyors but, then again, I have been known to travel in rather unsavory circles from time to time so hardly surprising. Fact of the matter is that all but one of the surveyors I know are either crooks, incompetent, or a mix of the two... Would I have a beer with them? Sure (though I'd keep my hand on my wallet while I'm doing it). Would I trust them to survey my own boat or a friends? Hell no! Well, actually, if I needed a survey that said my boat was in great shape and worth a shitload of money so I could defraud an insurance company I might (I hear the current going rate for this sort of service is 15% of the take).

Their input on other marine "experts" is also very good.

I have one niggle with the book (which had me throwing my virtual book against the virtual bulkhead several times) which is that some standard false comparisons that everbody uses crept in (the worst being their table comparing dinghies). I also took some issue with their measurement of needed HP for a given boat. That said, they are minor issues.

All in all, it is a very good additon to my book shelf and one I'll be recommending to folks right along with Fatty Goodlanders "Buy, Outfit, & Sail" and Geoff Pack's "Blue Water Countdown".

Listening to some bottom line stuff

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just the ususal marine markup...

Something for the 1% preppers, a good thing, and about that ass-backwards guy...

I just bought forty-odd stainless steel pipe straps on Ebay for $23.80 and that included shipping.    They're 304 stainless, brand new, and they arrived just a few days after I ordered them... Not a bad deal if I do say so myself. Then again, considering what they are it is actually what they should cost.

The nearest big chandlery in Sint Maarten has them as well but for a whole lot more at about $5 a piece.

So, let's say you have a project and need forty good quality stainless pipe straps and you have a choice of paying $23.80 including shipping or $198 + shipping for the same thing?

What is a fair markup these days?

Listening to Fairport Convention

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They might be on to something...

Someone not doing their job, someone making a lot of sense, and, just maybe, the stupidest man in American politics (so what does that say about us that he's there?)...

Has anyone else noticed some positive changes over at the West Marine website recently? They now have a cruising oriented section which has what looks to be the start of a good thing. While you're there be sure to check out their Cruising TV section which seems to be the real plus in the new mix...

I'd like to see more of this sort of thing.

Listening to Jo Jo Gunne

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What I did on Sunday...

Worth a read, in the it's about time department, and something you might want to watch..

I spent far too long yesterday working on my stainless steel, too-expensive, marine stove so I should warn you that I'm not really in a very good mood.

Fact is, I find I'm almost always pissed off when I have to work on some too-high priced bit of marine gear because when you tear something down to repair it, it's pretty obvious that corners were cut and it's nowhere near marine quality. Take my stainless stove for instance...

The outside of the stove is stainless but the stainless covers a lot of cheap galvanized steel and you'd think anyone designing or building marine gear would know that screwing stainless to galvanized steel is just rust waiting to happen.

I'm never at my best when I'm chipping rust and inhaling PB Blaster fumes...

Then there's the cost of replacement parts... most, I might add which are unavailable. A single part (trim ring) for one of my burners costs $20. A whole burner or something that you'd actually need to fix it if it's still available and your stove does not fit in the more common "we no longer support that model even though we still sell it" bracket you just know it's going to seriously cause a major disruption in the monthly budget.

Thing is, stoves are nowhere near rocket science and, last I heard, folks have known for like a century or so that dissimilar metals are something of a no no in a marine environment so there's really no excuse.

More frustrating is that for a lot less than the cost of a replacement burner I could buy a camping stove that works better, has a shitload more BTU's, and has parts easily available from the maker for sensible money...

Yes, I know that camping stoves do not have thermocouples but thermocouples are actually simple and cheap so if they did I doubt it would raise the price of the product more than 25%...

Of course, the real issue is not that the stove company designs bad stoves, doesn't support their product the way they should, and simply gouge to a silly degree on pricing. No, the real problem is that the sailing community continues to spend silly money for bad products and service...

We're the problem.

Listening to Adam Green with Ben Kweller

So it goes...

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