Being that I keep a weather eye out for used self-steering gear it’s hard to ignore that the current pricing for thirty year old wind vanes are just nuts. The other day I was quoted $2,200. for a 45-year old Aries which appeared to be in horrible shape. But, what the hell, boat folks are …
Once I get finished with the electrics, a bit of engine messabout, and sorting out new navigation lights, then it’s on to making the Islander something more approaching home. First on the list is ripping out the old toilet and building in a “composting head” (and yes, I know that composting heads on boats don’t …
Most of my time the last couple of days has been devoted to cleaning out the previous owner’s stuff, trying to grok his rather interesting thought processes, and making lists of things to do. The downside is I’m also having to make lists of stuff to buy, replace, and repair. Or in other words I …
Being that we live in a consumerist society, it’s sometime very easy to feel out-of-sync with the general view on the subject of value. For instance, at a local marina there are several dinghies selling for $9K or more while a 36-foot sailboat is selling for less. How is that even possible? For starters, the …
“Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure nineteen nineteen and six, result happiness. Annual income twenty pounds, annual expenditure twenty pounds ought and six, result misery” ― Charles Dickens, David Copperfield Everybody’s on a budget it’s just baked into how we live in a consumerist society, While Jeff Bezos might be rich enough to have his …
There’s a Catalina 30 for sale in Hawaii that I’ve had my eye on for a while as it was selling for $5K and appeared to be in decent shape, and would not cost a fortune or too much time to sort out. The Catalina 30 is by its very nature an excellent contender for …
So, here’s a question. How do we define the cost of a VolksCruiser? Since most people think of boats in terms of length, we might want to try using that. At first thought, this seems to make sense as longer boats tend to be more expensive than shorter boats. Simple, right? Then again, how do …
Everybody has their own budget parameters and most have both a public and private parameter set. Everyone is so concerned about what people may think about their financial well-being that they feel the need to fudge on what they can or cannot afford. I trust you know what I’m talking about. Anyway, this inability to …
It occurred to me that you just don’t see a lot of homebuilt cruising boats in the Caribbean these days and I find that all kinds of depressing. One reason is that DIY boatbuilding has become something of an antisocial activity in a “We are what we buy” world. A world that seems to look …
Back when I was building a catamaran in France just about everyone I knew (and many I did not) shared their opinions that catamarans were a death trap. Yachting Monthly, PBO, Sail, and Cruising World were all running articles and editorials telling me that cats were just not the sort of boat any sane person …
