I’m having a lot of trouble keeping my mind on boat jobs I need to be doing. While I should be building a new dodger, sorting out needful spares for Yanmar, chasing down that mystery leak that’s driving me nuts but my mind always seems to be somewhere else… Like wondering how nearly 50% of …
I have a couple of leaks on the Islander and, while not serious, the fact that one of the leaks is a mystery is just a kiss unsettling. The known leak is the Lasdrop shaft seal. Lasdrop no longer supports this model so I’m currently looking for a replacement from a company that supports their …
Being in the middle of a part time refit of our Islander has me thinking both about the cost of things these days, as well as the creeping loss of common sense where cruising boats is concerned. This morning I read a great article in Voiles et Voiliers about crossing the Atlantic with a 25-foot …
While I make no secret about what I think about consumerism-led boat projects, I will admit to having a wish list of things that I want to have on the Islander. For starters, there’s AIS. We already have an AIS receiver as it’s part of our Standard Horizon radio but it would be nice to …
Have you noticed that it’s almost impossible to find a new manual anchor windlass? Or, if you do it’s more expensive than a powered one? When you do find a good manual windlass the cost is often right at the cost of a brand spanking new electric windlass. Is that nuts or what? The Islander …
Now that we’ve finally sorted out the various Yanmar issues, pretty much got the boat livable, and no longer seem to be sitting around waiting for parts, it’s time to finally get around to the fun stuff. Which translates to tweaking the rig and installing some needful stuff. As far as the rig goes, the …
So, my two-month refit of our Islander 36 appears to be stretching to four months. Which, when you consider that most of the reasons is simply we’ve been sitting around doing nothing waiting for parts is not all that bad. I’d be surprised if I’ve actually done a month’s labor when all is said and …
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 …
We caught the lower edge of Tropical Storm Phillipe which was mostly just rain. The good news was that down here we’ve been in a drought situation so rain is no bad thing in general. That said, for a lot of folks being flooded they might decide to differ. We’d actually been hoping for a …
I’ve got fifteen days left to get the Islander sorted out so I can leave this marina and get back to being at anchor where I belong. Which leaves some rigging, replacing the tricolor, checking the sails and organizing the running rigging. Of course, there’s still a lot of playing “Where does this wire go …
