Corks

jackhartjr · Dec 26, 2008

One use is to keep the size needed to plug a through hull that has broken, a lot of folks keep them right at the through hull...just in case!
Jack

Ross · Dec 26, 2008

Push a steel wire through one for a crude compass. Tie one to a fish line for a bobber. Fill your pockets full of them for a cheap PFD. Glue a hundred of them to a board for a hot pad when you take a pan from the oven.

BobM · Dec 27, 2008

All U Get said:
Some time ago I read of several use for the corks from wine bottles and I have tried the archives for some thoughts. It was either depth readings, speed calculations, or something very simple. I've got a bag of corks and only bad jokes to go with them.
All U Get

Perhaps you were thinking about making a ships log to measure speed.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Speed of the ship is measured using the 'log' system. This derives its name from the old practice of casting a log or piece of firewood off the bow of the ship. As the ship moved forwards the navigator would follow the log to the stern as the ship passed it by. The ships speed could be determined from the pace he had to follow the log. By the beginning of the nineteenth century and more accurate system had been derived. This used a 'log ship', a triangular weighted piece of wood to which was attached a long rope. The log was cast off the stern of the ship and the line allowed to pull out as the log floated stationary in the water. The rope had a series of marks or knots every 48 feet. When the first mark was reached a small sand timer was turned which ran for 28 seconds. The number of marks in the rope that passed in this period was then counted. If exactly one mark passed then the ship was doing one nautical mile per hour or one knot! Knots are still used today for ship and aircraft speed.[/FONT]

Based on the photo and the technique a cork might not have enough mass. I suppose that, knowing the LOA accurately you could send a crewman to the bow to throw of a wine cork and yell start to you. You could then start a stopwatch and time how long it would take to pass the cork with the stern (or some pre-determined more convenient measured distance on the deck). You could then calculate the speed.

If I were you, I'd get a stopwatch and the next time I got any grief I'd put on my poker face and set my friends to trying this...it should at least be good for a few laughs

sailingdog · Dec 27, 2008

The problem with using a cork for a chip log is that it is the wrong shape and doesn't have enough drag and is far too buoyant... A chip log has to resist the drag of the cord it is attached too...a cork, at least from the wine bottles I've opened, is too light, too buoyant and too small to provide enough resistance to work as a chip log.

BobM said:
Perhaps you were thinking about making a ships log to measure speed.

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Speed of the ship is measured using the 'log' system. This derives its name from the old practice of casting a log or piece of firewood off the bow of the ship. As the ship moved forwards the navigator would follow the log to the stern as the ship passed it by. The ships speed could be determined from the pace he had to follow the log. By the beginning of the nineteenth century and more accurate system had been derived. This used a 'log ship', a triangular weighted piece of wood to which was attached a long rope. The log was cast off the stern of the ship and the line allowed to pull out as the log floated stationary in the water. The rope had a series of marks or knots every 48 feet. When the first mark was reached a small sand timer was turned which ran for 28 seconds. The number of marks in the rope that passed in this period was then counted. If exactly one mark passed then the ship was doing one nautical mile per hour or one knot! Knots are still used today for ship and aircraft speed.[/FONT]

Based on the photo and the technique a cork might not have enough mass. I suppose that, knowing the LOA accurately you could send a crewman to the bow to throw of a wine cork and yell start to you. You could then start a stopwatch and time how long it would take to pass the cork with the stern (or some pre-determined more convenient measured distance on the deck). You could then calculate the speed.

If I were you, I'd get a stopwatch and the next time I got any grief I'd put on my poker face and set my friends to trying this...it should at least be good for a few laughs

Neal4200 · Dec 27, 2008

His and hers dingy engine keys have been made from old corks.

Rick Webb · Dec 27, 2008

Hat Floater

I staple a few to my hat so that it does not sink when it goes overboard.

Stu Jackson · Dec 27, 2008

Rick Webb said:
I staple a few to my hat so that it does not sink when it goes overboard.

Rick

1. What kind of hat?

2. Where do you staple them to?

Rick Webb · Dec 28, 2008

Floating Hat

I wear my tan G.I. floppy hat and put the corks in the loops on the band where I guess shot gun shells are supposed to go. staple them in with the monel staples I bought for attaching the carpet to the bunks of my trailer. If you fill the hat up with corks it is going to make it smaller so buy a big hat to do this.

Paul J. Rusyniak · Dec 29, 2008

Wine From A Box!!!

Please, don't flame me for this!!!

But, if you do consume boxed wine, save the plastic bladders. Rinse them out with plain water and store aboard flat.

If you need some quick, light-weight dunnage to keep something from moving around in the boat, just open the bung on the bladder, blow in the right amount of air, close bung and voila.

On a previous boat equipped with an outboard, these bladders kept the gas can from wandering all over the place.

Paul

Peggie Hall HeadMistress · Dec 29, 2008

Nothing wrong with box wine

It's come a long way from its beginnings and some of the varietals now get quite good reviews. We refer to it as "chateau carton" (pronounced "cartone").

shemandr · Dec 29, 2008

Not only that: The bladders can be refilled with water and frozen (Flat). They lie nicely in an ice box, are stackable and render fresh potable cold water when mostly melted.

Rick Webb · Dec 29, 2008

We Drink it all the Time

When folks are coming over for a fancey dinner we refill wine bottles and give it to them.

When blown up the bags make nice pillows too.

Ross · Dec 29, 2008

In this neck of the woods box wine comes out about 2 bucks a bottle and some of it is quite good. There is also some really terrible rotgut sold as box wine.

Peggie Hall HeadMistress · Dec 29, 2008

There's a lot of rotgut sold in bottles too...and a lot of those bottles even have corks and sell for a very high price!

Btw, there's a pretty decent cheap wine in bottles...started out in CA as a brand known as "Two Buck Chuck." It's gotten pretty good reviews. When they started exporting to the rest of the country they relabled it as Crane Lake. Their shiraz is a bit too sweet for my taste, but their merlot, chardonnay and cabernet is very nice. And WELL under $10/bottle too!

When the Australian wines first hit the US, they were about $5-6 a bottle--under-priced to get people to try 'em. And a lot of people must have, 'cuz now they're $15+.

Moral: don't choose or avoid any wine based solely on price...'cuz you'll pay way too much for rotgut or miss out on real bargains if you do.

Rick Webb · Dec 29, 2008

There is a Bunch of it in Bottles that is Crap Too

The container nor price absolutly reflects teh quality of the contents.

Steve Dion · Dec 29, 2008

Well if you need a good bottle of wine for a "special" occasion, you will not go wrong with a bottle of Rombauer Zin. Not cheap, but it will impress. The corks will float your boat a lot better than 2-buck-chuck but the taste is "outstanding".

tcbro · Dec 31, 2008

Keychain floats

My boat keychain has 2 corks on it; one from the bottle of Champagne we celebrated with our first night aboard and one from the bottle of wine we used in the re-naming ceremony.

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