The Official "What Did You Do To Your Mac Today" Thread!
- Thread starter Sock Puppet
- Start date
First time at the helm of a sailboat
Here's a pic of the shakedown run. If you really zoom in on the pic, the St. Marks Lighthouse can be seen (with a certain degree of imagination) just to the left of the back stay. My dog Luna seemed to enjoy the trip as much as my brother and I.
Here's a pic of the shakedown run. If you really zoom in on the pic, the St. Marks Lighthouse can be seen (with a certain degree of imagination) just to the left of the back stay. My dog Luna seemed to enjoy the trip as much as my brother and I.
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Pictures of people are nice and all 
, but what about the boat, and the work you've done on her?
, but what about the boat, and the work you've done on her?Attachments
On Valentine's day, I bought my first sailboat, a '74 venture 25. Ive been poking around it & checking things out. This evening, after tackling a trailer light replacement, I decided to remove the keel lock bolt. Although the manuals call for a 3/8"x3&1/2" bolt, I found a 1/2" bolt bent in there. After loosening it up, I cut the hex head off so I could push it through to the bilge side. I went & bought more bolts (in both sizes) but im not sure which one will fit in the keel. & why was it bent so severely?
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While you have the bolt out, you might want to check the hole in the keel for wear and elongation.
The bolt normally bends coming off a grounding or when the keel goes over a submerged object, lifts up and then slams back down against the stop. It happens. Part of the life of a swing keel.
The bolt normally bends coming off a grounding or when the keel goes over a submerged object, lifts up and then slams back down against the stop. It happens. Part of the life of a swing keel.
LOL. You really don't want to pull that bolt while the boat's in the water. Outside of the cable, it's the only thing attaching it to the boat.
Remember BOAT = Break Out Another Thousand. Have fun.
+1 When I got my V-222 the 1/2" lock-down hole ended up being a 3" slot. A previous owner had tried to cover the slot with a piece of aluminum sheet on each side. On her maiden voyage my boat took on 6 gallons of water in 10 hours. I'm not sure if it had been grounded or if someone tried to winch up the keel while it was still bolted down.
Actually it's the swing bolt that attaches the keel to the boat. The lock-down bolt keeps it from swinging back up, incase of a knockdown, and you have to pull it out every time you launch or retrieve the boat unless you sail without locking it down.
Yeah, I'm one of those lazy guys that doesn't lock it down. If she gets over far enough for me to worry about the lack of righting moment, she and me are probably on our way to the bottom anyhow
I know you are kidding, but I've been there and you don't want to go there. In separate instances, I have both drowned and sunk a boat away from shore as a kid.Yeah, I'm one of those lazy guys that doesn't lock it down. If she gets over far enough for me to worry about the lack of righting moment, she and me are probably on our way to the bottom anyhow
Jeff
Unless your SO is familiar with sailing I would remove the heel gauge if there is one.
You don't want her to freak out because the boat is a what ever # of degrees of heel angle. Just let her know sailboats are supposed to sail on there side and you should be good.
I lock down the keel on my Siren 17 with a plastic bolt. My keel is only 170lb though. If I don't lock it down water comes in the holes.
Enjoy the new boat!
Welcome to the site too.
That's a good point but then, on the other hand, my wife was afraid of even a few degrees of heel until I installed a working gauge (the original was broken) and told her not worry unless it repeatedly reaches past 35 degrees. (Not that there is anything special about 35 degrees other than the fact that it rarely go past 20.) After that she was okay with it.
I did the same as Bud. They freaked when we hit about 10 degrees. Now I bought my way to at least 25 if I need it.