Messages

We had Blue Moom barrier coated three yeats ago.  We were getting hundreds of small blisters about 1/4" or smaller that seemed to grow into somewhat larger ones the following year.  When I looked at the time and effort involved I concluded that it would be better to have the barrier coat put on for us.  No regrets and no blisters.

Ron, I put in a call to Black Dog Props today.  Hopefully they will return my call.  I definitely want prop scan after talking to the local shop yesterday.  They talked about heating the prop and then being able to "get it close".  I did not read about going to 15 x 10.5 or 15 x 11.  If I read correctly, just about everybody is having good results with 15 x 10.  Is there some advantage to the extra .5?

just back from the marina that is repairing our hail damage from last summer.  Sure enough, we have a 15 x 9 prop so I need to look into repitching the prop.  Also found out today that the marina we sail out of (not the one doing the repairs) is in foreclosure so now we have to wonder what is in store for us in that regard.  Why can't we just put the thing in the water and go sail.  Also, we spent about 15 minutes watching a coyote make its way along the frozen shore of Lake Erie.

I check and operate the thru hulls each time we are at the boat.  I don't leave the boat with them open when we head for home.  However, I did not realize the fitting to the thru hull was bad.  Never thought to give a yank to the pipe that lead to the thru hull.

While having our new refrigeration unit installed we discovered that the connection between the galley sink drain and the thru hull was very loose and leaking.  It appeared that the threaded section had been over tightened and stripped.  Whether by the factory or a previous owner we have no way of knowing.  However it came out in our hand without much effort.  With the thru hull open this could have sunk the boat had it come off.  I would advise that everybody check this connection below your galley sink.

We are currently replacing our refrigeration with a keel cooler type.  I saw it on another 34 boat last summer and kept in touch with the owner as to its performance.  Apparently he has had the same results as the previous post.  We are really looking forward to this instead of lugging ice and coolers back and forth.  Our old unit has not worked for four years.

Thanks for all the great input.  I see that I need to check the prop size and then check the rpms with a strobe and check that against the tach reading.  Once I figure what actual 2600 rpms reads as my tach and have the right prop, I should be good to go.  I won't get to my boat to check the prop until after Christmas.  I will do the tach test in the water so that waits until launch in the spring.  I will keep you posted.

Just answered my own question by googling how to measure a prop.  Doesn't sound too dificult.

Ok so it sounds like 2600 rpm is the magic number from what you say.  I have read that a 15 x 10 fixed prop is what most have.  Is tha the diamter x pitch or pitch x diameter?  How do I measure the pitch?  I think I will check with a stobe as well just in case the tach is off.  I can do the prop this winter and then check the rpms once we get back in the water in the spring.

I've been through the tech wiki and done a search under m25xp max cruising rpm  I am curious about what rpm you cruise at to get the best speed under power.  The engine manual says to run up the engine to 3000 rpm when getting the air out of the anti-freeze and I do this with success.  However the previous owner said not to cruise at more than 2600 rpm.  In most seas we don't get over 5.7 to 6 kts with our three bladed prop at 2600 rpm.  With seas of 2-3 feet on the bow we are lucky to maintain 4 kts.  The engine manual is moot on the point.  In other posts I see that many of you do over 6 kts consistently.  What kind of rpm do you cruise and what is the max rpm I should consider for being under power?

Jim,
I enjoy wood working in the winter months.  I really like building fine furniture.  A few years ago I built an 18' cedar strip canoe.  I built the stong back in my basement workshop and on a whim thought that I should maybe see if the thing would make it up the stairs and around the corner to the outside.  The strong back did ok, but the canoe would never have made it out of the basement.  Make sure your boat will fit through the doors and around the corners.  I ended-up taking over the garage for several months.

The Admiral has asked me to let everybody know that I did not tear the disk in my back while testing the new mattress!! (Dammit)

After I got four quotes for a custom mattress in the v-berth, the lowest was $499, we went to Wal-Mart and purchased a king sized 4" memory foam mattress topper.  It is the same thing we were using in the aft berth.  I was $139, easy to cut to size and works great.  I'm sorry for the delay in responding back, but I tore a disk in my lower back and have been out of commission for about three weeks.  Looks like my sailing may be limited for a while.  Thanks for the feed back on this subject.

Does anybody have a "reasonably" priced source for custom memory foam mattress toppers for the v-berth.  We've switched to camping in the v-berth and our WalMart queen size that works great in the aft doesn't work well in the bow.  I've thought about getting another one from Walmart and then using the two and splitting them, but then you got the seam in the middle.

Thanks guys.  I will give the toothpicks a try.  I do that in my wood shop, but thought perhaps with fiberglass that it might be different.