pgslo@juno.com writes: > >They are only appropriate for light duty use (really don't hold up >well >in a heavy use area - the foam tended to lose shape) Patrick, I am still wearing the "Tempus Fugit" T shirt whenever appropriate. Your comments are right on and I wish someone here (Toronto) would sell these things. When I got divorced about 20 years ago I bought a complete set of freestanding corner chesterfield/chair combination from a Montreal store called Pascal (no longer in business). It was made of 6" high density foam and zippered covers plus it had quilted fabric with Zeus fasteners to hold it together (it was not cheap). As a newly divorced 40 year old this furniture became very popular in my bachelor pad and took a lot of use/abuse. (Folded out it could sleep four adults side by side). Today, more than 20 years later, I still have one section that I use as an emergency bed. The foam shows no sign of sagging, but the cover is totally shot. If anybody would sell that stuff, I'd buy a new set in a New York Minute both for boat and house. Ciao- George of Scaramouche

>Gerry Papps wrote: > >> A bowline knot works. Not as tidy, but adjustable, not permanent, >and costs nothing.< On the other hand there is something to be said about a large eye-splice on the end of a braided dock-line: I bought a booklet on how to do splices and knots. Took me over 2 hours to do my first eye-splice, now I'm down to 1/2 hour (experts do it in 10 minutes). When asked how to do it, say something like: "First you take the inside from the outside, then you slip the outside in the inside and finally you stuff the inside with the outside back into the inside/outside." If you haven't got everyone confused yet, offer to give a demonstration, but point out that the rope-guru that you are needs proper sacrifices - like for instance a sixpack of Heineken. It's not a bad way to spend an afternoon on the dock and not a bad ROI on a five-dollar pamphlet. :-) George on Scaramouche, Lake Ontario

Yesterday my burgee arrived, just as promised: end of January. I am impressed, it is beautiful and extremely well made. I'll be proud to fly it this summer! Thanks - George of Scaramouche, Lake Ontario, Canada

>PBrowne900@aol.com writes I've tried to make this a coherent story, Shipmates, one with a little plot, maybe a proper beginning and a satisfying ending. But I can't seem to pull it off. No matter how I try, I'm still left with a bunch of dislocated episodes and images, snapshots of the wonderful life along the wobbly docks and hauled boats of our marina. Don't know where you are lccated, but your stories remind me very much of the place I live in - up here on Lake Ontario, Canada. You'd feel right at home here, or for that matter so would I in your place... Ciao - George

jsware@uswest.net writes: > We chose epoxy and I called the epoxy manufacturer for directions >and assurance that we were applying it right. The downside is that >the original application (after sanding) of epoxy (three coats) , >primer (one coat) and paint (two coats) was as labor intensive as a >good varnish finish. At this point I have to get on my soap-box and start saying: "Armada/Cetol". Once you are down to bare wood, coat with three (3) coats of Armada matte, sanding lightly between coats. That's it. Do not apply more coats, do not use gloss. Then once a year, after a very light sanding, coat with one (1) coat of Armada matte. That's it - finished for another year. Armada/Cetol is a wood sealer/preservative. It is NOT a varnish. It does not produce a high gloss but instead gives a satin finish that stays grippy even when wet. The product works like a semipermeable membrane - allowing the wood to breathe, but excluding actual water. I have used both Armada and Cetol on exterior teak on a number of boats (used to operate a sailboat rental business) and am quite pleased with the results and the ease of maintenance. I do not own stock in Armada or Cetol (but wished I would).... George of Scaramouche on Lake Ontario, Canada

jleslie@ieee.org writes: >George, >Did you use Armada or Cetol for teak decks or swimsteps? How do you >think >that they will hold up to the traffic? >Thanks Joel Got neither of the above. My trawler - as I've admitted before - is still canvass powered.... Only outside teak I got is grab-rails, companion way and some decorative cockpit trim. Inside, where teak abounds, I use Boiled Linseed Oil like my father and my fathers father have always used on rare woods. Outside, after having used up my first can of Cetol years ago, I now use only Armada, mostly because it's considerably cheaper. George

RBourke@aol.com writes: >I am looking for helpful techniques to install a Depth finder >sensor. For example, where is the best place for the sensor? Installed mine last summer near midship and at a place inside the hull that was close to horizontal. Bedded it in plenty of G.E. Silicone compound to avoid airbubbles between the sensor and the hull. Even though the sensor is not "looking" perfectly straight down, it seems to work quite well in depth up to 60 ft (I don't care about deeper readings). My hull is fiberglass and about 3/8 thick where I installed the sensor. Ciao - Scaramouche P.s: The sensor warned me in plenty of time last summer before I hit the rocks and took a chunk out off my keel - only I ignored its "Beep" because I was being distracted elsewhere....

captnwil@coastalnet.com writes: >It is a Nimble Boat >Wanderer 32 "Trawler" version. A friend of mine used to operate a small rental fleet of trailerable Nimbles - designed by Ted Brewer. He still dreams and talks about those boats and I personally would buy one sight unseen because of what I heard about them. In any case, Ted Brewer couldn't do anything wrong (in my book). I sail and liveaboard on a Hullmaster 27, a total Brewer design and build in Picton, Canada. If you ever talk to Brewer again, tell him that he has several livelong admirers here in Toronto. Ciao - George of Scaramouche on Lake Ontario, Canada

JE1449@aol.com writes: >As we are coming from a Pearson 35, w/ the barest of a 12 volt >"electrical" >system we (at least initially) won't be expecting a whole lot, Don't reaslly know what a NorCold is, but I got something that would fit that name very well. It is an ice box that has a thermal cooling unit which uses 5 Amps at 12 V without really cooling very well. With a 4 lb block of ice, it will keep my beer at an adequate temperature for two days in the summer. Has anyone got experience with these "thermal units" (no compressor) and is there a way to improve their efficiency???? George

Thataway@aol.com writes: >At best the piewster (?) principle (not the Norcold refrigerator) > used in these boxes will lower the >temperature about 15 to 20 degrees from the ambient. I used one as >an >auxiliary for dockside and short trips in a unit with a holding >plate in the >freezer. I would not consider using one again. >Bob Austin Yeah, that's about what that one will do for me (and I dont know how to spell that either). As I said, I use it with a block of ice on short trips and do without on long ones, or mostly do without long trips. Have thought of installing a real unit but am severly space limited (27 ft sailboat - wannabee trawler later on). Gg