Sanding Paint Tip

Sanding Your Boat

I saw this tip in a helpful hits section on a boat repair blog.

I have not tried it. The tip is :

If you are sanding to remove large areas with a belt, orbital or vibrator sander and paint builds up quickly on the sand paper.

Dampen a cloth with kerosene and wipe over the area that you want to sand..

It absolutely prevents the paint from building on the paper.

You will be amazed

 

 

Sculling a boat like a Pirate...Arrg!

Sculling 

On some small dinghies and boats there is a notch in the transom for an oar. For years I thought it was just for decoration, but it is a functional notch and it is used in sculling the boat. Sculling is a way of moving a boat with just one oar. The classic Italian gondola is propelled by sculling.

It is not as easy to scull as one might think. The clip on this link shows and tells what sculling can do: 

Check it out. 

http://www.offcenterharbor.com/och-em-04/?awt_l=M3Q6U&awt_m=3.jGfj6ARHjDQ9k

 

I learned a lot from this short clip. Boat like a Pirate…Arrg!

Antenna Wind Vane

Antenna Wind Vane

The place for your VHF antenna on your sailboat is the top of the mast. That is also a good place for a wind vane. The Shakespeare co. now has an antenna/wind vane combo, the 5445 that is both. It comes with a top mast mount bracket, antenna, wind vane, 65 feet of coax cable with a PL-259 connector and the best , a 5 year warranty. Five years is about as often as I want to see the top of my mast closely.8-)

What is a Boom Vang?

BoomVang

A boom Vang is a rig set up on a sailboat that helps keep the boom on the boat from raising up.

A simple boom vang is a simple block setup on one line that gives you a mechanical advantage that lets it hold the boom down when it is out over the water on the side of the boat. 

A boom vang is usualy attached about 1/3 of the way aft of the mast. A  bail or a "U" shaped bracket  or eye attaches to the underside of the boom and another bail or eye at the mast base are where the boom vang is attached. The vang consists of a three to four part block and tackle on a line, or on larger sailboats it may be a rigid hydraulic tube.

 
 












The lower block attachment should have a quick-release set up like a cam action cleat. You need to be able to release the vang quickly to prevent boom damage in case the boom dips into the water.

Reefing Sails and a Boom Vang

Reefing Sails and a Boom Vang

A boom vang can help when the wind elevates and you need to to put a reef in the sail.(check link on reefing) You can use the vang with the mainsheet and traveler to get a mainsail leech shape that will spill air from the sail and this can improve the boat handling. 

By tensioning the vang a little bit, it will remove slack. Set the mainsheet on the track to where you need it and then slack the mainsheet so that the leech (sail side away from mast) gets a twist in it about ½ way up the sail. This will let air dump from the sail. This will help keep the boat better balanced.

What a boom vang does is help trim the main sail. The mainsheet line and the boom vang holds down the end of the boom. When the boom is near the centerline of the boat or near the edge of the boat the mainsheet can hold the boom down by itself and you can get a nice shape to the sail with just the main sheet line, But when the boom goes out past the boat side over the water the main sheet line cannot hold the end of the boom down. A boom vang holds the boom down in this position and it lightens the load you have and tension on the main sheet line. It also lets the sail shape stay better.

When running with the wind, jibing is more likely. A flying jibe can break equipment and take your head off.  By attaching the lower end of the vang to a solid eye pad on the deck or boat rail, the vang can ne rigged as a jibe preventer.

A boom break is also a great way prevent or reduce the force of a jibe.