Recent content by PBrooks

Try looking up wooden garage door manufacturers and ask them for some offcuts. They usually use 15mm x 70mm Tongue and Groove cedar, which I've used successfully for panelling Regards Paul <hr width=100% size=1>

I've got a Gull. For sale actually. Wood and pretty nice condition. I've not managed to capsize it and it'll take an outboard. So pretty stable and suitable as a tender, I think. Not superfast I have to say, but quite rewarding to sail and more seaworthy than a Mirror (in my opinion) as it has...

Hi I've used CPES for my boat and and can recommend it (though it was a new build). However, you don't need to import from the USA as the following person in Sweden was / is a distributor; Crister Ringkvist: Skandinavisk Impregneringservice Box 57 240 13 Genarp Sweden Phone 040-482184...

I always thought they should be hinged on the forward edge - less chance of water gettting in when you leave said anchorage with it still open... I'd be interested in the experience of others as I'm about to fix mine and it would be an awful lot easier if it was aft hinged. best regards Paul...

Hi You might find 1/2in timber on 1/2in ply difficult to glue - the expansion / contraction between wet and dry for such a thickness may well overpower the glue. Also, Purflex is a sealant and I'm not sure it is really the right stuff for gluing (though there is a 3m product - 5200, I think -...

Can't help you directly, but I know a man who can. Try Moray McPhail at Classic Marine. They cast bronze and seem to know a lot about it. tel: +44 1394 380390 (I've no connection with the company, except as a customer) Good luck Paul <hr width=100% size=1>

Hi If you are planning on making the grab rails, the designer of my boat had a neat way to do this. First, choose wood wide enough to make a pair - ie 30mm by 125mm, Then use a tank cutter, jig saw and router to make all the curved bits (these from the "bases" bolted to the cabin and the "rail"...

Hi, I'm just about done building one of these. Not sailed it yet, but drop me a line if there's anything you'd like to know about how they go together. Best regards Paul <hr width=100% size=1>

To defend the chandlers a bit and retailers in general. I doubt any of them are making excessive profits, although they may seem expensive on certain products. And I can't see that you're being at all realistic expecting the yachting press to jump in and be the consumer's champion. It is already...

Sorry to hear of your problems. I believe epoxy should not be used. Just coating the outside (or inside) and filling the spline is unlikely to work as it will probably crack at the plank joint, letting in water again. Equally, sheathing with fibreglass will likely suffer the same problem (unless...

Re: Jet Ski\'s - about time laws were made .... I have often wondered why we don't have to have identication numbers on all boats. Clearly displayed, these would allow you to report miscreants. Along with compulsory third party insurance, these would be two "acceptable" additional laws in my...

There was also a shipyard in Whitby - the Whitehall Shipyard, if I remember correctly - which produced both a 21ft and a 25ft Whitby fishing boat style motorsailor, called a Luke Fox. (I'm not sure whether they were working in the 50's though). Heavy construction and good seaboat, gaff rigged...

I had this problem with an MD1B. I found the easiest solution was to replace the oil pump with a secondhand unit. It worked fine after that, but I never did really trust the engine again... Good luck <hr width=100% size=1>

Check availability of spares carefully. I wanted to rebuild my MD1, but I was told that there are no oversize pistons or rings available. So if there is significant bore wear (as mine has), it will be difficult / impossible to rebuild. Best regards Paul <hr width=100% size=1>

Richard and Tracy said "Building your own takes time & effort, but less money than you may expect. It can be done in your garden until launch time (enabling longer time to work on it). " Lots of time & effort is spot on, but, unfortunately, it's not as cheap as you'd think. I reckon my boat, a...