Recent content by sirius

I posted a request for advice a couple of weeks ago, on where I could go in the Gosport area to have my liferaft serviced. There were some responses, but Viking and Ocean Safety (local suggestions) quoted me mid-April to start the inspection. So I continued the search and found Ron Hale Marine...

My liferaft needs its annual service and I would like some advice on where to get it done, especially if it can be done quickly so as to lessen the impact on my sailing plans. The boat is in Gosport, so I imagine there must be local suppliers of such a service. <hr width=100% size=1>Simon

I am going to use my boat to take disabled childern and adults sailing, and therefore need to purchase about 8 sets of oilies for them to use. They are probably of generally adult sizes, and it would be best of the trousers could be salopetts. Any ideas of cost-effective suppliers would be...

Fabreze is definitely the best solution without replacing everything. If you have fabric covers you can take them off and take them to the local laundramat and wash the in the big washing mashines they have. Meanwhile, fabreze on the foam will sort the smell out. If the covers are...

I have a Selden Spinnaker pole which has such worn ends that the trigger keeps 'hopping' off the eye on the mast while in full flight. Can anyone advise me where I may be able to purchase Selden (or other) replacements. The pole appears to have an outer diameter of 70mm. Simon

Yes, I have fitted it, and it does work. The reason I found out about this was that I had my boat over-winter at Hayling Yacht Services on Hayling Island last year, and when I went to fire-up the engine prior to departing, there was no response. A bit of testing identified that the Starter was...

I can't suggest much other than the standard spares kit I carry: 2 x Fuel filter (in-case anything gets in there) 2 x Water pump paddle wheel 2 x Alternator Drive belt 1 x Thermostat On the starter motor front I carry a spare starter motor. It is the same unit as is fitted to a Volvo 740 car...

On my First 35s5 I have a roller-furling system on my forestay, and it is attached to the bow plate by two plates with a pin through them. I would like to shorten the forestay, and put a better link in than the 2 plates. Can I use a bottlescrew of some sort (with retaining pins to stop it...

I have a 35foot fin keel Beneteau which has a fairly dense lawn growing on the hull, and I need to scrub or blast it off. Does anyone know where in Portsmouth Harbour I could let her dry out against something reasoably secure so that I can clean her bottom. She draws 1.9metres and I would like...

The cockpit of my boat has teak strips on the sides and floor which are about 4-5mm thick by 50mm wide, and they vary in length up to about 1600mm. Many are split or have been re-secured with visible screws, so I need to replace them. Does anyone know where I might source some replacements? Simon

I don't have the same engine (mine is a VP 2003), so I can't help with advice on the bracket. However, an earlier boat I owned was fitted with a Vire single-cylinder petrol engine which had a Dynostart. I was able to fit an alternator on the other side of the engine by getting some brackets...

Last year I investigated the cost of bringing a Jeanneau Sunshine 38 back from the Carribean. The cost of having the boat shipped from Miami (on a cargo freighter) was about £7,500. I also got a quote for a skipper and mate to bring the boat back, and that was £4,000 plus flights for said...

I have read a number of posts about leaking keels and people thinking about having the bolts loosened and the keel re-sealed. It seems that the advice is to keep the bolts tighly fastened, and dig out/re-seal around the joint between the keel and hull. So, does anyone have any advice on the...

I have a Beneteau 35s5 with Lewmar 46? main winches. I now have the opportunity to purchase some Harken 40 ST winches, but I am not sure if they will be big enough for Genoa winches. Does anyone have any experience of this size of winch on a 35 foot boat? Simon

Hello George, I am certainly interested. How much are you likely to want for the couple of months? Of course I can motor up from Haslar every other weekend, but I would rather not. Thanks, Simon Simon