It looks good, it wasn't cheap, but it doesn't work! Name the object of your anger...

Greenheart

Greenheart

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I tend to assume it's me doing something wrong when something on board doesn't function as it should have done, or as I'd hoped it would.

But in some cases it's hard to overlook the fact that the item just doesn't operate as slickly and easily as its design made you think it would.

My case in point...the RWO hatches in my cockpit's rear-bulkhead. Nice, tough, pretty water-tight and at £10, not cheap for a 6" circle of plastic, I thought.

But it's hard to undo, and having undone it, it's virtually impossible to re-fit the thread of the hatch into the surround, especially at sea with attention divided.

View attachment 46439

(That pic was taken before I'd sealed and screwed the bulkhead and transom drains into place.)

Any similar tales of frustration that need airing?
 
"It looks good, it wasn't cheap, but it doesn't work! Name the object of your anger..."

........... the wife ;)

jr
 
try putting a little vaseline on the thread too; the raw plastic to plastic threads on these tends to bind and make them tough to turn.
 
dancrane said:
I tend to assume it's me doing something wrong when something on board doesn't function as it should have done, or as I'd hoped it would.

But in some cases it's hard to overlook the fact that the item just doesn't operate as slickly and easily as its design made you think it would.

My case in point...the RWO hatches in my cockpit's rear-bulkhead. Nice, tough, pretty water-tight and at £10, not cheap for a 6" circle of plastic, I thought.

But it's hard to undo, and having undone it, it's virtually impossible to re-fit the thread of the hatch into the surround, especially at sea with attention divided.

View attachment 46439

(That pic was taken before I'd sealed and screwed the bulkhead and transom drains into place.)

Any similar tales of frustration that need airing?
Click to expand...

Is that boat a signet?
 
I don't like the idea of vaseline on threads as it tends to be sticky and pick up grains of dirt and sand which exacerbate the difficulties of screwing and unscrewing. A bit of silicone spray as used for wooden drawer rails works on mine.
 
Thanks for the tips, gents. I have Holt silicone spray - I'll give it a try. :encouragement:

PS, the boat's an Osprey. Only about 5ft longer than the Signet. ;)

View attachment 46440

Any more irritations and solutions out there? (Not excluding people, and snipers.)
 
Did you also get the optional rubber seals? Cost half as much again as the hatches, but are essential to make them watertight.
Agree with Rich, turn them anti clockwise until they click and the threads line up.
Unless there is a single grain of sand, then they seize up!
 
We once had a neighbour in the marina whose boat-handling skills we didn't trust, so we bought a handsome spherical fender to deploy on our exposed quarter. It was very effective but so large that there was nowhere on the boat we could stow it; it wouldn't even get into the front cabin. Every time we went sailing we had to trudge back to the car to put it in the boot. It's currently in the garage and my wife wants me to dispose of it, but you never know when you are going to need something, do you?
 
A Vax 12v vacuum cleaner - the battery doesn't hold its charge - it only runs for 5 minutes - takes ages to recharge and doesn't suck very well
 
The "Fastnet" oil lamps I bought and installed. Even with the original rubbishy wick replaced they are useless, producing an unbearable amount of smoke within half an hour, even at a low setting and with a washboard out for ventilation. That's on expensive lamp oil, too. Didn't use them at all this year, plan to dump them this winter.
 
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JumbleDuck said:
The "Fastnet" oil lamps I bought and installed. Even with the original rubbishy wick replaced they are useless, producing an unbearable amount of smoke within haalf an hour, even at a low setting and with a washboard out for ventilation. That's on expensive lamp oil, too. Didn't use them at all this year, plan to dump them this winter.
Click to expand...

That's surprising. I had one on Kindred Spirit and it worked fine, with no noticeable smoke unless I turned the wick too high up.

That was five years ago; maybe they've done something to the design since then.

Pete
 
12v hairdryer I bought swmbo as a stocking filler a few years ago. Have never tried it myself but apparently it is useless.

Also agree with 12v (non) vacuum cleaners.

Miracle gelcoat cleaners (apart from Y10).

Foam paint/varnish brushes are also poor - in fact I don't know why I still have some onboard.

Those wrenches that are supposed to replace all your spanners - not the plumber's wrench type but the ones that work (or not) on some kind of cam system.
 
Agree 12v Vac clnr - shyte.

But what about these loop through mooring aids. I know they can work, some of them, in certain situations, when all goes well and everything goes well, but take some of that away (like a spring ebb or a bit of breeze or some waves) and they seem to fail with ease. I have had 3 different ones so that swmbo can do the buoy attaching properly and avoid having to lasso. But nearly every time, either the hook won't go through the eye on the buoy, the end bit falls off because she happens to push or tap the wrong bit or she can't quite get the angle to poke the point through or I can't seem to get near enough at the right angle...and, and.... So, she throws down the special tool and simply loops over the buoy with a warp the old way. (We do then thread a line properly once we are secure ;)).
 
I had one of those, fortunately donated by a fellow club member, with practice I could pick up our garden bench every time :D, but on a real mooring, no way, so it went in the next boat bits sale.
 
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