Things not to do on a boat

[srevir]

As we all work on our boats for the new season I got to thinking of some of the things I would hope NOT TO DO AGAIN !

For instance some years ago I worked on some stainless in the cockpit and was too idle to make a good job of getting rid of the specks of metal - result rusty pit marks ( yes rust even though it was stainless ) in my gel coat !

More recently, using oxalic acid to clean the fixings for the swim ladder, I thought that dropping all the bits into a jar of the stuff and leaving for a couple of hours to soak would be a good idea - result the plastic bits etched and fell to pieces !

No doubt we all have had our moments so maybe we can learn what NOT TO DO from each other - Lets have your contributions.

/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[johnalison]

Drilling holes. Measure twice, and then ask SWMBO if it's where she wants it.

 

[RobBrown]

Don't leave bog standard masking tape on over the weekend /forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif

If you have to, then use the blue 3M type!

 

[Elessar]

biggest stressmaker for me when working on the boat is saying how long the job will take and telling Mrs E what time I'll be home. Just like beer - never again.

 

[[2574]]

Never again will I scrape the hull of an 12m yacht with a 3/4" scraper.

And having always bought boats that are run down and then spent years re-fitting I now don't beleive that I have another major refit in me. If I change boats the next one will have to be up-together; I can't face someone else's bodge's again.

 

[Otter]

Spending hours doing a job I can't do instead of doing some O/T and paying someone to do it in a tenth of the time and to a much better standard. I actually contemplated making my own stack pack - What was I thinking?

 

[Cornishmuttley]

Simon,
Nothing about the post but if that picture is your JR he is absolutely gorgeous and reminds me of my twins who sadly only made it to 17 years.

 

[NPMR]

Currently in the middle of taking off every last little bit of hull paint on mine, from the previous owner, so we can repaint but, this time, properly!

I'm absolutely knackered. This is the third afternoon spent on the orbital sander, and I've got about halfway down one side!

If anyone knows of a better way to do the job on a GRP hull, please, please, please let me know!

 

[Otter]

He is one of the finest looking dogs on earth. He stinks however, has an odd shaped face, ridiculously short legs, and overly long body, stubby tail, sheds hair like a molting machine and part of his nose is missing. Also he can't swim. But I do love him and he has learned to poo off the aft deck but wees on the windows. There really is nothing like a JR is there?

 

[john m]

trying to straighten stansions using heat from barbeque left 1 for 5 min and made cup of tea and came ack to a puddle of aluminium

 

[dt4134]

[ QUOTE ]
trying to straighten stansions using heat from barbeque left 1 for 5 min and made cup of tea and came ack to a puddle of aluminium

[/ QUOTE ]

Brilliant. That has to be the post of the week.

 

[CliveG]

I know just how you feel

I am getting to the end of removing the paint on the deck and cabin of my 25 footer.

A previous owner thought that household gloss and sandtex was a good idea!
I have used 7 ltrs of Dilunett and a part roll of HD cling film so far.
There are still areas of sandtex that have not given up on the decks and cabin roof.
The decks and roof are textured with what looks like a woodchip paper pattern.
Getting the remaining Sandtex out of the patten is a nightmare.
We are down to scraping the stuff out and scrubbing with a S/S wire wool thing.

Do you know the type of paint on your hull?
If it is 2 pack Dilunett will not touch it.
If it is a one pack then try Dilunett and cover it with clingfilm to keep it active.

Good luck!

 

[Slinky Spring]

Spend many hours trying to get engine going. Drain fuel out of tank, bleed fuel system numerous times, damage various bleed points by overtightening then drive 5 hour round trip to pick up replacement parts from spare engine. Replace all damaged parts, bleed system again and still doesnt start.
Starts first time once i push the engine stop button back into place. /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif

 

[Twister_Ken]

Never again will I hoist the mainsail with the battens not firmly locked into the pockets. Sail battens do not float.

 

[WindermereColvic]

rookie mistake, i trusted one end of a halyard to a half hich round the boom. pulled the other end, and whoops, bye bye halyard!

 

[nct1]

Believe keel paint is water resistant, and is all that is required plus anti foul.

(The new solution suggested by a fellow sailor is left field but has left me with much less keep scraping this year)

 

[oakum]

"He is one of the finest looking boatowners on earth. He stinks however, has an odd shaped face, ridiculously short legs, and overly long body, stubby tail, sheds hair like a molting machine and part of his nose is missing. Also he can't swim. But I do love him and he has learned to poo off the aft deck but wees on the windows. There really is nothing like a happy boat owner is there - woof"

 

[Krusty]

DO NOT devise a clever arrangement of the MoB equipment (lifebelt, drogue, danbuoy and lamp) on the stern-rail such that they all deploy in an instant on a pull of a bright yellow toggle at the rudder-head!
I did. Then, anchored up at dusk in a favourite loch I welcomed on board a couple who rowed over from a neighbouring yacht.
You guessed it in one!
The wifey says ''What does this do? and pulls it. There follows a spell of frantic rowing their rubber duck down the Springs ebb to catch it before it reaches the narrows which run at five knots over a shallow bar. Then a long toil back, with a curse after every breath.
We did not become friends.

 

[exfinnsailor]

Listen to a friend who tells you to buy a boat small than his .. Only to find out that its to small and what you should have done is bought something larger .. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

 

[Anonymous]

Make guesses, assumptions and jump to conclusions. Things take between three and ten times as long to do on a boat, and even longer to put right. I have eventually learnt to leave half a day between deciding what needs to be done and starting any serious work. Makes life more enjoyable, too /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif