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Thread: Surprise!

  1. #31
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    Sep 2007
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    3,688

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    Yes! What's funny is that two of the owners were the CEO and VP/Product Info for West Marine.

    After emptying out the boat, my locker at RYC is full of that stuff. Come on over and pick your poison.
    .
    Last edited by BobJ; 11-29-2018 at 08:32 AM.

  2. #32
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    Sep 2007
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    3,688

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    Glacially slow progress.

    I'm trying to convince myself that the hailing port lettering is straight. Meanwhile I now know what a "joker valve" is. There's nothing funny about it.

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  3. #33
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    San Francisco Bay Area
    Posts
    2,095

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    [i]reading, bemused look on my face....
    1968 Selmer Series 9 B-flat and A clarinets
    1962 Buesher "Aristocrat" tenor saxophone
    Piper One Design 24, Hull #35; "Alpha"

  4. #34
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    Montara, CA
    Posts
    803

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    That's a serious bottom sanding job.....

  5. #35
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Posts
    3,688

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    Don't use Hydrocoat if you ever want to get it off. It's hard as nails, doesn't work, and you can't put another paint over it.

  6. #36
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Santa Rosa
    Posts
    644

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    3 out of the 4 large boats I've owned were "porta pottied." I know some (many?) recoil at the porta potty idea, but I've found it reasonable compared to the complications of an installed head: no thru hulls, no valves, no hoses, no stink. And no CG "Courtesy Inspection" probs.

    Almost all my sailing is daysailing or an overnight to HMB or Drakes Bay, so toilet use is sort of minimalized

    #1: I carry an old hospital male urinal in the head compartment for guy use. It helps keep the head compartment smelling reasonably sane since the urinal's neck is an easier target when everything swinging around (if you know what I mean) and the toilet bowel is moving, too. A quick dump into the bowl and things are over. Some women who've sailed with me used a feminine device that's similar, but most, just use the potty. I use a travel trailer enzyme product in the holding tank. No formaldehyde or chemical smell.

    #2: Inshore it's the porta potty. Offshore it's the porta potty or a bucket with a fitted seat. On the way to Hawaii it was a toilet seat attached to a bracket that fit into the outboard receiver and hung over the transom (no, I don't have a picture!). Using the head on any boat is a semi-private venture no matter what. Even Jim Quanci's "Throne" (the best I've used) makes noise. And ventilation is always a problem in a small cabin.

    Clipper YH has a dedicated porta potty dump station, so a quick stop and a hose out gets the porta potty ready for the next sail. I suppose growing up on a farm where we had a "two holer" part of the time and now living for nearly 50 years in a house with a septic tank has prepared me for the job?

  7. #37
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Posts
    3,688

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    For me, a big part of this hobby/pastime is learning new things. I'm an accountant but my dad was a mechanic and machinist, and my mom was pretty handy too. I learned to look at how something was put together, figure out what was wrong with it and if possible, build it back better. This head/holding tank project is like that.

    The book Steve recommended is helpful and even entertaining. It clued me in to two major problems with the existing system: the improper routing of the hoses and the poor venting of the tank. So when it's all back together it will be better and it won't stink. But as you suggest, the pee bottle will still be primary and the built-in system may not get used much.

  8. #38
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Posts
    3,688

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    No photos yet, but another project is the transducers. The PO tried to make things better but it's taking a rework to resolve the issues. Example: Boat speed shows 3.5 knots on one tack and 6 knots on the other, even after tweaking the angle of the speed sensor which is too far up on the side of the hull. The depth sensor has been replaced with a tilted-element version that matches the hull's deadrise. The wind input seems pretty good so I'm keeping the stock B&G masthead birdie for now. The heading sensor is an old unit and not mounted in an ideal location (understatement!)

    We're installing an excellent "Hall Effect" speedo on the centerline (which is proving to be a challenge due to the thickness of the cored hull), and I have plans for the heading sensor and autopilot components. Once finished this will be a very good system that can be properly calibrated.

  9. #39
    Join Date
    Nov 2010
    Location
    Discovery Bay, CA
    Posts
    496

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    Quote Originally Posted by Wylieguy View Post
    3 out of the 4 large boats I've owned were "porta pottied." I know some (many?) recoil at the porta potty idea, but I've found it reasonable compared to the complications of an installed head: no thru hulls, no valves, no hoses, no stink. And no CG "Courtesy Inspection" probs.

    Almost all my sailing is daysailing or an overnight to HMB or Drakes Bay, so toilet use is sort of minimalized

    #1: I carry an old hospital male urinal in the head compartment for guy use. It helps keep the head compartment smelling reasonably sane since the urinal's neck is an easier target when everything swinging around (if you know what I mean) and the toilet bowel is moving, too. A quick dump into the bowl and things are over. Some women who've sailed with me used a feminine device that's similar, but most, just use the potty. I use a travel trailer enzyme product in the holding tank. No formaldehyde or chemical smell.

    #2: Inshore it's the porta potty. Offshore it's the porta potty or a bucket with a fitted seat. On the way to Hawaii it was a toilet seat attached to a bracket that fit into the outboard receiver and hung over the transom (no, I don't have a picture!). Using the head on any boat is a semi-private venture no matter what. Even Jim Quanci's "Throne" (the best I've used) makes noise. And ventilation is always a problem in a small cabin.

    Clipper YH has a dedicated porta potty dump station, so a quick stop and a hose out gets the porta potty ready for the next sail. I suppose growing up on a farm where we had a "two holer" part of the time and now living for nearly 50 years in a house with a septic tank has prepared me for the job?
    I took all my head plumbing out along with holding tank. This created a ton of additional room. The bloody hoses took up a huge amount of space. I left the bowl in place and poured an epoxy plug to seal the the drain opening. I use WAG bags exclusively. No muss no fuss. Used bags are stored in a sealed Home Depot bucket stored in the lazarette. Bags are trashed when I get ashore. Ladies can use them for #1 and 2, I use a bottle for #1. Works great, cheap and super clean,

  10. #40
    Join Date
    Aug 2013
    Location
    Seattle, WA
    Posts
    296

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    Quote Originally Posted by BobJ View Post
    No photos yet, but another project is the transducers. The PO tried to make things better but it's taking a rework to resolve the issues. Example: Boat speed shows 3.5 knots on one tack and 6 knots on the other, even after tweaking the angle of the speed sensor which is too far up on the side of the hull. The depth sensor has been replaced with a tilted-element version that matches the hull's deadrise. The wind input seems pretty good so I'm keeping the stock B&G masthead birdie for now. The heading sensor is an old unit and not mounted in an ideal location (understatement!)

    We're installing an excellent "Hall Effect" speedo on the centerline (which is proving to be a challenge due to the thickness of the cored hull), and I have plans for the heading sensor and autopilot components. Once finished this will be a very good system that can be properly calibrated.
    Sounds like Surprise! is right on schedule for the 2020 SHTP. Is that the plan, possibly, maybe?
    Lee
    s/v Morning Star
    Valiant 32

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