Well, now you're not making any sense at all. If you are daysailing
dinghies,

I'm making perfect sense.

There are no spreader plates under them and I don't like the present
mounting - too weak and too close to the hull. Making up plates involves
more metalwork than I'm willing to undertake at present.

No, you're not. And no need to get all snippy about it either. Do you really
think there is less work involved in pulling them all out, filling the holes
and fairing and painting the exterior than leaving them on and not pulling on
them until you need to? They lasted this long without tearing the deck apart.
If all you are looking for is someone to tell you it is OK, then go ahead, it
is OK.

Bobsprit wrote:

Wally, get a grip. I've been sailing aboard a Cape Dory Typhoon (18.5
feet) for the past 4 years. No lifelines. Go forward carefully and
keep low. Now stop your whining about lifelines and harnesses for
cripes sake.

Take a chill pill, Bob. LIS, there's little need to go forward unless I want
to switch to the storm jib. There's every chance that I might be late in
making that decision and there could be a big enough chop to make it risky.
If that happens, I'll use the harness and move with the same care and
balance that kept me alive during my days of technical rock climbing. The
estuary is generally quite calm, but I've seen it get bad enough for rescue
boats to struggle.


And get some running lights. They're cheap to buy and
will expand your range. Right now you're sailing what we call, a
"Lugosi" which means you have to come ashore when the sun drops!

I'm aware of that. Lights are some way in the future - no electrics at
present, so I'm kinda waiting to see if battery-powered LED types are an
option.


--
Wally
www.makearatherlonglinkthattakesyounowhere.com
Things are always clearer in the cold, post-upload light.

Bobsprit wrote:
So, you appreciate that it's possible to sail a boat without having
lifelines fitted, and to have a good chance of surviving the
experience.

So long as you can swim. Flipping a dinghy is part of the fun,
especially in heavy air when you push the limits.

Absolutely.


For your little
boat? A simple harness is more than enough and I doubt you'd use it
much, unless you want to be a safety suzzie when singlehanding.

More for if the weather gets bad. The estuary near the marina narrows and
occasionally gets very choppy.



My
biggest concern with your boat would be a knockdown, which can happen
with those little pokey cruisers. Make sure her cockpit storage is
fixed shut and hatchboards are secure in heavy air.

Yup. Cockpit lockers have cleatable retaining/locking cords. The
companionway hatch is one of those loose boards things which I want to
improve on, and the internal sofa lockers need looking at as well.


Now stop it!

But I can't - you're on the line and tugging beautifully!


--
Wally
www.makearatherlonglinkthattakesyounowhere.com
Things are always clearer in the cold, post-upload light.

Dinghy masts are eminently grabbable, Bob.

Great gadzooks.

RB

SkitchNYC wrote:

No, you're not. And no need to get all snippy about it either. Do
you really think there is less work involved in pulling them all out,
filling the holes and fairing and painting the exterior than leaving
them on and not pulling on them until you need to?

The stanchion bases leak - they're all coming off anyway. The question is
what to do afterwards. I don't intend to fill and fair - I'll plug them with
flanged bolts. That way, if I feel later that I do want to have lifelines,
the plugging can be reversed with the minimum of hassle. Fitting 18 bolts
with a squirt of sealer on each one is the easiest way to deal with it at
present.


They lasted this long without tearing the deck apart.

I might not be the most expert sailor on the planet, but I know crap
engineering when I see it. The fittings are horrible. Whoever put them on
didn't even use penny washers on the 1/4" bolts to at least give a semblence
of trying to spread the load. The outer bolts are so close to the side that
a penny washer wouldn't fit anyway (can't even get a socket on the nut -
have to use an open ended spanner, turning bit by bit). There's mild crazing
on the internal gelcoat around the fixing holes due to the localised
compression.

It seems to me that their present state makes them a liability. The fact
that they've lasted this long is no indication that they're in any way up to
the job. Rather, I would take that as a sign that nobody has ever grabbed a
hold of a lifeline while falling overboard.


If all you are looking for is
someone to tell you it is OK, then go ahead, it is OK.

If you look at the original post, you'll see that I was trying to find out
if there was something I might be missing with regard to the purpose of
lifelines and how they're used. That isn't the same as looking for someone
to tell me it's okay, that's a sanity check for someone who has no
experience of boats with roofs.


--
Wally
www.makearatherlonglinkthattakesyounowhere.com
Things are always clearer in the cold, post-upload light.

The stanchion bases leak - they're all coming off anyway.

Don't know whether to laugh or cry...wait...it's coming to me....

BWAHAHAHAAHAHAHA!

RB

Fitting 18 bolts
with a squirt of sealer on each one is the easiest way to deal with it at
present.

Stand by for the next installment of "Wally's This Ruined Old Boat."

RB

If you look at the original post, you'll see that I was trying to find out
if there was something I might be missing with regard to the purpose of
lifelines and how they're used.

This was Wally's best troll EVER!
4 stars!


RB

Bobsprit wrote:

The stanchion bases leak - they're all coming off anyway.

Don't know whether to laugh or cry...wait...it's coming to me....

Well, it is a '72 boat, and not as well cared for as it could have been. Did
I mention the original sealer? It's that hessain fabric stuff with some sort
of non-setting gunk that plumbers use. (Go on, have another laugh!)


BWAHAHAHAAHAHAHA!

Enjoy your rainy sail, Bob - don't forget the foulies.


--
Wally
www.makearatherlonglinkthattakesyounowhere.com
Things are always clearer in the cold, post-upload light.

Bobsprit wrote:
If you look at the original post, you'll see that I was trying to
find out if there was something I might be missing with regard to the
purpose of lifelines and how they're used.

This was Wally's best troll EVER!
4 stars!

I am but a sweet, innocent, fresh-faced n00b.


--
Wally
www.makearatherlonglinkthattakesyounowhere.com
Things are always clearer in the cold, post-upload light.