Nice issue - let me add my experience to the discussion. We cruised 7
years in the Pacific from the Aleutians to New Zealand, from Japan &
China to LA and many islands. We have a 52' glass boat, 4-236 Perkins
and 6 KW Northern Lights genset. Getting ready to go again later this
year.

1st, your location - you'll be in the easy access islands in the
Caribbean - you're not going to Mars, or even the space station. St.
Thomas is regular US territory - complete with NAPA, Autozone, UPS, US
Mail service, etc. You can buy oil filters, Racor filters, hose
clamps, wrenches, even rice and farm raised fresh salmon to your
hearts content. Trinidad is not exactly the remote Amazon basin
either. You're not going to be in Papua New Guinea for 6 months like
we were. What I saying is that all cruisers (even us starting out)
spent way too much money on "what-if" stuff (food, tools, spares) and
dragged too much never needed crap around. Save the money and the
weight. You'll need the space for duty-free liquor.

2nd, some stuff is hard to buy (or very expensive) even in relatively
civilized places - like really good batteries. Friends had a gel 8D
battery crap out in Fiji - they only had 2 8D's. Ended up flying one
in from LA. Big $$$. Don't leave home with crappy batteries. Buy new
now and buy flooded ones. Also things like the rudder - you can't take
a spare and it's hard to get one built - triple check it for integrity
before you leave - even if you have to drill a dozen holes in it to
ensure it's clean inside. Friends lost their rudder (broke off and
sank) 20 miles before arriving in the Marquesas - cost them $1200 for
the tow in and 2 months of talking, waiting, wasting time.

3rd, the stuff that breaks and causes big immediate problems are
things like the alternator and belts, impellers, the autopilot, the
stove & propane system, rigging spares, depth sounder, outboard spark
plugs, steering system, windlass, fresh water pressure pump, those
kind of things. They impact you immediately. You need to prepare for
these situations. Eg, you can get an auto elect shop to sell you or
build for you an exact duplicate drop-in alternator - so you can
change out a dead one in 10 minutes - no spacers, no belt size diffs,
no wiring connector changes. Why take spare bearing and diodes and try
to repair yourself.

4th, other junk like the wind generator (you'll be getting rid of this
if you really like peace and quiet), winch grease, and the other 1000
things can wait - you can live without for a few weeks if something
happens.

I still have 1200 ft of 5/8" nylon line new but 15 years old (and
never used - or needed), old sanders I never use, and on and on -
clogging up the boat.



On Wed, 04 Feb 2004 19:21:42 GMT, "Skip Gundlach"
wrote:


It's a 46 foot ketch with a Perkins 4-154 and a Northern Lights 8kw genset,
both in the "mature hours" segment of their lives but surveyed as sound. It
has the usual assortment of electrical stuff which I hope to mostly keep
happy with ample solar and some wind generation plus more storage than is
currently (pardon the pun - about 440AH) available, as peace and quiet is
high on my list (vs running engines and gensets). Unfortunately to my
taste, a great deal of the electric stuff is 110, but it's got lots of
inverter capability, so the trick will be to keep power happening (see
solar, etc., peace and quiet, above).

The storage available is pretty good, so space isn't a particular challenge,
though, of course, every boat has a limit. For at least the expected first
year, we'll be island hopping, working our way from Ft. Lauderdale or
equivalent to Trinidad or so, and back to our expected Saint Thomas base,
ETD/ETA Nov 04/05.

So, the question is, for a full-time cruising boat equipped as above, what
tools and spares would you bring along? Would you bring specialized tools
(such as some electronic diagnostic/reading stuff) or spares (ability to
rebuild stuff)? If they're not commonly available, I'd appreciate sources,
as well.

Thanks...

L8R

Skip and Lydia

A
You disappoint me. I was waiting for Skip to do a spreadsheet and shopping
list of everything recommended, then buy it all and watch his boat sink from
the excess weight. Boo hoo. I was going to sell him all the excess junk we
hauled around for 3 years.
Bruce

"Bruce" wrote in message
...
A
You disappoint me. I was waiting for Skip to do a spreadsheet and
shopping
list of everything recommended, then buy it all and watch his boat sink
from
the excess weight. Boo hoo. I was going to sell him all the excess junk
we
hauled around for 3 years.
Bruce

LOL!!

Well, then, how about a list of what *not* to buy?? Yours should be a good
reference point, I'd expect.

That said, I'm aware of the relative availability of 'stuff' in the
Caribbean in general. However, I'd rather fix something that breaks than
hobble to someplace to have someone else do it, if I'm able and equipped. I
really don't want to carry more than I need, but, for example, a spare
starter and alternator and injectors + pump seems worthwhile, along with the
water pump parts and belts and the usual consumables.

I'd be very nervous without filters and a few other things, as well...

So, your comments on what you never used in 3 years would be welcome - as
have been the comments preceding! - thank you all, and keep them coming...

L8R

Skip, full survey on 16Feb

PS how's the rebuild coming?
--
"And then again, when you sit at the helm of your little ship on a clear
night, and gaze at the countless stars overhead, and realize that you are
quite alone on a great, wide sea, it is apt to occur to you that in the
general scheme of things you are merely an insignificant speck on the
surface of the ocean; and are not nearly so important or as self-sufficient
as you thought you were. Which is an exceedingly wholesome thought, and one
that may effect a permanent change in your deportment that will be greatly
appreciated by your friends."- James S. Pitkin

x-no-archive:yes

What I got from Bob this evening for a 1979 CSY 44 (which is about 50
feet if you count the bow pulpit and dinghy davits) fiberglass boat
with a Perkins 4-154 engine, 2 banks of four 6 volt batteries each,
four solar panels and a wind generator - no genset - cruising up and
down the ICW with some off shore legs.

He has:

cordless drill
4-1 screw driver and a whole bunch of other tools (tool box)
2 foot channel locks
strap wrenches
chain strap wrench
cable cutter (used for making jacklines out of cable and cutting the
staysail stay)
wrenches for the motor mounts
roto tool for routing and cutting, and a saber saw (he's built a
storage cabinet this winter and got my snorkel mask all full of
sawdust)
infrared thermometer - used on engine and refrigeration
spare throttle/clutch transmission cable (after ours broke when we
were anchored in the wilds of SC)
spare exhaust mixer elbow (after ours disintegrated being made of
aluminum - it lasted 20 some odd years though - had one made up by a
plumbing supply shop)
spare injectors, spare starter, spare alternator, spare electric fuel
pump, spare raw water pump, spare engine cooling pump, spare
alternator bracket (ours broke offshore), spare thermostats, several
fuel and several oil filters
spare caps for the dinghy chambers, and spare plug for the dinghy
although Bob lost the check valve off it today.
sewing machine - like Sailrite but that won't do actual sails
inverters for the sewing machine and tools, plus little ones for small
stuff
three changes of oil - change every 200 hours-mfg recommends oftener
but we use synthetic
rebuilt kit for the marine toilets and a handful of joker valves
spare batteries for the GPSs, battery operated lights etc.
spare hoses for everything (he thinks) and spare belts out the ying
yang

We have broken the water pressure pump and replaced it but don't have
a spare at the moment. But for what we are doing and where we are, we
can just go buy another one if we need it.


"Skip Gundlach"
wrote:

"Bruce" wrote in message
...
A
You disappoint me. I was waiting for Skip to do a spreadsheet and
shopping
list of everything recommended, then buy it all and watch his boat sink
from
the excess weight. Boo hoo. I was going to sell him all the excess junk
we
hauled around for 3 years.
Bruce

LOL!!

Well, then, how about a list of what *not* to buy?? Yours should be a good
reference point, I'd expect.

That said, I'm aware of the relative availability of 'stuff' in the
Caribbean in general. However, I'd rather fix something that breaks than
hobble to someplace to have someone else do it, if I'm able and equipped. I
really don't want to carry more than I need, but, for example, a spare
starter and alternator and injectors + pump seems worthwhile, along with the
water pump parts and belts and the usual consumables.

I'd be very nervous without filters and a few other things, as well...

So, your comments on what you never used in 3 years would be welcome - as
have been the comments preceding! - thank you all, and keep them coming...

L8R

Skip, full survey on 16Feb

PS how's the rebuild coming?

grandma Rosalie

What not to bring is a better idea. I was going to take spare injectors
until the guy who owned a diesel repair facility is St Thomas told me that a
spare would last 6 months at best before the tip would go bad. I didn't
take any and I never needed one. My advise is to go through the boat and
write down every piece of gear you have on the boat and pretend it is going
to break. Go shop for replacements. If you can easily find a replacement
here, you can find it in the Island chain. Budget Marine is generally
better stocked than West. If you can't, then start watching ebay for a
spare. A friend came through yesterday with a Simrad Autopilot problem. It
was going to cost him $750 for a circuit board. This is the kind of stuff
to look for when filling up hiddy holes. If you have a watermaker, then
take a spare membrane but not a rebuild kit for the pump.
Congradulations on you new boat...it has been a long road.

On rebuilding the Endeavour, I went to replace the headliner and found that
the moorons who built the boat, installed all the headliner wood in the
coach roof...stapled in the headliner and then mated the top to the hull.
All the wood is running over the top of the bulkheads and you couldn't take
down the headliner. I developed a technique to cut the wood out and will
post photos of the process at a later date on my website. After I get the
wood removed, I am going to reengineer the coach roof by adding stiffeners
and the Velcro the headliner in place in 2' sections. The roof of a 43 is
like a diving board.
Later
Bruce

"Bruce" wrote in message
...
What not to bring is a better idea. I was going to take spare injectors
until the guy who owned a diesel repair facility is St Thomas told me that
a
spare would last 6 months at best before the tip would go bad. I didn't
take any and I never needed one.

Now that is a bunch of BS.. I'm amazed that any mechanic would make such a
statement..

A new or rebuilt injector is filled with diesel or calibration fluid and
once you seal it up in oiled rags in a zip lock bag it will last for ever..
There is just no way it can deteriorate. The spare injector I carryed around
on my last boat (same engine as now) is in perfect condition after 15 years
in storage.

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

This raises a question that I've had for a long time -- re "oily rags." I've
always been taught they are a fire hazard, since they can spontaneously
combust. Yet one cannot help but have oily rags on a boat when doing any
kind of work around the engine, keeping tools from rusting, etc. So what's
the best way to SAFELY store them? The lubberly method of keeping them in
buckets of water won't work for obvious reasons.

--
Karin Conover-Lewis
Fair and Balanced since 1959
klc dot lewis at centurytel dot net


"Steve" wrote in message
...

"Bruce" wrote in message
...
What not to bring is a better idea. I was going to take spare injectors
until the guy who owned a diesel repair facility is St Thomas told me
that
a
spare would last 6 months at best before the tip would go bad. I didn't
take any and I never needed one.

Now that is a bunch of BS.. I'm amazed that any mechanic would make such a
statement..

A new or rebuilt injector is filled with diesel or calibration fluid and
once you seal it up in oiled rags in a zip lock bag it will last for
ever..
There is just no way it can deteriorate. The spare injector I carryed
around
on my last boat (same engine as now) is in perfect condition after 15
years
in storage.

Steve
s/v Good Intentions

Combustion is the well known exothermic oxidation process.
Mineral oil on or off rags, does oxidize, but very slowly, specially
the oils with ani-oxidant additives.
But there *is* an oil that will easily spontaneously combust on shop
rags - linseed oil, specially raw linseed oil.

This is sometimes sprayed inside welded tube fuselages on homebuilds:
it is a clinging cover film to stop rust *and* it mops up oxygen too.

Brian Whatcott Altus

On Sat, 7 Feb 2004 09:45:14 -0600, "Karin Conover-Lewis"
wrote:

This raises a question that I've had for a long time -- re "oily rags." I've
always been taught they are a fire hazard, since they can spontaneously
combust. Yet one cannot help but have oily rags on a boat when doing any
kind of work around the engine, keeping tools from rusting, etc. So what's
the best way to SAFELY store them? The lubberly method of keeping them in
buckets of water won't work for obvious reasons.

x-no-archive:yes

"Karin Conover-Lewis" wrote:

This raises a question that I've had for a long time -- re "oily rags." I've
always been taught they are a fire hazard, since they can spontaneously
combust. Yet one cannot help but have oily rags on a boat when doing any
kind of work around the engine, keeping tools from rusting, etc. So what's
the best way to SAFELY store them? The lubberly method of keeping them in
buckets of water won't work for obvious reasons.

The oil that causes spontaneous combustion is vegetable type oil like
linseed oil in particular, not mineral or petroleum based oil.
Linseed oil is used in some varnishes and paints. In order to have
the spontaneous combustion you have to have air -that's why storing
them under water works. An air tight container also works. But
what's easier is to lay the rags flat to dry out because that way they
aren't close enough together to let heat build up.

This is a quote about boiled linseed oil from
http://yarchive.net/air/linseed_oil.html


"Boiled" is not what most people think; it should actually be called
"de-gassed" since the "boiling" is done by vacuum at room temperature.
It just takes the dissolved air out (the "boiling" is just the gases
expanding and breaking as bubbles), and makes the linseed oil less likely
to cause spontaneous combustion when oily rags are left wadded up.
(Remember "spontaneous combustion" warnings about oily rags? They never
managed to mention that linseed oil is the *only* oil you need to worry
about, and the only oil you were likely to generate oily rags with that
you were likely to store wadded up overnight for use the next day.)...
BTW, I swear by linseed oil as an anti-corrosive coating. I use it on
aluminum, *especially* externally where there have been white patches- I
sand off the white oxide and then coat with a thin layer of linseed oil
to occlude and passivate pinhole craters. It weathers away and need to
be reapplied, though you can get it off quickly with a little paint
remover when you need too.

Craig Wall




grandma Rosalie