Recent content by be_prepared

I have 125' 5/16" chain, backed by another 100' of 5/8" nylon 3 strand. We seldom anchor in deep water, so I'm usually just all chain out and a Mantus nylon bridle, but I carry the extra 100ft of nylon just in case we need the scope in a little deeper than normal anchorage. Only thing that the...

Yup, even our primitive 2002 has the hour glass adding engine hours when the ignition is on.

If they added an amp, it may be on the accessory breaker, need to flip that on too. Also, we're assuming you mean the radio for the stereo, not the VHF. Both may have an inline fuse. The VHF inline fuse is probably in the wiring quagmire under the dash, the stereo one may be mounted behind it...

Can be a very messy job, even when you think you've flushed the system nice and clean... it's not... I was in a boat supply store in Vineyard Haven out back searching for vacuflush parts with an employee a couple years ago, and noticed a whole shelf full of small wet dry vacuums. I asked him why...

I think the discharge is usually at the top of the tank, with a feeder tube that draws from the bottom. On my Dometic unit, there's a discharge on top that goes to the pump out fitting on deck, and another going to the macerator pump and then to the thru hull for overboard discharge. There's no...

The F-15 is still being actively developed, after 5 decades of service. Still undefeated in A-A combat I believe. Of course, the latest F-15EX Eagle II has better engines, avionics, weapons, etc. It'll never be stealthy, but what a weapons platform: Boeing: F-15EX I know that Grumman had...

Grumman sure had their act together back in the day, not just with the Tomcat, but they also were the prime on the Luner Lander in the Apollo program. Obviously, they made the moon landings possible, but on Apollo 13 they also figured out how to use the LEM to keep them all alive until they...

The Vineyard has such a variety of boating experiences available depending on what you want. Oak Bluffs has a lot of action, places to drink and eat, music, but a very busy harbor. The moorings on holiday and busy summer weekends will have 4 boats rafted each. The joke is that you can walk...

As an old Massachusetts politician once said: "Never write if you can speak; never speak if you can nod; never nod if you can wink." Martin Lomasney

Congratulations! She's a beauty. The 8.1's really have so much torque that maneuvering around the docks without the bow thruster will become 2nd nature after a while. Neutral is your friend :-) Best of luck!

On my 2002 340DA it's mounted to the firewall between mid cabin and the engine compartment in the forward section of the engine compartment.

We found that our local locksmith carried the special blanks, but we are in a boating community. The True Value hardware store near the marina also stocked the key blanks. I think they are special order, not the standard blanks they get from their corporate supplier, so only stores near a large...

We have a couple fold ups that fit in bags we stick down in the aft "cabin" (which is more like our trunk these days). The Dahon Mariner D8 is the model, not going to do the Tour de France on it, but it seems well built, has 8 speeds, and is great for making a run around an island, or a trip to...

We had a great stretch at BI staying at New Harbor Boat Basin for 3 nights of our island hop around Mass/RI during the past 2 weeks. The docks are nice, staff very helpful, and the proximity to The Oar is a plus of course. We didn't use the facilities, just plugged in, hooked up water, and used...

We're trying New Harbor Boat Basin on the Block this year, doing a few nights in about a week. For our size boat, a 340DA, it's $6/ft. We haven't stayed there before, but have a group of 6 or so boats that all reserved slips back in February. It's further into the corner of the harbor than...