Your Best Technique or Invention

Is the "glass" being discussed, real actual glass like in windows, for drinking out of, or really fiberglass? Good for seeing if the strainer is compromised with muck, not good if the "glass" is real and takes a knock.
I understood some insurers didn`t like glass bowls on filters, the CAV type for example. My Racors have plastic drain bowls, I carry a spare because it could get fractured.
I`m keen to hear and learn more.

Capt.Bill11 said:

Really? Worked on a lot of strainers since the late 70s and I don't ever recall seeing a true glass bodied one that I recall.

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While I haven't seen that many of them, glass ones are all that I have ever seen. The big one on our friend's lobsterboat is glass (I know because I helped him clear the intake run of a few pounds of eelgrass a few years ago), the one on the GB we used to charter was glass. Same on a couple of sailboats I've been on. I never realized they'd be made of anything else. The glass is very heavy and I think it would take a lot to crack it.

However the Fisheries Supply catalog describes the sight glass in the bronze Groco sea strainers they carry today as being Lucite.

Our boat didn't have sea strainers when we acquired it. We had the yard it was trucked to install them before the boat was put into the water. The one for the port engine is forward of the engine down in the bilge on the inboard fiberglass/aluminum engine stringer for that engine. The one for the starboard engine is outboard of the engine about halfway along it's length. It and its seacock are easily reached from the rear of the engine.

Neither one of them is in a position to be in the way during routine engine service and maintenance. They were mounted so the top of each filter's sight glass is just barely above the water level outside the boat.

On a boat with a low door, like the main cabin door on a GB where most people have to duck their head as they step up from the cabin onto the deck, we cut a section of that dense gray pipe insulation, the kind with the split down one side, to the width of the upper door frame. When we're going to leave the door open, which is most of the time other than rainy days or winter, we "clip" the foam tube around the upper door frame. It's a great head-bang preventer, particularly for guests who aren't used to the "duck your head routine" as they pass through the door.

One last item which is fresh in my mind from having just used it. If we have to shut down an engine we have to tie off the shaft so it won't freewheel as we run on the other engine.

When we had the boat's original fuel filters replaced with Racors, the new filters blocked the tie-off hole in the heavy piece of aluminum angle extrusion bolted to the engine stringers that holds the filters and their plumbing.

I bought a length of aluminum extrusion and made an overhead tie-off point directly over each shaft coupler. Each one is heavily screwed and 5200'd to the big floor beam that runs directly over the center of each engine.

These tie-off points have made securing a shaft quick and easy using a length of line we keep in the engine room for this purpose.

Nice looking piece of work Marin . So what's the "springy thing" hanging from the chain??


Forky
1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

Just a little thing, but I use the stanchions on my bow rails to estimate where a a boat will pass or not in a crossing situation. This goes especially for a boat coming from the starboard side. If the crossing boat is falling behind the stanchion we will pass ahead. If it is closing on the stanchion or pulling across it we will pass behind. If the bearing remains constant we are on a collision course. In that case he is the stand on boat. Whatever the case you will want to avoid a collision.

Forkliftt said:

Nice looking piece of work Marin . So what's the "springy thing" hanging from the chain??View attachment 44351


Forky
1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

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Looks like it's riding on the prop shaft. Maybe some kind of contact point for bonding.

Capt.Bill11 said:

Looks like it's riding on the prop shaft. Maybe some kind of contact point for bonding.

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Probably a carbon "brush" that's connected to the bonding system. I have two on my shafts.

It's a common shaft wiper. Most boats I know of have them. There are two replaceable brass, copper (?) shoes in the bottom of the loop that are held up against the underside of the shaft by the spring. The green wire connects the wiper to the bonding system.

Nice. I just had never seen it done that way.


Forky
1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

Because everyone today has a chart plotter they are very good at travelling in narrow lanes from mark to mark. In open water I always run a parallel course offset by 1/4 or 1/2 mile from the mark to mark course. That way I rarely have to deal with boats in either direction passing close or on a collision course.

Marin said:

It's a common shaft wiper. Most boats I know of have them. There are two replaceable brass, copper (?) shoes in the bottom of the loop that are held up against the underside of the shaft by the spring. The green wire connects the wiper to the bonding system.

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What's with the spring and the chain?

bayview said:

In open water I always run a parallel course offset by 1/4 or 1/2 mile from the mark to mark course.

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That's a smart idea. While our region of inside waters does not offer a lot of open-water crossings, there are some and the same basic here-to-there courses are run by most people making that particular crossing. Offsetting a bit makes good sense. I'll try to remember that, thanks.

bayview said:

Because everyone today has a chart plotter they are very good at travelling in narrow lanes from mark to mark. In open water I always run a parallel course offset by 1/4 or 1/2 mile from the mark to mark course. That way I rarely have to deal with boats in either direction passing close or on a collision course.

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As well as not using the exact location of a bout or market as your waypoint. I've heard of two biats, both Marlow's I believe, that did that and found out the hard way that sometime GPS reality and charted reality match up perfectly.

bayview said:

Because everyone today has a chart plotter they are very good at travelling in narrow lanes from mark to mark. In open water I always run a parallel course offset by 1/4 or 1/2 mile from the mark to mark course. That way I rarely have to deal with boats in either direction passing close or on a collision course.

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Ditto

Codger2 said:

Ditto

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I try to run where they ain't, when possible. It's amazing sometimes the difference one extra mile off shore makes in terms of boat traffic.

Capt.Bill11 said:

As well as not using the exact location of a bout or market as your waypoint. I've heard of two biats, both Marlow's I believe, that did that and found out the hard way that sometime GPS reality and charted reality match up perfectly.

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"I believe, that did that and found out the hard way that sometime GPS reality and charted reality match up perfectly."

That's no surprise , during WWII the Ambrose light ship (NY harbor) was hit more than once , from just good DF radio steers.

Capt.Bill11 said:

As well as not using the exact location of a bout or market as your waypoint. I've heard of two biats, both Marlow's I believe, that did that and found out the hard way that sometime GPS reality and charted reality match up perfectly.

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Capt. Bill, it is likely I saw one of the Marlows you mentioned. It was in a shed at the Marlow facility on Sneed Island. There was a good deal of bow damage from a collision with the Boca Grande sea buoy.

Capt.Bill11 said:

...sometime GPS reality and charted reality match up perfectly.

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Waaaaaaay back in the olden days when the switch was being made from Loran C (huh???) to GPS, the accepted standard was "within 300 feet" and it was believe that because it was a top secret US Military application we ordinary people would never get any closer than that. And, if I recall correctly (not a usual occurrence) we had to wait until all three satellites were in our skies.

Moonstruck said:

Capt. Bill, it is likely I saw one of the Marlows you mentioned. It was in a shed at the Marlow facility on Sneed Island. There was a good deal of bow damage from a collision with the Boca Grande sea buoy.

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That's one of them. Because that is what I was told they hit.

Capt.Bill11 said:

Really? Worked on a lot of strainers since the late 70s and I don't ever recall seeing a true glass bodied one that I recall. Can't even imagine why they would have made one like that. Seems like an accident waiting to happen.

But hey, I certainly haven't seen everything. Thank goodness.

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So, your boat didn't come with a visible strainer!

markpierce said:

So, your boat didn't come with a visible strainer!

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No, they are all invisible.

I like to keep appearances in the ER. In order to spray paint parts of the engine without overspray I use aluminum foil as masking.


Use regular painters tape for clean lines at hoses etc then wrap the foil around what ever you want to protect. The tape will give good paint line control while the foil will self hold to irregular shapes.

bayview said:

Use regular painters tape for clean lines at hoses etc then wrap the foil around what ever you want to protect. The tape will give good paint line control while the foil will self hold to irregular shapes.

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Excellent suggestion and technique. I'll try to remember this one. Thanks for posting it.

bayview said:

I like to keep appearances in the ER. In order to spray paint parts of the engine without overspray I use aluminum foil as masking.


Use regular painters tape for clean lines at hoses etc then wrap the foil around what ever you want to protect. The tape will give good paint line control while the foil will self hold to irregular shapes.

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Foil works great. I've also found making a thick solution of dish soap and water or using hand cleaner you can brush it on the odd hard to mask parts and areas. And then just wash it and the paint stuck to the soap off after you spray paint.

Sun deck fender hangers.
I fabricated a pair of aluminum hook straps and riveted a pair "the tighter you go the more I hold" line adjusters after removing the blue strap- to drop two lines in an awkward place to support one of our fender boards.




Forky
1983 Present 42 Sundeck
Twin Lehman 135's

Was reminded of this one today...RainX those pilothouse windows once a month and never need those wipers again!!!
Also works when painting window frames. Any paint smudges do not adhere. When dry, the paint just flakes off the glass. Be sure to keep it off the frames though.

I had a detailer who put Rain X on the windshields once. Didn't do jack vs green water coming over the bow. Nice for rain drops though.

Rain-X doesn't do much here, either. What we get on our windshield is not heavy rain but fine rain or mist. This isn't heavy enough to run down the windshield on its own so even with Rain-X we have to use the wipers, which takes the Rain-X off. So we don't bother with it anymore.

It is handy on our small boat that takes a lot of spray in rough water. However it's only good for one or two trips and then it has to be reapplied.