April 9 2014 in Tauranga, New Zealand
Top Ten Reasons To Do Your Own Boat Work
10. You know who to blame when something isn’t done right.
9. You know where the corners were cut – you cut them!
8. To save money (sometimes).
7. So you know how everything works.
6. ‘Cause sometimes you’re all you’ve got (like in remote locations)
5. You just care more – your life might depend on it.
4. Many “experts” know less than you do.
3. What else have you got to do out here?
2. You don’t have to wait for someone else to get around to it.
#1 — You might notice something like this crack…
While installing a new bilge blower I glanced over at my stern chainplate and noticed a tiny line of rust that looked suspicious. (The chainplates are the anchor points for the wires that hold up the mast. When they break, the mast falls.) I scrubbed the chainplate clean and couldn’t see any sign of a defect. Yet I was uncomfortable.
I bought this dye penetration kit…
With the penetrant, multiple cracks showed up. I removed the chainplate and am in the process of getting a new one made. I feel great about catching this. It might have lasted forever, or it might have failed half way to Fiji. Needless to say, I’m going to spend a day or two carefully looking at all the other chainplates.
I really doubt that anyone else, while changing the bilge blower, would have caught this. It’s not that they wouldn’t care or that I’m so much better than anyone else, it’s just that I care more – I have more at stake. -Rich
P.S. Reason #786 to love Tauranga… I was able to swing by Engineer’s Supply on the way to lunch and grab this penetrant kit, on sale no less. Even in Los Angeles, finding this could have been an all-day affair.
