When we first got Belle home, my brother and I immediately stepped the mast to see if all the rigging worked. The first thing we noticed was the rear mast rest that came with the boat was just a bit too close to the tabernacle. What I mean is that the mast would not balance…
All posts in September 2019
Car Loans, While We’re At It
Coincidence is a funny thing. I just posted an article on boat loans and then today while sipping my morning coffee and skimming Facebook, I see an article from Car and Driver summarizing the annual AAA vehicle ownership study. Apparently, AAA has been conducting this study since 1950. In short, new car ownership rose in…
Boat Loans
An even starting point If you read our last article on how much boat you can afford, you will already know my position on borrowing money. What you may not know, is just how much money boat loans will cost you. There is a reason why banks have such large buildings in high rent city…
Bilge Cover Repair
So, the large hole in the center of the Belle’s cabin floor has a fiberglass cover. It was originally a balsa wood core panel, typical of the boat’s topsides and cutting edge at the time. At some point, probably to make it easier to remove, someone drilled a hole or two in it. This is…
How Much Boat Can I Afford?
Before we start talking about how much boat you can afford, let me say: Boats are a terrible financial decision. Terrible. Let’s just get that out of the way. But you already know that and you are still reading so may we continue? Good. It’s a pretty common question: “How much boat can I afford?”.…
Moving a Sailboat from Stands to a Trailer
One of the biggest factors is why Belle was so inexpensive was the lack of a trailer. For small and old boats, the trailers and engines are typically worth far more than the boat. In fact, we sourced our trailer from a man who capitalizes on just that. Keith Moulton of KM Boat Salvage in…
Building a Sailboat Trailer
Since Belle did not come with a trailer, much of why she was so inexpensive, we had to source a trailer to put under her to make her useful to us. Buying a custom trailer was going to be in the $3000 range, 10X what we paid for Belle. Adapting a used trailer was going…
Johnson Seahorse Fuel Pump Rebuild
We took Belle out, just the two of us, for our anniversary in Portland harbor in August. We discovered shortly after leaving the pier that Not So Big Johnson wasn’t drawing fuel from the tank very well. It stalled just passed the rocks, thank goodness. A squeeze of the bulb, choke and a pull of…
Coastal Passage Aborted
We intended to go on a coastal passage from Portland to Booth Bay. Things did not go as planned.