Look at the bottom picture of my last post, the one with me and my daughter in the cockpit. Look at the black nylon cleat by my foot. Do you know what is holding that cleat to my boat? Just 3M 4200! Yup, just that wonderful adhesive!
I was doing some maintenance, installing a 3x6x1/4 inch aluminium backing plate on the cleats when I discovered my through bolts were too short. I actually drilled and tapped the aluminium plates and the bolts did thread into them OK but there was no thread to put a lock nut and washer to add even more support. Yes I am a belt and suspenders kind of guy. My philosophy from the Navy is this: When you build something build it as if two, 250 pound sailors are going to stand on it. Because they will. Back to my story, So I pulled the bolts out and was going to the local bolt store and get longer SS bolt. Then I got distracted by, I don't know, a balloon or a scrap of paper blowing by. Poof! (and for any British reader I don't mean Poof! as a poofter or gay fella, I mean poof as 'voila' or Tadda!), next thing I know we are sailing for Port Dalhousie where we did what I wrote about in the last post.
On the sail back we picked up high winds with stronger gusts. Again. We ended up almost losing the motor due to a couple of extremely violent waves from a following sea. (Sea in a lake? Is that proper?) Well we got in OK and when all was secured alongside I remembered that the jib cleat had no fasteners!!!! Just that wonderfull 3M 4200.
Holy loose screws Batman, I had better get my head on straight when it comes to sailing or something bad will happen.
About that 3M 4200, I was going to get the 3M5200 but the guy said it would be permanent and if and when I removed any fittings the fiberglass would come up with it. So I bought the 3M4200 instead. Holy crap! I wonder what the holding power of 5200 is like if the 'removable' 4200 can withstand such loads?
Anyhoo, I just wanted to plug that, I mean, how often does one buy something that exceeds the marketing?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
i can tell this is quite the passion with you. . and Ellie, your lovely first mate. . I have only a mere jokey sentence or two that's nautical (yes i got it from Ernie on Sesame Street. . but its all good stuff!)
Avast, ahoy and shiver me timbers. . have ye seen my misen mast? its misen.
Post a Comment