Adam F

I used the same method on BW's old graphics on a cold (ish) april day and they worked fine. Agree that plastic or wood are safer, but the cutting edge isnt as sharp, therefore you need to press harder and therefore risk damage - the Stanley blade just glides underneath with minimal effort. The effect of a razor blade on gell is similar to the effect when using the Stanley scraper on glass - which is what it is designed for. Gel is actually pretty hard stuff and by keeping a shallow angle on the blade it will do no damage. A case of suck it and see I suppose?

Good stuff! I was impressed by the BFM review a few months back. Good link too - and reasonably priced. If I needed an Alderney set-up, this is something Id consider. Adam

When I sailed for the 1st time in the summer the owners of the fleet of charter yachts in Southampton use a company to provide the graphics for the boat for the day. Basically they make the logo - (could be a 10' long Coca Cola banner for example) they arrive in the morning, slap it on the hull of the boat, and when the boat docks for the night, they arrive again and whip it off ready for the next day. What did they use?.....a red Stanley razor blade scraper! I was astounded as I would imagine it to damage the gel, so I asked how they did it. Basically it just slides along the gel and under the graphics removing them in the process! When I did new decals on BW, I used the same tool - worked perfectly in one go with no chemicals. Easy, quick and cheap - I would recommend this method. PS: a quick blast with a little T-Cut removed the 'shadow-effect'

Bob - Id be surprised if it is meant to do that, as you have proved it is very dangerous in the wrong situation. My new 60hp Mariner has what Barrus call an 'engine guardian system' basically this means the ECU monitors the engine and when something goes wrong it minimises the risk, ie: Engine oil gets low, the EGS backs the revs off to 2000, the cooling system is faulty - same effect, 2000 revs, and over revving, possibly caused by the prop out of the water - the EGS cuts it back to 2000. Could have just been one of those things, but may be worth having it checked out...second thoughts, after last time - maybe not!!!

Steve, Our next Hayling trip will be next spring for the Plaice, well organise something a little nearer the time. Adam

http://www.boatsandoutboards.co.uk/view/WAS004/

Hi Grant. Finding a boat should be no problem. A few questions though.... 1.) Do you want a cuddy / cabin - or do you want an open boat. 2.) You say small and lightweight? Give us an idea of what size. My boat is 16.5' and weighs about 800kgs, yet I can still tow it with a family car and launch her single handed. A 14' open dory though is much lighter and easy to handle 3.) Is it just for fishing the harbour or do you want to venture out as you become more confident? www.boatsandoutboards is a cracking site - keep an eye out here. I would always advise on getting as new an engine as possible, boats are relativly cheap to repair, engines usually aint! Finally, give us a rough idea on your budget? Adam

Nice one Alan - you lucky beggar! Bet is was glorious out there yesterday...where did you go from?

What happened to the predator Duncan?

Is Wales missing?

Rich and I will probably be out on Friday for the 1st Cod trip of the year. Launching from Wick, anyone else fancy it? Ill give a call on the radio anyway. Adam

http://www.ybw.com/cgi-bin/forums/wwwthreads.pl Bit of a yachie thing but very, very informative and helpful. Adam

Hi Steve!! Welcome to the forum. Would be nice to see you bunch down this way sometime!! Adam F

Martin, Many thanks for getting the squid...you may have built a rod for your own back! Great help, lets hope each one equals a plump cod!!!! Adam

Rich, Cant really help too much, but I do know a little about gaskets. When BW had her old 50hp taken apart she has liquid gasket all over the shop - Tony was appaled and from his comments he recommends genunie fibre gaskets everytime. Adam PS: Put this post on the YBW website, it will probably get a few more responses as their are a few marine mechanics who use the forum.

Anytime today Martin??

No....I was refering to your home made rod rest that you made from food and beer!!!!

Alan - I might be out Friday weather depandant - ill keep you posted.

The tubular type are a possibilty, and something worth looking at. The RNLI chap commented that ' something is better than nothing, and at present your boat gives a very small radar relection' IMHO, and if money wasnt an issue, the SEE ME type active reflectors are the nutts. They are small and would give BW the same relection as a 30 ton boat!! But at almost 400 quid, id rather have a colour plotter!

Maybe Sunday weather permitting - ill be taking BW though....keep an eye on the weather, as youll need it fairly settled to go out south of the needles. Adam

Well done big fella! Im sorta glad that I sacrificed by title this year to give you a chance! With any luck youll end up with Andy! Well done!

Hi Dave - good to hear from you again! Quite a few of the chaps using the forum have either had dealings or bought boats from you in the past, youll also be pleased to know that you get recommended quite a bit to people who are after boats! Hope to hear from you again. Adam Franklin

Speaking crap! - The brackets have quite a huge amount of adjustability, so as long as the engine when tilted down, and when the bracket is on its lowest setting the engine has enough in the water to work without cavitating too much. In rough seas my Aux can cavitate a little, but it is only a back up and something I can live with. Adam

On a serious note (hard I know, but bear with me! ) when I had my sea check last week the RNLI cahp suggested that if we want a life demonstarion on how to use flares the RNLI will give a controlled one for us one night - I was going to bring it up at the next meeting. Adam

Opinion will be split over this I suspect as much depends on the type of ground you fish, however the most common type for us here on the south coast seems to be the Bruce. The plough is very similar, but has a pivot at 2 points of the anchor - the bruce is fixed. The Bruce holds very well in sand, mud, clay, shingle and reefy ground and may only struggle on very heavy rocky ground. It relies heavily on using a decent length of heavy chain to hold the shank parallel to the sea bed to maximise holding power. On my recent Sea Check it was advised that my 5kg Bruce was too light - they reckon on 1lb per foot of boat, so my Bruce weighs about 13lb and boat is 16.5'......it works for me! I would think that a 7.5KG Bruce using the same chain as you have at present will be fine. Adam