Afishionado

I must agree about the Dijon, downright dangerous if used in coastal waters. I also agree that if top speed is not too important an Orkney is a very good boat. However I can thouroughly recommend the WITH (pronounced Wit) group of boats. Unsinkable, very fast with low HP engines and excellent sea boats. A Scandenavian design, and built to their very stringent safety and construction rules. They also hold their price very well because of all the plus features. Mad Mike

Damn it Sir you are a bounder! Mad Mike (not jealous at all )

Tom jibes......... girly old whimps who can't take the cold Tom me ol' fruit cake, you got me to an exactitude. However I 'spect come the balmy days of summer when the world is a warm comfortable place you wont give a toss for us girly old whimps and invite us then, will you? Oh no then you'll have long legged lightly tanned blond young real girlies begging to come along and us ol' gits wont get a look in. Mad Mike

ME! No it was a simple mistake in as much as I always associate Rich with eating anything that once had legs, feathers , scales, or well damn it anything really. Mad Mike

Rich admits......or grown locally. That includes odd fungi and some herbal leaves whos smoke makes you want to eat huge curries or Picnic Bars Rich is easily recognised as he walks along about 6" off the ground and has a permanent smile Mad Mike

Welcome Mike. I'm sure you'll have a great time here. Mad Mike

Yes could I buy it please? Mad Mike

I will try and remember to contact you at the end of April. I just want to send the guy some hooks. Mad Mike

Blimey! perhaps things have changed. Personaly I would pursue exacly what 'they' mean by a yard report or survey and to what purpose do they need it or want it to say. It may be that say Charlie in his capacity as Dock Master at PYC could give them something that reads what they want. Or even some other member with a Yachmaster certificate could do the do. Or what about an RLNI safety report? You could get one of them free? Mad Mike

IMO you are asking the wrong insurance companies. This survey nonsence is just that. They are acting like you have a large yacht or cruiser expecting a survey. Not only that a marine survey for insurance purposes could cost over

I bought very nice stainless chain of a guy on ebay for a very good price. Stainless is nicer to handle (smoother) than galvanised. Try item number 4616711542 on ebay 6mm short link S/S chain at

Bridport Gundry could be the place but do check out every source before you buy. Ebay have some good offers (and some bad offers). A google search brought up this http://www.ropeloft.co.uk/ amongst a host of others. Also the boat Jumble season is about to start and there are some bargains to be had there. eg 180 ft of Octoplait for

Quote...were going back next april for 14 day's You mean this April coming? He knows me as El loco Miguel, and I would like to send him some bits and pieces if you can take them. If so would you give me a shout nearer the time? Did the stinking creek still have the crocodile in it? It used to wander around the back of the Melia where the locals waited for the bus to Moron. Mad Mike PS Small world isn't it.

Oh how I wish I'd have known you were going. I would have given you some gear for Dunieski, he is always short of hooks. As you said a hystericaly funny guy Carol and I were in tears laughing half the time. Once upon missing a strike Dunieski said very seariously in the best fishing guide manner. Hey Mike you know why you missed that one? Expecting a bit of priceless fishing knowledge to be passed on I said, NO why? ' Cos you an anchor !! (Well it sounded like anchor). If you are going again befor next autumn please give me a shout as I have some stuff for the guides and some messages. Mad Mike PS did you meet a guy called Lazero on the beach? He has a small launch and takes you right into the lagoons fishing for shark in 3ft of water!! Catching one of them is more like flying control line model aircraft. Mad Mike

Where were you in Cuba? We stay at Cayo Guillermo and use Dunieski as a guide. The head chef at most places are only too happy to supply fresh prawn and squid for fishing, just ask. Remano Bridge? The half fallen down brige next to the old railway bridge? Carol and I fish that one too. Fatbloodytastic fun And as usual Carol out fished me . Mad Mike

Family rescued from sinking boat A father and his two children had a lucky escape when they were rescued by a passing vessel after their 12ft speed boat began sinking in a Dorset harbour. Strong winds had blown the boat more than 300 feet from Poole Harbour's shore, when it got into difficulty. Portland Coastguard said the boat began "taking in water very quickly". The father, who at one stage was in the water, dialled 999 while his children waited onboard the boat for rescuers to arrive. Poole Coastguard team, Poole lifeboat and an ambulance were deployed on Saturday afternoon. The family were examined by paramedics but they did not receive hospital treatment, the coastguard spokeswoman added. The boat was towed into harbour. BBC news Mad Mike

Why are you SHOUTING? It's so much easier to read when you use upper and lower case Mad Mike (sotto voce)

D'you know Kam when I first read this I thought it was a bit far fetched so I looked the story up on Reuters News........ A 41-year-old woman was detained on Thursday at a building society branch in Bromley, southeast London, on suspicion of handling stolen goods, police said on Friday. Earlier on Thursday, detectives also arrested a man aged 29 and a 31-year-old woman in London. Police would not deny or confirm a media report that the woman had entered the branch with 6,000 pounds of cash wrapped in tape marked "Tonbridge". As you rightly said 'How dumb is that'? It makes buggering around in boats in -2C temperatures remarkably sane eh? Mad Mike

Yes loadsa port side helms about. The main reasons for transducer blur at speed are depth below the transom and angle of attack. The smooth lower surface of the transducer head should slope very very slightly forward (not backward as this will induce vortex turbulance) so that the flow of water past the head is swept clean of bubbles. Which side of the engine it is is purely a matter of choice. Mad Mike

When I were a lad we used to get up half an hour before we went to bed, walk 200 miles to the low water mark and dig for worms 'till May. Then we went out wi' a row boat that took 6 men t' bail it whilst me a lad of 5 used t' row it in a force 10 for hours on end........... An' we thought oursen lucky to 'av a job. Mad Mike

I am sitting in my warm lounge looking at the snow falling outside, and I wonder how Tom is getting on on his 60 mile round trip by sea to S'oton and back? Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr Look out for a little blue man frozen to the helm Mad Mike

Hardly Mr Charisma is he? IMO the dry land test was heavily biased totaly ignoring the liquidity of saturated sand on the sea bed which is an important factor. That sort of anchor is aimed at yachtsmen who want very secure overnight anchoring. Fishermen like us have our anchors up and down like oars draws, and I also agree with Coddy about getting it to break out. Mad Mike

ROTFLMAO I am so tempted to say 'move the transom further forward' but that would be a cheap shot Dan your problem is almost certainly the manner and position of the transducer head. I guess you didn't have the little instruction book about fitting a transducer? Is it through the hull or transom mounted on a bracket? Is it forward of any prop wash or hull cavitation? Is the angle of attack correct so that turbulance bubbles flow away instead of building up? Is the lower part of the head low enough below the transom bottom edge? Why do mummies and daddies sleep in the same bed but I can't sleep with my cousin even though I want to Mad Mike

Not totally convinced that a boat being filled from a pump is not electrically connected to the pump in any case. This connection would be via tank to anode to sea water to earth to pump. Does this sound feasible ? There is no need for you to be convinced at this stage Paul. You will become convinced when you are surrounded by an interesting yellow and red affect which is accompanied by a slight warming of the body Jokes apart like any moving machinery in certain conditions a static electrical charge builds up in the framework of the petrol pump. This will seek the easiest earth route it can, and if need be even jump a gap if the charge has been built up high enough. To safely fill an inboard fixed tank one must fix an earthing line from the petrol pump to the earth system of the boat. If the fixed tank has been properly installed and earthed to a common earth and /or the anode earth any static discharge will favour this rout rather than jump the higher impedence of a gap twixt tank and filler. And yes you are dead right about the course of the flow as it is circular you can jump in at any point. Static charge in pump body, earth lead to tank, tank earth lead to anode, anode through salt water to earth. Mad Mike PS a paranoid perfectionist would probably say lift a metal O/B tank out of the boat and onto the ground for filling. But with todays plastic tanks who bothers.

D'you know I have had the same idea bouncing round the empty halls of my brain, I was also thinking of the same thing incorparating a bait cutting board too. My fishing buddy Mark says that as I catch so little the corresponding amount of bait means that it aint worth the effort........Bustard