WEAR a PFD - Springtime Cold Water Shock

 31 May 26:

We should have menitoned this earlier. Spring water temperatures lag behind air temp, for example in Maine right now the water temp ranges from the upper 40s to low 50s°F (4 to 11°C). It's a beautiful warm day so folks start putting their small boats in the water. At these temperatures, the risk of cold water shock and hypothermia is extremely high and life-threatening.

The Hypothermia and Cold Water Risk

• Cold Water Shock (Immediate Risk): Water conducts heat away from your skin 4 times faster than air. Sudden immersion in 40-50°F water triggers involuntary gasping, hyperventilation, and elevated heart rates, which can lead to drowning in seconds.
• Loss of Dexterity & Incapacitation: In water below 60°F, you can lose the use of your hands and arms in under 10 minutes, making it incredibly difficult to stay afloat or perform self-rescue.
• Expected Survival Time: At 40–50°F, exhaustion or unconsciousness occurs in 30 to 60 minutes, and maximum expected survival time is only 1 to 3 hours.

Essential Safety Guidelines

• Always wear a life jacket: The Coast Guard and Maine Warden Service strongly advise wearing a well-fitting, Coast Guard-approved life jacket whenever we are on or near the water during the spring....(How about all the time when we are on water depths over our head?
• Dress for the water, not the air: Even if the spring air warms into the 60s or 70s, the ocean remains lethally cold. Wearing a wetsuit or dry suit is highly recommended for all on-water activities.
• Track the current data: Before heading out, you can check real-time marine forecasts for the region.

PFD - Wear it.

• End of post quiz...In the photos below, when should we be wearing a PFD?

PFD = Yes

PFD = Yes

PFD = No

PFD = No

PFD = No

?

PFD = Yes

PFD = No

PFD = No

PFD = No

Bottle Jack Fluid Service

30 May 26:

Our little bottle jack leaked all its fluid at one point, so we added some more. We couldn't find bottle jack fluid today, so substituted power steering fluid.

There is a fluid fill hole on the side of the jack, we popped the plug out and filled the jack to the bottom of the hole.

The jack works great again!

 

Drain Plugs = Hole In Boat

29 May 26:

Soooooo...We caulked all the seams in the 1930s Bahamas Dinghy and those are watertight. SO wouldn't you know the one leak spot is the new age drain plug, looks like it was added in the 1970s. We'll pull it out and put in new sealant. I'm tempted to just repair the hole.

 

Nutshell Pram Tiller Repair II

 29 May 26: 

More tiller repair information on our Nutshell Pram.

https://youtu.be/diPPtGVnoSk?si=CjLJrFxJ2D6UZp_8

Tiller Repair

 28 May 26:

Inspector Pixy let us know that the tiller bushing on our Nutshel Pram EXCUSE ME was busted...

The bushing is the little dowel held onto the aft end of the tiller with a stainless machine screw, washers and nylock nut

Fun trivia, Joel White designed the Nutshell so that the rudder, tiller and daggerboard stow behind the aft seat. 

Here's the setup, the dowel fits into a notch on the aft edge of the rudder cheek. We rig the bridle to keep the tiller from flying off and help hold the whole rudder assembly down if the rudder tip finds bottom.

We keep certain size wrenches in the rigger tackle box just for rudder hardware, esp Sunfish.

We drilled a 1/4" diameter hole in spare dowel and cut a new bushing. We are also soaking the bushing in THIXO in hopes of making it a little more durable.

Here's the old bushing. Will the new bushing suffer the same fate?

https://youtu.be/yMjlFxzXB18

Log of EXCUSE ME

Caboose

 27 May 26:

We interrupt our irregularly scheduled program to bring you the Lee Hall Station caboose and Depot.

Inland Waterways and Cat-ographers

 26 May 26:

The merchant mariner society of times past took great advantage of all the inland waterways of the Virginia Tidewater, especially during the American Revolution, bypassing the major Mid-Atlantic ports. As we explore with our small boats we find ourselves acquiring old topographic maps to chart places such as Pitch Landing. We get them printed and laminated at our local Office Express, and our resident Cat-Ographer helps with interpretation.

Zuni sits at the intersection of the Blackwater River and the Norfolk & Petersburg Railroad that was built back in the 1850s. There's also a major freeway, this would be a great place for an airport...

The Blackwater was navigable by steamboat all the way up to Franklin, just below Burdette, you could get all the way to Albemarle Sound and foreign points East. 

We plan to explore a few of these waterways and old rail trails, but only when the skeeter/temp ratio is just right.

Rainy Day Inspector

25 May 26:

Inspector Pixy insisted on being outside while it was sprinkling, but not on the wet deck. We figured it out. 

Skipper and Bottom Paint

 24 May 26: 

10 years ago Skipper was scraping BARBASHELA's bottom, looking for paint colors. She found it, rusty brown.

Goo color matches we found were Kirby See Red and Valspar Mark Twain Brown, classic colors for the late 1800s river boats.

Skipper's Starboard Garboard

23 May 26:

I traced out the rolling bevel cut for BARABSHELA's starboard garboard and Skipper grabbed the circular saw to make the cut. We marked the bevel degrees on the cut line every foot or so and then used our MK-I eyeball to get close to the correct bevel, leaving a little bit to trim. We only cut the bottom bevel, then we'll trim to fit on the boat, and then mark and cut the top bevel.

Starboard garboard installed!! Fender washers were key. WALDO the shop stool makes an appearance. And we want to give a shoutout to the strongback, it has been doing a great job supporting the restoration, and being mobile has been very useful, as the skiff has to be on a diagonal to get the shop garage door closed.

 

Skipper Rowing BARBASHELA

 22 May 26: 

May 2016: We got all of the frames and sheer clamps set on the 1880s Mississippi River Skiff BARBASHELA, and put the floorboards and thwarts in for a fit test. The Skipper decreed that she hop in and check out oar placement...

Sunfish Sailboat Knots and Rigging

 21 May 26:

Sunfish Sailboat Knots and Rigging

Knots for a Sunfish Sailboat. WHY KNOT book now available for purchase: Why Knot: Skipper's Guide to Small Boat Knots

Caulking

 20 May 26: 

Pixy is disappointed because I said we were going to do some caulking, and he thought I meant cotton, irons and a caulking hammer...

Bunted

 19 May 26:

Bunting hung for Memorial Day and the 4th. 

Caulk Gun Hidden Tip Cutter

 18 May 26:

On a caulking gun, most people know about the stiff wire on the tube bracket that is used to pierce the caulk tube seal...

...but some folks are new to the knowledge that there is a tube tip cutter on the side of most caulk guns.

It was certainly news to Pixy, but he is only 1 year old.

We worked on the home interior today, fixed a galley counter top and resealed the seam. We used a clear, paintable silicone latex caulk on the marble, and for the baseboard we will be able to use touchup paint once the caulk fully cures.

Skipper's Mobile Workbench and DeWALT

 17 May 26:

Continuing on Skipper's "put everything on wheels" theme, we built our workbench with some shop flotsam and incorporated wheels. In the shop the bench stays steady as it is pushed up against the wall, and if we roll it outside we put ti in the grass and it stays pretty steady there. Overall if we have projects that requires a super stable surface we tend to work on carpenter benches. We also added a quick release vise and a folding seat.

We have wandered through corded Porter Cable, Black and Decker, cordless Kobalt and mostly use DeWALT now, on a recommendation from Skipper's brother. This middle shelf was a game changer, we are able to lay out most of our power tools in a compact space. 

Skipper's Shop Tips

16 May 26:

We had a home project so the miter saw rolled out on the tool trolley. Skipper advised me a long time ago to put everything in the shop on wheels, so we can rearrange the shop as needed, per project. We made this trolley "Starboard" years ago from scrap and 6 inch wheels, and we move it outside when we are making sawdust. The trolley was built so that the height of the saw table was the same height as our portable card tables, which act as infeed/outfeed when needed. Today the Bahamas Dinghy HENNING held up one end of the counter top legs that we were cutting.

We cut slots in the deck to hold the trolly steady. 

Another tip is keeping an extension cord handy for the saws, as some of the plugs are hidden behind lumber/shelves. We put some plugs about work bench height, that is a good spot, and have found that the 16 inch high plugs rarely get used....unless you keep and extension cord plugged in. That height is also good for chargers that remain plugged in.

Inspector Pixy arrived, surveyed the job site.

Pixy likes to watch cars go by from the front porch, I might need to move projects to the front yard...

Phonetic Alphabet and Numbers Shared with Aviation

 15 May 26:

There are many new words and acronyms to learn in aviation, an entire new language...fuselage, elevator, FAA, NMS, Roger, Over, Unable...If you are just getting started, I would start learning the alphabet and numbers. Venturing into the nautical world creates the same adventure of learning new terms like bumpkin, ahoy, bowsprit, belay that order...

Learning Air Traffic Control (ATC) radio communications phraseology is essential for maintaining clarity, consistency, and safety in aviation operations. One of the most critical elements outlined in Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airman Information Manual (AIM) Section 4‑2‑7 is the use of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) phonetic alphabet. This standardized alphabet assigns distinct words to each letter (e.g., “Alpha” for A, “Bravo” for B) to eliminate confusion that may arise from similar-sounding letters, accents, or poor radio quality.

The importance of ICAO phonetics lies in reducing miscommunication, which can lead to serious operational errors. In busy or high-stress environments, such as approach or departure control, even a minor misunderstanding of a call sign, runway assignment, or instruction could result in runway incursions or loss of separation. By using universally recognized phonetic words, pilots and controllers ensure that critical information is transmitted and received accurately, regardless of language background or audio interference.

AIM 4‑2‑7 emphasizes that correct phraseology promotes efficient communication while minimizing the need for repetition. It also supports international interoperability, allowing pilots and controllers from different countries to communicate effectively under ICAO standards. Ultimately, mastering phonetic communication is a foundational skill for aviation professionals and a key contributor to the global aviation safety system.

Table 4‑2‑2: ICAO Phonetic Alphabet

Letter	Word	Letter	Word
A	Alpha	N	November
B	Bravo	O	Oscar
C	Charlie	P	Papa
D	Delta	Q	Quebec
E	Echo	R	Romeo
F	Foxtrot	S	Sierra
G	Golf	T	Tango
H	Hotel	U	Uniform
I	India	V	Victor
J	Juliett	W	Whiskey
K	Kilo	X	X-ray
L	Lima	Y	Yankee
M	Mike	Z	Zulu

There are also signal flags associated with the international code, and sometimes there is a crossover when Navy ships are conducting flight operations.

Fly Smart, Boat Smart

Clark and Skipper

LPD-6 USS Duluth, one of my homes during WestPac 89 and part of the HMM-161(C) Aviation Combat Element (ACE) of the 13th Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) aka 13th MEU(SOC)...see, the Navy is just as good at acronyms as aviation.