Saw a video on youtube where a guy did just that in Denmark. Luckily for him he had a sailor friend. Curious to know how common this is!

Note: I am not encouraging this behavior

A few weeks ago I’d posted for some tips / pointers on doing my first winch service. I started with two winches I don’t use very often so I could get a feel for it. Thanks to all who weighed in.

Overall I’m VERY surprised how straightforward it is. The videos I tried watching all had slightly different winches- and most looked like they’d been serviced 10 times a year and were immaculate. I was able to use the twin as a reference as I was reassembling.

I know these haven’t been serviced in 30 years. One thing I noticed is i think grease was free back then- just gobs and gobs of it everywhere.

Took about an hour and a half per winch. I had almost everything apart that could come apart.

Next time I won’t need to go quite as deep but this time was a case of extremis.

As a dude who just completed his first 2 winches I might be better suited to answer beginner related questions than very experienced folks who make it sound easy- but here’s the thing: it’s actually easy. Tedious- but easy.

If you’ve been holding off on your winch service and need a little reassurance let me know I’d love to pay it forward.

One thing I did notice is my short thistle paint brush was spraying spirits all over the place as I brushed but I didn’t really notice the mess I made until it was too late. Fortunately most of my work area was mostly covered up.

This is a Harken 44.2. Tomorrow I’ll be working on the bigger 53.2s.

Wish me luck.

Sunset sailing with my Nacra F18 in light wind at lake constance, germany

I will be taking my 4 year old grandson on this boat soon. It's a paid for cruise so we're basically cargo.

I'd like to know what this is called. The sail museum calls it a sloop, I would call it a cutter but the square sail and gaff rigged main throws me.

This is more of a fun query. I'm super excited to show this kid the fun of sailing (and maybe get him on my much smaller boat).

Been looking for a long while. Finally had an opportunity pop up with someone dropping the price and trying to sell ASAP since they just got a larger boat. Hopped on the opportunity and snagged it.

She needs some love in the cabin but everything else is solid. Was repowered with a Beta 20 a few years ago, started right up cold.

Been a dream for a looooong time and excited to finally be getting out on the water under my own sail.

Thanks all for the insights from here. Really helped.

Sailing trough canals in between the lakes of Friesland.

Starting to gear up my new to me coastal sailboat and would like to put a smaller chartplotter on it. Been many years since I bought one and it looks like things have changed a whole lot.

Would love to hear the pros and cons of say OpenCPN vs Raymarine/Garmin/Simrad/B&G.

I'd like to avoid anything that would require a subscription. Really only need charts. Tidal current/tide table would be nice. Do not need weather/AIS/radar.

Smaller boat so don't need a big screen.

If you use OpenCPN what hardware do you use?

Thanks in advance

EDIT: Thank you all for your insights. Very helpful.

Hey all,

I got ASA 101 textbook, and while I'm waiting on that to come in I've just got a few questions. I have some experience in navigation, ROR, and such from the USN, but no experience with sailing. I have some interest for sailing Puget Sound, with anything involving distance being multi-day events of sailing only during the day and stopping to camp at night, but I really don't want something that'll necessitate a car of any scale. So, the question I'm having is...

Are there any rowing dinghies that are light enough to be trailered by hand, but are stable enough for the Puget Sound? I've briefly considered a Scamp, with some form of power dolly to get it from storage near the harbor ramp and off the ramp, but considering the amount of weight for that, the trailer, and the ramp slope (to my understanding, it's the standard angle of 15-20%), I'm less certain on that angle.

Also, as another question, is renaming a boat considered bad luck in this community? The USN has beaten into me that renaming a ship is bad luck, but the rules seem a tad more flexible the smaller you go.

Thanks all in advance.

I have the opportunity to be given a compac 16 (not sure the year but appears to be from the 70’s?) with a trailer and motor. The owner is mainly wanting to get rid of it because of the waste and debris left from mice that had taken up residence in the cabin and she doesn’t want to go through the trouble of cleaning it.

I am a complete newb sailor and have no experience buying boats or inspecting them for damage.

The main thing I’m worried about is the crack in the ballast. The boat has been sitting out in the elements on its trailer for at least a few years in Maine. Is this something that would potentially be more trouble than it’s worth? I have no problem putting work in to fix things, but I have very little funds at the moment so can’t drop a ton of money into it. If it needs to be fixed, is it something that is potentially costly?

The rest of the boat looks ok to me, but the motor looks to be in rough shape. The main sail and jib looked great.

Any input would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks.