The Cape Dory Board

The CD 28 hull speed is about 20kts. Much over that, she'll "keel-walk" and become unmanageable. That said, my Dulinea, a 28 flybrige cruiser with a 200hp Volvo diesel, would do about 18-19kts with a clean bottom and light load, UNTIL I hit a sinken container of the Chesapeake and broke of...

Gives a whole new meaning to the term "diving boat!"

If you have more than one battery, wire each discretely circuited bilge pump to a different battery, so that if a float switch jams and runs its battery down, the second pump will be unaffected.

Some years ago I stored a boat indoors for a couple of years. I had cleaned it well, leaving, I thought, nothing to attract critters.

When I relaunched her, I found that mice had eaten the insulation off of the wiring. Had to rewire the entire boat.

I think the word s "hoary" - as in a "hoary frost".

A minor correction: St. John's is in Newfoundland. St. John is in New Brunswick. I was born there.

John,

I suspect you have a whole set of problems about which I know nothing. Nine years on the hard! Seems almost criminal. I suspect things like seals, belts, hoses and gaskets would be troublesome. Again, good luck!

John, The only issue I've had with the engine mounts is loose nuts, and that happened after my cutlass bearing failed, resulting in some wobble in the shaft and consequent vibration of the engine at cruise. I tightened the nuts and replaced the cutlass bearing. The new bearing failed within a year, ...

John, First thing I'd check is the cutlass bearing. Next I'd check the tightness of the motor mount nuts. Then check for any shaft wobble - can do at pier in gear. If all of the above check out OK, chances are your problem was cavitation in the chop. Weather sounds like the Chesapeake!

You may wish to add a couple of tablespoons of Clorox and a half-box of baking soda to your first iteration flush water. Freshens/purifies entire system.

The CD 28 hull is semi-displacement, and it tends to "keel walk" at much over 20 kts. In effect, the keel lifts the stern out of the water, and at a certain point, steering becomes a problem. Thus, 300+ hp may be too much for the hull. Mine had a TAMD41A Volvo diesel (200hp), cruised comfo...

Each time I read on this board or elsewhere about adventures at sea, the thought crosses my mind that all of them are made possible by the U. S. Navy. The seas worldwide are free for all to use because the U. S. Navy keeps them so. It does so at considerable sacrifice by a large body of competent, d...

Dan and Pat,

Did not mean any offense with story. Just adding to the Murphy library.

Although we are utterly miserable aboard your ships, we still love you guys!

Bill - Dulcie

I found that, absent a risk of freezing, I could trim her level by adjusting the amount of water in her port tank and storing all heavy gear (toolboxes, etc.) to port. Since I kept her in the water year-round and kept her fuel tank full and water tank empty in winter, she had a noticeable list when ...

Years ago at Morehead City, NC, I was involved in the loading of a US Marine Corps amphibious unit aboard U. S. Navy ships. Included in the equipment to be loaded was a self-propelled gun - essentially a large cannon on a tank chassis - with a weight of about 90,000 lbs. To avoid driving over (and r...