Monthly Archives

February 2017

in Tech Topics

Cetol vs Armada Teak Finishes

February 25, 2017
Like every other owner of an old boat, I have spent many hours refinishing teak.  I have worked with varnish, teak oils, Cetol, and most recently Armada.  At this stage of our life afloat we find ourselves sailing as much as possible so we are looking for durable products that can be applied with a reasonable amount of effort.  Most importantly, the ease of follow-on upkeep is critical.
In the 2015/2016 winter season we sailed a 7000 mile loop from Maine to Colombia through the western Caribbean and back to Maine. This trip exposed our bright work to heavy sun as well as salt exposure.  The cap rails in particular took a beating.  As much as I love the look of varnish, I am certain that varnish would have started to blister and peel during this period creating an enormous amount of work to strip and re-varnish.  Teak finishes such as Cetol and Armada have the look of varnish but are more forgiving relative to upkeep and maintenance coats.  Both products call for an initial application of 3 coats.  Single periodic maintenance coats will keep the teak looking fresh.  Most importantly areas with peeling are easy to sand and re-coat.  I usually apply a spot coat on the bare areas followed by a single maintenance coat all over.
During our 2015/2016 season we had Cetol on all of our bright work and it performed well.  The cap rails required a single maintenance coat every 3 month or so but the hand rails and cockpit trim made it through the season in good shape.
Recently I decided to try Armada on my cap rails to see how it would perform.    The Armada is more clear than Cetol and looks very close to varnish.  I took advantage of mild weather while traveling through the Bahamas to strip the Cetol and apply the Armada to bare wood.  The Cetol strips very easily with a heat gun followed by light sanding.  My favorite trick is to take advantage of motoring on windless days to run my inverter (and heat gun) while the engine is churning out excess amps.

Removing Old Cetol Finish with Heat Gun

We left the boat in Georgetown Exumas at Christmas with the cap rails looking great.  Unfortunately, when we returned mid-February, the Armada was already showing signs of blistering.  After this experiment, I am switching back to Cetol.

Freshly Applied Armada Teak Finish on Cap Rail

My only complaint with the Cetol is the orange opaque coloring.  What I realized, however, is that it is only necessary to apply one or two coats of the Cetol Light (pigmented) and then switch over to Cetol Gloss (clear) for all other maintenance coats.  This keeps the finish looking more like varnish.  Like everything else with boating, there are trade-offs but Cetol provides a decent gloss appearance without the effort of varnish.

Cetol Marine Gloss. First Coats Should be Cetol Marine or Light

Armada Wood Finish – Clear Satin. 3 Coats with First Application

in Lifestyle

Cruising Karma #1: Keeping it Positive

February 12, 2017

With the cruising lifestyle there are many events that seem to be influenced by karma.  At times, this karma works in unpredictable ways.  In the end, however, karma comes into balance.  Like a bank account, you need to make deposits to support future withdrawals.  As we cruise, we gather more and more examples that reinforce this thinking.

With land-based neighbors, we expect that favors extended are returned in some way by the person that we help.  This one to one relationship is carefully cultivated over time to make sure that we remain good neighbors.  In the cruising lifestyle, we frequently help fellow cruisers who we have just met and who we may never see again.  Not to worry, the favor will be returned at some point in the future by another stranger in our time of need.  The currency in these transactions takes many forms.  It may be a tow, a part, some food, a unique skill, or just another set of hands.
We all would like to think that we are independent, self sufficient, and fully ready for any challenge that comes our way as we travel from port to port.  In fact, for safe and successful cruising it is important to be as prepared as possible before we set sail.  In spite our our independence, cruising is wonderfully enriched by our interactions with fellow cruisers.  It is always rewarding when we can help someone in need and a great relief when someone helps us solve a problem.  Sharing resources whether it is knowledge, food, skills, or spares is a great way to enrich our lifestyle.  Tap into the forces of karma and good things will happen.  We will share our favorite experiences with cruising karma in future posts.
in Lifestyle

How to Safely Spear Lionfish and Enjoy Your Catch

February 2, 2017

Piano Sculpture, Exumas, Bahamas – Off all the places to find a big fat lionfish!

Anyone who has spent time snorkeling in the Caribbean has probably seen Lionfish on the reefs.  The Lionfish is an invasive species that is native to Indo-Pacific.  The presence of the fish in the Atlantic and Caribbean is a growing problem for native species.  Since the Lionfish is not native to these waters, they have very few predators.  The fish is a carnivore that feeds on small crustaceans and juvenile reef fish like snapper, grouper, and just about every other tropical fish that we hope to find on the reefs.  In most areas that we have traveled like the Bahamas and Belize, spear fishing of the Lionfish is strongly encouraged.  The bonus is that the Lionfish is very tasty!  It has a delicate white filet that is as delicious as anything you will find on the reef.  They taste even better knowing that removing them from the reef is helpful for the environment.

The challenge is that the Lionfish has nasty, venomous spines.  If you are unfortunate enough to be pricked by one of these spines, the sting is painful.  Information that I have read makes the point that the sting is painful but not deadly.  It is probably best not to test this theory.

There are several approaches to safely spearing Lionfish.  Most rely on specialized containers to place the fish while it is still on the spear so it is not necessary to contact the fish.  This approach still requires you to handle the fish at a later time to remove that spines and prepare the fish for eating.  The spines remain venomous even after the fish has died so it is possible to be stung hours later when cleaning the fish.

The approach that I prefer is to cut away the spines of the Lionfish before removing the fish from the spear.  I always spear fish with a Hawaiian sling.  The handle on the sling and the barbed spear work well together to enable safe handling of the fish.  First of all, I try to shoot the fish right behind the head where the body is firm.  I make sure the spear goes through the fish with the barb exposed on the other side.  I then put the shaft of the spear back through the hole in the handle so that the handle pins the Lionfish against the barb of the spear.  I also swim with heavy gardening scissors clipped to a lanyard on my swim suit or hanging over the side of the dinghy.  With the Lionfish safely pinned between the Hawaiian sling handle and spear barb, I cut away the venomous spines in the dorsal, anal, and pectoral fins.  In fact, I cut away everything including the tail just to be safe.  I can then safely remove the harmless Lionfish from the spear into a bucket or catch bag.

With the Lionfish pinned between the shaft barb and handle, the venomous spines can be cut away

It is worth mentioning that the Lionfish is one of the easiest fish to spear.  They basically sit in one place and do not move unless you shoot and miss.  So take your time to aim and shoot at very close range.

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