Ranger 25 Modifications and Add-ons

thataway · Posted: Wed Aug 27, 2008 10:05 pm Post subject:

Interesting that Wholesale Solar now lists the Mitsubishi as for RV use only (not marine). I am a bit pesimistic about 10 and 20 year warantees--how many of us will still own our current boats in 10 years? How many of the internet companies will still be around in 10 years? One of the reasons I have patronized West Marine, despite sometimes higher prices, is that they stand behind their products.

Sailboat masts have long used Aluminum and SS together in rigs. As long as you use precautions and properly corrosion resistant Aluminum, plus painting when necessary, you can get away with this. Yes there are some gels which help-but they are not 100%. I have some antenna mounts for my ham antennas on the Tom Cat which are an external grade of aluminum on the SS railing, and they are doing fine. I had some similar fittings which still were fine after 4 years and 40,000 miles of full time ocean exposure.

Anodized Aluminum can get salt crystals under the surface and corrosion begin there. There are hard anodized surfaces which are extremely resistant--unfortunately, most anodizing is soft and not all that resistant over time.

captd · Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2008 7:02 am Post subject:

You got me TomRay. Pretty sure I copied it down right. I will check it out for sure.
captd

Wow. Mac, That install looks great. You sure come up with some good ideas. I have tracking numbers so I guess mine are on the way. They are sending the Kyocera 130. Thanks for that tip.

Those charging examples are about unbelievable. I, like you, will enjoy watching the power go into the batteries. Thats is better than tv.

Sea Wolf · Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2008 8:20 am Post subject:

captd · Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2008 10:39 am Post subject:

TomRay,
Yup that is the number Jeff gave me.
captd

TomRay · Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2008 2:44 pm Post subject:

Well, Jeff's DA MAN, and I'm just a sales guy, so he's probably right. I'd just point out that the HIN conventions generally call for that 4th character from the end to be a letter, not a number, and it represents the month in which the hull was laid.

see:
http://my.boatus.com/consumer/hin.asp

Something I didn't know: they are not supposed to use the letters I, O, or Q in the model/serial number part of a HIN because those can easily be mistaken for numbers.

jlgray · Posted: Thu Aug 28, 2008 3:13 pm Post subject: Making Shelves

I receive some questions about the additions and modifications we made to create or make better use of the storage areas on the Laurie Ann. I used the plastic material called Starboard or Seaboard in 1/2" 3/8" and 1/4" thicknesses. I bought them in 4 by 8 sheets from a friend who uses them in his business. It is amazing at the markup that that marine stores put on these!

What I learned is because of the strength of this material, if I did this again, I would have used more 1/4" material and less 3/8" material. The 1/2" is great for making cleats for the shelves. This material is very easy to work with because all the wood working tools work equally well. However, this material cannot be glued. Literally, nothing really bonds to it and I have tried the whole spectrum of products. So, everything is fastened with stainless.

ffheap · Posted: Sun Aug 31, 2008 5:46 pm Post subject:

John and Laurie,

You have taken the idea of boat ownership to where it should be. Start with a basic boat and make a comfortable "home on the water" nice job and great ideas.

Fred

captd · Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 10:25 am Post subject: Re: Making Shelves

[quote="jlgray"]I receive some questions about the additions and modifications we made to create or make better use of the storage areas on the Laurie Ann. I used the plastic material called Starboard or Seaboard in 1/2" 3/8" and 1/4" thicknesses. I bought them in 4 by 8 sheets from a friend who uses them in his business. It is amazing at the markup that that marine stores put on these!

John, Do you have any good sources for teak or kingboard at a good price? ( That you can share, that is)
Captd

jlgray · Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 11:44 am Post subject:

Great Question.

I have had great difficulty getting teak. There is an environmental and global issue to getting it. Lately, I have been finding it from older boats and those stores and yards that sell used and surplus marine stuff. For the latest modifications, I used oak and then experimented with wood stains to get the color matched to the teak. I will probably continue to do that.

My local source for Seaboard is not interested in becoming a distributor because his business is manufacturing. Seaboard can purchased on-line but it is nearly twice the price that I have paid. Here is one example of an on-line supplier:

http://www.professionalplastics.com/HDPESEA

Also, Andrew at the factory has been very helpful is pointing me in directions on some the supply issues.

thataway · Posted: Mon Sep 01, 2008 12:28 pm Post subject:

King Starboard is HDPE plastic board. Same type of material which many cutting boards are made of. I have kept a bunch of scraps which do many of my projects, but also find old swim steps and other damaged objects, which still have good ½” HDPE plastic and can either be purchased cheap, or free at marine salvage yards. Google the material and there are a number of places which will retail it for much less than the marine stores.

Another source of small pieces is cutting boards. There is a fairly good sized one at WalMart for less than $10.

captd · Posted: Thu Oct 30, 2008 7:44 am Post subject:

TomRay · Posted: Fri Oct 31, 2008 10:28 am Post subject:

Hope everything is...uh...hunky dory now! Wink

(runs from a hail of rotten tomatoes)

Lobo · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 12:23 am Post subject:

This is not about the solar panels, but rather your NMPG quotes. Those I find of interest!! I have the Yanmar 110 as well. How accurate do you think your numbers are? How long a period/milage on the 6 knot numbers? I've got 255 hours and 1,500 miles on Lobo so far -- 6 1/2 months.

Captains Cat · Posted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 8:15 am Post subject:

Hey Nerds, can we move the Ranger forums/topics to Tug-Nuts? Not trying to get rid of them here but there may be folks registered there that are not here and this would be useful information for them.

For myself, I'm registered both places and will continue to be an avid reader of both!! Thumbs Up

Charlie