Showing posts with label Two. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Two. Show all posts
Tuesday, 18 April 2017
Two Swans A O K
It's a cold sunny day with a light wind from the SE. My fingers hurt from the cold for the first half hour. The lake is up 6 inches from the winter low and moving about in the marsh is easier. The turtles are not out today, returning to wherever they go like groundhogs that have seen (or not) their shadows. I head ccw around Union Bay. A small yellow seaplane lands near me, an unusual occurrence on the bay. I'm not sure it is legal, but it doesn't matter as the airplane had no registration numbers - which is definitely not legal. Over in the NE lagoon, their is a medium sized hawk, but I can't ID it. As I leave the lagoon, one eagle flies in and perches by the lunch counter. I'm paddling west along the shore and scanning for stuff when I see the tail of an otter going under. It must have seen me and I stop to see where it will surface. It didn't see me, because it comes up just 10 feet away and rolls on its back to eat, then it sees me and it's gone. As I get past the north point, a herd of coots starts thrashing and a moment later the eagle comes from behind me and begins hunting a coot that has dove. This time, the coot makes a long underwater swim (for a bird without webbed feet) and comes up when the eagle is looking in a different direction. The coot makes its escape and the eagle circles stubbornly for a few minutes until it finally gives up. As I head back to the put-in, I see 7 herons together in the sun where I had seen so many last week. Geese are making noise again today also. The last two swans, both gray are still here. Today, I used my new paddle, an ottertail shape that I just finished. It feels good with a good balance and just about the right amount of dig.
Wednesday, 22 March 2017
A tale of two trim tabs
It's right, it's wrong, or it's gray. In this case it was wrong, and it was grayish on the wrong side of the fence, which meant it worked only for a while. Installing trim tabs are not difficult because things can only go where they go, in theory. This boat has a pocket built into the hull that the trim tab retracts into. If I was installing it, I would have attached the tab to the boat, and then bolt the fully retracted ram to the tab. You lift the whole assembly up, and use a pencil, or marking device of your choice to mark the three ram screw holes. Drill the holes, and then use the template to mark and drill the hole for the hydraulic tube. This is not hard to do at all, I've done it many time with notable success. So looking at the picture below it worked perfectly, no matter how the plant worker went about it. But something went awry at the factory when the other trim tab was installed.
Unfortunately on the starboard side the trim tab ram is located 3/4 of an inch more inboard than the other side. Assuming the pockets for the tabs were in the same place on each side of the hull, and they were, somehow the trim tab ram was put in the wrong place. You can actually stand behind the boat and see it. There is also what appears to be a new screw installed at the top of the ram.
The end result of all of this is that when the tab was lifted to meet the ram, the mounting holes in the tab missed the mounting holes in the bottom of the ram by 3/4 of an inch. So I suspect there was a meeting right there on the factory floor about how to fix this problem, and the emphasis would be on not spending any money if possible. There are now two choices. Take the ram off of the boat, get someone to properly fill the holes, fix the gelcoat, and reinstall it, or wait a minute, doesn't Bubba take steroids? Bring him over here. Okay Bubba you pull the ram over, John you lift up on one side of the tab a bit, and Sam you screw in the bolts. See, that's why I'm the floor supervisor, now get back to work.
Now I wasn't actually there, but I have seen this type of stuff before in boat factories, and this is a likely scenario. I tried to pull the tab over, and I could with both hands, but it would take a second person to get the bolts in, and I wasn't happy with the solution, or the forces involved to do it. This tab has had problems before. At some point in the recent past, the plastic pin that acts as the pivot between the ram and tab had failed, and a dealer for the boat had replaced it with a SS bolt. They should have corrected the problem right on the spot, but they just forced it over again like the plant originally did.
I come onto the scene, but now there is no trim tab at all. The flange that attaches to the bottom of the ram is still there, the part of the tab that screws to the boat is there, but the tab has torn away from the hinge, is missing, and now in Davey Jones locker. Even worse there is now a hole in the hull right next to the tab hinge point. I don't know where the hole goes, or exactly how it got there, but it's appearance doesn't appear coincidental. There is some staining on some of the edges, mixed with fresh torn edges, so it looks like it may have been whacked over time a bunch before it broke off completely. In the end the ram flange bolt holes stripped, and the bolts fell away leaving the tab less then wafting in a forty knot aqueous gale.
So what to do? The hull number is found, and a call is made to the boat manufacturer to get the trim tab part number. This tab was custom made for the boat. A pleasant call is made to the nice folks at Bennett Trim Tabs and a new tab is ordered, fabricated, and shipped. I get the tab and screw it on, and that's when all of the problems were found. Another call was made to Bennett Trim Tabs to discuss options. The tab is taken off, and new holes are being drilled in it by a machine shop with a 3/4' offset so the ram will meet the tab properly. The hole is will be fixed by a fiberglass repair guru, and the owner will take all of this up with the manufacturer. All of this was unnecessary. The builder's personnel knew there was a problem in the first place, but apparently the name goes on before the quality goes in.
Dear boat builder, take good care of the owner, he's a nice guy, me not so much, I've seen far too much of this crap. Curmudgeonly yours, Bill
So what to do? The hull number is found, and a call is made to the boat manufacturer to get the trim tab part number. This tab was custom made for the boat. A pleasant call is made to the nice folks at Bennett Trim Tabs and a new tab is ordered, fabricated, and shipped. I get the tab and screw it on, and that's when all of the problems were found. Another call was made to Bennett Trim Tabs to discuss options. The tab is taken off, and new holes are being drilled in it by a machine shop with a 3/4' offset so the ram will meet the tab properly. The hole is will be fixed by a fiberglass repair guru, and the owner will take all of this up with the manufacturer. All of this was unnecessary. The builder's personnel knew there was a problem in the first place, but apparently the name goes on before the quality goes in.
Dear boat builder, take good care of the owner, he's a nice guy, me not so much, I've seen far too much of this crap. Curmudgeonly yours, Bill
Wednesday, 15 March 2017
Part One Two Days to see Florence – a definition of totally inadequate
June 11-12, 2013
After spending a day exploring bits of Pisa we caught a late afternoon train to Florence where we’d booked three night’s accommodation. This would provide us two very full days to have a look at the art and cultural wonders of the birthplace of the Renaissance.
We had been able to find a very reasonably priced budget hotel through a website we have used a lot throughout our travels called ‘Hostel Bookers’. While price is the number one consideration, we always look for a place that is well located within walking distance of the main places we want to see. Hostel Bookers provide the opportunity for guests to review their stay in accommodation houses and we always look through as many of these reviews as possible when choosing a place stay. Seeing we travel in foreign countries where we don’t speak the language, reviews that mention friendly, multi-lingual staff who can provide local advice always rate highly with us.
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| It seems even the streets of Florence are paved with art. |
The reviews of the Hotel Benvenuti ticked all our boxes. It was even located on the same street as the Church of Santa Maria del Fiore, better known as the Cathedral of Florence or Duomo.
On arrival at the station in Florence, we were feeling a little weary after having walked all over Pisa lugging our backpacks. It’s amazing how such small backpacks seem to gain ten kilos in weight through the course of the day. We considered finding a taxi to take us to our Hotel but as the street was only three or four blocks away we decided we really needed to harden up and walk it. Despite being early evening the sun was still blazing and the temperature well into the thirties. They were loooonnnngggg blocks and when we reached the street ‘Via Cavour’, we realised we were at the start of it. Hotel Benvenuti is number 112, another five loooonnnngggg blocks away. Fortunately the Hotel and its staff lived up to all of its reviews. At check in, Ronaldo, immediately asked if we’d been to Florence before and as soon as they knew we were first timers, out came a map and in five or six minutes we obtained the very best advice you could possibly ask for. Starting with a short list of good places to eat.
After a refreshing shower and short relax we made our way to the closest of the recommended Trattorias, Tito’s on the next street. We knew we were in for genuine local fare when the sign at the door said ‘Cappuccino 5000Euro – Cappucino with well done steak 10,000Euro.’ Cappuccino is ONLY a breakfast drink in Italy and Tito’s is not open for breakfast so they will not serve it. Traditionally in Florence beef is cooked rare or, at the most, medium rare and that’s the only way they’ll cook it. The right way. If that’s not for you, simple, find somewhere else. Their front door sign was also an indication of the sense of fun that pervades the restaurant. Staff uniforms are interesting to say the least. The wait staff laugh and joke in seemingly whatever language is required by the client. This could be fuelled by the seemingly endless toasts they share through the evening. A visit to the bathroom is an experience in itself. Tito’s has been going since 1913 so we don’t guess they’ll change a winning formula anytime soon.
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| Not the sort of sign we expected to find in a Florentine restaurant bathroom |
Apologies to Apple users who may not be able to see this video.
Get on to a PC. This absolutely freaked us out.
What can we say about the food? Rob had the best, melt in your mouth steak he can remember ever eating anywhere, Karen had a chicken salad that was fresh as the morning, extremely flavoursome and huge. We washed those down with one and a half litres of excellent Tuscan Chianti Classica, followed by wild berries pennecota desert and espressos with the total bill coming in under Fifty Euro. Superb.
Even at this good value we normally try to find cheaper, less fancy meals than this to stretch our budget, but we were following the excellent advice of our good friend Trish, who says everyone needs a ‘Sod It’ day every now and then to just splash out. We certainly won’t argue. In fact we were so impressed with Tito’s we tried to say ‘Sod It’ again two nights later but were turned away with the house full sign up.
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| Tito’s staff appear to have a ball at work and don’t seem to mind the slightly out there uniforms. |
Despite both being extremely tired after quite an active day, getting to sleep proved a little more difficult than we’d anticipated. The bed wasn’t moving. This was the first night we’d slept off the boat since we’d left Palma on Mallorca for the final time 268 days previously. It was a strange sensation for us.
Now what can we say about our two days in Florence. Simple. ‘Were we mad?’ It is simply not possible to scratch more than the surface of all the treasures this incredible city contains in two days, although we gave it a good shot. We walked and walked and ogled and ogled.
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| The view to the Tuscan hills from our budget room at Hotel Benvenuti |
DAY ONE: We made use of one of Rick Steve’s walking tours downloadable free from the internet which provided a great commentary via the I-Pad as we made our way around a number of key sites. We began with slow walk around the Duomo or Cathedral of Florence trying to take in the endless detail contained in and on the exterior walls of this huge marble cathedral and its massive dome. Then join the hordes moving through the interior which is comparatively minimalist compared to the others such as Pisa or the most incredible we’ve seen, Malta.
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| Officially it’s the Church of Santa Maria del Fiore or the Cathedral of Florence. It is also the ‘Duomo’ a word that comes from the Latin domus meaning house. To the Florentines, the Duomo is the house of God and his people. |
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| The Duomo takes up an entire, large city block and every inch of its exterior is white and dark green marble. |
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| There’s intricate decoration at every turn as demonstrated by all the sculptures in the tower. |
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| The interior is reasonably plain. |
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| Other than the dome of course |
Next we did a circuit of the Baptistry and marvelled at the intricacy of the huge, bronze doors before making our way to the Plazza del Republica and then further down the street noting particular buildings and their place in Florence’s history. This included an old grain warehouse that had been very cleverly converted into a magnificent church, Orsam Michele. Rick just had to talk about Florence being home to some of the best handmade gelato ice-cream in the world. Of course we had to make a stop to test his theory and both agreed that he’s probably right.
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| The Baptistry doors are incredibly intricate and it takes quite a while to take all the detail in. |
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| It was a little hard to believe this used to be a grain warehouse but the grain chutes still run through the columns. |
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| Time for a gelato stop. |
Next port of call was the Piazza della Signoriaand the Palazzo Vecchio which had been the seat of local government until the massively wealthy and influential Medici family decided it would better serve as their own palace instead and took it over. The Loggia dei Lanzi area outside the Palzzio previously dedicated as a forum for free speech by citizens but the Medecisthought that a waste of space and turned it into an open air sculpture gallery and commissioned magnificent works by many of the masters. The influence of this family in Florence’s cannot be over stated. Would you believe Michelangelo’s statue of David was originally intended to sit atop the dome of the cathedral as its crowning glory but got hijacked to stand at the steps of the Medecis’ Palazzio. Here it stood in the weather until an arm got broken off during a riot and it was moved to a museum for safety. A very poor copy now takes its place at the stairs.
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| The Medici family used the Palazzo Vechio as their personal palace and virtually ruled Florence from within. |
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| This sculpture of The Rape of the Sabine Woman stands around three metres high and all three figures were all carved from the single block of Carrara marble by Giambologna in the 1500s. |
Onwards we walked along the banks of the River Arnoto the Ponte Vecchio (Old Bridge) lined with goldsmith and jewellers stores.
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| The Ponte Vechio was the only bridge over the river left standing as the Germans retreated in WW2. The commanding officer disobeyed orders rather than destroy such significant history. |
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| In medieval times the bridge originally housed butcher shops which dropped their offal and leftovers into the river but now it is a major tourist mecca lined by gold merchants and jewellers. |
By then it was time to grab a quick bite of late lunch and then make our way back to the Galleria dell Accademia, the home of Michelangelo’s statue of David and a number of his unfinished works referred to as the prisoners because they haven’t escaped the block of marble that still partially encases them.
This was another instance when Ronaldo’s local knowledge paid big dividends. On his advice we had got him to pre-book reserved entry to the gallery for us which meant we arrived five minutes before our allotted time of 3.30pm and virtually walked straight in while the regular cue snaked its way around the block requiring over an hour’s wait.
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| Standing in front of Michelangelo’s statue of David is simply awe inspiring. With a hammer and chisel he breathed life into a cold block of marble. |
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| The people in the foreground give an idea of the scale of this massive statue. |
The centre piece of the gallery is of course the statue of David set in pose where he’s eyeing off Goliath with his sling over his shoulder before their legendary battle. It is much larger than we’d realised and truly magnificent. While still only in his twenties, Michelangelo truly breathed warmth and life into a huge block of solid, cold white marble. No photo can capture what the eye sees when gazing on this genuine masterpiece of artistic creation. Seeing a number of unfinished works really provided an insight into how Michelangelo worked and made the completed statue of David even more awe inspiring.
After a late diner in one of the scores of sidewalk cafes found in almost every street we flopped into bed totally exhausted and recharged the batteries to do it all again the next day. We were in for an early start as we had 9.15am reserved entry into the Galleria degli Ufizi, to view the largest art collection in Florence ranging from medieval religious works to some of the world’s most famous art from the renaissance and beyond including works by Di Vinci, Michelangelo, Rubens, Raphael, Caravaggio and is the home of Botticelli’s Birth of Venus.
Stay tuned for DAY TWO.
For more about our travels and lots more photos check out and 'like' our Dreamtime Sail facebook page at Dreamtime Sail on Facebook
If you only recently discovered our blog and would like to read how it all started, click the link to go back to our first blog entry. Stuff it. Let's just go sailing anyway We hope you enjoy reading the previous posts to catch up on our story.
Friday, 3 March 2017
Here How to carry two kayaks on a roof rack
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Ancient Scandinavian Two Horned Boats
(click for larger image)
Reader Wade Terzia asked about Bronze Age European boats with "distinctive double-projections at the stem and stern" and known from petroglyphs. Interesting subject.
The Hjortspring boat, found on the Danish island of Als, was, according to marine historian and painter Bjorn Landstrom, "over 43 feet long and over 6 feet wide, built about 200 B.C." Very similar to the petroglyphs shown in the image below, Landstrom makes an interesting point:
The Hjortspring boat, found on the Danish island of Als, was, according to marine historian and painter Bjorn Landstrom, "over 43 feet long and over 6 feet wide, built about 200 B.C." Very similar to the petroglyphs shown in the image below, Landstrom makes an interesting point:
The construction has caused much surprise, especially the shapes of the ends which do not appear at all natural for a boat of wood. It is the oldest find made in Scandinavia of a boat built of wood, and I believe that it was made with a hide boat as a model.
So the Hjortspring boat, shown above, was apparently derived from the skin boat, shown below, in which the end projections make perfect sense from a construction standpoint. Landstrom sees a close connection between this skin boat and umiaks, and suggests that the keel extension would allow users to drag the boat ashore with less wear to the skin covering. And the evolution to the sewn-plank boat incorporated the extensions out of habit, not for any good reason in terms of boat construction or usage. Apparently, these extensions were abandoned as soon as builders in the sewn-plank technology figured out that there was no reason to retain them.
Apologies for the poor quality of the Hjortspring image and the wretched stitching together of two scans. It is clickable, however, for a larger view. The image shows numerous planks stitched together, with a bottom member that might be a keel-like structure (but is not a dugout base) that extends beyond the stem and sternposts. The painting does not seem to show the ends to be "crotches" in the manner of the Polynesian five-part canoe: rather, the port and starboard sides of the end pieces of planking appear to be separate pieces that meet at the stem/sternposts.
A caveat: Landstrom's book was published in 1961, and there may be much more recent research that either confirms or contradicts his views. But I just love Landstrom's paintings. I received the book for my 13th birthday, and I still treasure it. If Jerry & Marie Ruebenstahl are out there somewhere, thanks again.
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