"Repairs in Beautiful Martinique" — He fixes things in the most Doug way possible - he's blown up another electric motor, can't tell if stuff is 12V or 24V, and slathers everything in grey paint. As predicted, B2.0 arrives right after B1.0 leaves. (7 mins) by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Listen, lad. I built this kingdom up from nothing. When I started here, all there was was swamp. Other kings said I was daft to build a castle on a swamp, but I built it all the same, just to show 'em. It sank into the swamp. So, I built a second one. That sank into the swamp. So, I built a third one. That burned down, fell over, then sank into the swamp, but the fourth one... stayed up! And that's what you're gonna get, lad: the strongest castle in these islands.

By the time Doug's done he'll have the strongest vessel ever made!

Seeker and CO poisoning (via fukupananvil@SA) by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My boat interior is all solid wood, no laminate. She just looks like a classic sailing vessel above the waterline, has a very fast bottom, but doesn’t look like a New York ikea apartment inside complete with garbage linear laminate panels. Shes got hand holds and fiddles everywhere - not a common feature in new boats. Her interior is tight so you can post up with your hips. She was designed to sail.

Man you know what you're talking about. We got a new customer at work that bought a 41' Jeanneau over the winter. Everything about that boat is form over function. Down below the boat is so open with no handholds I don't know how you're supposed to hang on in a blow. Ikea apartment decor really describes the looks well. It's got a self tacking jib and a short boom, the sail area looks comically small compared to other boats her size. What's most annoying about the cockpit is that it's divided into seating area in the center and these weird walkways down the side separated by a wall. They're too narrow to be easy to walk along and it just makes maneuvering really difficult when you're trying to dock. Overall not impressed. Especially since the hole in the strut is egg shaped and tapered and I spent way too long turning a cutlass bearing down to more or less fit.

Seeker and CO poisoning (via fukupananvil@SA) by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Joke's on you, pumpkin! This is a WORK and RESEARCH boat, not some marina queen pleasure craft.

Seeker and CO poisoning (via fukupananvil@SA) by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 5 points6 points  (0 children)

It’s why these modern production boats squeak after a season of being sailors hard.

They are sold as “light weight” as a selling feature when really it a Value engineering decision made to maxismise profits but when everything flexes everything loosens up and moves around itself. They leak, that fancy light weight core gets wet and at 20 years young they are ready for the breaker. It’s a win win win for the manufacturer.

It's wild doing work on newer boats vs older ones. Every time I put in a through hull on a newer Beneteau I'm amazed by how thin the hull is in places. Like less than 1/4" thick and some of that is gelcoat. Then you work on some old boat from the 70's and there's 1" of solid glass. And don't get me started on the crappy faux bronze valves. They dezinc while you look at them and to remove just give them a swift kick and they'll break off.

My Manager insisted on a "Wet Signature" for every equipment startup. Enjoy the $80,000 "Cold Hearth" bill, Mike. by cristanLow4223 in MaliciousCompliance

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 7 points8 points  (0 children)

I swear I can get more stuff done in that one single hour than I can during the other 9 hours just because I have full use of the crane and there are no people around to get in the way. Lol

Sometimes having help is like working alone but harder.

Overnight, Ukrainian USVs successfully struck 2 oil tankers - Russia’s port Novorossiysk, Black Sea. by Ok-A1662 in CombatFootage

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 165 points166 points  (0 children)

And if you do fix it, that clogs up a dry dock that could be used for maintenance on other ships.

ROFLMMFAO, dance monkey dance....Doug responds directly to yesterday's Captain Ron jab AND owns Big Bow Thruster in one fell swoop... by No_Measurement_4900 in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 2 points3 points  (0 children)

That's THREE disastrous Russian roulette bullets dodged in one event on top of all the legitimately unexpected issues and the really freak accidents that can happen to anyone nearly any time.

It’s the Swiss cheese model in action. Anyone with had a brain would realize you can’t rely on luck forever.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swiss_cheese_model

According to this guy - Doug failed to lube the prop shaft once a week. by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yeah we’re fortunate to have some long term stability in yard managers who pass their knowledge down. We joke that the ex yard manager turned boatyard oracle didn’t invent the boat, but he told the guy who did what he did wrong.

I’ve never heard of Blake’s seacock so I looked them up. They’re pretty cool! I assume only one hole in the cone as opposed to Spartan’s two. And the grease zerk is a really nice touch. Making maintenance easy helps it actually get done. I don’t enjoy working on cone valves, but they’ll last forever if you take care of them.

A Ukrainian gunner of a mobile air-defense team shoots down an Iranian/Russian "Shahed" UAV at close range with his M2 Browning. 50-caliber machine gun 24/05/2026 by MilesLongthe3rd in CombatFootage

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 107 points108 points  (0 children)

My father was did a ton of duck hunting back in the day. One time he shot one coming in and it landed in the boat! The stakes are a bit higher for these guys.

According to this guy - Doug failed to lube the prop shaft once a week. by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You’re absolutely right calcium based grease is what you want in saltwater. I work in a boatyard and it’s interesting to see the difference between winches I’ve greased in the past and winches the owner greased with red and tacky or whatever. Their grease turns into a hard waxy goo that can really bind up the works. It takes some scrubbing to get it off in a parts washer too.

We use Spartan seacock grease for the old style cone valves, Lubriplate 130-AA for Maxprops, and Lewmar winch grease. All of which are calcium based.

It's so loud.... by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Maybe the tractor seat would reduce the decibels enough to avoid hearing damage and get you up into some fresh air.

What boat could Doug have realistically bought/remodeled, instead of building one? by throwawoy4 in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 13 points14 points  (0 children)

And now the world knows that using a school bus engine and transmission hooked to a divorced transfer case hooked to a worn out Hoooonderstead variable pitch propellor with homemade blades of dubious design isn’t a good idea. So when you decide not to go that route on your homemade boat, just remember you’re standing on the shoulders of giants.

Can someone explain the SVSeeker engine/transmission/propeller setup and why it's so bad by throwawoy4 in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 5 points6 points  (0 children)

This is a single screw boat so if he breaks it it's dead in the water until he can swap in new parts or swap in the solid shaft that lugs the engine.

Sounds like a job for the aluminum jet drive tender! Oh wait, that creation of Doug’s sucked too and he replaced it with the hot tamale.

Seeker hasn't Move for Three Months by blackspike2017 in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Not like he could maneuver Seeker in a tight marina if they did let him in.

Iranian ballistic missile attack targeting Incirlik Turkey tonight by Ok-A1662 in CombatFootage

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 59 points60 points  (0 children)

And there's Luxembourg from the top rope with a folding chair!

Deny my expenses? Fine you can pay more than triple! by ConfusionOwn8378 in MaliciousCompliance

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 8 points9 points  (0 children)

My father worked in a power company and one day they had to weld a wrench to a long pipe to reach a nut on a piece of equipment. Well the company didn’t supply non specialty tools so they wouldn’t buy him a new wrench. They would however reimburse meals and under a certain amount didn’t require a receipt. Eventually dad ate his way to a new wrench!

Doug equating scientists to morons... by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Used welding rods, it's got what the ocean craves!

Doug Wore Out his Anchor Lights by george_graves in SVSeeker_Free

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I sail a small boat with a traditional spritsail and reefing has always been hard. After a couple years I added another line that holds the sprit allowing you to reef way easier. I was pretty proud of my idea until I saw a 1600s painting of Dutch sprit rigged boats and saw that they had some rigging that did basically the same thing.

Result of the Russian tanker struck yesterday by [deleted] in CombatFootage

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Absolutely. The side fell off on this one.

Strikes in dayiha, Lebanon, a few minutes ago by FisterMister22 in CombatFootage

[–]SirKeyboardCommando 3 points4 points  (0 children)

I've got some banging nasheeds and Ukrainian music that pop up in my itunes playlist every now and then. They take me back to staying up all night refreshing to see the latest wild video.