Attempts at amateur gunsmithing, citizenship, and other skilled trades
My heroic Johnson outboard motor took all my attempts at maintenance and repair in stride, so I decided to finish the project off with a flourish by adding a tachometer.
Tachometers serve many important functions, but my main reason for wanting to install this one was that it looked spiffy:
Having bought ANOTHER boat–a 1985 Bass Tracker–I promptly set about refurbishing it. Unlike the previous two, this one had been partially restored by a previous owner.
As I’ve mentioned, I didn’t agree with all of the decisions made along the way. The bright blue marine carpet, for example, was a bit garish for my tastes.
More importantly, the boat was underpowered: unless you’re in no hurry, a hull weighing 840 pounds needs more than 25 horsepower to push it.
Although I was tempted, the cost of a new engine far exceeded my budget. So it was that I entered the brave new world of used outboard motors.
Continue readingBy the time this spring rolled around, the 14-foot 1976 Gregor U-141 I refurbished last year was set up just the way I liked it: plenty of storage, a robust electrical system (patterned after the one on my old Mirro Craft), new paint, a reliable outboard, all mounted on a well-maintained trailer.
Whenever the subject came up, I proudly announced that “This is the last boat I’ll ever buy.”
When I noticed a partially refurbished 1985 Bass Tracker for sale on Facebook Marketplace, however, I was intrigued. “It can’t hurt just to look,” I told myself.
And so it happened that I bought my third boat in as many years, surprising no one–except myself.
Continue readingI took my recently refurbished 25-year-old Reflex Xtreme to the range to try it out: I clocked 425-grain arrows at an average of 245 fps, which equates to 56.57 ft-lbs of kinetic energy and .46 slug-fps of momentum.
In other words, it was hitting pretty hard. Not grizzly bear or Cape Buffalo hard, but certainly enough to dispatch the stoutest of zombies.
In a previous post I talked about paper tuning an old compound bow. Never one to leave well enough alone, I decided to go back and recheck the tune on my traditional bows while I was at it.
First up, my Howatt Savannah.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I bought my first compound bow–a refurbished 2016 PSE Stinger X–from the bargain cave at Cabela’s. Having only shot recurves and longbows before that, I was hugely impressed by this newfangled technology .
It recently occurred to me that it was past time to change strings and cables. You should do that every couple of years–it’s been seven and my Stinger still had the originals.
But rather than take it back to the pros at the bow shop, I decided to do it myself.
Continue readingI opened my can of Aluma Hawk Jon Boat Green at first light, having first etched the aluminum hull with white vinegar. After about 15 minutes I wiped off the vinegar with isopropyl alcohol.
Blue painter’s tape across the stern kept my lines straight, but gunwales and strakes served the same purpose–without tape–on the sides.
I took a ride on my stationary bike this morning, back to a simpler time…
Continue readingI’ll spare you the suspense: the hatch installation went better than I feared.
First, I was very careful to align the hinges so the hatches would open without binding.
Using a single “piano” hinge instead of separate cabinet hinges would’ve made this much easier, but that’s not how I roll.
Continue readingWoodworking has never been my forte, nor has wood finishing.
Unfortunately, there was plenty of both ahead.
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