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Low buck projects- Let's see 'em!

858K views 2K replies 341 participants last post by  pdqaltair 
#1 ·
In this forum, we've seen big projects on small boats and small projects on big boats- let's see the cheap projects! Show us what you have done on your boat on a budget.
Here's the rules:

1) Gotta be under $100 US, or equivalent currency.

2) You must have done it yourself. Although, if you found someone to work on your boat for less than $100, feel free to post contact info.

3) bonus points will be given for elegance and ingenuity.

Here's one of mine:

I needed a cockpit table. Well, I, personally, didn't need a cockpit table, but the admiral did, and I need a warm place to sleep, so you can see how the stars aligned on this one. I sussed out commercially available, marine priced cockpit tables and promptly gagged. So, I thought to myself, "self, you could make it yourself for a lot less." One problem. Well, four actually. I have limited woodworking skills, limited woodworking tools, and limited time. oh yeah, and I am cheap.
So, I went to plan "c".

I spent some time eyeballing the cockpit in question:


Then I moseyed into action. I bought one of these for $29.99


A frenzy of measuring, remeasuring, cutting, screwing, drinking, varnishing, etc. later, and this is how it finished up:



Let's see yours.
 
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#805 ·
here is a backup voltage regulator that I just installed here in NZ. design came from Marine Electrics of Opua. It is a Bosch RE55 regulator for a car and a common relay for the ignition. well under NZD$100 and a great backup to a Balmar/AmplePower/etc. it is single stage but only set to bring battery voltage up to 14.2V so you may want to keep an eye on your electrolyte levels if motoring for an extended period but that voltage is low enough to avoid frying most lead-acid batteries (can't speak for gel, AGM or lithium). it is a fantastic backup that could save you a big headache should that costly "Smart" regulator fail at an inconvenient time.





 
#809 ·
here is a backup voltage regulator that I just installed here in NZ. design came from Marine Electrics of Opua. It is a Bosch RE55 regulator for a car and a common relay for the ignition. well under NZD$100 and a great backup to a Balmar/AmplePower/etc. it is single stage but only set to bring battery voltage up to 14.2V so you may want to keep an eye on your electrolyte levels if motoring for an extended period but that voltage is low enough to avoid frying most lead-acid batteries (can't speak for gel, AGM or lithium). it is a fantastic backup that could save you a big headache should that costly "Smart" regulator fail at an inconvenient time.
It gives you the same results as the dumb regulator that is standard on alternators - in boats or cars. This is often disabled to add an external reg.
 
#811 ·
I will be looking into it, too. A switch that makes it easy and inexpensive to move between a couple of cameras and deliver the signal at the helm will be crucial. The installation of cameras is simple.

Any and all ideas for a switch will be welcome!

Down
 
#810 ·
yes, that's correct, but it is "plug-and-play" with the connections from my alternator as they are setup for my Balmar ARS-5, eliminating the need to crack open the alternator and reinstall the original internal regulator. I still have the original internal regulator and, i suppose, that is the backup to my backup at this point ;).
 
#814 ·
Cabin hatch running rails, 34 years old and the only love they've seen is a quick wipe with some polyurethane and a pound and a half of 3M 5200 by the looks of them.
Removed the first one today, and it was stuck down in places so hard I had to slice it off with a blade.
Wood is in pretty poor show, I'll strip the old finish, repair the damaged piece and epoxy coat and spar varnish, you won't recognize it I hope,lol
 

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#818 ·
diy instrument pod

having a small 23' trailer sailer, there isn't much place to install compass, fish finder and my iPhone, and the fact I didn't want to place them on the cabin wall, so I can use them as a seat back, I made this low buck instrument pod, which cost me under 10$ excluding screws, stain and varnish, I already had :)
very easy to install and to remove
and, I'm working out a bag which will be attached on the back of the pod
 

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#819 ·
Any pressure washer pump with 3gpm output ,with ceramic plungers makes a good watermaker pump. The 540 GPD membranes fit perfectly in a 2 1/2 inch sch 40 pipe, for a membrane housing.
Composing heads costing hundreds of dollars can be home made for under $50. Sheet blocks can be made for under $2 ,which are far stronger than commercially made ones costing over $30. Just cut the cheeks out of 3/16th aluminium, round them off and put spacers, SS bolts and sheaves in. Sheaves can be cut out of 1/2 inch poly cutting boards with a hole saw, and the groove filed in with a round rasp.
 
#820 ·
In April 2007 we did a haul out in La Paz Mexico. During that haul I noticed the rudder on our boat had side to side play in the pintle & gudgeons. On our boat they are heavy bronze fitting and I am sure the cost would be very high to replace them. Also, they looked in very good shape, just a bit loose where the pin fits into the cavity.

I shimmed our our pintle and gudgeons using high-density polyethylene or HDPE, better known as the plastic milk cartons are made out of. You can see photos and brief write up in our position report at:
Guenevere's Position Reports April 1, 2007

I bring this up now as I just got back from working on Guenevere in the storage yard. During today's task, I removed the tiller for refinishing.

With the tiller off, I did a check of how the rudder is and how the shimming has held up. As of now, I can find NO PLAY in the rudder beyond what was there when I did the shimming! So, after thousands of miles, it's still tight and secure but turns/swings easy!

Greg
 
#821 · (Edited)
Here`s is a low buck project.

With a boat staying in the water for the winter, ice is a problem for everyone. It`s no exception up here in Norway. My solution is to hire migrant workers from Europe (I won`t name nationalities in order not to offend) to keep the ice at bay by having them stand on the dock and feed them baked beans, equip them with one end of a long preforated hose to create bubbles that surrounds my boat. As they feed themselves with said baked beans, they fart into the hose, thus creating bubbles to deter the ice. It`s a win win situation.

Is this low buck enough for the thread? Any takers?
 
#823 ·
mayhem, it's really amazing how far a little bit of varnish goes towards improving the overall cosmetic appearance of a boat. while stuck on board during a nasty low pressure a week or so ago, i addressed a nagging varnish problem of my own. the trim around the inside of hatches gets a raw deal: lots of salt spray and UV when open and lots of condensation when closed. couple that with being a cruiser and interior brightwork, and it's a recipe for neglect, at least for me.





last picture is with first of 5-6 coats, however many are needed to get that smooth, "deep" appearance. it was something i had put out of my mind but refinished, it really changes the entire feel of my salon.
 
#824 ·
mayhem, it's really amazing how far a little bit of varnish goes towards improving the overall cosmetic appearance of a boat. while stuck on board during a nasty low pressure a week or so ago, i addressed a nagging varnish problem of my own. the trim around the inside of hatches gets a raw deal: lots of salt spray and UV when open and lots of condensation when closed. couple that with being a cruiser and interior brightwork, and it's a recipe for neglect, at least for me.

last picture is with first of 5-6 coats, however many are needed to get that smooth, "deep" appearance. it was something i had put out of my mind but refinished, it really changes the entire feel of my salon.
what did you use? Turned out really nice. I love the look of varnished wood.;)
 
#825 ·
International Goldspar, it's a bit darker than the Z-Spar that i usually use but, surprisingly, varnish choices here in NZ are very limited. It takes MUCH longer to dry than Z-spar ~30hrs before you can sand without gumming up the paper. however, i think it will look OK when complete.
 
#827 ·
So the commercial fishing fleet in my neck of the woods is buying up and installing Rigid Industry's LED driving lamps like crazy. They are expensive. I bought one for those occasions when we have to travel in the dark. They're expensive enough that I wanted a mount that could be quickly mounted and removed so I can store it safely below. I made a small mount pad out of some teak I had lying around the garage, but how to mount it to the pulpit? I considered a few options but settled on a hose clamp. I used a dremel tool to cut out a slot all the way through the teak pad that will secure the pad to the pulpit with the turn of a screw driver.

 
#831 ·
this one is not really about the low cost project, changing a through hull, it's about saving NZD$430.10 for a 1-hour lift-and-hold!
You're saving some money so it counts.;)

I almost wish I was somewhere with large tides so I could change some through hulls too without hauling out.
 
#829 ·
"I meant to do that" - that's your story and you're stickin' with it, right? :D
 
#830 ·
of course! she's a 1982 Skye 51.

here's a picture from Puerto Montt, Chile where I didn't mean to do that...



the railroad ties set out on the grid had been attacked by shipworms and the one at the front of the keel broke in half, you can see one piece just aft of the front of the keel. I knew i was in trouble when i could hear the wood creaking as the tide went out. we nosed down imperceptibly until coming to rest, bow and keel touching. it was a pretty stressful event but we got the bottom cleaned just the same
 
#833 ·
obelisk,

Excellent pictures, and love how you grabbed something to put under the bow.

Do you tie something to the side of the hull when you do this, to keep the hull from getting scratched? A boat wake at the wrong time could rub get coat aginst rocks.

Regards,
Brad
 
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#834 ·
i had a fender board against the wall, so there was no scraping there. in hindsight, the rock under the bow probably was not a great idea as it caused a very concentrated force on the small spot on the hull but it did stop the bow from diving further and i have seen no ill effects in the two years since. knock on wood.
 
#836 ·
Was looking for a way to do this--now I've got to go and steal your idea! With some personal modifications of course!
 
#837 ·
I really waht to learn how to do the cord wrapping like that--any suggestions as to reading material or such?
 
#838 ·
Oh-WHEW! I thought that was jsut my wife that did that. Some days I'd swear she's just trying to screw with my mind!
 
#841 ·
Got this wood....

got this in my quest to get free lumber when and where I can ....

Sample;

Becomes this, but this only a small part of the 2nd pile.

It's Beech! 4x4 and 5x5 in random lengths.
This morning 10/12/13 I finished cutting most of it into 3x3" to make this..
it will be a long term project.
Search word; Roubo "Roubo split top" :D
I can do this! why? I don't know!
 
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#845 ·
Re: Got this wood....

got this in my quest to get free lumber when and where I can ....

Sample;

Becomes this, but this only a small part of the 2nd pile.

It's Beech! 4x4 and 5x5 in random lengths.
This morning 10/12/13 I finished cutting most of it into 3x3" to make this..
it will be a long term project.
Search word; Roubo "Roubo split top" :D
I can do this! why? I don't know!
Would make one heck of a nice dining room table too ! Cut the turkey right on the table for thanksgiving! :D
 
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