a couple of thoughts on the cost of cruising…

Some good news from Montana, a needful read, and in the “Wage theft should have consequences” department…

Being a person who hates to spend money in general and is always looking for ways to spend less, I seldom look forward to buying stuff for the boat. The fact that is I find shopping a horrid experience. The sad fact that I actually have to procure a few needful things in the too near future is something of a downer.

For starters, the engine mounts on the Yanmar need replacing and, like most things for boats, are just silly expensive for what they are. Buying said mounts from Yanmar is highway robbery and, as the Yanmar mounts aren’t all that good, more akin to extortion than selling. Researching aftermarket alternatives, two companies came up (Oceanic Innovations and Ellebogen) which both make excellent more-affordable mounts for the Yanmar although, to be honest, both are still a lot more than I care to spend. That being the case I’m considering engine mounts from Barr Marine that are less expensive but require a bit more research to sort out the correct model for the Yanmar 3HM.

More on that when I come to a decision.

Being that the dripless Lasdrop shaft seal is anything but dripless on the Islander, that’s another thing on the need to purchase list. I’m in a quandary whether to buy the Glide Products or Volvo shaft seal because they’ll fit in my limited space and are close to being affordable.

Then there’s the fact I should really replace a couple of halyards and maybe a sheet or two. Which means I’m looking out for a good deal on a 600-foot spool of rope which comes out to a fraction of the cost of buying by the foot or the idiocy of purchasing ready made halyards or sheets.

The good news is all those purchases won’t quite add up to what folks these days refer to as a “Boatbuck” but still, being Mr Cheap Seats, it’s a serious pain-in-the-a…

I’ll let you know what the final damage all comes to and how it affects the cost of cruising.