What Is the Best Gear Ya Put on the Boat, Considering Price?

[Sonosailor]

A little cutting board, with a gutter around the edge to catch the excess lime juice when cutting up limes for the drinks. Man, there's value!

[Captain Mark]

Wind vane... hands down!

Mark

[first42]

For everyday usage, best value for dollar, innerspring mattress. Don't even have to plug it in or varnish it.

Curt

[Hiracer]

Yale Brait for backup anchor line, instead of three strand. Don't think I'll ever buy three strand again. My 600' of Brait doesn't take up much more room than my 300' of three strand.

Simple pleasures for me.

[tsmwebb]

When cruising we use our HF radio every day. On passage we typically cantact two or three cruising nets every day and when anchored we use it to get e-mail and wx info. It is also a nice bit of safety gear (I've never used my EPIRB but I think it's good value). Still, the autopilot is first choice for great gear and the GPS is second.

-- Tom.

[44'cruisingcat]

A 30kg Bruce anchor. Excellent - sets instantly, never moves an inch. Changes of tide don't bother it a bit.

[Alain d'HYLAS]

Originally Posted by 44'cruisingcat

A 30kg Bruce anchor. Excellent - sets instantly, never moves an inch. Changes of tide don't bother it a bit.

Well.. I should ask Craig Smith (www.ronca.com.nz) to have a look at this thread.. perhaps he will have a different opinion??

[CSY Man]

30kg Bruce anchor. Excellent - sets instantly, never moves an inch. Changes of tide don't bother it a bit.

Ever been anchored in storms with the Bruce?

I know it sets good, but every test and report I have seen on the Bruce says it has poor holding power.

Just curious if ya have been in harms way with the Bruce?

[CSY Man]

Yale Brait for backup anchor line, instead of three strand. Don't think I'll ever buy three strand again. My 600' of Brait doesn't take up much more room than my 300' of three strand.

Is that the 8 strand nylon...?

I have a few lines of those that came with the boat and love 'em:

Used them for hurricane Wilma...They gave and stretched but never gave up..not much chafe either.

Impressed I was..Just too expensive to use for primary.

[NoTies]

I've got a gadget that can steer a good course, trim the sails, manouvre onto a mooring, mend canvas, oil teak, sand paintwork, navigate, cook a bloody good feed from nothing and make an excellent cup of coffee. Don't know if Sue will appreciate being called a gadget though.
I'm actually in the process of getting rid of gadgets. Sum total of toys:- SSB (required for Cat 1), VHF, GPS, liferaft (required for Cat 1), autopilot (but wish I had windvane), solar & inverter (for the coffee grinder).

[Serrano]

Boat (new) came with lots of good stuff (chartplotter, autopilot, etc) but my favourite additions are:

big teak fender board that doubles as a gangplank (great for commercial jetties in areas with 3m tidal ranges) - cost: $40 plus a bit of time with the powertools

adding a capstan to my Muir anchor winch (gets the main up real easy, makes weighing 2nd anchor a breeze, and fantastic for getting someone i.e. me, up the mast in the bosuns chair) - cost $300 plus my labour

Charles

[purdue512]

Originally Posted by first42

For everyday usage, best value for dollar, innerspring mattress. Don't even have to plug it in or varnish it.

Curt

Totally agree. Sleep well - Live well..

[Hiracer]

Originally Posted by CSY Man

Is that the 8 strand nylon...?

I have a few lines of those that came with the boat and love 'em:

Used them for hurricane Wilma...They gave and stretched but never gave up..not much chafe either.

Impressed I was..Just too expensive to use for primary.

I pick up the Yale Brait new at Defender on sale for 89 cents a foot (5/8"), cheaper than quality three-strand. I think they might do that sale every spring, so look for it next year.

[zardinuk]

Originally Posted by sundown

I have had a couple of heart attacks and my wife worries when I wander off up the coast in the 'off season' so I too spent money on a SSB system for my previous boat. I don't think I will buy a side band for my present boat though: instead I will probably go with a SAT phone - in the long run I think it will be cheaper and of more utility.

For less than the SSB radio, you could buy something that may ACTUALLY save your life, if you were to have a heart attack at sea.

HeartStart Home Defibrillator

It's completely automated, if you have a heart attack and go unconcious, your partner only has to open the thing up and it starts giving verbal instructions on where to place the pads, automatically shocks you back to life if your heart is not beating.

[Alain d'HYLAS]

Originally Posted by zardinuk

For less than the SSB radio, you could buy something that may ACTUALLY save your life, if you were to have a heart attack at sea.

HeartStart Home Defibrillator

It's completely automated, if you have a heart attack and go unconcious, your partner only has to open the thing up and it starts giving verbal instructions on where to place the pads, automatically shocks you back to life if your heart is not beating.

Well, is it a product that you sell??

A defibrillator can be helpfull if you are making heart fibrillation.. but ABSOLUTELY NOT in case of Heart attack..