Category: Gear and Provisions
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Salomon Speedcross 3 Trail Shoes
I’ve signed up for the Scottish Islands Three Peaks Race on the good ship Brimble so some panic training is needed. Next week we are running the dreaded Steyning Stinger, one of my favourite races. My old Salomon Speedcross 2 shoes are unbelievably still quite serviceable although I fear they will clap out just before…
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Arthur Beale Yacht Chandler Shaftesbury Avenue
194 Shaftesbury Avenue, London 11th May 2014 I haven’t updated the Sumara blog for a while because I have been rather busy. Well it is always busy getting Sumara ready to go back in the water but this year something has made it double busy. Gerry and I seem to have bought Arthur Beale Ltd,…
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Pulks
April 2014 Sweden Being in Sweden they should really be called Pulkka (from the Finnish pulkka) but pulks or sledges will do. The one we used was made of wood to a design of one of Svarte’s relatives. The design was so successful that it became part of the Swedish army’s equipment. It was light…
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Sailrite Ultrafeed LSZ-1 Sewing Machine
South Dock 16th February 2014 Proud as Punch having made my first thing using the new Sailrite LSZ 1 Sewing Machine. Not only that, but the bobbin ran out and I managed to re-wind and re-thread it too!The machine has a lovely heavy feel about it, a bit like a paddle steamer engine. It looks…
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Vertue Engine and Alternator Sizes
2014 As there seem to be a few Vertue Owners logging in I thought it might be useful to describe Sumara’s engine and the charging arrangement and to open up some thoughts as to the ideal horse power for a Vertue. I seem to remember coming across one Vertue with a 20 hp engine and I…
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Sumara’s Maintenance
South Dock 19th January 2014 There were a few jobs that I wanted to get out of the way before Sumara is lifted into the yard. My poor Eberspacher had conked out after the Jan Mayen trip so I sent it off for servicing. Easier said than done because it is mounted in a totally…
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Boulogne
24th – 25th July 2013 Log 9,029 Boulogne certainly isn’t a destination port like, perhaps, Dieppe but it is a really useful harbour which can be entered under any conditions. Once around the starboard pier-head you should follow the wall for a short while until the white painted patch indicates the main channel taking you into…
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Cutty Sark Sadolin Ultra Varnish Failure
9th February 2013 Greenwich I was shocked at the poor condition of the varnish on the newly restored Cutty Sark. These pictures are now about a month old (January 2013) but I have noticed the varnish has got even worse since. The ship only opened in the summer and there is varnish failure on almost every…
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Brantho Kurrox 3 in 1
As Christmas looms closer and most people are finishing their Christmas shopping or decorating the tree I seem to have decided it is the ideal time to tackle the rust on Sumara’s Kubota engine. Sometimes the saying “If a jobs worth doing it’s worth doing properly” just has to be put aside. There was no…
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Sumara Laid up for the Winter
Sumara was lifted out at Chichester Marina on 23rd November. It was my intention to get her back to London and haul out at South Dock Marina but sadly they said it was full. Strangely when I cycle past there seems to be loads of space.My mast was accidently taken out a week too early…