Boating Geek

Campers come in many shapes and forms: from static ones to wheeled campers and now one that is an actual boat! This awesome camper can also be used as a boat, so you can have a weekend of adventures right in the heart of nature. The camper is called The Sealander and you can use on land and also on water, so actually it’s like owning two separate campers. This invention comes from the mind of a German engineer who wanted to create the perfect weekend home for those who like to spend time on water, but also enjoy camping in the woods. This tiny home has a small sink, benches, a stereo system and a sunroof that can be opened wide while sunbathing. So as you can see, it wasn’t exactly designed to be used as a living or sleeping space, but more as an entertainment spot. The Sealander is a caravan and yacht in one. The high quality and aesthetics of boat-building are combined with the flexibility of a mobile home. Its dynamic and modern design expresses...

This is meant to be a general overview of each of these ships and their capabilities, not looking at specific information such as size and armament (which can easily be found online, if you want specific facts about each ship).  Littoral Combat Ship (LCS):  One of the newest types of ships, made up of the Freedom and Independence Classes with only 3 ships in service. LCS's are very small, versatile ships that were created with the aim of extending the Navy's capabilities closer to the shore. LCS's are made to operate in shallower water than most USN platforms and have different modules that can be swapped in and out depending on the mission requirements.  Cruiser (CG):  Cruisers are now becoming less and less relevant, with only 22 left in the Ticonderoga-Class. Their main focus is to provide the Navy with a multi-functional guided missile platform (launching weapons systems such as the Tomahawk and other missiles via the ship's vertical launching system ...

A boating nightmare has become a reality at Waikawa Bay, near Picton, after a truck was dragged into the water by a boat. Nelson resident Steve Badham came across the sunken truck as he came into Waikawa Bay after a fishing trip on Sunday afternoon.  "I just saw it and I thought, 'oh no'. "It's your worst nightmare when you've got a boat for that to happen." He was told the truck started slipping on the boat ramp and jumped out of gear before the trailer jack-knifed.  Both the truck and the boat ended up in the water. The owner had just repainted the truck, while the boat and trailer had been sold to new owners, Badham said. "He was pretty upset because he didn't know what the condition of the trailer was like.  "It's certainly not a pleasant thing to happen."  The truck was blocking one of three bays at the Waikawa Bay boat ramp, which made maneuvering difficult for other boats com...

By   Ericka Watson De-Winterize Your Boat Spring Boat Prep to Get Your Boat Ready for Spring Commissioning Get ready for the spring commissioning of your boat by following these simple tips to de-winterize it after a long, hard winter. If you did winterize your boat, you saved yourself some spring boat prep time and possible headaches now, which means the road between your boat and the water is shorter! Although it is always best to winterize a boat before putting it into storage, if you didn't, don't worry. You can perform those tasks now for the spring commissioning. Here's how: 1.  Have Your Manufacturer's Manual Handy If you have a copy, great. If you don't, it would be a good idea to get one. You'll need it to replace fluids and parts properly. Never take apart anything without consulting the manual first. 2.  De-winterizing Your Engine The engine is the heart of the boat, and since it will most like take the ...

By   Kevin Falvey Learns the ins and outs of two-part topside coatings. Advil had become as much a part of my spring make-ready kit as paintbrushes, grease and wrenches. That’s because I usually spent four days swinging a rotary polisher to remove the cloudy-white oxidation and return  Breakaway ’s finish to glorious. All that work would carry the glossy, dark-blue finish from April until about ­ mid-July at my home port in the Northeast. Were I a lower-latitude boater, the more-intense rays of the sun would require me to haul the boat and refinish it sooner. But there is another option: paint. Now, the best finish coatings are two-part paints. That’s what the pros use. That’s what companies like Hinckley Yachts and Hatteras apply over gelcoat to achieve the toughest finish with the best gloss, color, flexibility and resistance to abrasion and chemicals. That’s what your local boatyard with a paint booth and the great rep will use. But historically “two-par...

HOW TO BUY THE PERFECT BOAT??!! But you can’t decide which one, right? Like any other game, boat buying is won and lost in the preparation. You need to get your priorities straight, your goals clear and your ducks in a row before you begin. Apply the following principles to help you make the best decision. Water Type Determining the type of water you intend to boat in most of the time drives a cascading series of decisions that can affect diverse characteristics, from which beach or cove you can explore to economy of operation. Hulls with deeper-V shapes ride smoother but draw more water and may require more power to achieve a given speed . Crew Size The rated capacity, or the number of berths or seats, isn’t necessarily equal to the number of people that will be comfortable aboard. What’s your average outing duration? Size Wise Displacement is a measure of volume and so is a better measure of boat size, especially for a cruise...

Ship Shape TV and John Greviskis interview Barry Berhoff from Shurhold on how to remove oxidation from their project boat. Buff Magic and the Shurhold Dual Action Polisher are featured in the clip you know it it's so exciting that you've decided ban them valuable time with us right here chip Jake Peavy teaching you how to speed-up the working with fiberglass we've gotten ethanol and now we're changing subjects on you again we're going to talk about oxidation on fiberglass boats and that leads us for final X for gas very good friend of mine they're gone by very a John great to see again very you're an expert and okay Rambo cleaning and all that you're the president and CEO sure hold in the streets and a little while back I was at the Fort Lauderdale Boat Show with you and us were teaching everybody how to wax polish the boat with a special tool that your offering you show that everybody again because we're I need to do on this boat is I need to not ...

10 winterizing details that may haunt you later. By   Jim Hendricks   When it comes to winterizing your marine propulsion system, details make the difference. A slight omission like failing to run stabilized fuel completely through the engine prior to long-term storage may haunt you in the spring when you find that the fuel injectors are clogged. To learn some of the often-neglected details and new tips for engine winterization — some of which you may not find in all owner’s manuals — we talked with David Meeler, marine product information manager for Yamaha Marine. 1. Tricks to Mix Stabilizer and Fuel How do you know the fuel stabilizer and fuel are thoroughly mixed? “After you add the conditioner, pour a half-gallon of gas into the tank to rinse the stabilizer from the fill hose,” Meeler advises. “Also, rock the boat to make sure it mixes thoroughly.” 2. Run 15 Minutes on Stabilized Fuel “Run the engine at least 15 minutes with stabilizer...