Santana 2023 Owners & "Santa" Want-a-bies!

Accessories

For that real nauticle sound, download and place ship's bell on your computer!

Boat Naming Stickers

Everyone seems to puts a name on their ship and I was no exception. Going to a local boat lettering store I obtained mine. Some have painted lettering, mine is the vinyl "peel and stick" type. Now I can feel proud that I have "G Marlyn II" on both aft quarters. Later on I got some lettering from a hardware store and put my city and state on the stern.

Oil/Gas Spill Eaters

Have you ever spilled gas or oil on your boat? Do you remember people saying that Dawn dishsoap is the best thing to clean it up with? Not so if your into environmentaly safe things to use.

Try "Oil Spill Eaters" from Microbe Solutions, http://www.microbesolutions.com. Carry this stuff as regular stock on your boat. Whenever you spill fuel just throw some on the spill and the little buggers do the work for you. Then just wash everything away!

Inexpensive Sailing Gloves

Have you purchased sailing gloves yet? The amount of comfort they give you is amazing but the price they want for the name brand kinds are extremely high compared to weight lifting gloves. That's right, weight lifting!

Just about every big-time nautical racing event picture had crew wearing gloves with exposed fingers. One day I was walking through a department store and came across similar gloves for a fraction of the cost and several type were available.

It was the nearing the end of the sailing season around here so I hinted to my wife that for the price, these would make wonderful "stocking stuffers" or something my daughter could afford as a present for me. Time will tell!

Make a Flag Staff

We ALL should display our colors while sailing around. Never while docked unless your a commissioned ship.

Some "purest" insist on doing it the traditional way. You know what I mean, on the transom staff or 2/3rd up the the backstay. The Santa 2023's don't have a backstay or transom staff! I used to put it on the topping lift but then I stopped using the TL. What to do?

*(Here's a good source to look through, Flag Etiquette).

You could stitch the flag up high on your mainsail. That would be a great tell-tail also. As far as I'm concerned, if the flag is displayed "tastefully" and with pride, you could put it anywhere! Most smaller sailboats use their topping lift for lack of any other place.

Home Made Transom Flag Staff to the Rescue!

My U.S. Flag was being clipped on to my topping lift, (TL), but as mentioned I've been unhooking the TL and letting the main hold the boom up by itself. Since then I've made a far better place to hold the flag.

Every time out I'd remove the mast crutch pole and stored it below deck. This left an empty aluminum channel box on the transom and seemed the perfect place to hold my flag staff! It's already there so why not use it?

Parts

Qty. & Item	Comment	Cost (Aprox)
1 Flag	Mine is a 16" x 24" Dura-lite. *(One inch of flag length to each foot of boat.)	$0 (already had)
3' section of 1/2" PVC pipe	Schedule 80 wall thickness was my choice. It came in a neat "steel gray" color.	40=$.50 80=$3
1 PVC cap	Matching color.	40=$.50 80=$2.50
2 Eyebolts	1/4" diam by 1-1/4" long. (Plated eyebolts are a fraction of the cost.)	Plat=$1 SS=$5
2 Acorn Nuts	1/4" by 20 TPI (to fit eyebolts). (Again, plated is less price.)	$.50
2 Wood Screws	Aprox 1-1/4" long by number 8 or 10 size.	$.50
1 Block of wood	8" long by less than 1-3/4" square. *(cut a piece from a 2x4.)	$0
Glue & Cleaner	Holds cap onto PVC. *(borrow from friend.)	$0
1 Pin	(Use same pin that hold's rudder up.)	$0
My total cost was only about $7 being that many parts were around the house/boat. My total assembly time was about 1/2 hour.

Directions

1. Cut out an 8" piece of wood, (mine is oak). Trim the edges a little smaller than 1-3/4" square and sand smooth. *(Make sure it's a loose fit in the aluminum box. Any swelling and/or cracking will make it very difficult to remove at the end of the day.)
2. Bore a 7/8" diameter hole, (diameter of pipe), in one end of the wood. No need to go all the way through, just 4 to 6 inches is plenty.

   Here comes the tuff part so do it very carefully. I used a propane torch. *(Have fresh air for open flames. Plastic pipe is cheap. You might want to practice on another piece first. )

3. While rotating the PVC pipe, slowly heat it about one foot above the base. When the plastic get's soft, bend it to about a 30-45 degree angle. Let the pipe cool so that it will hold the bend.

   If you get minor black ash marks, on the pipe try sanding them off else get another piece and start over.

4. Mark and drill holes in the upper part of the pipe to match the eyelet distance on the flag. Don't forget to leave room for the cap on top !
   

   *Be sure to keep things lined up.

5. Bend open the eyebolts just enough so you can insert the flag eyelets in, then close the eyebolts. As an easier method, you can just tie or hook the flag the the eyebolts.
6. Insert the eyebolts through the plastic pipe. Tighten them using the acorn nuts. *(I add a drop of Loctite on mine.)
7. Place pipe base in the newly made wood block. Fit and line up. Drill and screw to prevent pipe from twisting in wood.
8. Insert everything inside the aluminum box on transom.
9. Drill a small hole just larger than the pin, through the aluminum box, the wood block, and the pipe. The pin prevents the staff from falling out.of the box. The pin is the same one used to hold the rudder in the up position when trailering. *(A dual purpose pin and you don't need to stow it away until after your cruise.)
   
10. YOUR ALL DONE!

    (It's idiot-proof to use, makes our beautiful boats look more-so, and the best part is that it's not an expensive addition.)

*NOTE: I suggest that everyone through-bolt the square aluminum mast-crutch box onto the transom. The wood screws used by the factory are fine for a while but WILL fail in the future! Mine gaveup the ghost as I prepped for home about 50 miles away.

Looking for ways to carry the mast home I found that laying it on the cabin top would put all the weight on the spreaders which were resting directly on the cabin top gelcoat. Driving home and having the mast / spreaders bouncing looked like a sure way to bend them and scratch the cabin top, which I sure didn't want to do! A better way was to secure the front section to the normal bow mounting position then lashing the rear section to one of the rear lifeline stanchion. Now all I had to worry about was a car or truck running into the mast.

In my vehicle I always store a reddish colored rag or old T-shirt along with my spare tire tools, just in case. (A good habit for everyone to do.) This was the "just in case" time. Being prepaired I just tied it on the mast end and everything worked out well.

Cheap or Quality Stainless Screws

While visiting Home Depot I picked up a five pack of stainless screws. While inserting the first screw it broke directly under the head. After removing it, I slightly enlarged the hole and tried again. "Wrong", it broke again! Although not labeled, I would even doubt their strength in wood. To say the least, the screws were of questionable quality.

Heading to Ace Hardware I picked up a few identical size stainless screws from their selection. Those screws worked like a charm! Better quality? I'd say so.

US Flag Holidays

(Side note to inform you when to display your home flag.)

United States Flag Holidays

New Years Day	January 1
Inauguration Day	January 20
Lincoln's Birthday	February 12
President's Day	3rd Monday in February
Washington's Birthday	February 22
Easter Sunday	Variable *The first Sunday after the paschal full moon. (What ever that means?)
Mother's Day	2nd Sunday in May
Armed Forces Day	3rd Saturday in May
Memorial Day	(Half-staff until noon.) Last Monday in May
Flag Day	June 14
Independence Day	July 4
Labor Day	1st Monday in September
Patriot Day (half staff)	Sept. 11
Citizens Day (Constitution Day)	September 17
Columbus Day	2nd Monday in October
Navy Day	October 27
Veteran's Day	November 11
Thanksgiving Day	4th Thursday in November
National Pearl Harbor Rem. Day	December 7
Christmas Day	December 25
*Other days as may be proclaimed by the President of the United States. *The birthdays of States (date of admission) *On State holidays.

Clips

The 1/4" stainless steel type carbinett clips are neat and quick. They look sort of like what a mountain climber uses. I've got two for my mast raising system side lines and one for the topping lift. My only concern is that the load limit is rated around 500 pounds. So far the only clip that started to deform was on the forward line, a "previously used" non-stainless one. At a later time, (when I have a bit more money), I'll switch to something like a pelican hook or something else stronger just to relieve my mind.

Environmentally Safe Cleaners

Now that alot of people have more environmental concerns, and Uncle Sam is passing tuffer laws, alternative cleaners are being used. Just below you'll see a few suggestions I found in "Tips to Keep Your Boat in Top Shape".

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