Who's ready for Spring!?!?!

[HeaveToo]

Darn Virginia Weather...It was 70 degrees two days ago and it is as cold as hell right now.  We may get snow overnight.  Seriously, snow!?!?!?!

My plans are to go to the boat on Monday and finish hooking up the VHF.  This means connecting the wiring harness, doing 4 coax cable ends (I find this a bit intimidating because I have never done anything like this before), and installing the antenna.  After this I am hoping to start my rudder bushing and painting project where I intend to install bushings in the rudder and paint the rudder housing.

Oh yeah, and it is supposed to be near 60 degrees on Monday.

Why can't it just be spring already.  I am sick of this winter stuff. 

[Tim Gardner]

Hear, Hear!

[tmw]

it's it amazing?  Also, when running wires up a mast, is there a preferred method or wiring?  I was thinking of trying to use outdoor cable, like this, but wanted to know if there was a best practice I should try to learn and follow.

Good luck with the white stuff!  some road here are treated.

[HeaveToo]

I ran 16 gauge duplex marine wire.  It is pre-tinned. 

Take cable ties and put them about every 12" on the strand going up the mast.  They should be one to the right, one to the left.  This keeps the wires from clanking around inside of the mast.

It is pretty simple.  You can buy a tool from Lowes or Harbor Freight that helps run the wires. 
http://www.lowes.com/pd_471921-295-FTS1-8-50___?productId=50125859&pl=1&Ntt=steel+fish+tape

[BruceW]

I went sailing a couple weeks ago; going to see the boat the weekend of 11-13, and even though have some club duties, might get the boat out some each day. I'm just going to act like it is spring.

[HeaveToo]

Oh, I did the same run for the RG8 cable for the VHF.  There are cable ties every foot on that.  Also did this for the steaming light.

I ran each strand as a separate strand up the mast so that if 1 went bad I didn't have to run them all.  If I wire it right it should never go bad though!

[ChuckD]

I painted my bottom (oh, that tickles!) and moved to a slip...
Been sailing right through winter on Washington's Olympic Peninsula!

[Salty19]

Well for once the winter here in Ohio, at least where I am,  hasn't been too terrible.  Less than 10" of snow this season where normally it's around 60" or more.  We were spared all the bad storms with no prolonged periods of below freezing weather either, so what little snow there is hasn't stuck around.  I can get used to this!  

There are still plenty of things I want to get done before spring splash. April tends to be the time to get everything together, and this will be be no different.   A few additions will be made as well as the regular commissioning stuff, but May 1 is when the docks go in, so there is still a couple of months to go.  

Hope you guys can all get in early and the weather starts cooperating!