In-harbour jobs, before Alan's second leg. VHF issues etc. Expedition Lifeboat Conversion Ep88 [4K]
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- Опубліковано 2 лип 2023
- To BUY ALAN A DRINK for the journey north, to buy merch, and to support my videos and help them grow in scope and quality here: www.alexhibbert.com/aho
Alex's new channel, Arguably: / @arguably-alexhibbert5085
EPISODE 88
In Lowestoft I came across a load of small tweaks and improvements, from catches to VHF to hatch restraints and cup holders.
Model: NME A/S (Husnes, Norway) 7.5m TELB
Engine: Bukh DV48 turbo diesel
Feel free to ask any questions in the comments!
___
Alex's new channel, Arguably: / @arguably-alexhibbert5085
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Thanks to vanguardstorage.co.uk/ for warehousing facilities. - Наука та технологія
![Alan the lifeboat heads north LEG 2: Lowestoft to Grimsby (Humber) via Wells-Next-The-Sea. Ep89 [4K]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/zWY4eQ-8IDI/mqdefault.jpg)
![Alan the lifeboat heads north LEG 2: Lowestoft to Grimsby (Humber) via Wells-Next-The-Sea. Ep89 [4K]](/img/tr.png)
![Ballast dam floods cement & new 296 fuel filters for Bukh. Expedition lifeboat conversion Ep121 [4K]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/my-tOqeluuU/mqdefault.jpg)
I follow a couple of boat renovation channels, and I am enjoying yours. I must say you appear to be completely MAD! I moved from the UK to Canada as a child and absolutely HATE cold weather and snow. I retired back to the UK, where I get one snow fall a year, instead of five or six months of underfoot snow and ice. That one snow day is still too many.
What other channels? I enjoy this one but don't follow any others as yet
Radio communications are a dark art. A true professional is almost a must. I've been using AM, UHF and HF radios for 40+ years off road (and in some VERY remote areas, like the deserts of Australia, and Cape York) and on, I'm a programmer by trade, and a hobbyist electronics designer (with a couple of patents for designs generating a small income). Even I get trusted professionals to fit any radio for me... and will be doing so for a VHF radio in a boat I'm doing up for a friend (I think she might want to sell it.)
I could probably do it myself, by why would I try on mission critical stuff like radios, which are a lifeline in the remote areas of Australia. And probably at sea, like you're doing and I will be - however long I have this boat.
Does this make me the child of a wizard then? My father did radio and microwave telecommunications professionally for 35 years until he retired.
@@KnightsWithoutATable absolutely. I bet he wore robes and carried a staff (which he probably called an 'antennae')
@@petermiddo more of a nerd pocket and flannel shirt. He had a walking stick after he retired.
100% radio comms and the repair thereof is witchcraft/wizardry 😅
VHF is straightforward, HF is witchcraft
oooo! the Maryland flag crab at 6:05!!! :D :D
Well done Alan!
The new intro is lovely. Not too long, not too short. Perfect way to quickly show new viewers what this amazing series is about
Any progress is good progress Alex, a good magnet is always the enemy of ''sold as stainless'' marine bits because even 304 ''won't do''. Best of luck.👍
That depends.. some of the newer rare earth magnets are so powerful, they'll even grip 316 stainless to some extent.
Hi Alex, I would leave those extended threads from the grab handles for another time, they could become a perfect mounting point for something in the future and extremely strong. Good luck mate, take care and stay safe. Seeya Rob
May well do!
My Alan hat has become my go to cap for doing hard labor around the house. People always have questions at the hardware store. Hope it's sending you views from the US.
Cheers! May it and you continue to labour hard.
Endeavouring to persevere... Obstacles being met with the correct spirit... sense of humour intact.
Colour me impressed.
💪🏻...
I have no idea how much the radio specialist cost you but good on ya for tapping out.
I know just enough about radios to get myself in trouble. I’ll be seeking a professional soon also.
hell yeah we like these episodes
This is some riveting stuff, your riveting, bolting, gluing and screwing stuff :)
At least you're convinced.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals Alex: There is a very reliable way to clinch Rivnuts without the usual clinching tool. You will require only a bolt (or set screw, or cap screw) and a nut, both with the same thread as in the Rivnut. Thread the nut up the bolt, and then screw the rivnut fully onto the end of the bolt. Snug the nut back down against the Rivnut, and hold a spanner on the nut. With the Rivnut fully engaged in the hole, in the desired position and correct orientation, hold the head of the bolt with an appropriate wrench or socket and back the nut off against the top of the Rivnut, collapsing it so that it squeezes the panel in exactly the same way as when using the clinching tool. The torque will suddenly rise when the fastener is properly collapsed. Give it a judicious last tweak, without being so hairy-knuckled as to damage it. Hey Presto!
I used to transmit on a CB Base station many many years ago & I can tell you that SWR is very important. Basically when you hook the SWR meter between the radio & antenna lead & press the transmit button the needle if the installation is done good the needle will not move as it will be a perfect 1:1 SWR reading. To get this type of scenario means that all connectors must be solder joints, the coax cable should be tuned to your local channel that you listen out on. Every coax has a certain velocity ratio which means the speed in which a signal can travel at through the copper wire & the specific radio frequency together with the velocity ratio will give you a 1/4 wavelength measurement. Depending if your antenna is a 1/4 wave or a 1/2 wave or 5/8 wave antenna then this will determine how much coax you need, you always make the 1/4 wave measurement in multiples of 2 & if you have a 6/8 wave antenna then your coax length would be 2x 5/8 or 4x 5/8 etc which you would need to convert the length of a 1/4 into a 5/8 length. Basically try to understand that if you have ever seen an oscilloscope wave form then the start of the coax would be as the curving signal line crosses the center line & the end of the coax must end in the same manner for the coax to be tuned to get max transmit power & max receive power out of your antenna.
I really enjoyed this video and the previous ones, In the early 90s I bought a 1969 Humber harbor tug which I had for almost 20 years, in 2001 I lifted her out all 28 tons after a lot of head scratches I decided to cut the stern off to extend by a few meters to install a new engine, which wasn't that hard as I was building narrow boats from base plate too engine building, I now live in the Polish mountains having retired at 55 now 68
Cheers :)
For the flap at the front a rubber T-handle latch would work best
Safe travels!
So my recommendation of a Bird type 43 wattmeter was based on the idea that in a remote area you have a rugged field rated wattmeter that enables you with not too much effort to diagnose and hopefully repair any antenna damage. You see that wattmeter can be used to confirm transmission as well as load testing with a dummy load the transceiver power output. Of course you'll need to carry a spare antenna (or two). Spare coax, connectors also and you'll need to make a couple of 1m long patch cables. Self amalgamating rubber weatherproof tape and a good portable solder iron and some solder and flux. They make gas soldering irons as well as lithium-ion battery powered stations too. With just a few bits and pieces you should be able to get the radio back up if/when the antenna is broken off.
I know you've got a lot to do and this radio stuff is another thing to learn but you probably need some capacity to diagnose and repair any radio difficulties when on expedition.
It would be nice to be able to track Alan's journey on Marine traffic. 👍👍
After the basic checks you did on the VHF radio I was going to suggest finding a radio tech, so it is good that you took that next step. Checking the easy things before getting an expert in is all the help I was going to recommend. My degree covers radio equipment basics only, so I do know enough that after checking for connection issues you need a trained tech or a person that is actually there and has some test equipment to figure things out to figure out the more complicated problems. Hope it wasn't a total loss of the VHF unit and just a bad antenna or impedance matching issue, but as you said, we will finding out in the coming episodes.
Yes, all sorted with new connectors all round by a pro
Hi there, I use homemade rivnut tool. If it's 6 mm thread inside. Them use a longer HT type 6 mm Bolt. Then add nut and washer. Then screw it into rivnut. Ensuring to screw it in deep enough then use 2 1 mm spammers then hold top bolt head with ringflat spanner, then use other spanner to tighten down bottom nut.
Do this until it becomes very tight. The loosen bottom nut then your rivnut is set. Not fancy told needed. We use this for our solar steel mounting back plates.
Does this work for hard stainless rivnuts?
Great as alwaus👍👍
Personality I prefer the building video's. I like to see things progress....
Ah, that's good to hear.
Hi Alex , I look forward to your videos ,very entertaining like watching a Mr Bean video but without the humor . Please take this as complement . As for the radio could maybe the silver foil be causing a problem . If it’s no hard to take the radio out of the boat , set it up on the the dock with a batt and antenna and see what happens . A strange tail for you ,my gets call to help a friend replace his garage door opener , the remote just would not work outside the garage , my friend happened to have the same remote but same problem ,trined out the cable tv repair guy had replaced a piece in the attic above the garage ,and one of those AC to DC is used and he wrapped the extra cable around another cable and this coil somehow blocked the signal from the remote outside the garage . Maybe start looking for those na it couldn’t possibly be that things . Like my wife’s kitchen TV that would go full volume when you turned the light on , those new Curley floresent bulbs sent off an inferred signal to crank the TV up . Good safe travels on the next leg .
All right, cheers 🥂 again!.
Everything you have done to make ALAN seaworthy for the mission is well thought out and going full-steam-ahead. Praise.
Ui, that's a pleasant surprise
Hole saws are incapable of self ejecting for a lot of reasons but it doesn't seem necessary. A simple carbide insert on the inside face bellow the depth of the teeth would make the cut off material smaller than the diameter or the "saw" and set of its' teeth.
Sorry for the death of the rivnut tool, too bad it can't be repaired easily. Curious to see what you go with.
A good battery powered grinder seems like something that would be useful to you, torque test channel just did a video on the best ones they've found
You can set rivnuts using a bolt of the same thread and a nut and washer. Screw the bolt in with the nut and washer on it already, then hold the bolt with a wrench and loosen the nut and washer onto the rivnut to expand it.
I'm not sure this would work with hard steel rivnuts?
@@AlexHibbertOriginals Oh..Steel. No, it wouldn't.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals It does, although I found it's altogether too easy to overdo the compression/expansion and deform the riv threads but when needs must etc. Also it's a good idea if your riv-ing into Ali to whack a bit of red threadlocker on the outside of the riv for a bit more anti round and round when it's tighten a thing together with them time;-) ps a nice almost interfering fit is desirable if such a hole (pilot and go up in a couple of steps) can be drilled where you need it particularly in ali.
For sure this trick can be done with stainless steel Rivnuts, you just have to use (as a setting tool) a high tensile steel bolt (or cap screw) and nut (Grade 10.9 should be fine, 12.9 overkill but better still).
For those jobs where the item being fastened requires to be really secure, a close fitting hole is a must, as Alan points out. But a better enhancement than Loctite Retaining Compound is to buy hex shank Rivnuts (hard to find but obtainable online from the likes of RS), and put hexagonal holes in the panel (either buy a hex chassis punch, or get them lasercut, or mark it out carefully and set to with a triangular file, testing regularly as you get close to size).
These, too, can be set by simply using a bolt and nut.
Oooppss…….sorry Alex…..spell check changed Alan to Allen. Pollogies.
Have you entirely replaced the coax cable? Check it with radio and antenna disconnected, with a multimeter set to resistance, it should show open circuit between Centre pin and exterior of connector.
If that is good , pull the radio, take it on deck, power it up and connect the antenna directly…you now have only two things it could be…
It was the connectors. Cable fine thankfully !
4:18 "next time I have a grindr on board" 🍆🍆😭
Hi Alex 🙋🏻♂️ when do you expect to get to Shetland 🥰🥳
Can’t wait to come and meet you 🤝
You'll be the first to know!
You can buy almost any kind of meter cheap, but generally if you're in a hurry and you don't already own one, just hire a pro. Cheap meters need to be heavily supervised.
I assume that once you head for the open sea, that you will abandon Alansøn in favour of a life raft (and possibly survival suits) … how many people will be onboard for the first expedition? congrats on the editing to tune down what must have been screaming frustration 😊
3-5, and yes certainly to a liferaft. Alansøn will be stowed empty on deck.
Just for interest there are different types of stainless steel - austenitic won't corrode, but martensitic is "corrosion resistant" but will corrode. Don't ask me why. I'm not a metallurgist!
Yes. Almost stainless cutlery is martensitic, it can be hardened to hold an edge (not quite as well as carbon steel). And you're right, it will eventually corrode in salt water conditions, depending on grade (generally the more it can be hardened, the more it is vulnerable to corrosion)
Duplex stainless (eg 2205) and Precipition Hardening stainless (eg 17/4PH) are more corrosion resistant, much on a par with 316, although the latter (used for high strength snapshackles and suchlike) should not be used underwater because it pits even more severely in salt water when starved of oxygen than 304SS. Both are very strong in comparison with ordinary marine 3xx stainless: Duplex is very tough, and PH is very hard.
@@Gottenhimfella Thanks - interesting and informative!
You don't need the riv nut tool. You can use a bolt, nut and a couple of spanners. Bit slow, more difficult but works just fine without the tool + you can get nut's n bolts anywhere
Not with stainless steel riv nuts
Have to watch out for counter fit parts and tools.
You can’t use a socket as a 230V inlet. You’ll end up with an exposed male pin on the connecting lead that could be live and therefore a shock/death risk.
I'm unsure what you mean. All the plugs and sockets have three pins in normal 16A blue and 13A domestic 230V set ups here. Live, neutral and ground.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals I know nothing about UK plugs and sockets. But in America, sockets are female while plugs are male. And it's very dangerous to have a male plug (with exposed metal pins) with mains power while not connected to anything. A cord with two male plugs is actually called a "suicide cord" for this reason.
The again, genderless plugs (like Anderson) do exist, so maybe you are already using something like that.
@AlexHibbertOriginals Imagine your 13A socket at home on the wall. The live bits are all female and tucked away inside the plastic body. The plug with exposed metal pins are dead. You can touch them and you won't die.
Now, imagine the plug that you are going to stick into Alan's socket (it's impossible to talk about this stuff and not snigger like a schoolboy) once plugged into shore power, the plug that goes into Alan will have exposed, live, pins of death. The pins on any plug and socket pair must be on the dead (Alan) side.
1:40 into this video might be clearer than my explanation (please ignore the dreadful US electrics)
ua-cam.com/video/nAECKiKmdZY/v-deo.html
Oh, I imagined that you meant that when plugs are in sockets, there's a pin exposed in this config.
Point taken on that set up, and indeed, there are no male to male cables on the market for the reason you state.
Although, if you plugged Alan in first, and then the shore power, you'd never have a live, 'exposed' pin.
@AlexHibbertOriginals Kinda. Because it's ALWAYS going to be you that connects and disconnects Alan?
Also, to further muddy the waters, you need a change over switch inside Alan to prevent any 230V system onboard making his inlet pins live and preventing you trying to parallel with the grid. It's hugely complex. Sorry.
might could be that the cable was kinked at some point and broke the connection. did you do a continuity test of the wire?
local ham radio operator is sure Happy to assist you insulting your antenna situation. Ask local people where a local Ham radio operated can be found. They will have the technology and know how tools and equipment To get you on your way. Safe travels and made your bottom always be wet.
Thanks- yes found a pro!
A Banten antenna? Don’t be silly. Buy the best: a Metz antenna. Simply great. Alternatively a Shakespeare Squatty is almost as good. Safe journeys 👍😀
engagement.
attach a fishing real to hull nd underwater go pro camera
Is there a polar expedition and crew lined up? wish my schedule allowed me to volunteer lol
You and me both!
@6:06 who is a Maryland / Blue Crab fan? I am from DC/MD and live in AZ now!
A request by a supporter of the channel
Have you tested fired the heater yet? And do you have your spare parts for both it and your generator in stock with any special tools they might need?
Plenty of spares, but perhaps never enough..
Alex: Will those Walther connectors fit the newly installed connector for your docked A/C?
This one is three pin sadly!
😎🤙
Watching Alan and Sail Life, I get the feeling that you must buy stuff "marine grade" which means twice the price, only to watch it go tits up after a month on its own, having to order spare parts from half around the world, which are also "marine grade", costing twice the normal price.
Am I missing something?
no, you've pretty much got it spot-on. this phenomenon is referred to as "boating."
Just get a local Ham operator they will diagnose it for ya! They should have the tools to fix it!
All sorted by the local vhf expert 👍
If you contacted radio professional for your VHF, great. If not, we want to help you. Or I do anyway.
Also - it's important to understand the basics of radio, in case you get caught in an emergency. Can you connect your handheld VHF to the antenna on your mast? Even simple things like that are very helpful.
I have a working knowledge as per the exams we take here to qualify, but there's a limit. I do have an emergency VHF antenna from Revolve.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals Good to hear! 99.9% VHF won't matter, but it's good you understand the basics if you need it to..
99% of the time, antenna elevation above the water is more important than any other factor, which is why your current situation is quite perplexing.
Also
1) let me know if I can help you in any way. I'll make it happen.
2) the signature request on the books is me after a few drinks. Write whatever you want!
Ha, thanks. They are on their way!
Do you have any audio books? I've looked on Amazon and did not see any.
Sadly not as yet
When are you planning on being In Stonehaven?
In 3 or 4 legs' time.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals stay in Aberdeen so keen to see wee ALLLLAAAN! 😊
Does your generator have electric start? Or is it pull start only?
Crank only, but starts easily.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals Thanks. I was going to recommend an inverter that could automatically start your generator if batteries got too low, but it only works with electric start.
I dont think you should ever have continuity between ground and hot in coax, it should match the impeadance of the antenna. Buy the largest cable possible a better antenna and a cheap power/swr meter. Or call an expert
5:40 Probably a male, you can distinguish it from the bright orange beak (the females' is of a duller shade) and the black protusion in top of it which is bigger and more pronounced on males
I'll know for my next conversation
How do you see this project after the sad implosion of Titan?
I don't see them as linked in any way, but obviously any disaster is sad, and worth learning from.
@@AlexHibbertOriginals Yes. Wishing you a safe and hassle free journey
Alex…….what about the cat? Isn’t Allen going to want a cat to purr around the innards…..chase odd mice…..entertain the crew with various feline antics?
I wouldn't want to put a cat in such a confined space for an extended length of time for a whole host of reasons having both to do with the welfare of the kitty him- or herself and the welfare of the human passengers.
I was an electronic tech in the Air Force. One year of full-time school and three years doing maintenance at our permanent base. And, I still think electronics is a black art (akin to voodoo) and should only be done by "true believers." After leaving the USAF, I went to college, majoring in Mechanical Engineering, so that I never had to be involved with electrons again. Good luck with your projects, electrical and otherwise.
While in Lowestoft if you need any help, sourcing items locally, angle grinder? stuff drop me a line, I am about 15 mins away
Just left this morning, but thanks!
Little like marriage, it works poorly after "Yes I do"
Simple, have the radio fitted by a professional, then you have someone to blame.
But watch them do it so you at least half understand.
"who the ef is Alan"
I ask this every day
Two million pounds.... 💷... It's rare I feel poor.
I could say first..............but I won't.
Well, you also would be wrong 🤷🏼♀️
@@Jehty_ not in my world.
You're all superstars
@@AlexHibbertOriginals well my mum says I am.
@@g06sfj76
That's what she said to me too.