Floating_Medic

Did you catch the crabs on a handline? I've only caught them in the usual witches hat nets so how do you get them on the lines?

Dont feel bad mate, when I decided I wanted to put in a bung to empty out any water that would end up in my fuel tanks well just under the floor of the deck, I thought there was a space between the bottom of the fuel tanks well and the hull but when the drill went right through and I could see the driveway below I instantly panicked and felt like a right idiot. I was going to try to fix it myself but ended up getting in a professional to fix it for me as I was going to need to glass it from the outside. Only ended up costing me about $100 so I wasnt too red faced. I then ended up installing the bung to face towards the rear of the boat and this time it worked and the water that would accumulate in there from skiers and tubers getting in and out of the boat I would just let it drain into the hull when it would get near full and then at the end of the day I would just drain the hull buy filling it a fair bit with the hose then just opening the bungs at the rear. I didnt like to let any salt water settle in there at all hence the flushing with tap water.

Get some artificial turf the lenght from the lowest low tide point, bolt the top end to the boat house and just roll it out to the tinny then use the winch to pull it up the turf run. There are plenty of options available at Bunnings, just find one that seems to provide the least friction of them all and do it that way. No need then for any fancy dollies to be made or any beach wheels to be bought as they wont be cheap. Just some good old fashioned fake grass that will protect the sand and the bottom of your boat at the same time. Thats what I would do.

And the solution was?? I would have just thought it was sticky pads that may have rusted slightly to the discs so was going to suggest a simple bit of tapping with a metal head hammer on the pads themselves. I used to get this a bit with my trailer but they were mechanical not hydraulic and it turned out that the springs to pull the pads back off the discs were just a little old and a bit of tapping used to get them going every time.

I was on duty one year whilst in the Army and considering our duty room was right up the far end of base no-one ever came up that far especially considering we had a locked gate about 300m from the guard room so we were pretty safe there most nights from curious duty officers and warrant officers. I was a young naive digger at the time and was very wet behind the ears and didnt really know what was ok when the duty Corporal pulled out a carton of Bourbon and cokes. He offered me one and I said "no, I'm on duty corporal its not a good idea" which is the answer he was looking for until he cracked one and said well its going to be a boring night for you then and so I joined him. We ended up drinking a fair bit of that bourbon before one of us came up with the great idea of trying to find a vantage point to see the fireworks all the way in the city from where we were at the time (Holsworthy Barracks, Sydney). The only thing we could come up with was to drive a UniMog up close to the building we were in and get onto the roof and watch the fireworks from there until I suggested we get some of the Linesman gear out of the linies cages and climb the huge water tank not far from the duty room. So off we went 2 drunk as skunk soldiers trying to track down some harness' and roping gear to get up to the top of the tower never really thinking what we would do had we needed to get down of there fast enough to deal with anything that may have gone off in the duty room, but being drunk as wouldnt have really helped anyway. So we actually made it up the tower, set up a fast rope incase we needed to get down quickly and enjoyed what looked like fireworks in the distance at midnight! Its not the most truly fabulous thing others may have done but for me it is the most memorable one for me as most of them from 18 to about 28 were spent horribly drunk in seedy bars all over whatever City I was living in at the time. I've looked at the water tank many times since then and though we were so lucky we didnt die doing what we did cause even looking at it sober it seems quite a feat to conquer thats for sure! Now that I'm older and dont drink, I try my best to stay awake till midnight, kiss and hug everyone in the room Happy New Year and head straight to bed, which is what I will be doing tonight. But, my funny brain seems to come up with wierd things to do the next day some how, not like resolutions or that garbage, but household jobs or tasks that I just didnt even know existed I will wake up early, get stuck in and spend as many hours it takes to get it done. Last year was clean out and sort my man cave that went from 7am to 5pm, and the year before that was build a Tamiya RC rock crawler I think, so God knows what it will be tomorrow but I'm guessing as I sit here loooking at my completely dissorganised and filthy man cave, my sub conscious is already taking in the wierd and wonderful tasks I'll be doing tomorrow I guess. Happy new year to all, and lets hope 2015 kicks off well and with no ill intentions from anyone here in Australia, and world-wide at that! If you are going into crowded public places and anything bad happens, just hit the deck or run the hell out of there if you can. Be safe folks.

When I chose the motor for my 17 foot half cabin, I went on the boats own restrictions then had to do a little bit of math because the time the boat was made the weight and size of motors were very different to that of the motors that were available on the market at time of shopping. I ended up choosing the Yamaha Salt Water Series because living in Sydney, the majority of water around us is salt water. They are built for the harshness of the salt water and as you probably know, its like natures acid!! It will eat away and kill almost anything and if something isnt built specifically for it, it wont last long at all. At the time, my hull was built in the mid 80's and said the maximum was 250kg or 115hp. I checked out the weight of most motors in that year and went from there. I ended up looking at the 2 stroke 115hp but thought the extra $1500 for the extra 15hp to go up to the 130hp was well worth it cause I knew I would be one day pulling 2 skiers up from deep water starts and that motor did it with ease. It was very easy to maitain, and the motors these days do not even need to be started to flush them out, you just connect the hose and turn the tap on and it does it all itself and at 1am in the morning its a fantastic feature. The Yamaha was always 1 turn starts and never ever let me down out on the water, except for the time I lost a prop the first day I took it out after having it fitted and having to be rescued by maratime under a Pan Pan call as things were getting hairy and we were drifting ever so close to rocks, and the worst part about it is that no less than 3 bigger boats completely ignored my orange and black V emergency sheet being held up directly in their faces from less than 200m away. Each boat literally looked the other way and just kept going with atleast 4 people on each boat and not one of them came over to check on us. If it werent for me fitting the radio the night before we would have been in the drink for sure awaiting rescue whilst floating with jackets on. It turned out the apprentice mechanic was fitting the prop and was late for his Xmas party with the marine shop that fitted the prop and forgot to fit the split pin, and with me being a first real boat owner I didnt know to check it before we left botany bay through the heads on a fishing trip with another Doctor friend of mine. Anyway, we got home safe and they replaced the prop free of charge. Back to motors, but yeah, apart from the Yamaha Salt Water series I really have no other experience and to deal with Yamaha Motor Finance throughout the initial purchase days was fantastic. They were really fast and easy to deal with, but if you are buying outright then you wont need to worry about it. I loved that motor which gave me trouble free boating from 30klm off-shore trips to 8 hour days of straight wakeboarding and double/triple tubing all the way up to the 110hours at which I sold it.

Got some PM's and have replied! Keep them coming folks, still very keen on getting out some time! Cheers, Al.

Is this guy a walk-around deck? Even so, I love love love it!!

There are a few on eBay actually, I just have to get a few other to chip in as its for a Bday present for someone else.

Hey folks, Seeing as I don't have my own boat anymore but still have my license, I'd love to do some weekday boat fishing with someone? Will pay for fuel and bait and I know my way around boats and have a few secret Sydney spots to share. I work from home and can drop tools at anytime for a fish and have my own car to get to any ramp anywhere. I'd live some wide fishing chasing Dollies or Jigging Kingies at the Pinicles but am still happy to sit in a bay and chase whatever is biting. I'm a bait person so not really into plastics but will give them a go with the right coach! Cheers, Alan. PM me and we can swap mobile numbers.

They're so damn expensive! All I want is NSW waters! I might email CMAP and Navionics and see if they sell them for just the certain states areas.

Hi folks, Long time no post!!!! I'm wondering if someone can tell me if I can get a navigation software card for waters in around off NSW only? Its for a Lowrance HDS 7. Cheers, Alan.

Man my arms are sore!!! Sorry guys, the reefs were just too choppy for popping so we did some trolling and came up with some great Yellow Fin tuna and Albacore. Here are the pics of the day. Some of the trip out on the boat, and some of the fish caught on the day. 19 all up. Not the biggest yellowfin around but when you are bringing them in every couple of minutes it puts its toll on the muscles!!! And the trip back to port. The guys i went out with were called Nadi Fishing Charters and they were great to be aboard with working out of Port Denarau. Cheers, Alan.

Today im going popping for GT's off the island of Denerau, Fiji. The guys have been getting nothing under 20kg's over the last week or so. 6 hours of fishing is costing me about $115 australian which i think is quite fair. The temp here today is set to hit 30c. Pics will come later. That is all.

Cheers guys, i'll most likely hit up the Hotel reception for a charter when we get there. I cant wait!!

yeah i was thinking that. But i thought we had a sponsor here that worked out of Fiji? Would be good to hook up with him for a trip.

Hi Folks, Havent been on the forum for a while now as ive been flat out with work and life ect, and being in Canberra most of the time doesnt offer much choice for a salt water prefered fisherman!! Anyway, as SWMBO and i didnt have a chance to go on a proper honeymoon in February after our wedding, we have finally got some time off to do it later this month and we are doing it in Fiji!! Now, i dont want to go to Fiji and not try my luck at some GT's or big Dollies!! Can anyone recommend a good charter for me to hook up with (pun intended..lol)? If they are a sponsor go right ahead and post them here, if not, just the usual pm would be great if you have the time!! Im staying at The Sheraton Fiji on Denarau so something close to there would be perfect!! Cheers in advance, Alan.

The Brindabella national park has lots a great spots, but at the moment i dont think any will be accessable at all till the rain and flooding ceases. Have you got a 4wd? As most campsites within the depths (the good ones) of the park need 4wd access. The others on the edges of the park can get crowded and just dont give you that "camping away from it all" feeling as the more secluded spots do. As for a bit further south of canberra, lake eucumbene has been a nice spot that was only introduced to me this year at the start of winter. Would be a great spot at the moment as the trout are having a blast eating all the hatching bugs. Would be a nice place for a swim too at the moment as it starting to heat up down that way. Eucumbene is quite secluded so anywhere even with 2wd along there will be a nice place to camp. East side of Canberra has some nice places too, but thats only from what my mates that are local tell me and northside im not too sure of either.

Gday folks, Im now on leave for a month and have some spare time, but due to selling my boat recently im now land locked!!!! Just curious where everyone is catching fish off the beach lately? I have a pretty decked out 4x4 so somewhere with beach access would be prefered but not essential. I know of boat harbour out near cronulla but ive never really come up too well fishing there. Any ideas? Cheers, Alan.

Hi folks, Im wondering if anyone can help me out with a design? I need a shoulder patch (like the ones worn on the shoulders of most emergency service uniforms) for work. Let me know if you can help out and i'll let you know what i need done. Cheers, Alan. P.s, could possibly hook you up with beer or something for doing it.

Hi folks, This wednesday is the National Servicemens Memorial Dedication at 1130 at the AWM. Im personally leading the Catafalque Party on the day so should get some air time. Look out for it live on channel 7 this wednesday. Cheers, Alan.

Thanks heaps Peter, it means alot to me mate. Hope this post finds you well. Alan.

Hi folks, I only recently got back from a trip to France with work to participate in the re-internment of 2 WW1 soldiers. One in Fromelles and one in Prowse Point, Belgium. Here are a few pics of the trip. This is the spot just next to Pheasant wood where the 250 British and Australian soldiers were discovered. If you enlarge this picture, you can read the history behind the Fromelles cemetery. The cemetery before it was open to the public. I was one of the first Australian soldiers to view it. Me at the entrance to the cemetery. A billboard in the town of Fromelles to remind the people that live there about the history and what the Brits and Aussies did for them against the oncoming enemy. Australia lost over 5000 troops in less than 24 hours in the battle of Fromelles. Our greatest loss in such a short time in Australian war history. Some of the men that went over the trenches were only 16 years old! More to follow in parts 2,3 and 4

Here is the original bugle (was a trumpet till it was sealed) that was blown on the day of the battle. Closer inscription on the bugle. Me holding a locked and loaded French FAMAS. Me and my father. He drove up from Paris just to see me on parade in all my Army glory. It was such a proud moment for me.

A memorial to the Khaki Chums Xmas truce. Google it, its a great story of pride and honour on both parts (Allies and Germans) The Australian War memorial in Villers-Bretonneux. Its bloody huge and still bares scars from WW2. 11000 names of soldiers on the walls that are still unaccounted for. I love this photo, it shows my families heritage flag (French) flying with the flag of the country i serve and call home. Makes me choke up. More to follow.